Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Review: NEWSIES Continues to Win Audiences' Affection in LA
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| Original company, North American Tour of NEWSIES. ©Disney. Photos by Deen van Meer. |
I already knew Disney’s Newsies had developed cult status before I saw the show because its legions of loyal “Fansies” have championed it from the very beginning. But even I wasn’t prepared for the audience’s screams of appreciation for the hard-working boys – and one girl – who form the heart of the current national tour playing at the Hollywood Pantages through September 4.
It isn’t a surprise. Few among us can resist the chest-swelling pride we feel when the underdog wins. In many ways, the little guy represents all of us regular folk, in some form or another. Idealistic but without the resources of the rich, and often without the loud voices of the political and economic bullies, it as if one of our own has somehow breached the impenetrable fortress of the world and won.
In this case, sixteen or so street urchins prove that a little solidarity can go a long way, even if you’re only a ragtag bunch of orphans selling newspapers on the street. If you believe in your cause and don’t back down, the establishment has nothing to do but listen.
Newsies is based on the true story of an 1899 Newsboy Strike that took place in New York City. In an effort to increase their profits, newspaper owners Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst colluded to raise the price of their papers from fifty to sixty cents per hundred, which meant a significant drop in the newsies’ meager earnings. Led by one young orphan with a dream and publicized by an aspiring newspaperwoman on a mission to legitimize her writing, boys from all the boroughs across New York united and eventually achieved their goal. In the end, both sides learn the value of compromise, and that's what it’s really all about.
It was a musical film first, directed by Kenny Ortega and released in 1992; then a stage production, adapted by Harvey Fierstein (book), Alan Menken (music), and Jack Feldman (lyrics) that became an accidental hit, largely due to its fans. From Paper Mill Playhouse to Broadway to its still-running first national tour, the phenomenon shows no signs of diminishing.
Directed by Jeff Calhoun and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli, it pulses with heart-pumping adrenaline. Gattelli integrates dance into the story in much the same way the brilliant Michael Kidd did in musicals like Guys and Dolls and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Newsies’ brash and exciting production numbers explode with sequences that literally defy gravity. It would be interesting to know how may backflips, split jumps, leaps, and pirouettes the production actually contains. This is definitely a show for musical theatre geeks to geek out on. Its two and a half hours fly by.
An eager enthusiasm pervades its young but undeniably gifted cast. Each of the boys reveals a unique personality that humanizes his plight. Head newsboy Jack Kelly’s (Joey Barreiro) swagger meets its match in the dry humor of Katherine’s (Morgan Keene) verbal takedowns. Their slow burn of a romance doesn’t exist in the film but creates a welcome counterpoint to the feverishly propulsive pacing of the stage production. Keene has a lovely Disney princess singing voice but could do with a little less singsong cadence in her speech pattern.
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| Morgan Keene and Joey Barreiro |
Kelly’s optimistic best bud, Crutchie (Andy Richardson), has a bum leg but he still moves like lightning across the stage, until he’s beaten up by the authorities and lands in the Refuge, an institution that is no refuge for the poor. Davy (Stephen Michael Langton) may not have brawn but he does have brains and a sincere desire to help his struggling family while tough guy Anthony Zas (Spot Conlin, leader of the Brooklyn boys) is the don’t-mess-with-me back-up the striking Newsies desperately need.
Aisha de Haas, as singer Medda Larkin, runs the club where Kelly hides out when the authorities are hot on his trail and it is there we learn of his artistic abilities as a painter. She’s as close to a mother as this orphan will ever get and she sings with a ballsy lilt that is a delight, outfitted in a hot pink glittery feathered gown. Oh, what a gal. Steve Blanchard’s (Joseph Pulitzer) deep baritone voice thunders condescendingly throughout.
