Saturday, October 5, 2019
First Look: Open Fist Theatre Company's World Premiere of NEIL SIMON'S MUSICAL FOOLS
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| James Byous and Jason Paige. All photos by Darrett Sanders. |
Open Fist Theatre Company presents the world premiere of Neil Simon’s Musical Fools, a comic adaptation of the Neil Simon play Fools, with book and lyrics by Simon, and music and lyrics by Phil Swann and Ron West. In 1893 Ukraine, a young tutor arrives in Kulyenchikov after a harrowing journey only to discover that the village is cursed, rendering every resident as dumb as a bag of rocks. Will he fall victim to the curse, or can he save himself and the village too? Find out in this hilarious adventure featuring James Byous, Parvesh Cheena, Cat Davis, Nina Genatossio, Juliane Hagn, Hank Jacobs, Derek Manson, Brendan Mulally, Jason Paige, Diane Renee, Beth Robbins, Robyn Roth, Bolor Saruul, Jack Sharpe and Clare Snodgrass. Ron West directs, music direction is by Jan Roper, and choreography is by Louisa Kendrick Burton. Oct. 4 – Nov. 17. www.openfist.org
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| Jason Paige, Derek Manson, Clare Snodgrass and Robyn Roth |
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| Parvesh Cheenah (center) and the ensemble |
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| Derek Manson, Parvesh Cheena, Robyn Roth, Cat Davis, Brendan Mulally, and Hank Jacobs |
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| The Ensemble of Neil Simon's Musical Fools |
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| James Byous and Clare Snodgrass |
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| Jason Paige |
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| James Byous (center) and Ensemble |
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| James Byous (center) and Ensemble |
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| James Byous and Jason Paige. |
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| James Byous, Robyn Roth, and Derek Manson |
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| The Ensemble of Neil Simon's Musical Fools |
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Labels: open fist theatre
Monday, November 13, 2017
Review: Open Fist Theatre Company Gets DELEARIOUS on Stage
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| Ramón Garcia, Ron West, Chris Farah. All photos by Darrett Sanders |
Open Fist Theatre Company’s revival of Ron West and Phil Swann’s musical comedy deLEARious has a lot going on. The production contains three storylines in three different time periods twisted together in a fast-paced, boisterous style that was an award-winning hit for the company in 2008. Nine years later, it still packs in more story than you can possibly keep straight but it also offers up plenty of laughs to go along with it.
You’ll need to know the basic plot and characters of Shakespeare’s King Lear before you get there and that King James was Shakespeare’s benefactor after Queen Elizabeth I died. From there, you’re basically in for three hours of rowdy playtime in a fractured fairytale world where Lear gets a happy ending, Shakespeare helps edit the King James Bible, and a modern-day pair of writers attempts to write a musical.
The jokes are hit-and-miss, as are the performances, but the cast plows through with so much enthusiasm that the fun is infectious regardless of the show’s shortcomings. West stars as a loud-mouthed Lear and also directs. He directed the original production as well and there is a nagging sense he is using jokes and staging that got laughs for the cast the first time around. They aren’t always successful here but that may be partly attributed to the way the scenes cut back and forth so quickly the audience doesn’t always have time to catch up.
Some of the punchlines have been updated to include references to things like texting and the Trumps however the contemporary thread of the story never fully steps into 2017. West uses astrology to explain how Elizabethan characters in 1603 could have knowledge of objects that only exist today but it too is a repetitive device, thin at best.
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| Micah Watterson and Jason Paige |
On the flip side, you can never go wrong with a singing villain, and Jason Paige (Edmund the bastard) plays it straight and gets the funny right. He betrays his father, orchestrates the downfall of his brother Edgar (Micah Watterson), and forms alliances with Goneril (Robyn Roth) and Regan (Rachel Addington) all by hiding his true intentions behind a demeanor of comic sincerity. It’s a sly wink that he sings romantic ‘80s power ballads with Roth (a winner as Lear’s ball-busting eldest daughter) and then later morphs into an eccentric Frances Bacon, a character who has a great deal in common with Jerry Lewis’ nutty professor.
