THE BALD SOPRANO and THE CHAIRS by Eugene Ionesco.
Shirle Gottlieb – The Gazette Newspapers
Written in 1948 shortly after World War II, “The Bald Soprano” was Eugene Ionesco’s first play. As the transplanted Romanian struggled to write in French (the language of his adopted country), he realized how banal everyday communication had become. He had to wonder–after all the tragedy Europe had gone through, how could conversation have become so superficial?
Read more…
Photographer, Jonathan Lewis.
A FLEA IN HER EAR by George Feydeau.
Shirle Gottlieb for Gazette Newspapers
When someone says the word “farce,” the first name that comes to mind is Feydeau. Indeed, “farce” and Feydeau are synonymous.
Read more…
A CHORUS LINE – music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, book by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante.
by Shirle Gottlieb – Gazette Newspapers
In 1974, dancer/choreographer Michael Bennett asked 18 dancers why they auditioned for the chorus when the demand for musicals was in decline, there was little work in large productions, and everyone was struggling to make ends meet. Their honest answers led to the 1975 premiere of “A Chorus Line,” produced Off-Broadway by the inimitable Joe Papp. Audience reaction was ecstatic, so the sold-out musical moved to Broadway. There, it walked off with nine Tony Awards including Best Musical ‑ plus a Pulitzer.
Photo by Suzanne Mapes.
Master Class by Terrence McNally.
David C. Nichols – L.A. Times
It’s a softer-grained “Master Class” than usual in Long Beach, but just try to look away. Although more muted than some past editions, this adroit International City Theatre revival of Terrence McNally’s Tony-winning fantasia on Maria Callas’ life and art carries real immediacy and thematic point. Read more…
Hoyt Hilsman – The Huffington Post
Gigi Bermingham, one of the leading lights of Los Angeles theater, gives a masterful performance in Terrence McNally’s challenging portrait of opera diva Maria Callas. With a strong supporting cast under the skilled direction of Todd Nielsen, Bermingham brings Callas to life – make that larger than life – fascinating flaws and all. Read more…
Shirle Gottlieb – Gazette Newspapers
Leonard Bernstein referred to legendary soprano Maria Callas as “The Bible of opera.” Opera News still called her a “diva” and “La Divina” three decades after her death. And Terrence McNally received his fourth Tony Award for “Master Class,” a brilliant work about the last tortuous phase of Callas’ life. Read more…
French Stewart, TV star (“3rd Rock From the Sun”) and local theatre mainstay (“Stoneface”: “Voice Lessons”) will host the 44th Annual Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle (LADCC) Awards on Monday, March 18, 2013 at the Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring St. Downtown. Tickets for the show and opening reception, which will start at 6:30 pm, can be reserved by e-mailing crixawards2013@gmail.com. All seats are $30.00
Stewart will preside over this year’s theme “Theatre Everywhere,” focusing on the wide geographical range within which LADCC members travel in the course of a year to see and celebrate the best of live performance. Top representatives of local institutions – including Michael Ritchie of CTG; Sheldon Epps of The Pasadena Playhouse; Barbara Beckley of The Colony Theatre; and Zombie Joe of Zombie Joe’s Underground Theatre – will assist Circle members in presenting awards in 17 competitive categories as well as a host of special award plaques.
Entertainment, too, will come from all over the region. Almost two dozen performers from Orange County will reunite to perform “The Rumble” from the Chance Theatre’s acclaimed and nominated revival of “West Side Story.” The cast of “Justin Love,” the smash musical that originated at Celebration Theatre – winner of this year’s Margaret Harford Award for distinguished achievement – will appear, alongside performers from “The Color Purple” (Cesili Williams); “The New Electric Ballroom” (Tim Cummings); and “Bad Apples” (Kate Morgan Chadwick, accompanied by the show’s composer/lyricists Beth Thornley and Rob Cairns.)
Ryan Johnson, nominated for his score for “Stoneface” which starred Stewart as the legendary Buster Keaton, serves as musical director for the evening, which will be produced by Daily Variety and ArtsinLA.com critic Bob Verini. Production stage manager is Heatherlynn Gonzalez. Award-winning sound designer Cricket S. Myers lends her skills to the event, whose associate producer is Peter Finlayson of Footlights Publishing.
