Reviewed by Tracey Paleo, Gia On The Move
PETER PAN GOES WRONG at the Ahmanson Theatre August 8 – September 10, 2003
Photo by Jeremy Daniel
It was kitschy and predictable. Incontrovertibly, the second by second, worst play I’ve almost ever seen in any country, in any city, on any stage in the world, between the lights going off, the choreographic failures (so many!) the set falling down, actors who couldn’t remember lines, an unapologetic stage-bombing crew, and an overaged, inappropriate cast who had no business playing children – badly. Because, evidently you can keep a bad thing going even longer than a good one. And this theater company is determined to showcase every minutia of detail gone wrong, and every pathetic, sad, laughable, inappropriate and dangerous mess up to the 1000th power, without exception or apology.
Honestly, sometimes, I just couldn’t wait to leave, frustrated by the serious lack of professional showmanship (for as much as they tried) or momentum…
…and, I did nothing but laugh all evening. PETER PAN GOES WRONG is spectacular!
A play within a play seems to be a running theme lately at the theater. And that’s, OK. Because telling a story about the story you’re trying to tell is nothing but hysterically funny, when you come right down to it. Self-effacing, shameful and embarrassing, every “bit” in PETER PAN GOES WRONG runs the gamut of crass, changeling comedy like Vaudeville, The Three Stooges and Monty Python got together in the same room and took the Nike (Just Do It) theme in all the ways never-intended.
Written by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer & Henry Shields
Directed by Adam Meggido
Featuring Members of Original Mischief Company: Ryan Vincent Anderson,Stephen James Anthony, Blair Baker, Bartley Booz, Matthew Cavendish, Harry Kershaw, Chris Leask, Henry Lewis, Ellie Morris, Charlie Russell, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields, Brenann Stacker, Greg Tannahill, Nancy Zamit
With Special Guest Star Bradley Whitford through August 27
Followed by Special Guest Star Daniel Dae Kim August 30 – September 10
Set Design by Simon Scullion
Costume Design by Roberto Surace
Lighting Design by Matt Haskins
Sounds Design by Ella Wahlström
Original Music by Richard Baker and Rob Falconer
Associate Director Fred Gray
Tickets and information available at CenterTheatreGroup.org
Recommended
HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING at Rogue Machine at the Matrix, August 19 – October 2, 2023
Emily James, Stephen Tyler Howell, Roxanne Hart, Evangeline Edwards, Samuel Garnett in “HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING” at Rogue Machine at the Matrix.
Every season there is inevitably a new work that stands apart from the rest. HEROES OF THE FOURTH TURNING, takes the giant leap into dissecting the hot button issues that are dividing America today. And it is SO good!
The reactionary, monolithic mindset was perhaps never so apparent in a stage production about American values as it is here. Bad ideas explored sympathetically, by highly intellectual people, smothered by prejudices and dogmatic psychosis. This play is incredibly deep and dives headfirst into hypocrisy, believability and everything on the table socio-politically right now.
One of the most brilliantly written and woven pieces in production this season. Executed by a brilliant cast under the very adept direction of Guillermo Cienfuego.
Very Highly Recommended
On a dark night, in the middle of America, four young conservatives gather to toast the newly inducted president of their tiny Catholic college.Their reunion spirals into chaos and clashing generational politics, becoming less a celebration than a vicious fight to be understood.
Will Arbery’s haunting Pulitzer Prize Finalist play speaks to the heart of a country at war with itself, offering both grace and disarming clarity.
Written by Will Arbery
Directed by Guillermo Cienfuegos
Cast: Roxanne Hart, Evangeline Edwards, Samuel Garnett, Stephen Tyler Howell, Emily James
Creative Team: Stephanie Kerley Schwartz (Scenic Design), Dan Weingarten (Lighting Design), Chris Moscatiello (Sound Design), Christine Cover Ferro (Costume Design), John Perrin Flynn (Dramaturg), Victoria Hoffman (Casting Director), Justin Okin, John Perrin Flynn (Producers).
Ticket reservations: https://www.roguemachinetheatre.org/ or for more information 855-585-5185.
THE RED SUITCASE at the Broadwater Mainstage Theatre August 10 – September 3, 2023
Tiago Santos, Emerson Collins and Bruce Melena star in the world premiere of “THE RED SUITCASE” – Written by Jiggs Burgess, directed by Del Shores and now playing at the Broadwater Main Stage Theatre.
The one thing that always most impresses me, is how creative artists, against all odds, good, bad and distractive, continuously manage to create. Big ideas brimmed into presentational or immersive performances, meant to express something expansive, or tell a uniquely, reflective, personal account. It’s hardly simple. The process, I mean. But, it’s what stands out. Especially sitting in a packed house on the night of a world premiere in the intimate setting of a theater like The Broadwater. Honestly, it’s breathtaking. Watching a drama unfold like a flower, in early morning light, for the first time in public view. And it’s the singular thought I had in my mind as I witnessed the opening of P3 Theatre Company’s, THE RED SUITCASE, the Best Play Winner in the “Del Shores Foundation Writers Search.”
There were a lot of hiccups opening night. But they were very easy to ignore. THE RED SUITCASE is an enthusiastic new work. And sometimes the birthing process is complicated; much like the beginnings of lead character and narrator Pogue, whose story follows his pre-existence to the death of his father. The play is adumbrative – outward facing – if you will, without any overtures or displays of deep emotion, formed chiefly through its equally phlegmatic characters. THE RED SUITCASE is composed of many glances into the life of a young boy who grows up very ordinarily confused but also extraordinarily harmed by everyone, simply because of his proclivities towards tenderness, kindness, generosity and attraction to another boy. In a man’s world, boys must be tough to survive or in Pogue’s case, the consequences are severe. Unless, by some grace, you have one person who keeps you safe in their hearts and sometimes in their house. Pogue has his granny whose metaphors of plants & birds and the cycle of life teach him about himself. THE RED SUITCASE is loaded with practical and existential ideas that occasionally get sidetracked in their journey of life but it’s otherwise, a genuinely sweet story that in fact, at its conclusion, brings the narrator as well as the audience to a hopeful beginning in this journey called life.
Written by Jiggs Burgess
Directed by Del Shores
Assistant Director/Additional Staging by Blake McIver Ewing
Featuring: Emerson Collins, Kristen McCullough, Bruce Melena, Charlotte Louise White, Mat Hayes, Tiago Santos and Pam Trotter
Producer: Jon Peterson
Co-Producer: Krys Fehervari
Stage Manager: Anna Kupershmidt
Scenic and Projection Design: Jesus Hurtado
Costume Design: Shon LeBlanc
Sound Design: Adam Matthew
Lighting Design: Frank McKnown
Hair/Makeup/Prop Design: Krys Fehervari
Deck Manager: Paige Macgregor
Tickets and additional information available online at: https://p3theatre.biz/theredsuitcase/
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