Audrey Liebross - Page 11

Desert Rose Playhouse's 2017-18 'gay heritage production' is Lanford Wilson's FIFTH OF JULY, which the company pulls off admirably except for some pacing problems.

Desert Theatreworks has mounted a high-quality production of THE GREAT AMERICAN TRAILER PARK CHRISTMAS MUSICAL, with a superb cast and excellent design. If you're looking for laughs, toe-tapping melodies, corny albeit raunchy jokes, and great performances, you won't want to miss this show.

Desert Rose Playhouse's director, Jim Strait, and musical director, Joel Baker, have added popular numbers and Christmas songs to Charles Busch's TIMES SQUARE ANGEL to create what the playbill calls a musical pastiche. Their fine work, along with the terrific acting and singing, result in a production that provides laughs, while tugging at the heartstrings.

MAME has opened at the Palm Canyon Theatre, starring Se Layne and Morgana Corelli. The musical will run through Dec 17th.

THE HIP-HOP NUTCRACKER, a dance spectacle set to Tchaikovsky's music, is coming to Fox PAC in Riverside.

Coachella Valley Repertory's (CV Rep's) first offering of its 2017-18 season is David Ives' Tony-nominated VENUS IN FUR. Primarily a drama, the play hooks the audience with comedy in the early minutes. Later, as things get more serious and more disturbing the script introduces a mystery, and eventually, a thriller. Towards the end, the plot veers towards the supernatural. The director and the two actors do a top-notch job with the difficult play, which is presented in one long scene, without intermission.

Desert Rose Playhouse has opened its 2017-18 season its sixth with a brilliant production of Christopher Durang's simultaneously literary and loony 2012 comedy, VANYA & SONYA & MASHA & SPIKE (VSMS), which Durang has likened to taking Chekhov scenes and characters and whirling them around in a blender.

Desert Theatreworks' (DTW's) rip-roaring production of the Broadway musical, ANNIE, is a winner. The cast (both grown-ups and children), perform their roles with heart and expertise, resulting in a fabulous, feel-good presentation that all ages can enjoy.

Lin-Manuel Miranda's IN THE HEIGHTS is playing for four more performances at the Palm Canyon Theatre, from Thursday, July 13, 2017, through Sunday, July 16, 2017.

Coachella Valley Repertory (CVRep) has a robust summer season planned, which is already in progress. Its offerings consist of plays, cabaret, jazz, and classical music. This weekend, Perry Ojeda, who played Gabey in the 1998 Broadway Revival of ON THE TOWN, will perform in concert. Mr. Ojeda will sing the songs of Betty Comden and Adolph Green.

The national tour of PIPPIN is coming to the Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside, for two shows only, on Saturday, June 3, 2017, at 7:00 p.m., and Sunday, June 4, 2017, at 1:00 p.m. Naysh Fox plays the title character, and Housso Semon showcases her powerful voice as the 'Leading Player.' Broadway World interviewed Tyler Jacobson, who is one of the show's acrobats.

Director Jim Strait's wit shines in Desert Rose's CLARK GABLE SLEPT HERE. The script needs pruning, but the dialogue flies most of the time, as do the audience's guffaws. The two women in the cast have the juicy roles, and make the most of them. The audience will have fun at this raunchy play.

CVRep is currently presenting an engaging production of A.R. Gurney's one-act dramedy, LATER LIFE, directed by theatre veteran Luke Yankee, making his CVRep debut. All four cast members, each of whom has an impressive list of credits, are a pleasure to watch, as they expertly use their voices, bodies, and faces to pull us into their characters' stories.

Desert Theatreworks' (now resident in the Indio Performing Arts Center) production of the musical tearjerker NEXT TO NORMAL is a must-see. The uniformly superb cast performs their roles with spirit and empathy, and they all display lovely singing voices.

The Sun City Palm Desert Performing Arts Club has done a wonderful job with its annual musical for 2017, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. Although the production ran for only one weekend, the club has other offerings coming up.

On Saturday, March 25, 2017, Snow White and her princess friends will tell Riverside audiences what REALLY happened in their not-so-fairy-tale lives. DISENCHANTED!, the hit satirical musical suitable for adults only, will play two performances at the Fox Performing Arts Center, at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. 

Prolific screenwriter and playwright Del Shores is perhaps best known for his series of plays about growing up gay in the South. In the semi-autobiographical SOUTHERN BAPTIST SISSIES, now playing at the Desert Rose Playhouse in an excellent production, he describes the clash between his identities as a devout Baptist and a gay child.

Coachella Valley Repertory's DISGRACED examines identity and prejudice. It is expertly performed, timely, and searing and will almost definitely leave a lasting impression on theatregoers.

Desert Ensemble Theatre Company (DETC) is presenting LOVESPORT, a world premiere play by Tony Padilla, DETC's founder and producing artistic director. He produced and directed LOVESPORT as well as writing the script. I recommend the show because the acting is excellent, and the script exhibits dramatic tension and unexpected developments, especially in the second act.Desert Ensemble Theatre Company (DETC) is presenting LOVESPORT, a world premiere play by Tony Padilla, DETC's founder and producing artistic director. He produced and directed LOVESPORT as well as writing the script. I recommend the show because the acting is excellent, and the script exhibits dramatic tension and unexpected developments, especially in the second act.

Desert Theatreworks (DTW) is currently presenting a howlingly funny, expert production of the musical farce THE DROWSY CHAPERONE, featuring brilliant performances and direction, and nonstop lunacy.