Still, the cast is not without vocal issues. Intonation is questionable at times and there is a lack of polish in individual voices that tend to overreach high notes but that is largely forgivable given the non-stop athletics of the show. Newsies’ real power is its ensemble work. Every time the cast comes together as a cohesive unit (whether vocally or physically), it soars. In this musical, the whole always is greater than the sum of its parts and the impact of their ensemble scenes and dances creates a showstopping behemoth of audience pleasure.
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| The cast of Newsies |
Tobin Obst’s massive 3-tiered scenic design of intertwining steel New York fire escapes overlooks the city against a rich watercolor sky, transforming into a variety of bleak pre-twentieth century interiors and exteriors with precision. Jess Goldstein’s costumes, complete with newspaper bags that go from functional work attire to spinning dance props, also help define the characters with their subtle touches – an undershirt over bulging muscles or a dirty Baker Boy cap pulled down in defiance, plus a wide variety of tweed garments the boys can easily dance in.
With the exuberance of youth on its side and a story whose core issue of fairness is as relatable as ever, Newsies continues to impress with its wow factor. Grab a seat now because it only runs through Labor Day weekend and it’s worth every penny!
NEWSIES
August 30 - September 4, 2016
Hollywood Pantages Theatre
6233 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, 90028
www.hollywoodpantages.com
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Labels: pantages
Monday, August 29, 2016
MUSICAL NEWS for Monday, August 29, 2016
MUSICAL NEWS
An all-star ensemble joins For The Record when it returns to Los Angeles with a new production, For The Record: Scorsese - American Crime Requiem, kicking off the 2016-17 season at The Wallis, Sept 21-Oct 16. Show will feature Tony Award-winner John Lloyd Young, Tony Award-nominee Carmen Cusack, American Idol’s Pia Toscano, Lindsey Gort (The Carrie Diaries), Grammy Award-nominee B. Slade, and For The Record alums James Byous, Dionne Gipson, Olivia Harris, Doug Kreeger, Justin Mortelliti, Jason Paige, and Zak Resnick. The performance will highlight 40 years of Scorsese’s storytelling through films like GoodFellas, Casino, The Departed, The Wolf of Wall Street and more on a massive four tier stage.
“Over the past year, we have been expanding the For The Record brand outside of Los Angeles by presenting our 1980’s inspired Brat Pack show on the Norwegian Cruise Line’s Escape, opening Baz (Luhrmann) - Star Crossed Love at The Palazzo Theater in Las Vegas, and most recently announcing a partnership with dick clark productions and ABC to develop the series as live musical events for the network,” said co-creator/Executive Producer Shane Scheel. “We are thrilled to finally be back home in Los Angeles with this new partnership at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.” www.thewallis.org
Chromolume Theatre presents Jason Robert Brown’s song-cycle Songs For A New World, directed by James Esposito, with musical direction by Daniel Yokomizo, Sept 9-25. Cast includes Bailey Humiston, Matt Mancuso, Teresa Tracy, Kenny Gary, Samantha Lawrence, James Esposito, and Bonnie Sludikoff. The show is about “one moment, hitting a wall and having to make a choice, or to take a stand, or to turn around and go back.” www.crtheatre.com
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| Pilobolus' Shadowland. Photo by Ian Douglas |
FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT
Pilobolus’ amazing spectacle of inventiveness, Shadowland, returns to Southern California on Sunday, Oct 2 at 3:00pm to kick-off VPAC’s popular Family Matinee Series. Created by famed dance company Pilobolus after years of experimentation with short-form shadow play, Shadowland is part shadow act, part dance, part circus and part concert. It was conceived in collaboration with Steven Banks, lead writer for the playfully surreal animated series SpongeBob SquarePants, and is propelled by a rhythmic original score by David Poe. Shadowland is the storybook journey of a young girl coming of age, funny and sensational, told with Pilobolus’ signature fusion of shadow, theatre and dance. valleyperformingartscenter.org