Other standout performances include Scott Mosenson as a smooth William Shakespeare and Gina Manziello in a double turn as Lear’s youngest daughter Cordelia, and Jasmine, a stripper Ron meets in a bar whose interpretive dance audition is unforgettably over-the-top.
A coterie of actors playing numerous roles adds to the sketch comedy feel of the piece. Among the characters are an effeminate King James (Chase Studinski), a pissed off Anne Hathaway (Lane Allison with a lovely mid-range singing voice), the king’s Fool (Chris Farrah), and a host of other Earls, Scholars, Royals, and Scribes. When everything is firing on all cylinders we get clever scenes like the writers’ room of the Christian Brotherhood, a terrific combination of sitcom writing, smart lyrics, and well-defined characters.
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| The cast of deLEARious |
Swann’s score is full of lusty musical numbers that cover everything from pop to Broadway to the blues, and musical director Jan Roper is the put-upon pianist who’s finally had it with Ron’s childish behavior. Her piano bench throne draped in red velvet is a cheeky touch by scenic designer James Spencer. Spencer frames the stage with cutouts that resemble giant chess pieces leaving an uncluttered playing area for the actors but firmly placing the action in court.
deLEARious is a fun-loving musical comedy whose only goal is to make you laugh. Its kooky characters and good-time appeal easily get the job done.
deLEARious
November 10 - December 16, 2017
Open Fist Theatre Company
Atwater Village Theatre
3269 Casitas Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90039
www.openfist.org
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| Rachel Addington and Robyn Roth |
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| Jason Paige and Scott Mosenson |
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| Gina Manziello and Ramón Garcia |
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| L-R: Chris Farah, Rachel Addington, Ron West, Scott Mosenson and Robyn Roth |
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| Chase Studinski and cast |
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| Scott Mosenson and Micah Watterson |
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Labels: open fist theatre
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Review: Open Fist Theatre Company's Must-See Musical, James Joyce's The Dead
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| The cast of Open Fist Theatre Company's James Joyce's The Dead. Photos by Eric Neil Guttierez |
When a show moves me like this one did, it’s worth raving about. Minus the bombardment of glitz and flash so often shoe-horned into modern day musicals, the remount of Open Fist Theatre Company’s James Joyce’s The Dead is instead that rare production that breathes life into our hearts with its singular connection to our humanity. By revealing the flaws in our perception of the world around us, it finds the beauty in the ordinary and elevates it to something fine. For that reason, it is my first must-see musical of 2014.
Before it even begins, the quaint old-fashioned tone is set by musical director Dean Mora (on piano) and his musicians (Eden Livingood on violin, Jennifer Richardson on cello, and Kelly De Sarla on flute), playing in the parlor onstage. It is the parlor of the Missus Morkans and it will soon be filled with family and friends as they celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany during their annual Christmas party. Time and place: Dublin, near the turn of the century.
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| The cast of James Joyce's The Dead |
You also want to sit close to fully appreciate Rob Nagle’s magnificent narration. He has a gift for making you feel like you’re the only person in the room when he speaks to the audience and his soul-searching honesty reveals a poignant self-awareness of his character’s shortcomings perplexed by a world that, to him, lacks the respect of days gone by. His beautiful speech searching for “the words that can express one’s heart” also reveals a reticence in communication that, often repeated, has now become habit, and by this stage in his marriage is a pattern too confounding to change.
Not that his wife Gretta (Martha Demson) hasn’t realized it. The secret she reveals this night is not what Gabriel would have anticipated and, like the passing of the torch within the hierarchy of the family, its impact will surely be felt in the days and years to come. A luminous Demson, who is also Open Fist’s artistic director, moves through the play with the grace of a woman who knows and accepts the picture of her life yet, when prompted by a song from the past, cannot forget the pain of younger days.
The party is a microcosm of life; tensions rise, missteps are made, and yet there is joy threaded through every fiber of this quiet, careful portrait. Infectious laughter ripples through the room as guests alternate taking the lead in the evening’s entertainment. Niece Mary Jane (Melissa Sullivan) and Michael (Devon Armstrong) sing a charming ode to “Kate Kearney” while already inebriated guest Freddy (John LeMay) makes a splash with his jaunty pub song. Later, he and the ensemble stomp to “Wake the Dead,” much to the annoyance of the downstairs neighbor. Gretta’s haunting “Goldenhair” is the catalyst for Gabriel’s epiphany to come and the two also sing a poignant “Adieu to Ballyshannon.”
