"CURTAIN CALLS"
By Pat Launer
07/29/05
‘So
Here’s the Thing’: It’s ‘Confession’ time:
Gay and straight, absurd and sublime.
Musical,
ecstatic, dramatic, chagrined:
Like
‘Moonlight and Magnolias,’ it’s soon Gone With the
Wind.
If
you’ve ever been on a really tight deadline, on a very important project, you
know that things can get pretty tense and intense. When the white gloves come
off, the boxing gloves may go on. You snipe at your collaborators and sans
sleep, you start to get punchy. At some point, you may totally lose control.
That’s
the premise of Ron Hutchinson’s conjectural comedy, “Moonlight and Magnolias,” about the backstory of the final
screenplay for “Gone With the Wind.” Hutchinson is a
screenwriter and script-doctor himself, so he fully understands the position
the legendary Ben Hecht was thrown into when he was summoned by
mega-mogul/producer David O. Selznick, who’d already been through scads of
writers (including John Van Druten and F. Scott
Fitzgerald) and who was already three weeks into production in 1939 when he
pulled the plug on the film until he had a workable script. He yanked director
Victor Fleming off “The Wizard of Oz,” and according to a brief reference in
Hecht’s memoir (“A Child of the Century”), Selznick locked the three of them in
a room for five days and wouldn’t let anyone out till he got a final version.
Hecht and Fleming might’ve been doing it for money, but they were definitely
under duress.
So,
It’s
a farcical situation, made more so under the direction of Tony Award-winner
John (“Urinetown”) Rando, whose previous over-the-top
hijinks at the Globe have included “Lucky Duck” and “The Comedy of Errors.”
Historical verisimilitude isn’t
Not
content with the light side only,
Hecht,
on the other hand, was never given writing credits on the movie, so neither man
walked away a total winner. Nonetheless, the story is a juicy one, and
Overall,
though, it’s a wild, raucous and entertaining evening. Not for movie fanatics
who don’t want to know how all that magic gets made. And
definitely not for historians and sticklers for fact. It sports a
gorgeous Art Deco set (Alexander Dodge), a high-end, beige-and-black executive
office with a circular lightboard above and
palm-trees peeking up outside the huge picture window, enhanced by Phil Monat’s lighting and Paul Peterson’s sound design. To
paraphrase Scarlett, ‘tomorrow is another day’; you
can do your heavy thinking some other time.
At the Old Globe Theatre, through August 14.
There
are a zillion coming-out stories in the
Devoted
Mormon boy (sixth generation), a pillar of the community, tries to overcome his
‘problem’ (SSA, Same Sex Attraction). He cries, he prays, he goes through
several ‘reparative’ therapies. He even marries and has two kids. But no matter
how much they try, the Mormons just can’t ‘cure’ him. He finally cracks at age
30, takes off his ceremonial underwear, divorces his wife (painfully giving up
custody of the kids) and runs off to New York, where he tries acting and
waiting tables, and ultimately becomes an escort, a highly paid male
prostitute. After years of drugs and depravity, he comes around and straightens
out his life and priorities.
When
he was ex-communicated from the Mormon church, he was
told that he’d lost any chance of salvation. Clearly, that isn’t so. There’s
plenty of heartfelt expiation and real potential for redemption in his
appealing theater piece. It sounds corny and sentimental, but it’s delivered
like an intimate, heart-to-heart chat, directed just to you. It’s an object
lesson (maybe it’s time for more people to “declare an end to [their] gay
adolescence”) and a sad story of lost-and-found identity, of cults, of trying
to adapt to others’ demands and expectations, of taking responsibility for your
own life (and taking care of your body). Of not acting, or pasting on a “Donny
Osmond smile.” Being yourself. There is, as I said, a
never-ending flow of stories like this. But Fales’
ingenuousness and ingenuity, honesty and hopeful, All-American Boy mien and
manner, under the assured direction of Tony Award-winner Jack Hofsiss, keep you engaged. And audiences just keep coming.
This
is already the most popular, highest-grossing show in the past five years of
Diversionary Theatre’s history. And it’s a perfect offering during this Pride
weekend.
Fales is incredibly courteous and considerate (BYU and
the Ministry and the Church trained him well); he lovingly portrays all the
many characters in his life. When his show played in
At Diversionary Theatre, through August 21.
“So Here’s the
Thing…” everyone’s
looking for love. And Joel Rieke, in his 21st
century “Rent”-attempt, tracks 11 people and how they invariably make the wrong
decisions looking for Mr., Ms. (or anyone) Right. We’ve seen gays and
straights, bisexuals, druggies and botox addicts
before. Now, how ‘bout a pregnant hermaphrodite?
That’s a theatrical first, I’m sure.
Rieke, who cut his chops in an indie
rock band, wrote book and lyrics -- and appears (by default, when an actor
dropped out four days before opening) in his own world premiere production.
He’s created a pleasant, pop-rock score with a few clever lyric lines. But the
recurrent musical themes (“How the Hell Did this Happen?” and at least four
song reprises) become repetitive and non-contributory. The piece would be
tighter and stronger if it were an intermissionless
90-minutes. Not enough happens, and most of it happens over and over. We
get the point.
