Chuck's choices for the weekend of September 13, 2013

As always, the choices are purely my personal opinion. Take with a grain (or a shaker) of salt.

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New this week:

HotCity Theatre presents Joe Orton's Entertaining Mr. Sloane through September 21. “Young Mr. Sloane thought he already had a SORDID life as a hustler until he became the erotic target of his lewd landlady and her bottled-up brother! Repressed desires, power plays and an unsolved murder all make for one twisted tale!” Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, visit www.hotcitytheatre.org or call 314-289-4063.

My take: Orton's dark comedy/sex farce/satire is now something of a classic (it was written in 1964), if that's not too much of a contradiction. It's been a while since we've had a professional production of it locally and this appears to be a good one. "The entire cast does splendid work in this vinegar-chiffon-pie of a play," writes Steve Callahan in his review for 88.1 KDHX. "Director Bill Whitaker keeps the comedy rolling at a brisk pace, and it's much fun." Held Over:

The Black Rep presents a staged reading of Christina M. Ham's Four Little Girls: Birmingham 1963 in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the bombing of The 16th Street Baptist Church. The performance takes place on Sunday, September 15th at 5 PM at Washington Tabernacle Baptist Church, 3200 Washington Avenue. The staged reading, directed by Linda Kennedy, will commemorate the precise 50th anniversary of the bombing that claimed the lives of the four little girls in Birmingham, Alabama. The reading will feature music by Charles Creath, Leslie Johnson, Karen Hylton and young people from The Black Rep Summer Performing Arts and Young Artists for Peace and Justice. For more information: www.project1voice.org.

My take: There's a lot of blather on the far right these days about how racism is a think of the dim, dark, past and wasn't really all that bad in the first place. This play reminds us of just how vile and poisonous it really was, and how recently that was true. Anyone who thinks the kind of psychotic rage that led to the deaths in the Birmingham bombing can simply be extinguished in fifty years is simply not dealing with reality.

New this week:

The Black Rep presents Ron Conner in the one-man show Emergency by Daniel Beaty Thursday through Saturdas at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM. “A slave ship emerges in front of the Statue of Liberty sending NY into a whirlwind of emotion and exploration in this explosive solo tour de force featuring slam poetry, multi-character transformation, and song. Ron Conner will portray a cast of 40 characters who all respond to the unexpected phenomenon. Through the characters' individual responses to this surreal happening and their varied testimonies on identity and personal freedom, Emergency weaves a stirring commentary on what it is to be human and the longing to be free. The performance is 80 minutes with no intermission.” Performances take place at A. E. Hotchner Studio Theatre in the Mallinckrodt Center on the Washington University campus. For more information: theblackrep.org

My take: "Beaty writes smartly and smoothly," notes Bob Wilcox in his review for 88.1 KDHX. "Beaty keeps it bright and lively, and so even more do director Ron Himes and especially actor Ron Conner. Conner hits the nail on the head with each of some 20-odd characters, some seen briefly, some frequently enough to get fleshed out. " This is the first show by the Black Rep since their former home at the Grandel Theater was sold out from under them, and they deserve our support.

Photo: Peter Wochniak

Stages St. Louis presents My Fair Lady September 6 through October 6. Performances take place in the Robert G. Reim Theatre at the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 South Geyer Road in Kirkwood. For more information, visit stagesstlouis.org or call 314-821-2407.

My take: I have always loved this show, a feeling that only increased after I had the pleasure of playing Alfred P. Doolittle in Stray Dog Theatre's production a few years ago. Unlike some musical adaptations of classic plays, My Fair Lady retains the spirit and a fair amount of dialog from its original (Shaw's Pygmalion). The combination of Lerner and Loewe's score and Shaw's bit is unbeatable. "You should see this absolutely fabulous My Fair Lady if you have the chance," writes Andrea Braun in her review for 88.1 KDHX. "I don’t see how it could have been done any better, and overall, it is just a “loverly” production of an American musical theatre treasure.

R-S Theatrics presents the musical Parade, with music by Jason Robert Brown and book by Alfred Uhry, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 7 PM, September 6-15. “In 1913, Leo M. Frank was falsely accused of the rape and murder of 13-year-old Mary Phagan. Frank was a Jewish New Yorker living in small-town Georgia less than 50 years after the end of the Civil War. Politicians used him as a pawn, yellow journalism distorted his image, and his outsider-status lead him to become the focus of racist fear and hate. In the end, the people of Georgia enforced their will upon him.” Performances take place at The Ivory Theatre, 7620 Michigan. For more information: r-stheatrics.com.

My take: This is an important musical drama from a company that is nothing if not gutsy. For more information, check out my blog post from a couple days ago and my mini-interview with director Christina Rios. "If you can handle the adult situations," says Tina Farmer in her review for 88.1 KDHX, "as well as the not-so-politically correct language of the period, and enjoy a musical that will make you think more than hum as you leave the theater, "Parade" should catch and hold your interest."