Put a Little Drama in your Life
Pat Launer, Center Stage on KSDS JAZZ88 July 31, 2015 It’s amazing that a show with such a cringe-inducing premise could have so many tender moments. “Dogfight,” a musical based on a 1991 film, refers to a cruel game in which Marines bet on which of them can snag the ugliest date. Eddie Birdlaces tarts out on a Greyhound bus heading for San Francisco, returning from his deployment in Vietnam. He’s thinking back to November 21, 1963, Read More →
PAT LAUNER TIMES OF SAN DIEGO 7/25/15 A Chilly Midsummer Story: “The Winter’s Tale” at Intrepid Theatre “Shakespeare Unplugged” It’s the latest initiative from Intrepid Theatre Company, a stripped-down Bard-work, without elaborate sets, props or costumes. The focus is just on the language. That intention is commendably realized in the company’s inaugural ‘Unplugged’ production, “The Winter’s Tale.” It isn’t an easy play, but Intrepid has never taken the easy route. Consider the show that’s running in repertory with this one: “The Quality Read More →
Pat Launer, Center Stage on KSDS JAZZ88 July 24, 2015 They say every picture tells a story. But not every song. Unless it’s written by Stephen Sondheim, musical theater’s most revered living composer/lyricist. With his dazzling wordplay, he conveys a character, an emotion, and a very particular moment in time. Sondheim has actually said that, without those pieces of information, he can’t even begin to write a song. Many evenings of theater have focused on his funniest Read More →
PAT LAUNER TIMES OF SAN DIEGO 7/21/15 The art of the con and the power of love: “The Music Man” at Moonlight “You gotta know the territory.” It’s a through-line in the beloved Americana musical, “The Music Man.” And it certainly applies to its magnificent creator/composer/lyricist, Meredith Willson, who was born in the state where he set his show – small-town Iowa (his native Mason City became the fictional River City). He was also a flutist and piccolo player in Read More →
Pat Launer, Center Stage on KSDS JAZZ88 July 17, 2015 You don’t have to “Brush Up Your Shakespeare” to enjoy “Kiss Me, Kate.” But the more familiar you are with “The Taming of the Shrew,” the source of this brilliant 1948 musical, the more you’ll relish it. The clever book is by Sam and Bella Spewak, with its crafty play-within-a-play structure. The gorgeous score is by Cole Porter, smart/satiric wordsmith extraordinaire. Darko Tresnjak, former artistic director Read More →
PAT LAUNER TIMES OF SAN DIEGO 7/14/15 Wonder Women: Goddesses take center stage in “Eternally Bad” Some mythical goddesses have done some very ungodly things… like castrating men, or cutting their heads off, or eating them alive. This, among other juicy-but-nasty tidbits, is what we learn in “Eternally Bad,” the world premiere lecture cum song cycle written and directed by Javier Velasco, based on the 2001 book by feminist comics artist and writer Trina Robbins (who was in town for Read More →