Stage
Last I checked Dictionary.com, a vampire was defined as a preternatural being who sucks the blood of humans or animals, and that's a scary concept for youngsters. Luckily, James and Deborah Howe's kid-lit Bunnicula is nothing of the kind. Rather, he's a nocturnal rabbit with teleportation powers who prefers to
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So give it up for Kittra Coomer, who dares not one, not two, but 27 Cline numbers in a little over two hours for Capital Playhouse's production of Always...Patsy Cline. It's not just a matter of hitting those "Crazy" notes, hard as that is. Cline had one of the
Stage
I suppose one of the defining traits of legendary talent is that it cannot be reproduced. Thousands of doughy Elvis impersonators later, there's still just one King, and Beatlemania remains a mere echo of the Fab Four. Likewise, there has only ever been, and can only ever be, one Virgina
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Originally, the next slot at Harlequin Productions was to be filled by my favorite play of all time, Cyrano de Bergerac. ("We are the Gascony cadets!") So imagine my disappointment when that show's lead, Kerry Skalsky, tore his Achilles tendon, forcing director Scot Whitney into panic mode. His
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To some devout Christians, witches aren't just innocent Halloween scares: they're eternally damned brides of Hell. It may seem nutty to hear folks railing against Harry Potter, but in pre-scientific America, supposed Devil worshipers served as convenient scapegoats for any misunderstood mishap. Ostensibly rational Americans were once terrified of witches
Stage
To some devout Christians, witches aren't just innocent Halloween scares: they're eternally damned brides of Hell. It may seem nutty to hear folks railing against Harry Potter, but in pre-scientific America, supposed Devil worshipers served as convenient scapegoats for any misunderstood mishap. Ostensibly rational Americans were once terrified of witches
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There are stage veterans who scoff at Neil Simon, but I'm not among them. It'd be easier to dismiss his career if 21st century theaters boasted a humorist with even half the quality of his résumé. That said, Simon was always more gifted at writing jokes (a talent honed in
Stage
Eugene Morris Jerome has reached that critical age at which he realizes other people have inner lives - that the members of his family are complicated humans with individual concerns, rather than just costars in the Eugene Jerome Story. His family's going through a lot in September, 1937: His parents
Arts
WEIRD SCIENCE Harlequin searches for the perfect 10 Originally, the next slot at Harlequin Productions was to be filled by my favorite play of all time, Cyrano de Bergerac. ("We are the Gascony cadets!") So imagine my disappointment when that show's lead, Kerry Skalsky, tore his Achilles tendon, forcing director Scot Whitney
Arts
In 35 years of doing and seeing theater, I've caught plenty of huge touring shows, but never went backstage at any. With Monty Python's Spamalot only two months away at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts, I toured the facility to learn what's involved in bringing such a grand
Arts
WALK THIS WAY Young Frankenstein Do you enjoy comedy? Do you like bliss? Then you'll want to catch the musical Newsday called "blissfully funny," Mel Brooks's adaptation of Young Frankenstein. It was developed in Seattle in 2007 and hit Broadway two years later. A mostly faithful translation of the 1974 movie, it
Arts
This being the Fall Arts Guide, it may seem odd to devote space to a behind-the-scenes look at Theater Artists Olympia (TAO), a group which may or may not have any art on the boards this fall. But the real story about TAO for 2011-2012 is that there is a
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Mauritius is the story of a young woman's quest to sell a collection of rare stamps for an astronomical price, and how shady characters band together to keep that from happening. The young woman, Jackie, may not actually own these precious stamps; I'm no probate lawyer, but
Stage
Last Thursday, I drove to a theater, found my seat, waited for the lights to go down and experienced a play I knew nothing about. Call it the doldrums of August, but I hadn't done research of any kind. I didn't know what the play was about, who directed it,
Stage
Fledgling Toy Boat Theatre's mission statement promises, "good acting in a humble house," and thanks to director Marilyn Bennett and the cast ofDakota's Belly, Wyoming, it delivers. I admired Bennett's production of Cradle Will Rock for University of Puget Sound, and this shorter play is similarly micromanaged. As for the
Stage
"I don't think I've ever seen an arts organization make a more swift and dramatic turnaround than Capital Playhouse. Is it weird to say I'm proud of them?" That was how I began my review of Capital Playhouse's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and oh, what a pleasure it
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The longer I do this job, the faster I can tell when we're in capable hands. This time it took seconds. As we drove up to Paradise Theatre's rustic lot in Gig Harbor, a dozen junior "princesses" in ball gowns greeted us with squeals and enthusiastic waves. It was the
Stage
Let's face it - we already know the plot. The King of Memphis is outside holding court when an eagle drops a shoe in his lap. It turns out the shoe belongs to Rhodopsis, "Rosycheeks," a Greco-Egyptian slave girl living in Naucratis ... Wait. That's the earlier Greek version of
Guides
I first met John Munn at auditions for his production of Sleuth at Tacoma Little Theatre. I didn't get the part, but he was the first director forthcoming enough to tell me why. I remembered him fondly and looked forward to an opportunity to work with him somewhere down the
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Does Tacoma really need a new theater company? As Gold From Straw proved last year, new ventures add vitality to the live entertainment scene, along with fresh new voices and talents unlikely to be readily embraced by more traditional companies. I spoke to Jen Davis, the company's associate artistic director,
