My mom, Dominic, and I went tonight to see “Murder on the Nile” at The Barnstormers Theater in Tamworth, NH. They usually put on pretty good productions. This was no exception. I had an inkling as to who did it early on but couldn’t make the timeline work so I thought I was wrong until the explanation scene.
When did you last go to see a live theater performance (play or musical, not concerts)?
Back in June, we went down to New York to see The Mother Fker with the Hat** in New York city, with Chris Rock (who wasn’t the star, but rather the draw). Bobby Cannavale was the real star, and Elizabeth Rodriguez was also terrific.
Last weekend Mama Zappa and I ran off to NYC. She saw The Addams Family while I went to the Museum of Natural History. We both saw Avenue Q and then Wicked. So just a few days for us - you got a problem wid that?
Does being in one count? Just finished a run of a community theater production of Shakespeare’s Tempest.
Before that, saw the local light opera company’s production of the musical Carousel back in, um, May or June.
Had heard all those classic Broadway show soundtracks over and over when I was a kid, but haven’t actually seen many of them on stage: it was a real treat! Does anybody ever put on The Golden Apple or The Boys from Syracuse any more, I wonder? It would be fun to see those.
I went to see Brian Friel’s Translations last night in Dublin’s Abbey Theatre. It was a fantastic production, a great play. It’s laugh out loud hilarious and poignant.
Last thing I watched in a theater was a production of Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich. I actually saw something after that, a family drama about the Vietnam War, but I was videotaping it for pay. so I don’t think that counts.
We’ve been hitting the local repertory theater all summer. There’s something about open-air theater in the park that is magical on a summer’s evening. In the last month, we’ve seen productions of Greater Tuna, Radio Gals, Becky’s New Car and Nunsense. Next week is Moliere’s The Miser.
Somewhere in there we also wedged in a production of Fleetwood Macbeth.
That looks like a hoot!
Any chance of a production of Two Gentlemen of Lebowski?
Not much of a theatre goer. The last performance I attended was a local production of MASH* which I went to see because a friend was in it. This was around ten years ago.
The Royal Shakespeare Company production of MacBeth in the re-built theatre at Stratford in mid-July. Actually didn’t think it was that good - the director trying to be too clever.
Several, last weekend at Sweet Pea, Bozeman’s annual arts festival. The highlights were Much Ado about Nothing and The Merchant of Venice by Montana Shakespeare in the Parks, but there were also a couple of youth productions I saw, too. And I’ll probably see MSitP one or two more times this summer, when they come back to town to finish up their season.
Last weekend, SHOUT at the Marriott Lincolnshire’s theater. It was…disappointing. Now, my mom and I have season tickets, so I know that most of their shows are fluff for the blue hairs, and I have no problem with that. Sometimes I like to be challenged by live theater, sometimes I just want to sit back and be entertained. This was…neither. Rather dull, actually, with costumes that were just all wrong, especially for one actress. (Seriously, she wasn’t an understudy or last minute replacement, so I can only surmise she really pissed off the Wardrobe Mistress at some point, because every single thing she wore made her look dumpy and lumpy.)
I think the biggest problem was that I’m not terribly into that genre of music, and it’s basically a revue show without a storyline. So, absent captivating music or a captivating story, I’m left only with Theme to ponder, and by acting and blocking, there seemed to be a whole lotta man hatin’ going on. Very strange for a show comprised almost entirely of love songs.
My last was Phantom of the Opera in Lansing Michigan.
I *finally *got season tickets to the Encores! revivals on Broadway, after years of reading the reviews and kicking myself for not having tickets. This past spring I saw Bells Are Ringing (Kelli O’Hara was miscast, it needed Kristin Chenoweth) and **Where’s Charley? **(newcomer Rob McClure was brilliant, I hope he has a long career). I already have tickets for next season (Merrily We Roll Along, Pipe Dream, and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes) and eagerly await casting news.
Oh, I also saw Varla Jean Merman and Leslie Jordan in Lucky Guy in May–*I *thought it was great, but apparently no one else did, as it opened and closed like a camera shutter.
No, but they have done It’s a Stevie Wonderful Life, As U2 Like It, It’s a Charlie James Brown Christmas, OthE.L.O., Little Drummer Bowie, and my favorite, Hamlet, the Artist formerly known as the Prince of Denmark.
Last March saw Derek Jacobi in London (Richmond) in King Lear; next week will see David Tennant in Much Ado About Nothing and Paul McGann in* Butley*, also in London.
I saw a few small shows at the Minneapolis Fringe Festival this week. Still have a punch left on my ticket card so I’ll try to fit something in tomorrow probably and before that I saw a production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum mid June. It’s so nice finally being able to see shows on a regular basis.
Mrs Piper and I saw “Shakespeare’s Will”, starring Seanna McKenna, a one-woman play at the Regina Globe in March. It’s now playing at the Stratford Festival - great play - great actress - heartily recommend it to anyone within driving distance of Stratford.
Hair. Last year in Atlanta.
Q
Tonight. An Off-Broadway production at Second Stage called “The Talls.”