The Perils of Judgment

I love this clip from Britain's Got Talent, because it points out something that we are falling victim to with the advent of reality television. Everyone assumes that just because this woman named Susan Boyle is a villager with no makeup that she can't sing. Think again. She has a beautiful voice.

The thing that really bothers me about American Idol and the other shows of their ilk is that they pit the auditors against the talent. When a performer goes to an audition, usually, the auditors are hoping the person shines. However, with these shows, an atmosphere of judgment and even cruelty dominates.

That's why I just love this clip, it just lays bare the charade that these shows have become.

Grease is Again the Word

My favorite thing about going to a show at The Golden Gate Theatre is in getting there. In the distance, I could see the corner of Market and 6th Street. Having had this view many times over the years, I know that safety awaited me at that corner. The wide doors of the ancient and palatial theatre will be open, giving me safe haven as I fling myself through, shielded by the rent-a-guards that buffer the building from the rabble on the street.

I take a deep breath, try to look sort of crazy and pissed off, and begin my four block trek from Taylor and Geary. Wading through the human excrement and puddles of urine, I encounter beggars, pimps, she-males on parade, meth addicts, runaway teens, and a myriad of the rest of the hoi polloi that inhabit San Francisco's Tenderloin District. Finally I reach my destination. I know I'm there because I see the smiling face of Taylor Hicks, the newly anointed Teen Angel, looking down on me. It gives me a sense of peace and otherworldly comfort. Enough of this, lets talk about the show.

Actually I couldn't believe I went to see Grease. A show with no depth, a moral which basically says, "If you want the boy bad enough, act like a slut and make him think he's going to get some and he'll be yours, ... the end." But attend, I did. And what a seat I had! As you can see in the photo my free tickets assigned me to row trillion, seat XX. My head literally rested against the back wall of the building. The place was sold out. Throngs of screaming fans of all ages, girls dressed in costume, boys dressed in costume, middle aged men dressed like the Fonz filled the cavernous theatre. Excitment was in the air. This goofy show actually has a cult following. I was flabbergasted. As for the show, the actors were directed to play to the back of the house, which I appreciated greatly. The choreography was superb, and the director was able to find many comic moments in the show that weren't necessarily built into the book. Beyond this, there really is nothing special about Grease.

What I can't figure out is why I enjoyed myself so much. Was it my memory of Olivia Newton- John playing Sandy on the big screen. I was sixteen and vacationing in Tahoe with my family when the movie was released. I have the distinct memory of seeing Olivia on the big screen in her tight leather pants and doing that thing she did with her eyes. I believe I saw the movie three times in six days.

Now lets talk about Taylor Hicks. The prematurely gray Teen Angel of American Idol fame, uses this production as a platform to launch his new album. Things got strange when during his "Beauty School Dropout" duet with Frenchy the actress blurted out, "I voted for you!" They got stranger when Hicks took out his harmonica and began playing a blues riff, off key, at the end of "Beauty School Dropout" as he ascended into heaven in a giant plastic Ice Cream Cone. At the curtain call, Hicks ran off stage in the middle of it the encore. After the longest curtain call in the history of curtain calls, he reappeared in his characteristic jeans and muted top, microphone in hand and began to sing the single from his new album. You could feel the disdain from the crowd wafting up toward the rafters. I almost choked on it. People in the balcony began to get up from their seats to leave. And in a move of utter brilliance, the lighting guys turned on a half dozen follow spots and shined them directly up into the balcony. Everyone sat down like scolded school children and politely waited for Mr. Hicks to finish selling his album. What made it even stranger was that after the show there were two announcements. One was to throw a dollar in the pot on your way out to benefit Actors' Equity for A.I.D.S., and the second announcement wast to get Taylor's' album, and look for him in the lobby so that he could sign it for you: only in America.

Florence Foster Jenkins - and "Souvenir" at A.C.T.