The Arcadia Performing Arts Foundation presents the Shanghai Acrobats of the People’s Republic of China on Friday, Sept 23 at 8pm. For over fifty years, the Shanghai Acrobats have proven to be one of the most influential and competitive acrobatic companies in China. The company’s acrobats, jugglers and contortionists create a performance highlighted by specially designed backdrops, lighting and music that promises to entertain and enlighten people of all ages. www.arcadiapaf.org
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Labels: arcadia perf arts center, cabrillo music theatre, chromolume theatre, garage theatre, the wallis, valley performing arts center
Wednesday, August 24, 2016
MUSICAL NEWS for Wednesday, August 24, 2016
“When a free-spirited mother convinces her whip-smart teenage daughter to join her on a drive across the country, neither can imagine where it will take them. Chance encounters with a motley crew of characters along the way brings them closer to understanding what sets them apart — and what connects them forever. A vibrant and affecting new American musical, Miss You Like Hell exudes the joy, love and frustration of being a family in a changing country.” Joining Rubin-Vega as Beatriz are Krystina Alabado, Cliff Bemis, Vanessa A. Jones, David Patrick Kelly, Julio Monge, Olivia Oguma, Victor Chan, Cashae Monya, and Kürt Norby. www.LaJollaPlayhouse.org
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Labels: cyanide theater, la jolla playhouse, palos verdes performing arts, rubicon theatre, theatre unleashed
Friday, August 19, 2016
CABARET, FILM & DANCE NEWS for Friday, August 19, 2016
CABARET/CONCERTS
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| Kurtis Simmons |
The following Monday night (August 29) at Rockwell, Kurtis Simmons makes his LA solo debut performing songs from his critically acclaimed pop/rock CD Fraction of a Thread, along with tunes from his original musical Hipster Sweatshop (co-written with Kyle Puccia and Darryl Stephens). Music direction is by Sean Bart. Also appearing with Simmons are Jordan Kai Burnett and Nicci Claspell. Rockwell-la.com
Theatricum Botanicum’s Under the Oaks salon series returns during the month of September with four Thursday night musical performances outdoors under the California oaks in the company’s S. Mark Taper Foundation Pavilion. Sept 1 is an evening of song with actress Judy Norton. On Sept 8 it’s Roots, gospel and old school R&B with Skyrocket recording artists Little Faith. Sept 15 Tom Allard will perform Love Songs, Storytime and Moon-Madness! with musical guests. And on Sept 22, multi-instrumentalists Many Distant Cities (Clara Dykstra on accordion, ukulele and trumpet, Liz Eldridge on glockenspiel and ukulele, and Carl Turner on bass, drums and ominichord will sing about love and dying and bleeding a lot. www.theatricum.com
An Evening of Classic Broadway with Brad Ellis and Dianne Fraser returns August 22. Show features music by music by Bernstein, Sondheim, Guettel, Jason Robert Brown, Hugh Martin, Kander & Ebb sung by Julie Garnyé, Emma Ashford, Joshua Finkel, Barrett Foa, Zachary Ford, Susan Edwards Martin and Christina Saffran. Rockwell-la.com
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| Photo courtesy of Disney |
It’s hard to believe that Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is celebrating its 25th anniversary, but it is. To mark the occasion, the El Capitan theatre in Hollywood is showing the film daily, Sept 2-18, and also featuring a special appearance by Belle, live on stage before each screening. Showtimes are 10am, 1pm, 4pm & 7pm. Tuesdays are designated as Tiny Tot Tuesday and during the 10am screening, parents and small children can enjoy the movie in a tot-friendly way – with lights dimmed rather than out and with reduced sound levels. At the end of the film, families will have the opportunity take pictures with Belle on stage. For more info about special events in connection with the screenings at the El Capitan go to www.elcapitantickets.com.
