David Clarke - Page 36

Modern Theatre of the Absurd is alive and very well at Obsidian Art Space, where the World Premiere of Gene Kato's VIRAL INFECTION is enjoying a glorious run. Gene Kato thought the play was un-producible and has kept it hidden away for 21 years. In a way, I'm deeply thankful. Had this play premiered 21 years ago, I wouldn't have seen it. Thus, I am happy the stars aligned justly to afford me the opportunity to see the zany, mad-cap lunacy and thoroughly refreshing thought provoking piece.

Presenting their second out of three productions for this year's 'Get Talking' series, Stages Repertory Theatre is producing Julia Cho's THE LANGUAGE ARCHIVE. The deliciously existential and fairy tale-esque drama won the 2010 Susan Smith Blackburn award, a prize given to plays written by women in the English language. The somewhat simplistic and formulaic plot introduces audiences to a linguist, George, who is the curator of a language library that preserves the last remaining strands of dead and dying languages. Despite his love for languages, he is inept in communication, which estranges him from his wife, Mary. George and his assistant, Emma, fly in a couple from a devastated Eastern European country to record their native language, the romantic and beautiful Elloway. However, the couple is bickering, so they have cast off Elloway and are using the 'hateful' language of English to fight.

On November 1, 2012, Tye Blue, who has been listed as 'Houston's Best Male Entertainer' for the past three years and just finished a Stellar run as Frank in Houston Grand Opera's production of Francesca Zambello's SHOW BOAT, released his mesmerizing debut solo album entitled Here. On the three track masterpiece, Tye Blue exposes listeners to his wide range of crooning skills, taking us on a Journey through his versatility as he sings in the styles of gospel, jazz, and showtunes.

Sitting down with any member of the Houston theatre community is one of the true perks of writing for BroadwayWorld. Recently, I got to sit down with three of the four cast members in Stark Naked Theatre's upcoming production of Yasmina Reza's GOD OF CARNAGE. Kim Tobin (playing Veronica), John Gremillion (playing Alan), and Kay Allmand (playing Annette) all talked to me about the show and why Houston audiences will love it.

Houston's theatre scene has been consistently upping the ante in 2013. Strong productions have been put on all over the city, and Country Playhouse has further elevated the bar with their tense and comical production of Sam Shepard's TRUE WEST.

As Houston Grand Opera began rehearsing SHOW BOAT, the Houston theatre community started to focus a lot of attention on the production. Utilizing social media, friends and followers of the artists got inside looks into the impressive amounts of dedicated labor, passion, and sheer hard work that went into getting SHOW BOAT to float and sail on stage. Yet, 140 characters on Twitter, a Facebook status update, and a photo on Instagram can only say so much. Luckily, I was able to converse with Houston area native, Charles Swan, about his career, being a swing for SHOW BOAT, and how he juggles being a professional performer and a teacher.

The musicalized version of Frank Abagnale, Jr.'s jet set life, CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, flies into the Hobby Center this week. With a strong opening night crowd and performance, this toe-tapping musical is sure to put a smile on your face and make you feel great. Marc Shaiman wrote the catchy score with lyrics by Scott Whitman and Marc Shaiman. Yet, audiences may better recognize this duo as the real-life composing team behind the hit songs for the fictional musical BOMBSHELL on NBC's SMASH.

Bayou City Concert Musicals has a track record of enjoyable and wholly entertaining performances. They burst onto the Houston Theatre scene with a concert production of FOLLIES. Since FOLLIES, Paul Hope has astounded audiences with productions of FALSETTOS, SHE LOVES ME, 70, GIRLS, 70, ASSASSINS, FIORELLO!, THE SECRET GARDEN, PAL JOEY, ON THE TOWN, GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES, FINNAN'S RAINBOW, and ONE TOUCH OF VENUS. Each of these shows was a sensational hit in its own time, but has been notoriously neglected as time merrily rolls along. Each of these concerts has been accompanied by a live orchestra, which only increases the price tag for producing the fabulous productions. To help keep ticket prices affordable, Paul Hope utilizes showcase cabarets as fundraisers. Like his concert productions, the cabarets are jam packed with the best of the best of Houston's musical theatre talent who only aim to captivate and enthrall. The latest cabaret, JEROME KERN IN HOLLYWOOD, is no exception.

I've been writing for Houston's BroadwayWorld page for a brief 8 ½ months now, and one thing that I quickly learned and came to love about Houston is that there is always a wide selection of venues and titles to choose from. This past Saturday, I ventured from my residence in a Southeast suburb of the city to Playhouse 1960 for the very first time to see their production of I'M NOT RAPPAPORT. The aesthetically well-designed and beautiful performance space is nestled near FM 1960 and US 290, and the company provides audiences with a production of the Tony Award-winning comedy that leaves audiences with plenty to talk about it.

Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal amazed and impressed Houston audiences with their fourth engagement in our city. Enthusiastic cheers, thunderous applause, and lengthy standing ovations greeted the company after each act in the Cullen Theatre at the Wortham Center last Friday night. In an effort to introduce Houston audiences to exciting contemporary dance makers, The Houston Ballet hosted Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal under the Artistic Direction of Gradimir Pankov and the direction of Italian choreographer Mauro Bigonzetti as part of their Cullen Series.