I went to A.C. T. today to see Souvenir, A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins starring the marvelous Judy Kaye and the multi-talented Donald Corren as they relived the life of Florence Foster Jenkins. Florence was a society woman in New York in the 20's, 30's and 40's who believed herself to be a great opera singer. In actuality she was completely tone deaf. Basically, it's the twentieth century equivalent of The Emperor's New Clothes. Florence was so bad, that her concerts sold out due to their unintended hilarity. All the while she believed herself to be a gifted, exceptional singer. If you are familiar William Hung from American Idol, then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

A.C.T.'s show is spectacular. It's both hysterical and touching. A big hit on Broadway in 2005, we are fortunate to have it playing here in San Francisco for a short time. It closes on Sunday, so you best get your tickets now if you can. Today's matinee appeared to be sold out. If you'd like to hear an actual recording of Florence, go here.

Click here for the A.C.T. Performance Calendar

Below is a clip I found of a modern day Florence. I think the lady is serious.
Watch her body language and her constant bra adjustments.

Pick Up Ax: Performance | KQED Public Media for Northern CA

Oh no! Not more self promotion! Yes it is. My show, "Pick Up Ax", is loved by the critics and audiences alike. We had our "talk back" after the performance on Sunday and all but about two people stayed. I've never seen that happen before. I am so proud of the actors and the production gang. Here are a couple of reviews.

If you want to go tickets are available. Just go to www.thepear.org

Pick Up Ax: Performance | KQED Public Media for Northern CA

San Mateo Daily Journal

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Come See the play - Pick Up Ax - At The Pear Avenue Theatre, Down the Road From Google

Nothing like a little harmless self-promotion! I'm directing this play by Anthony Clarvoe. It's about a couple of computer nerds in the image of Jobs and Wozniak back around 1980. Their company is going downhill (Apple maybe?) and an outsider (John Sculley maybe?) from "heavy industry" comes in to save the day. From there the tension mounts and the antics ensue.

Lots of fun, lots of AC-DC. Lots of Stones. Lots of Hendrix. Stop by but please leave your stash in the car.

Pick Up Ax
by Anthony Clarvoe
Feb. 27 through March 15, 2009
Thursdays - Sundays

Pear Avenue Theatre
1220 Pear Avenue
Mountain View, CA 94043
650-327-7071
info@thepear.org
www.thepear.org
tickets

The Amazing Comeback - Micky Rourke in "The Wrestler"

Once every ten years or so a movie comes along that seems to transcend the art form. From the first moments we realize that we are not just watching a film but that we have been given the rare gift of peering into a person's soul. In "The Wrestler" you quickly realize that for the next two hours you're going to be given a raw, unprotected, and brutally honest performance from a man who has suffered and has chosen, as a true artist, to reveal that suffering to the world. I can think of few other examples of this in film. Al Pacino in the first two "Godfather" movies comes to mind. Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz" perhaps is another example, all be it a strange and surprising one.

When the Oscars roll around this Sunday, Rourke should win best actor. There is no question. This was perhaps, for me, one of the top performances in cinematic history.

Rich and Famous at A.C.T.

The 1970s sense of humor seemed so cool at the time. Shows like Laugh-In were so hip and cool. Their over the top silliness full of innuendo and a kind of wacky pessimistic existentialism had viewers tuning in by the millions. Playwrights like Christopher Durang and John Guare wrote plays that reflected this trend in humor. Perhaps born out of the fatigue and meaninglessness of the Viet Nam war, this type of campy humor was a subtle way giving the finger to society.

Unfortunately, now in 2009, it proves exhausting and repetitive. It just doesn't work anymore, and unfortunately, A.C.T.'s latest production by John Guare, "Rich and Famous" proves this. Guare wrote this play in the mid-70s. He updated it slightly for his production but not enough. I found myself mentally fatigued and exhausted by the repetitive "wackiness" that seemed to never let up. I wanted to love the play. There were quite a few very funny moments. But I left the theatre feeling cheated. In the end the play has no message. It demands razor sharp concentration from the audience but it gives nothing other than the message, "material success is meaningless". Been there, done that. It's just old news.