A cash bar with great food and a silent auction (cash and checks only, please) will occupy the 6:30-7:30 hour, until doors open and the annual celebration of great L.A. area theatre begins.
ALL INFORMATION:
The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle (LADCC) has announced its nominations and special awards for excellence in Los Angeles and Orange County theatre in 2012.
All tickets have been reduced to $30.00. Tickets can be arranged through crixawards2013@gmail.com, and PayPal will be accepted prior to March 18. Credit cards will be accepted at the door.
Nominees are entitled to a single complimentary ticket. Nominees please click here for important information regarding ticketing etc.
Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. on March 18 for drinks, music, hors d’oeuvres (no full dinner) and conversation, while at a Silent Auction attendees can bid on theater and film-related items. Only cash or checks will be accepted at the auction, please. The show will commence at 7:30 p.m.
Scheduled host French Stewart is a 25-year mainstay of the Los Angeles theatre scene and a notable star of TV and film. Best known for his six seasons co-starring on NBC’s 3rd Rock From the Sun, he is a member of Sacred Fools and played the title role in that company’s 2012 production of Stoneface, The Rise and Fall and Rise of Buster Keaton, which has received two LADCC nominations.
In recognition of this year’s theme, “Theatre Everywhere,” representatives of theatre companies based within the geographic beat covered by members of the Circle will join Stewart and Circle members to present awards in 17 competitive categories.
# # # # #
NOMINEES:
SPECIAL AWARDS:
Six special awards will be presented under the sponsorship of organizations and individuals to whom the LADCC is most grateful. Honors have been announced for local institutions Celebration Theatre (for sustained excellence); and The Fountain Theatre and Center Theatre Group (for their excellent seasons). The Circle also recognizes prominent individuals: David O; Elina de Santos; Stephen Gifford; as well as Evelina Fernandez for her A Mexican Trilogy, an outstanding L.A. world premiere play.
The 2012 special awards winners are…
ALREADY-VOTED AWARDS:
Three already-voted awards will be presented on awards night.
Plaques will be presented on March 18 to the following recipients:
Adrian Kohler with Basil Jones for Handspring Puppet Theatre, in recognition of the design, fabrication, and direction of the puppets of War Horse at the Ahmanson Theatre
David McCormick and Kelly Todd for their fight direction of West Side Story at the Chance Theatre in Anaheim.
In addition, a special plaque will be awarded to Center Theatre Group for an excellent season.
# # # # #
MEMBERSHIP:
The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle was founded in 1969. It is dedicated to excellence in theatrical criticism, and to the encouragement and improvement of theatre in Greater Los Angeles.
The 2012 membership consisted of:
Pauline Adamek, LA Weekly; ArtsBeatLA.com
F. Kathleen Foley, Los Angeles Times
Shirle Gottlieb, Gazette Newspapers; stagehappenings.com
Hoyt Hilsman, Back Stage, The Huffington Post
Mayank Keshaviah, LA Weekly
Amy Lyons, Back Stage, LA Weekly
Dany Margolies, ArtsinLA.com
Terry Morgan, LAist.com; Daily Variety
Steven Leigh Morris. LA Weekly
David C. Nichols, Los Angeles Times, Back Stage
Sharon Perlmutter, TalkinBroadway.com
Melinda Schupmann, Back Stage; ShowMag.com; ArtsinLA.com
Madeleine Shaner, Park La Brea News/Beverly Press; Back Stage
Les Spindle, Frontiers; Theatremania; EDGE LA
Bob Verini, Daily Variety; ArtsinLA.com
Neal Weaver, LA Weekly; Back Stage
The LADCC is pleased to welcome FootLights Publishing, Inc. as consultants on this year’s awards events. The mission of FootLights is to illuminate the theatre community, providing greater access to a more diverse public while at the same time offering insight into the production and process of theatre.
The LADCC expresses its gratitude to Los Angeles Theatre Center and Latino Theatre Company for their warm welcome and many courtesies.
Oklahoma! by Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II.