This
plucky new company, P33 (named for San Diego’s location on the 33rd
parallel), has its heart in the right place, paying designers, crew and actors
-- and hiring some of our best local talent, including David McBean, Leigh
Scarritt and her daughter, Tiffany Jane; scenic designer Nick Fouch and a great
4-piece band (musical director/arranger Fred Lanuza
on keyboards; Frank Sarmiento, bass; Jesse Michel,
guitar; Danny King on drums).
Still,
the situations are a tad trite, the music isn’t varied enough, and it all felt
a little lopsided to me. All the females, for instance, are called ‘girls,’ but
the guys are ‘men.’ There are gays but no lesbians. The characters are
stereotypical: the brainless buff ones, the devil-may-care ‘I’ll
do-anything-and-anyone’ bisexual, the sentimental gay man who makes an
ill-fated choice. With all the scenelets and songs, the players don’t get to
develop their characters, but they do get to belt and mug. Unfortunately, they
don’t get to move very much. The direction (Emily Cornelius) is static and
unimaginative. Perhaps editing and more inventive, choreographic direction
would help to move the piece along. There’s a lot of talent up there,
especially vocally (the acting is a little weaker). And there may be a few too
many characters to keep straight (so to speak).
Scarritt
does a funny, if exaggerated, turn as a pill-popping, botox-using,
drink-swilling, neglectful mother to Jane’s smart if misguided teen, in love
with a nice gay boy (Benjamin Lopez) who’s in love with a callous bi-guy (Rieke). Then there’s the beautiful, promiscuous Mac
(fabulous, killer-voiced Jenn Grinels,
who made such a splash in drag in “Hedwig and the Angry Inch”), who tries to go
straight with the upright, upright Paul (Trevor Hollingsworth), who winds up
with the more family-valued virgin Carra (Joyelle Cabato), while Mac has an
affair with her boss (Ruben Mier). (btw, the ‘intern,’ Paul, looked older and more mature than
his boss). The airhead good-bodies (Joe Williams and knockout Judy Ho, who
sports a strong voice and presence) intertwine with several other lost souls,
while the pregnant, disheartened hermaphrodite (“Part Dick… and Jane”), played
by David McBean, just pines all the time (why is he such a sad-faced depressive
throughout?). With tightening and sharpening, the piece may have some legs
(just get ‘em movin’!!).
Meanwhile, kudos to a courageous new company, who has the guts (or, , more likely in this case, the balls) to start a new
theater venture in these arts-perilous times.
At the Lyceum Theatre, through July 31.
NORTH
2fers
4 U. As of August 1, the San Diego Performing Arts
League will be offering its half-price tickets, ARTS TIX, at the San Diego North Convention and Visitors Bureau in
the
And speaking of
discounts, this season the
IMPROV INFO
Improv is alive and well
and thriving in
Meanwhile, Theatresports –
our other comedy-competition improvisational troupe, which has been
entertaining local audiences for 25 years – is premiering a soap opera spoof
called “Soap Scum.” The high-profile
opening performance is a fundraiser featuring four actors from “General
Hospital,” who’ll be trying their hands at improv while poking fun at their own
trade -- Adrianne Leon, Ignacio Serricchio, Cynthia
Preston and Ryan Carnes (recently hailed as ‘the new Brad Pitt,’ and best known
for his recurring role as Gabrielle’s gay gardener on “Desperate Housewives”).
The new show is billed as “a cross between Dynasty, Soap,
POOR (IF LAVISH) PLANNING
The Abbey Theatre of
Dublin celebrated its 100th anniversary in December 2004. The whole
year was a sumptuous feast of celebrations – with three visiting productions
from new EU members –
NOW, FOR WHAT’S 'NOT
TO BE MISSED!' (i.e., Critic’s Picks)
“Moonlight and
Magnolias” – the comic backstory
behind the screenplay of ‘Gone with the Wind.” Lots of laughs and clever references; GWTW devotees
will love it.
At the Old Globe,
through August 14.
“Confessions of a Mormon Boy” – not much new ground broken in this coming-out story,
but writer/performer Steven Fales is adorable and
irresistible.
At Diversionary Theatre, through August 21.
“The Pirates of
At Moonlight Amphitheatre in
“The Merchant of
At the
“Tomfoolery” – great comical/cynical/musical fun. Tom Lehrer’s satirical songs are timeless… and
versatile, irresistible performer Kristen Mengelkoch
makes them sing!
A Renaissance Theatre co-production, at North Coast Repertory Theatre,
through August 7.
“Macbeth” – marvelous direction (Paul Mullins), costumes (Linda Cho)
and truly spooky, chilling moments make this “MacB” a
standout.
In repertory on the Globe’s Festival Stage, in repertory, through October
2.
“The Comedy of Errors” – Director Darko Tresnjak shows his sillier side, with
a farcical, slapstick production that’s precisely directed and humorously
performed.
In repertory on the Globe’s Festival Stage, in repertory, through October
2.
“
At the Welk Resort Theatre, through August 28.
“The Male Intellect: An
Oxymoron” – a fun date night,
which shows both genders a few of their more amusing and infuriating foibles.
At the Theatre in
It’s almost August: draw a Leo out of his/her den…
and take ‘em to the theater.
©2005 Patté
Productions Inc.