Synopsis

Playwright Bing Ringling yearns to savor the sweet taste of celebrity, and he's hoping play number 844 will be his lucky break. But on opening night, Bing slips into a nightmarish phantasmagoria that shows him just how wrong things can go. From the ingenious mind of John Guare, who brought Six Degrees of Separation and The House of Blue Leaves to the American stage, Rich and Famous springs to life with twisted humor, rapid-fire dialogue, and outrageous songs scribed by Guare himself.

John Rando (A.C.T.'s Urinetown, The Musical and Broadway's The Wedding Singer) directs this newly revised, delicious dark comedy in its first major revival since its 1976 New York debut. Brooks Ashmanskas, who was nominated for a 2007 Tony Award for Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me and has appeared in The Producers and Gypsy, takes on the role of Bing, starring alongside Mary Birdsong (Reno 911! on Comedy Central, Hairspray on Broadway), Stephen DeRosaHairspray and Into the Woods on Broadway), and A.C.T. core acting company member Gregory Wallace ('Tis Pity She's a Whore and The Government Inspector). (

“Rich and Famous” plays Jan. 8 through Feb. 8 at 415 Geary St., San Francisco. Tickets are $14-$82. Call 415-749-228 or visit www.act-sf.org

Cutting Ball Gets Downd and Dirty

Mud: Drama. By Maria Irene Fornes. Directed by Paige Rogers. With Alan Kaiser, Marilet Martinez, Garth Petal. (Through Feb. 8. The Cutting Ball Theater at Exit on Taylor, 277 Taylor St., San Francisco. 70 minutes. Tickets: $25-$30. Call (415) 419-3584 or go to www.cuttingball.com

Plays like Mud exemplify what I love about San Francisco. You can go see big, expensive productions like Wicked and have wonderful time, or you can go down the street to the heart of the Tenderloin to places like tiny The Cutting Ball and see, in your face, down and dirty,wonderfully conceived plays like Mud and be just as captivated, just as enthralled.

Mud is a vulgar, exhilarating, nightmarish and hypnotizing play. Its three characters reside in a rural, dirt poor apartment somewhere in the South. Mud explores the way in which those at the bottom of the food chain, strive for meaning in their lives. It's a sad and somewhat cynical commentary on poverty, and it's effect will sit with you for days. Wonderfully acted by Alan Kaiser, Marilet Martinez, and Garth Petal this is a show not for the faint of heart but for those looking for risky theatre, the kind of theatre that leads your heart and mind into new territories of consciousness.

The Magic to Remain Open

The Magic Theatre, a national theatre treasure having debuted works by Sam Shepard, David Mamet, and Paula Vogel, to name just a few has raised the $450,000 they need to remain in business.

This is the second theatre that has been saved by the public in recent weeks. It's a shame the same wasn't done for American Musical Theatre of San Jose. But, I am thrilled about The Magic.

The Circle by Somerset Maugham

The Pear Avenue Theatre is currently running Somerset Maugham's greatest work, "The Circle", running through February 1st. The writing is just fabulous. I had know familiarity with Maugham other than for his novels. The play is full of biting humor and wit. I found it thoroughly entertaining. The director, Bill Kenney, and his actors do an excellent job of bringing this rarely done play to life.

Where: The Pear Avenue Theatre
1220 Pear Avenue, Mtn. View, CA
www.thepear.org
Runs through February 1st.

P.S. - It seems as though The Magic is out of the woods for now, having raised barely enough to keep their doors open for a while longer. This is very good news.

Magic Theatre - Another Bay Area Theatre on the Brink of Disaster

Not again! Now in addition to the sad closing of AMTSJ and the near dissolution of Shakespeare Santa Cruz, The Magic Theatre, a San Francisco and arguably a U.S. theatre institution, may have to close its doors.

They are $400,000 in debt and they can't pay their staff. They need to raise $350,00 by January 9th to stay alive, otherwise they are gone for good.

Please help! Just give what you can, even if it's just a few bucks.

Click here to donate to The Magic.

Harold Pinter, Farewell to a Master

Harold Pinter, the great British playwright, whose unique style had a huge influence on American writers Sam Shepard and David Mamet died today after a long battle with cancer. Pinter was not only a great playwright but also a man of great conscience. He spent the last two decades speaking out against the imperialistic actions of the U.S. and Great Britain. He regularly blasted the U.S. and Tony Blair over their actions in Iraq.