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| CONTRA-TIEMPO |
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| Photo by Marc Domage |
Local favorite Diavolo – Architecture in Motion is celebrating its 25th Anniversary season by bringing Passengers, a new work, to The Broad Stage, Sept 23-25, along with audience favorite Trajectoire. Passengers takes place on and around a giant morphing staircase with multiple doors, passageways, and shifting surfaces. Here, the dancers contend with themes of journey and transition and the tenuous balance we attempt to strike each day as both indomitable drivers and unwitting passengers. Following intermission, Trajectoire takes the audience on a visceral and emotional journey through the ebb and flow of the human experience. As the performers struggle to find their balance on a voyage of destiny and destination, Trajectoire shows the transcendence of the human soul against all odds. www.thebroadstage.org
The USC Glorya Kaufman International Dance Center will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, Oct 5 to celebrate its grand opening. The center will act as the new home of the USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance, the first new school to be established at USC in nearly forty years. “This is the largest dance-dedicated complex on a private university campus,” said Jeffrey de Caen, Associate Dean for Operations. At the Kaufman Dance Center, students will have endless tools to experiment with different settings and engage in dialogue with other performing arts disciplines both on and off campus; even its courtyard can act as a non-traditional venue space.” Kaufman.usc.edu
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Labels: el capitan, redcat, rockwell, the broad stage, theatricum botanicum
Thursday, August 18, 2016
MUSICAL NEWS for Thursday, August 18, 2016
MUSICAL CELEBRATION
MUSICAL NEWS
International City Theatre has announced its upcoming 2017 season, which begins with Forever Plaid, Feb 15 – March 5 (opening night 2/16). Always an audience favorite, it is the story of four young singers killed in a car crash on the way to their first-ever big concert who miraculously return to earth to fulfill their dream and perform the show after all, sixty years later. Written by Stuart Ross and featuring musical arrangements by James Raitt, Forever Plaid was first produced in 1990, yet remains one of the most popular and successful off-Broadway musicals in history. For a complete look at ICT’s 2017 season, visit www.internationalcitytheatre.org.
COLLEGE THEATRE
The CSULB University Players will present Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley’s Stop the World I Want to Get Off as part of their 2016-2017 season. Show runs Oct 7 – 16 in the Studio Theatre and is directed by Joanne Gordon. The quirky, British musical is a tale of rags to riches that will take the audience on a journey of one man’s search for hope during his rise to fame. Cast includes Christian Sullivan as Littlechap and Alexandra Billings (ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder, Amazon’s Transparent) in multiple roles as the many women in Littlechap’s life, with Maddie Larson, Asialani Holman, Kaleigh Clark, Bonnie Dolan, Asialani Holman, Likun Jing, Lara Lafferty, Maddie Larson, Tamanii Meeks, and Carolina Xique. Ticket Link
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Labels: barn stage company, CSULB, international city theatre, laguna playhouse, the wallis
Wednesday, August 17, 2016
MUSICAL NEWS for Wednesday, August 17, 2016
NEW SEASONS
Latino Theatre Company celebrates its 30th anniversary by presenting Evelina Fernández’s award-winning trilogy, Faith, Hope and Charity, in its entirety as one unforgettable tour de force - A Mexican Trilogy: An American Tale. You can choose to experience the epic adventure over the course of two evenings or as one all-day immersive experience (box dinners available for purchase). Directed by Latino Theater Company’s artistic director José Luis Valenzuela, it features musical direction by Rosino Serrano and choreography by Urbanie Lucero. A Mexican Trilogy runs Sept 8 – Oct 9 (opening night 9/15).
