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Pat Launer, Center Stage on KSDS JAZZ88
June 28, 2013
There’s a precarious line between funny and silly – and an equally perilous border between Whodunit and Huh?
Two current productions nearly tumble over the edge – but that doesn’t stop us from enjoying the ride.
At the Old Globe, opening the Summer Shakespeare Festival, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is a free-for-all for the “Rude Mechanicals,” those workaday tradesmen who aspire to serious performance of romantic tragedy.
In giddy, gleeful fashion, they open the show, setting the decidedly light-hearted, vaudevillian tone for the evening, cheerfully warning us of the perils of using not-yet-invented devices during the performance.
It’s the fun-factor that reigns in Ian Talbot’s production. The criss-crossed quartet of young lovers gets pretty wacky, too. At one point, Lysander, thanks to a fairy potion, literally dumps his former beloved, tossing her off a cliff, upstage among the trees.
There’s an accent on the physical here, especially among the fairies. Lucas Hall’s Puck is, well, puckish – agile as a monkey, nimbly climbing, jumping and hanging by one hand from the two-story set.
The Fairy Queen Titania rises in her bower from beneath the stage. Most engaging is the prankish, fantastical magic made by the Fairy King, Oberon and his minion, Puck. The lighting, costumes and sound contribute mightily to the jubilant proceedings, though perhaps it’d be best to avoid solo singing from the leads.
Now we recede from the sunlight of “Midsummer,” into the shadows of “John Ball’s In the Heat of the Night” at ion theatre. The 1965 book, as well as the film it inspired, shines a merciless spotlight on 1960s racism, Southern style. In view of the recent, shocking outbursts of celebrity chef Paula Deen , the South may not have come out of the dark racist ages yet.
In the unforgettable 1967 movie, starring Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger , the bedrock of the story is the relationship between the good ole boy sheriff and the refined, educated black detective who’s detained in the backwoods town.
Playwright Matt Pelfrey went back to the book for his stage adaptation, but he made some odd choices and changes, and it doesn’t do the mystery any favors. The fantasy sequences are lame and unnecessary. The nice cop, Sam, actually develops a closer relationship with Virgil Tibbs than the sheriff does. And what card-carrying redneck would share sips from a bottle with a black man but wouldn’t shake his hand? And worse, the resolution of the murder is murky at the end.
But there’s no fault to be found with the outstanding cast, directed by Francis Gercke and headed by Vimel Sephus and Tom Stephenson. Some playing multiple roles vary the characters and their looks more than others, but the piece remains provocative and disturbing.
So this week, it’s comedy or drama, mystery or magic. For the price of two tickets, you can have it all.
“John Ball’s In The Heat Of The Night” runs through July 13, at ion theatre, in Hillcrest.
‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream” continues, in repertory, on the Old Globe’s outdoor ‘Festival Stage,’ through September.
©2013 PAT LAUNER
MUSIC SELECTIONS
FOR THEATER REVIEW
Center Stage with Pat Launer on KSDS JAZZ88
THEATER REVIEWS
“A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM” – The Old Globe
“JOHN BALL’S IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT” – ion theatre
June 28, 2013
Look up Cambodian Music
IN: “Darkness and Light” (Ruth King)
OUT: “Magic” (Stimulator; Tim Myers; Megan Martin; Honor Society)
THEATER PROMO
Center Stage with Pat Launer on KSDS JAZZ88
THEATER REVIEWS
“A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM” – The Old Globe
“JOHN BALL’S IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT” – ion theatre
June 28, 2013
Hi, I’m Pat Launer… Join me Center Stage, on Jazz 88.3, for my regular theater review. This week, it’s mystery and magic. Catch my reviews of “John Ball’s In the Heat of the Night” and “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” coming up tomorrow (this) morning at 9, on San Diego’s Jazz 88.3.
I’m Pat Launer, Center Stage on San Diego’s Jazz88.3.
Center Stage with Pat Launer
THEATER REVIEWS
“A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM” – The Old Globe
“JOHN BALL’S IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT” – ion theatre
June 28, 2013
INTRO:
IT’S A MATTER OF DARKNESS… OR LIGHT .
KSDS THEATER CRITIC PAT LAUNER REVIEWS “JOHN BALL’S IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT” AND “A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM.”
OUTRO : 0
“JOHN BALL’S IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT” RUNS THROUGH JULY 13, AT ION THEATRE, IN HILLCREST.
‘A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM” CONTINUES, IN REPERTORY, ON THE OLD GLOBE’S OUTDOOR ‘FESTIVAL STAGE,’ THROUGH SEPTEMBER.
PAT WILL BE BACK WITH A THEATER REVIEW NEXT FRIDAY AT 9AM, WITH AN ENCORE PRESENTATION EVERY SATURDAY MORNING AT 9.
YOU CAN READ AND LISTEN TO HER REVIEWS ONLINE, ANY TIME, AT JAZZ88.ORG.