With less than twenty-four hours until the Ensemble Theatre opened the Regional Premiere of KNOCK ME A KISS, I got to have a brief conversation about the play with its playwright, Charles Smith. During our conversation we discussed the play, which introduces audiences to Yolande Du Bois, daughter of W.E.B. Du Bois. It exposes the audience to the hardships she faced and endured in search of her own happiness.

Perhaps one of the greatest achievements of theatre is its ability to shed light on an issue or people that the audience may not be wholly familiar with. The Harlem Renaissance is the well-known and highly lauded period of time when African-American artists became exposed to and appreciated by mainstream audiences. The Harlem Renaissance introduced Americans and even the world to the soul and heart of African-Americans, showcasing humanity and beginning to dismantle the stigma of animalism, livestock, and even chattel. Most of us are familiar with the celebrated heroes of the movement, like Langston Hughes and W.E.B. Du Bois; yet, we are wholly unfamiliar with W.E.B. Du Bois' daughter, Yolande Du Bois. We are even less cognizant of her marriage to poet Countee Cullen.

QUIDAM is internationally acclaimed Cirque du Soleil's ninth stage show. The production had its World Premiere on April 23, 1996; however, in 2010 it was converted from its original big top format into an arena format so that it could tour across North America and the world. It introduces audiences to a young, bored girl named Zoe, who is neglected and ignored by her parents. She imagines the entire show of QUIDAM to escape the monotony of her life. As the tour was preparing to open in Laredo, Texas, I got to speak to Tanya Burka who performs the aerial silks act in the show. We discussed her transition from MIT trained Nuclear Engineer to International Circus Performer, her career, and QUIDAM.

All across the greater Houston area, public schools and post-secondary college and universities are back in session. Students are hopefully becoming enlightened through quality education. However, to kick off their annual Get Talking Series, Stages Repertory Theatre is giving audiences something to talk about with their production of David Davalos' WITTENBERG. Other entries into this year's trilogy include upcoming productions of Julia Cho's THE LANGUAGE ARCHIVE and Rebecca Gilman's DOLLHOUSE.

World Premieres are always exciting to attend. You never know what you are getting yourself into, so there is the allure and excitement of mystery. Sometimes they're terrible. Sometimes they're amazing. Sometimes they're in-between. Luckily, Leighza Walker's first full-length play, FISHING, is an enjoyable and fascinating exploration of loyalty, fidelity, love, and life.

Running opposite the bright and colorful SHOWBOAT in Houston Grand Opera's winter repertoire is an austere and dark production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte's DON GIOVANNI. This atmospheric and melodramatic opera presents the audience with the lecherous Don Giovanni, who has hired Leporello to keep a little black book of each of his numerous conquests and sexual assaults against the women of Europe. The show opens with Donna Anna escaping the man and crying out about his assault. Her father rushes to protect her and is unapologetically slain by Don Giovanni. Moving on, Don Giovanni stupefies the naïve Zerlina with his Casanova-like charms and lures her away from her husband Masetto. Meanwhile, Donna Anna, her fiancé, Don Ottavio, and Donna Elvira, an embittered woman that is one of Don Giovanni's conquests, all strive to bring his transgressive improprieties to public light.

Main Street Theater's Theater for Youth program's current production of A WRINKLE IN TIME is a splendid production of the classic novel by Madeleine L'Engle. The play tells the beloved story of Meg Murray and, her little brother, Charles Wallace's journey through time and space in search of their father. The play, like the novel, examines the power of self-discovery and courage.

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe may be best known for MY FAIR LADY, their 1956 musical adaptation of Pygmalion. The show was an incredible success and left anticipation high for another Lerner & Loewe musical. After tumultuous writing, casting, and rehearsing processes their follow up opened on Broadway in 1960. The musical, simply titled CAMELOT, was based on T. H. White's The Once and Future King. It opened to mixed reviews, but the Original Cast Album LP was America's best selling LP for a solid 60 weeks. After the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, it was publicized that the original cast recording had been a favorite of the Kennedy family in while in the White House, forever tying Lerner & Loewe's CAMELOT to the glamorous, media culture Camelot era of the Kennedy family.

There is always that one play that captures attention at a national or international level. It hits a nerve and becomes dominant in the cultural zeitgeist. That play is talked about for a couple of years because of powerful productions in prominent theatre cities. It wins Tony Awards. It wins Olivier Awards. Sometimes it wins the Pulitzer Prize. Then it is tucked away like a nice museum piece, and the world moves on. Almost all of that is true for Houston native Bruce Norris' CLYBOURNE PARK. Except this provocative, insightful, and humorous play, I predict, will not be tucked away. It will not be some untouched museum piece awaiting a flashy revival. This fiery comedy that is more of a well-polished mirror than theatrical exhibition has a long future of production ahead of it. Walking out of the opening night performance at The Alley, I understood all of the hype surrounding this piece. Simply put, CLYBOURNE PARK is must see social commentary.

As the world premiere production of Will Ledesma and Braden Hunt's musical version of THUMBELINA was in its opening weekend at A.D. Players, I got the opportunity to speak with book and lyric writer Will Ledesma. We discussed his career as a writer, his process, and the show itself.