His influence on the evolution of play writing in the United States and Great Britain was profound. He was an actor in his younger years, a director, a poet, a novelist, a screenwriter, a playwright and a political activist. He lived a intellectual and passionate life. In 2005 he received perhaps the ultimate honor of his craft in being given the Nobel Prize in Literature.

There is a great web site that contains everything you could ever want to know about the man here.

Harold Pinter - (10 October 1930 - 24 December 2008)

Shakespeare Santa Cruz Saved!

The nearly extinct Shakespeare Santa Cruz has caused a national stir in the theater world in successfully raising over $400,000 in just a few days. This guarantees that they will continue for another season. Even in these brutal economic times the value of the arts was recognized by over 2,000 donors. Bravo!

"The generous public support to save Shakespeare Santa Cruz has set a shining example for the American arts. This may be a local event, but it has national importance."
- Dana Gioia, Chairman, National Endowment for the Arts

Shakespeare Santa Cruz Nearly Bankrupt

Another local theatre company may meet its awful end just as AMTSJ did a couple of weeks ago. The latest victim of the troubled economy is Sakespeare Santa Cruz. This gem of a company has been producing incredible work for the last 27 years. Because of the recession, the University of California at Santa Cruz can no longer prop up the theater's mounting deficit. So in order to continue operating the theater must raise $300,000 by Monday, December 22nd.

It's very disheartening to see some of our best theaters in the Bay Area in such trouble. I really hope that SSC can be saved. It seems that they need about another $80,000 to meet the goal. If you can afford anything at all go to this web site and give. If it turns out that if they don't get enough money and have to cancel the season, your donation will be refunded.

Lets do our part to save this great company. Please watch the wonderful video below of Marco Barricelli, Artistic Director for Shakespeare Santa Cruz, make a heartfelt plea for support.

Van Johnson Passes

Van Johnson was a performer of immense talent. What a great star he was. RIP Mr. Johnson.

"House of Blue Leaves" author John Guare Delights the House at A.C.T.

Yesterday morning at 10 a.m. several hundred die hard theater fans filled the Geary Theatre to experience the presence of the fabled playwright, John Guare. Guare is most famous for his plays The House of Blue Leaves, Six Degrees of Separation, and Landscape of the Body. His style is witty, funny, and often cruel and startling.

In the foreword to a collection of Guare's plays, film director Louis Malle writes:

Guare practices a humor that is synonymous with lucidity, exploding genre and clichés, taking us to the core of human suffering: the awareness of corruption in our own bodies, death circling in. We try to fight it all by creating various mythologies, and it is Guare's peculiar aptitude for exposing these grandiose lies of ours that makes his work so magical.

The experience yesterday was quite an event to witness. The poor moderator, Michael Paller, who happens to be A.C.T.s Dramaturg and Director of Humanities, barely was able to utter a syllable. Mr. Guare began interviewing himself and never stopped. He spoke with a lucidity and sense of humor that I've rarely seen in any human, let alone a man in his 70s. The only time Mr. Paller was able to actually ask a question was the one time Mr. Guare suddenly had a tinge of guilt for talking so much and the next time when Mr. Guare momentarily lost his train of thought. Beyond that it was all Guare, all the time. And that was fine with me. He is funny! He is thoroughly interesting to listen to. I could have listened to this man for hours and hours. We heard stories of his rise in the New York theatre, his unlikely meeting of Jerome Robins, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim. We heard about his start at Cafe Cino with other budding playwrights and artists such as Al Pacino, Bernadette Peters and Sam Shepard. All the stories were told with humor wonderful detail.

I took away a few good lessons from the hour long lecture:

1. Do what you love in life. Mr. Guare said that is father once told him, "son, never work for a living". His father worked on Wall Street and told a young John that the only time he ever felt at peace was the interval of time from when he hit his alarm's snooze button to the moment his feet hit the floor in the morning. His father was a wage slave and he warned John to never become one himself.

