New this week: a one-woman Titanic send-up and a dark Sam Shepard comedy.
New This Week:
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| Never Let Go: A One-Woman Titanic |
The Monocle presents
Rachel Tibbets in
Never Let Go: A One-Woman Titanic, at 8 pm Thursday through Saturday, April 18-20. "Will your heart go on? Rachel Tibbetts (St. Louis Theatre Circle Award winner) stars in ERA's one-woman Titanic parody. The ensemble of artists developing this new play also includes Will Bonfiglio, Lucy Cashion, Morgan Fisher, and Bess Moynihan. Join us for the maiden voyage of your life and hope it doesn't sink! All performances start at 8:00 pm. The Monocle opens at 6:30 for preshow cocktails and libations. Doors open to the Emerald Room at 7:30pm. Come for a drink and stay for the show!" Performances take place in the Emerald Room at The Monocle on Manchester in The Grove. For more information:
themonoclestl.com
My take: Well, no, I haven't actually seen this one, but I have seen the work of nearly everyone associated with it and based on that experience alone, I have to say I don't think you can go wrong here. I also find the concept both audacious and appealing. Dobbs only knows, the film
Titanic deserves a little parody. And the Emerald Room at The Monocle is a very cool little theatre/cabaret space with a fun vibe all its own.
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True West
Photo by Patrick Huber |
St. Louis Actors' Studio presents Sam Shepard's
True West Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 3 pm, through April 28. " This American classic explores alternatives that might spring from the demented terrain of the California landscape. Sons of a desert-dwelling alcoholic and a suburban wanderer clash over a film script. Austin, the achiever, is working on a script he has sold to producer Sal Kimmer when Lee, a demented petty thief, drops in. He pitches his own idea for a movie to Kimmer, who then wants Austin to junk his bleak, modern love story and write Lee's trashy Western tale." Performances take place at the Gaslight Theatre, 358 North Boyle. For more information call 314-458-2978 or visit
stlas.org.
My take: Honesty compels me to admit that I have never much cared for Sam Shepard as a playwright. His plays tend to concentrate on the kind of people I'd normally cross the street to avoid. "It's hard to imagine anyone being comfortable watching a Sam Shepherd play, "
writes Ann Lemmons Pollack. "His onstage world is a bleak one, no matter the setting." But she goes on the recommend this production anyway, praising the cast and director and concluding that it a "carefully created rendition of an excellent play." At KDHX, Tina Farmer
concurs, calling this "a raucous tale that's curiously satisfying, laugh out loud funny and incredibly cathartic." Which tells me that, if you don't share my feelings about Shepard's plays, this is probably well worth your time.
Held Over:
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Dreamgirls
Photo by John Lamb |
Stray Dog Theatre presents the musical
Dreamgirls Thursdays through Saturdays through April 20. "Journey back to a time in musical history when rhythm and blues weren't everything, they were the only thing. In the swinging 60s, the Dreamettes, led by the powerful Effie White, embark on an R and B music career that leads them across the country. Romantic entanglements, Effies weight, racism, and the arrival of a fresh new sound in the 70s make this show biz musical a thrilling hit." Performances take place at The Tower Grove Abbey, 2336 Tennessee. For more information, visit
straydogtheatre.org or call 314-865-1995.
My take: I haven't seen this show since the 1997 USA tour played the Fox, so it's good to see a locally-sourced production. Stray Dog has had a pretty impressive string of hits with its musicals in recent years, and judging from the reviews, this one is keeping the streak going. "Go see Dreamgirls at Stray Dog Theatre because it sounds glorious," writes Ann Lemmons Pollack. "It's a thrilling kind of opera, with a powerful R&B heartbeat,"
says Richard Green at Talkin' Broadway. "Director Justin Been keeps things moving,"
writes Calvin Wilson at STLToday.com "with particular attention to creating stage pictures that capture the zing of showbiz life. The contributions of music director Jennifer Buchheit and choreographer Mike Hodges are first-rate, and the performances are excellent."
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