At the warden’s office, we meet Jim Allison (Brandon Greenhouse) the trustee with ten years in the prison who has educated himself with “big words.” When Eva Crane comes aboard as the warden’s secretary, sparks start flying between Jim and Eva. Boss Whalen (Jim Spencer) is a pure evil soul who delights in torturing the cons in between drinking and womanising. He has his eyes on Eva but before that can happen the cons start a hunger strike.
3C attempted to be a perky funny mock of Three’s Company with two weirdly dysfunctional girls living in Santa Monica that need a third roommate to pay expenses so they take a guy as their third. In order to appease their landlord, they have him play as a gay man. But Nick Mikula, as Brad, never convinces anyone that he could possibly be gay. His friend Terry (Steve Haddard) continues to invite him to discos to meet easy girls.
The Jeff Awards announced, via a special video presentation, a total of 127 nominations in 26 categories for the 44th Annual Non-Equity Jeff Awards for productions that opened between April 1, 2016, and March 31, 2017. Hosting the video presentation were Alexis Roston and Lillian Castillo, who will be this year’s Mistresses of Ceremonies at the Awards event on June 5 at The Athenaeum.
The dynamic of Will casting his Romeo by Thomas Kent (Kate McGonigle disguised as a man) and eventually falling for Kent once hs discovers that Kent is really Viola de Lesseps, a star-struck want-to-be actor. Problem: Will is married and Viola is committed to marry the irrepressible Lord Wessex (Dennis Grimes). This doomed romance fuels the play with clever plot twists that are hilarious. We also hear some famous lines and scenes for Romeo & Juliet including sword fighting scenes and the famous dying scenes.
Told with a manic staging and tuneful fun dance numbers including the extravaganza show-stopper number “Friends Like Me,” we are impressed, invigorated and entertained. This show is pure glitz with modern pop cultural comic references presented by a cute genie, a charismatic Aladdin and a host of determined supporting players. This is a fluff piece designed to appeal to fans of the animated film yet also designed more for lovers of Broadway musicals. At 2 hours, 30 minutes, Aladdin may not be for all children?
. Marry Me A Little has been updated with the help and blessing of Sondheim to include songs cut from the final versions of Follies, A Little Night Music and Company among others. Based on a concept from Craig Lucas and Norman Rene, the original idea was filled with songs from early Sondheim projects such as Saturday Night, The Girls of Summer, Evening Primrose and Road Show.
As the political, social and economic discussion, fueled by a bottle of Jameson, ignites the sibling rivalry that has long existed in the family heads in a strange direction. Ann remembers playing Peter Pan in Davenport, Iowa in 1958 then meeting Mary Martin. As the children talk about their youth, the question becomes: “When do you really become a grown-up? is there a moment that defines maturity? Or will you, like Peter Pan, “never wear a tie?
When her father suddenly goes missing, Lauren (Stephenie Soohyun Park) embarks on a search through San Francisco’s Chinatown where she’ll have to embrace the past in order to get her father back. Filled with much humor, appreciated more my the Chinese-Americans in the audience, King of the Yees comes off as a blend of Chinese past traditions and contemporary beliefs. Lauren fights her past and her father yet she must acknowledge her roots to succeed.
Beyond Caring is a naturalistic drama about the plight of temp cleaning crews working for low wages in horrible conditions without benefits in an American factory. Barely surviving and working extremely hard–we see the four mopping floors, scrubbing walls and cleaning manufacturing machines. They barely have proper cleaning equipment, no insurance and no health benefits. They work late night hours with short breaks. This is a gritty portrait of exploited workers.
The magic and mystery of Mary Poppins (is she myth or an angel from heaven?) is effectively played by Nicole Arnold while Matthew Crowle’s Bert guides us through the journey of the Banks family’s awakening with panache and a warm smile. We are totally engrossed and richly rewarded having spent a few hours in Poppins’ world where anything can happen if you take a spoonful of sugar. Matthew Crowle anchors this production.