2. Take charge of your own artistic life. A woman in the audience asked how young people, such as those in the M.F.A. program at A.CT. could find a life in the theatre. Mr Guare quickly responded that one must take charge of one's own artistic life. He said a theatre company need only be a group of theatre artists who laugh at the same jokes. Like at the Cafe Cino, all you need is an audience and a few cubic feet of space.

3. Remember that all acting is for the audience. Mr. Guare cannot stand plays that seem to ignore the existence of the audience. He emphasized the need to include the audience. It's why his characters often break the fourth wall and why they sometimes spontaneously break into song. Bring them to you and involve them fully no matter how large or small the space.

4. Trust your subconscious. Mr. Guare spends time every day just walking along the beach and allowing himself to free associate. It's how he came up with solving the problem of his play (1974) Rich and Famous. Allow your mind to do it's work. Trust your artistic impulse. Relax.

So go see Mr. Guares updated version of Rich and Famous at A.C.T. ! I have a feeling it will be a great show. The cast is marvelous.

_____________________________________________

First major revival
Rich and Famous
by John Guare
Directed by John Rando

Playwright Bing Ringling yearns to savor the sweet taste of celebrity, and he's hoping play number 844 will be his lucky break. But on opening night, Bing slips into a nightmarish phantasmagoria that shows him just how wrong things can go. From the ingenious mind of John Guare, who brought Six Degrees of Separation and The House of Blue Leaves to the American stage, Rich and Famous springs to life with twisted humor, rapid-fire dialogue, and outrageous new songs freshly scribed by Guare himself. A.C.T. welcomes this newly revised, delicious dark comedy-directed by John Rando (A.C.T.'s Urinetown, The Musical)-in its first major revival since its 1976 New York debut.

Cast: Brooks Ashmanskas, Mary Birdsong, Stephen DeRosa, Gregory Wallace

Creative Team: Scott Bradley (set designer), Laura Burton (musical director and performance pianist), Gregory Gale (costume designer), Jeremy Lee (sound designer), Alexander Nichols (light designer)

Tickets: $14-$57 previews; $17-$71 Tue.-Fri. & Sun. evenings; $22-$82 Sat. evenings and weekend matinees. Tickets are available through A.C.T. Ticket Services, 405 Geary Street at Mason, 415.749.2228, and online at www.act-sf.org.

How A.C.T. Chooses Actors

All you actors out there who wonder how a place like A.C.T. casts its shows, should go check out the A.C.T. blog. The latest post chronicles the process they went through to cast the John Guare play, Rich and Famous. The interesting thing to me is that all of the actors were cast based on recommendations and personal reputations. None of them seemed to be cast from an audition. I always suspected this was usually the case at places like A.C.T. and Berkeley Rep.

To even be considered as an actor at A.C.T. main stage production you need to either be one of the members of their core company consisting of these people:

René Augesen
Anthony Fusco
Giles Havergal
Steven Anthony Jones
Domenique Lozano
Craig Slaight
Gregory Wallace
Jud Williford
Jack Willis

(good luck with this)

or you need to know the director and she needs to WANT you in a role (he or she has to get sign-off from both Carey Perloff and the playwright) or you need to have some great New York credits with a recommendation from someone Carey Perloff knows well and respects.

It's a tall order. So, why I ask does A.C.T. have general auditions for local actors who are members of Actors Equity? My guess is because the have to. I believe it's simply something they have to do to stay in compliance with the union contract.

Will I continue to audition at A.C.T. ? Of course I will! The actor's job is to audition and to keep trying no matter what the odds. You never know who may be auditing the audition from another company. That person may imagine you in a role at a smaller theatre like the Aurora. Maybe you blow them away there in a show Carey comes to see. Maybe you get A.C.T.'s attention. Maybe a director from an off-Broadway production of a new play is in town and asks you to read for a part. Maybe that play is a huge hit. Maybe you get on A.C.T.'s radar in New York with their casting affiliate there. Maybe they give you a chance. Maybe you get a part in an A.C.T. play in the year 20025!

Now you want something fun to do this Christmas? Go see A Christmas Carol at A.C.T. Everything I just wrote doesn't apply. It's full of local talent.

