Upshot X 2

By Luke Edward

Publisher’s note — This is our second review of this play, both Luke and I attended the production.

Spotlight center — a Man atop a stone, gun in hand, as music reminiscent of Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odessey plays about. It is a gloomy beginning, creating a mystique about the stage which does not rise; we are entranced, seduced by a theatrical display worthy of high compliments. John (Scott Graham) is a “virgin” screenwriter, lost in his first major effort, torn from both wife and child. Driven to an almost insomniac state by his work, he begins to hallucinate an amoral character of his own creation. What results is a both tragic and hysterical show, meshing visual media with brilliantly painted lighting and a scarce stage aptly appropriate for Ami Dayan’s intelligent work.upshot [Read more...]

Vamp Style

Dracula

Synetic Theater’s unique performance style is a composite of the arts, blending drama, movement, dance, mime, and music — it is no wonder then that its production of Dracula is swarming with erotic imagery and sensual choreography. It is unfortunate though that this show never defines itself as either an erotic tale of terror or just an awkward attempt at campy humor.

dracula

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The Trial – Scena

By: Luke Edward

Terrence Heffernan and Christopher Moss terrorize Christopher Henley in

Terrence Heffernan and Christopher Moss terrorize Christopher Henley in “The Trial.” Light.

A steady gloom settles casually to our shoulders, and suddenly twelve step upon the stage. As the white of the overhead artificial sun sets, we feel as though this dozen has stepped up to the gallows, awaiting their demise, as though before us played an annotated “Crucible”.

It is The Trial, written by Franz Kafka, adapted for stage by Steven Berkoff. What is presented bears the style of Berkoff’s other adaptations, including A Clockwork Orange (famously directed by Stanley Kubrick). It is a morbid, volatile production which director Robert McNamara offers, the stage a platter scarred with dark, blackened circles, the center of which holds a chair (wisely established by Kimberely E. Cruce).
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More Than Just Laughs at Clark Street

By: Walter Ruff

Boy's Next Door

The Boys Next Door by Tom Griffin is the kind of play that makes you laugh in an uneasy way. One question this wonderfully acted production asks is pointed and direct — can a play about four mentally challenged men living together in a small apartment be humorous without the focus of the joke being the handicap? The answer in the case of The Boys Next Door is yes. This play is not hilarious because the characters are mentally challenged but instead because they say and do things that are comical. Jeff Keenan who directed last season’s Colorado Catechism for Journeymen Theater is able to balance the laughs and poignant moments in such a way that there are very few times that the laughs feel misplaced. The Boys Next Door is truly inspiring and thought provoking–the characters seem to become your long time friends by the end of the show.

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Alexa’s Necklace: the Trick is Context

By: Luke Edward

Alexa

Suffering can be humorous; this the Three Stooges understood. The trick is context. Generally, being involved in a car wreck is not funny. Curly, sprinting from a knife-wielding gorilla, is. Natural Theatrical’s latest presentation, Alexa’s Necklace, an original work by Paula Alprin (of Natural Theatricals) and directed by Susan Alison Keady, is a classical example of great wit out of context. Alexa’s Necklace is the story of Esther (played wonderfully by Karen Doubek), a mother literally delusioned by the sudden death of her daughter, Janine (portrayed by both Molly Bennet and most notably by Aimee Meher-Homji). Grief leads to blame, and we expect to be indulged in the psychological battles of a distraught mother.

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It Had To Be You – ACT

By: Walter Ruff

ACT

Do you ever just want to see a good comedy, one where the laughs come easy and the characters are like people you know or wish you did? I suggest you get on the phone and buy a pair of tickets to It Had To Be You currently being staged by American Century Theatre. Written by the well known husband and wife team of Renee Taylor and Joseph Bologna in 1981 and brought back to life in the Gunston II Theatre, this play is flat out funny. Theda Blau (Karen Jadlos Shotts) is an out of work actress, god awful playwright, hopeless romantic and complete nut who has just attended the Christmas Eve funeral of her agent. While auditioning for a commercial for a cocktail mix she happens to meet ad executive Vito Pignoli (Mark Lee Adams). The bizarre, eccentric actress somehow captivates Vito, so they share a cab and he helps her carry her shopping bags up the stairs to her mess of a studio. Make a mental note now — this was a big mistake.

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Top Performances For The Girls

Top Girls

By: Walter Ruff

Top Girls

Margaret Thatcher’s England of the 80s has a lot in common with George Bush’s America of 2005. It is those similarities that make Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls a play that is relevant today and quite possibly into the foreseeable future because, while times have changed, the basic human desire to be successful at all costs has not. Whether the price tag of that success is a true bargain is the question being asked in this play by one of the twentieth century’s most talented playwrights. You will be pondering that question long after you have left the confines of Theatre On The Run. That is what is wonderful about this play — it makes you think and laugh and then think some more. Of course in the end the costs are worth it; although women have evolved so much in society, it is as a result of numerous sacrifices by many strong women throughout history.

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