Shirle Gottlieb – Gazette Newspapers
Written in 1943 by musical titans Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II, Oklahoma! was a theatrical milestone that changed the face of musical theater forever. Read more…
David C. Nichols – LA Times
A bright golden haze of timeless musical theater invention suffuses Oklahoma! at the Carpenter Center. It carries Musical Theatre West’s affable, fleet-footed 70th anniversary revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s indestructible 1943 classic past some minor oddities in casting and tone. Read more…
Photo by Ed Krieger.
The Snake Can by Kathryn Graf.
Hoyt Hilsman – The Huffington Post
Kathryn Graf’s paen to the perils of middle-aged dating has a solid premiere under the skillful direction of Steven Robman and a very talented ensemble of actors. Set in the romantic jungle of New York City, Graf’s play focuses on the lives and loves of Harriet (Jane Kaczmarek), widowed with children, Meg (Sharon Sharth) single and cynical but still looking, and Nina (Diane Cary), married but seeking a new path. Read more…
Pauline Adamek – ArtsBeatLA.com
Writer Kathryn Graf (author of late 2011’s hit play Hermetically Sealed) perfectly captures the easy and sparkling conversation between three longtime female friends, the kind that always resumes mid-sentence. Nina (Diane Cary), Harriet (Jane Kaczmarek) and Meg (Sharon Sharth), now middle aged, are all successful in their careers but unlucky in love for different reasons. The trio frequently gets together to drink wine and share war stories and encouragement as widowed Harriet nervously dips her toe into the online dating pool. Read more…
David C. Nichols – L.A. Times
“Being newly single in middle age…. It’s like opening one of those child’s toys where the snake pops out of the can.” So goes The Snake Can at the Odyssey Theatre. Kathryn Graf’s wry, insightful dramedy about three longtime girlfriends and their internecine midlife crises surmounts some post-larval structural blips with pertinence, humor and heart. Read more…
Shirle Gottlieb – Stage Happenings
As our population gets older, playwrights reach out to explore dramatic situations that extend beyond the graven milestone of “the big 4-0″ (our ominous fortieth birthday). Not many years ago, that number denoted entrance into (groan) “middle-age”– which, in turn, was the portal to “senior citizenship.” Read more…
Photo credit – Jonathan Lewis.
Fuddy Meers by David Lindsay-Abaire.
Shirle Gottlieb – Gazette Newspapers
Some theater enthusiasts are still shaking their heads in disbelief. After so many years of featuring Agatha Christie-type mysteries and British living-room comedies, it’s hard to believe the Long Beach Playhouse is producing provocative, cutting-edge plays. Read more…
Photo by Alyssa Brennan.
42nd Street by Mark Bramble, Michael Stewart, Harry Warren and Al Dubin.
David C. Nicols – L.A. Times
Audiences craving unbridled pizazz should race to 42nd Street at the Carpenter Center in Long Beach. Musical Theatre West opens its 60th season with the indestructible backstager, and scores a toe-tapping triumph. Read more…
Shirle Gottlieb – Gazette Newspapers
If you’re a musical theater buff, you’re undoubtedly acquainted with 42nd Street. Based on one of Busby Berkeley’s inimitable movies, it tells the story of Peggy Sawyer –a starry-eyed, gifted, wanna’ be performer who goes to New York during the Depression to audition for a new musical. Read more…
Melinda Schupmann – ArtsInLA.com
Ever since 1934 when Ruby Keeler sweetly but awkwardly tapped her way into America’s collective heart, this show has been a feel-good offering, and Musical Theatre West has mounted it with flash and dazzle. With more than a little nod to Busby Berkeley, director-choreographer Jon Engstrom channels those extravagant floor patterns and over-the-top production numbers to give an audience a lot to smile at. Read more…
Mad Women by John Fleck and Catch 23: Broken Negatives by Karen Finley
Shirle Gottlieb – Gazette Newspapers
It all happened twenty-two years ago, but people are still buzzing about the notorious case of the “NEA 4.” To be more precise: Due to pressure in 1990 from Jesse Helms, Dana Rohrabacher, and the religious-right, grants already given to Karen Finley, John Fleck, Holly Hughes, and Tim Miller by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) were revoked. The alleged reason was “indecent content.” Read more…