Frank Cazares News

'The Understudy' at Coyote StageWorks is a theatrical nightmare of comic proportions.

The final production of Dezart Performs' 10th anniversary season, MOTHERHOOD OUT LOUD, is an anthology of sketches and monologues by different writers about the trials and tribulations of motherhood, with a few fatherhood ideas mixed in. The writing is funny and touching, and Susan R. Rose and Joan Stein, who conceived the show, which ran off Broadway, wisely avoided anything truly upsetting. Michael Shaw's expert direction and the charismatic ensemble cast's top-notch performances contribute to a laugh-out-loud, feel good couple of hours, that will have audience members nodding in recognition; director Shaw and all of the cast members successfully deliver the pacing and timing that are key ingredients in a production like this.

There is much to enjoy in Coyote Stageworks' production of THE COCKTAIL HOUR, by A.R. Gurney: the script is funny, the directing is top-notch, and there is a great deal of excellent acting. Unfortunately, one actor was sick at the performance I attended, resulting in problems for the show that night.

Dezart Performs has always aspired to quality rather than quantity in their productions, staging just three mainstage plays each season. I have never been disappointed with one of their shows, and it somehow seems that each new show tops all the ones that have preceded it. Rabbit Hole, the second production of their Gala Tenth Season, might just be the closest thing to a perfect production that I have seen in the Coachella Valley.