Each in his turn offers the gift of a song, always sung from the heart, and none more touching than “When Lovely Lady Stoops to Folly,” sweetly tendered by the elderly Aunt Julia (Jacque Lynn Colton). Though her wandering mind can no longer hold the lyric, it is clear that she is a woman well-loved by her family and Colton is enchanting in the role.
The Dead (book by Richard Nelson, lyrics by Nelson and Shaun Davey, and music by Davey) is based on James Joyce’s final novella in “The Dubliners,” a compilation of short stories about the Irish middle class, written at the turn of the century when Ireland was at a crossroads and nationalism ran high. As such, an undercurrent of restlessness is evident beneath the surface of Joyce’s work. Nothing is ever as simple as it seems and no one will be more conscious of that fact than Gabriel by the evening’s end.
Kris Knekt’s tastefully appointed scenic design and Dan Reed’s subtle lighting create a comforting backdrop for the rich reds and earthy tones of A. Jeffrey Schoenberg’s period costumes and Bruce Dickinson & Ina Shumaker’s heirloom furnishings are a functional mix. When combined, these elements create a necessary normalcy that promises, however fleeting, to be a respite from the chilling winter wind outdoors and the unavoidable changes that loom ahead.
Open Fist may be wandering in search of a permanent theater to call home but that has not stopped them from giving audiences a beautiful production in the interim. A finer evening of theatre you will not find in Los Angeles. The delicacy of the storytelling and profound simplicity of the words leave a lasting impression, one that should be experienced.
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| The men sing to Aunt Julia (Jacque Lynn Colton) |
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| Rob Nagle and Martha Demson as Gabriel and Gretta Conroy |
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| Martha Demson as Gretta Conroy |
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| The cast of James Joyce's The Dead |
James Joyce's THE DEAD
January 18 - February 22, 2014
Open Fist Theatre Company
Original direction by Charles Otte
Greenway Court Theater
544 N Fairfax
Hollywood, CA
Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 7pm
Tickets: (323) 882-6912 or www.openfist.org
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Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Open Fist Theatre to feature new Shoshana Bean Musical in its First Look Festival
Produced by Shoshana Bean, Gregory Sieradzan, Scott Paulin, John LeMay, and John Bobek, directed by Martha Demson and featuring choreography by Eboni Nichols, Dear John Mayer will preview Wednesday, July 20 at 8pm, open Friday, July 22 and run through Saturday, September 3.
Stevie Steinman has a skill: she’s good at doing what people expect her to do. So when she finds herself divorced at 30, living in her childhood bedroom and styling old ladies' hair for a living she decides it is finally time to do what she has wanted to do all along: Sing. Not knowing where to begin, she turns on her computer and creates a video blog in the hopes of catching the attention of her muse, John Mayer. When a heavy-hitter from the music industry stumbles upon her videos, life changes very quickly for Stevie. The decision to follow her heart and enter the music game quickly reveals that the realities of the business are much different than the fantasies that play out in her bedroom.
Additional shows appearing in the festival include:
Quake
By D. Tucker Smith
Directed by D. Tucker Smith with Anjali Bhimani
Produced by Anjali Bhimani and Mark Atteberry
Life On This Couch
Written by Laura Richardson
Directed by Benjamin Burdick
Producer by Laetitia Leon
Neither Here Nor There
By Rebecca Sue Haber
Directed by Michelle Lema
Singapore
By Philip William Brock
Directed by: BjØrn Johnson
An Ignorant Man
By Richard Manley
Directed by John Hindman
The Power and the Glory: The Tale of Phil Ochs (American)
By Jesse Bernstein
Directed by Martha Demson
She’s The Best
By Jim Bontempo
Directed by Andrew Dodson
The Festival will begin on Friday, July 15 and runs through Saturday, September 10 at The NEW Open Fist Theatre, 6209 Santa Monica Blvd. (former home of The Actor’s Gang) in Hollywood.
For complete schedule, details about the shows, and ticket information, please call 323-882-6912 or visit www.openfist.org.
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Labels: open fist theatre