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| A Mexican Triilogy: Faith. Photo by Pablo Santiago |
The story follows the Morales family through decades of the Mexican-American experience, from a remote mining town in Arizona during World War II, to the Phoenix family home during the Cuban Missile Crisis, and, finally to Los Angeles following the death of Pope John Paul II in 2005. Compelling, funny, with songs and a splash of magical realism, it touches on aspects of tradition, religion, labor issues, war and the clash between immigrants and their first and second generation American offspring. In just five hours, the twelve-actor ensemble portrays members of the Morales family over the course of 90 years and four generations. As the years fly by, we recognize the music of each era in classic songs ranging from the Andrews Sisters and Glenn Miller, to the Isley Brothers and Elvis, to Jimi Hendrix, all sung live. Cast stars Lucy Rodriguez, Olivia Cristina Delgado, Esperanza America, Ella Saldaña North, Sal Lopez, Kenneth Miles Ellington Lopez, Julio Macias, Sam Golzari, Evelina Fernández, Robert Beltran, Xavi Moreno, and Geoffrey Rivas. For a complete schedule of dates and times visit www.thelatc.org.
NEW WORKS
Overtone Industries, known for its development of contemporary music theatre and experimental opera, presents the next phase of its epic new multidisciplinary production, Iceland, in concert form, at the Ford Theatres’ newly renovated amphitheatre on Friday, October 7, 8:30pm. The new work is written and composed by O-Lan Jones, in collaboration with acclaimed Irish singer-songwriter Emmett Tinley. It is a modern love story, set in a mythical and timeless world, where ancient creatures challenge the hero and heroine on an archetypal journey. The work begins in an Icelandic airport before journeying off the map of the known world, into the realm of “The Hiddenfolk” and the vast mythic inner landscapes of Iceland.
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| Cesili Williams and the Hiddenfolk. Photo by Martha Benedict |
I saw the first half hour of the piece during REDCAT’s New Works Festival in 2014 and was quite taken with it. I’m excited to see this next phase of its development. This performance at The Ford will be the first time it will be heard with full orchestration and complete score. The performance is directed and choreographed by Ken Roht, with musical direction by David O. Cast includes Emmett Tinley as Mundi and Cesili Williams as Vala, with Patty Cornell, Matthew McCray, MJ Silva, and Silvie Zamora. www.fordtheatres.org
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Labels: latino theatre company, little candle productions, old globe, overtone industries, panic productions, valley performing arts center
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
MUSICAL NEWS for Tuesday, August 16, 2016
Pasadena Playhouse has announced the cast for its upcoming production of Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones’s The Fantasticks, directed by Seema Sueko. Show runs Sept 6 – Oct 2, with opening night on Sept 11. Starring as El Gallo is Philip Anthony-Rodriguez, with Conor Guzmán and Ashley Park as young lovers Matt and Luisa, Regi Davis and Gedde Watanabe as their fathers Bellomy and Hucklebee, Alyse Rockett as The Mute, Amir Talai as Mortimer, and Hal Linden as Henry. Musical direction is by David O and choreography is by Kitty McNamee. Perhaps most exciting is that Sueko has a new vision for the show, one she has worked with lyricist & bookwriter Tom Jones to create. Their discussions even prompted Jones to rewrite several sections of the musical some sixty years later.
Sheldon Epps, Artistic Director of The Pasadena Playhouse says, “Seema and her creative team have brought together a wonderfully diverse, talented, charming, and persuasive cast for our production of this much loved musical. I have no doubt that the entire company will bring both freshness and immediacy to this great classic that will have audiences not just rediscovering the show, but in fact seeing it as if for the first time. I very much look forward to their contributions to this true gem of a musical.” www.pasadenaplayhouse.org
Triage Productions and Standing Room Only Productions are getting ready to open Next To Normal at Pico Playhouse this weekend. The production will feature a live five-piece band conducted by music director Taylor Stephenson and stars Isa Briones (Natalie), Michelle Lane (Diana), Harrison Meloeny (Gabe), Randal Miles (Dr. Madden/Dr. Fine), Blaine Miller (Henry), and Nick Sarando (Dan) directed by Thomas James O’Leary. Next to Normal runs Aug 18 – Sept 25 (opening night Friday, August 19 at 8pm). There will be a Q&A Talk-back after the Sunday matinees on 8/21, 9/4 & 9/18. Ticket Link
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Labels: la mirada theatre, pasadena playhouse, rubicon theatre