Theater of the Stars in Atlanta Shirks

After the shattering news that Atlanta's Theatre of the Stars had to cancel "Tarzan" the musical after taking hundreds of thousands in investment money from AMTSJ and a Dallas company, the show is still listed on their web site's season page. I am sure they just haven't gotten around to updating it yet, but in an article I found in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, it seems that AMTSJ may have jumped the gun a little . The president of the Atlanta theater, Nick Manos, says this, “We realize there are other theaters that were affected by this, and we were working with them behind the scenes on solutions. San Jose apparently took matters into its own hands and sent out a press release [on Monday]."

Could it be that they Manos was actually going to try and come up with a financial solution, but because AMTSJ made it public right way, Manos was rendered ineffective? How would AMT's action of sending out a press release, prevent the theatres from salvaging the situation. AMT certtainly couldn't just lay off all of there employees without making some kind of public statement.

The fact is the economy is nailing everyone now and the arts are going to be hurt badly. The Atlanta company was merely trying to save it's own skin.

South Bay Theatre Tragedy

As reported yesterday by the San Francisco Chronicle, American Musical Theatre of San Jose has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Plagued by debt over the last number of years, AMTSJ has finally had to close it's doors because another theatre company (Atlanta's Theater of the Stars) backed out of a joint production of "Tarzan".

This is a very sad day for me as a Bay Area actor. AMTSJ has been a constant producer of high quality, big budget, Broadway style theatre for many years. Although they strayed for a few years, in recent years they have consistently hired local Equity and non-Equity actors. The production values are always very high and, in my experience, it has been a wonderful place to work.

I don't understand why some of the big companies in the South Bay didn't step in to help save AMTSJ, or why the City of San Jose doesn't do something to keep them afloat.

Isn't there an organization with deep pockets that can do something to save this vital institution?

Jane Anderson's, "The Quality of Life" at A.C.T.

Once in a while a play comes along that not only entertains but contains within it's message and dialogue and subtleties the possibility of changing the hearts and lives of those fortunate enough to see it performed. The show, "The Quality of Life" currently showing at A.C.T. and with only a few days left in the run, is just that kind of play. Jane Anderson is masterful in both her writing and direction of this remarkable work. I left the theatre stunned. I found myself walking up and down Geary Street for about and hour just thinking about what I experienced. The biggest change I noticed in my psyche was that I was actually kind to the many street people begging in the neighborhood. Usually, I feel a sense of caution and fear when I encounter them. But after attending this play that feeling was completely gone. I found this quite remarkable.

The play deals with life and death and love and marriage in Anderson's own unique voice, but at the same artistic level of an Albee or Miller. If you don't see the show in San Francisco, look for it in New York soon. This play is destined for Broadway and in my opinion great things lie ahead for Anderson with her outstanding work.

The Cast:
Laurie Metcalf (Desperate Housewives, Roseanne), JoBeth Williams (Poltergeist, The Big Chill), Steven Culp (A.C.T.'s Blackbird), and two-time OBIE Award winner Dennis Boutsikaris.

The Quality of Life is winner of three 2008 LA Stage Alliance Ovation Awards, including Best Play, Best Playwright, and Best Lead Actress (Laurie Metcalf). It was also nominated for four 2007 Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards.

"Tremendous! It entertains, amuses, compels, makes the audience think, feel, laugh, weep. That is theater." —San Francisco Examiner

"A magnetic work of theater. Very funny . . . astounding performances!" —San Francisco Chronicle

"Thoroughly captivating. Beautifully directed . . . wonderfully engaging characters" —Contra Costa Times

"Radiant! One of the most emotionally acute productions of the fall season" —San Jose Mercury News

"Highest rating! Crackling, fast-moving! A powerful play that touches every emotion in the book . . . as passionate and profound as you're likely to see on any stage." —BeyondChron.com

"Touching and thought-provoking . . . skillfully crafted" —San Francisco Bay Times

"A dream cast!" —Los Angeles City Beat

"When I see a production as beautifully written, directed, and performed as The Quality of Life, I thank my lucky stars." —LAStageScene.com