Tag Archives: Andy Rogow
Buyer & Cellar: The Price Of Celebrity And Celebrity Worship
Jonathan Tolins’ satirical Buyer & Cellar provides a steady supply of giggles and guffaws in this tale about an actor hired by Barbra Streisand to staff in shops that she built in the basement of her estate’s barn in Malibu. But Island City Stage’s production, while certainly funny, lets us view Tolins’ more serious glimpses of just how different life is for celebrities cut off from the real world.
Intriguing Script Needs A Lot More Work In Island City’s The Radicalization Of Rolfe
The world premiere The Radicalization of Rolfe at Island City Stage implies a truly intriguing nesting of premises: starting with how Rolfe, the sweet messenger boy romancing Liesl in The Sound of Music ends up with a swastika on his arm helping the Nazis hunt down the Von Trapps? But this gay-themed drama needs a lot more work on the script.
Island City Stage’s Musical Hoot Zanna, Don’t! Is Zanna Do
Island City Stage’s highly entertaining production of the musical Zanna, Don’t! will never be confused with a show by Stephen Sondheim, though there are numerous references to the famed composer. Amid the numerous pop culture references, , and well-timed humor, Zanna, Don’t! slyly, yet forcefully, maintains that everyone has a right to love whom they want.
Island City’s Hir: How Do You Move Forward When You No Longer Know Where You Are
In this uncertain world, the ever-changing standards of what life is or even should be make it nearly impossible to chart a path forward when we have less idea what might be ahead than Columbus. That may be one of the takeaways – there are likely a half-dozen more — from the nightmarishly dark but hilarious 2014 comedy Hir bowing at Island City Stage.
In Goldberg Variations, Traumatic Family Gathering Becomes Re-enactors’ Playhouse
The stage is a fungible place. Sets can transform, actors can fly, characters can break walls, especially the fourth. There is limitless potential in the blank canvas of floorboards and lighting, as Stuart Meltzer’s gently experimental The Goldberg Variations reminds us at Island City Stage.
Gorgeous Music Elevates Stage Door’s The Most Happy Fella
Some directors say if you cast a show well, you’re more than halfway home to a successful production. So while the acting is just barely adequate in Broward Stage Door’s The Most Happy Fella, have they ever casted the voices beautifully and that makes for some stirring satisfying moments well worth the ticket.
Current Events Amp Audience Angst In Perfect Arrangement
When Topher Payne’s Perfect Arrangement bowed in 2013, the satirical indictment of homophobia, hypocrisy and a half-dozen other themes was a witty and insightful commentary. In the context of last week’s election, Island City Stage’s production is a terrifying reminder of the dangers of navigating a repressive culture through submissive accommodation.
Presidential Politics Make Shorts Gone Wild Even Wilder
Political satire is like the finest champagne – delectable at the time but going flat with age. But in the meantime, as Shorts Gone Wild 4 (subtitled Decision 2016: It’s Gonna Be Yuuuuuge!) underscores, what a terrific way to blow off angst over today’s polarized landscape.
Feeding The Bear Has Promise, But It Needs More Feeding
Feeding The Bear, a serio-comedy focused on caring for a father succumbing to Alzheimer’s (featuring a drag queen with a cooking TV show), has all the necessary ingredients for a tasty confection, but this work in progress hasn’t yet found the culinary magic to be a fully satisfying dish.
A PaperStreet Web Design
