Chuck's Choices for the weekend of March 14, 2014

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:

The Presenters Dolan present Emily Bergl: Until The Real Thing Comes Along, Thursday through Saturday, March 13-15, at 8 PM as part of the Gaslight Cabaret Festival. "Most widely known for her roles on television and in film - as Rachel in "The Rage: Carrie 2,"Beth on "Desperate Housewives" and now on "Shameless," as well as for her extensive work on Broadway and Off, Emily Bergl burst onto the cabaret scene just two years ago, garnering raves. She has performed at the Oak Room, the Cafe Carlyle, and the new Feinstein's...In a Cabaret-in-a-New-Key style, Bergl blends Irving Berlin with Blondie, Rodgers and Hammerstein with Tracey Chapman, and Noel Coward with Britney Spears. It works, freshly and wondrously. Her performance is heartbreaking and funny, sometimes in the same beat." The performance takes place at the Gaslight Theater, 358 North Boyle. For more information: gaslightcabaretfestival.com.

My take: In an interview earlier this week, I asked Emily Bergl what it was about her approach to cabaret that sets it apart from more traditional shows. "I'm presenting a complete evening of entertainment," she replied, "with a real narrative and lots of different characters. I don't assume that if I just sit on a stool and do a bunch of torch songs it's going to be fascinating. We like to entertain the folks!" Now that I've seen the premiere of the show, I have to say she has achieved that particular goal. A few "new show" speed bumps not withstanding, Until the Real Thing Comes Along is a lively and entertaining evening that often goes in unexpected directions in clever and diverting ways, greatly assisted by music director Jonathan ("Johnny Piano") Mastro's innovative arrangements.

Kirkwood Theatre Guild presents The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940 Thursday through Saturday at 8 PM. Performances take place in the Robert G. Reim Theatre of the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 South Geyer Road. For more information, call 314-821-9956 or visit ktg-onstage.org.

My take: This show has been popping up quite a bit locally over the last several years and certainly looks like the sort of thing Kirkwood should be able to do well. "The play is a real murder mystery," writes Bob Wilcox in his review for KDHX, "with complications and suspense. But it is also a comedy, a parody of mysteries set in mansions isolated from the world by a blizzard, with lots of theatrical in-jokes piled on." And while he notes that the show "appeared not quite to have gelled on opening night, perhaps because of rehearsals missed during our own blizzards," he goes on to say that the show is "already fun [and] will be even more fun as the cast settles in."

Photo: Jill Ritter Lindberg

New Line Theatre presents the rock musical Rent Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM, through March 29. "New Line continues its 23rd season with Jonathan Larson's Pulitzer Prize winning, long-running rock opera Rent. This cheerfully transgressive, 1990s rock/pop riff on the classic story, set in New York City’s East Village, is best described in its creator's own words: 'In these dangerous times, where it seems the world is ripping apart at the seams, we can all learn how to survive from those who stare death squarely in the face every day and we should reach out to each other and bond as a community, rather than hide from the terrors of life at the end of the millennium.'"Performances take place at the Washington University South Campus Theatre, 6501 Clayton Road. For more information: newlinetheatre.com.

My take: I've always been a fan of this musical. Jonathan Larson's score is inventive and stylistically eclectic and his lyrics are artful and intelligent. What strikes me about Rent is how much this modern and supposedly revolutionary show reminds me of another one to which those same adjectives were applied back in 1968: Hair, the show that defined the genre of rock musical. Like Hair, Rent takes jabs at the older generation - mine - and thumbs it's nose at the American status quo from the bottom of the economic pyramid. Unlike Hair, though, it's less overtly political, covers a wider emotional spectrum, and may actually be a better piece of theatre. In her review for KDHX, Tina Farmer describes this as "a memorable production filled with stolen chances, borrowed happiness and powerful emotions pulled from a constant state of movement, noise and distraction."

Held Over:

Dramatic License Productions presents the comedy Shirley Valentine through March 16. Performances take place at Dramatic License Theatre located at the upper level of Chesterfield Mall (near Sears and across from Houlihan's Restaurant). For more information, call 636-220-7012 or visit dramaticlicenseproductions.org.

My take: One-actor shows are always a risk, but actress and costume designer Teresa Doggett (a.k.a. "the hardest-working woman in show biz") has done this role before, to considerable acclaim. In her review of the current production for KDHX, Tina Farmer praises Ms. Doggett's "warm, spirited performance" as well as "the capable direction of Lee Anne Mathews." She has good things to say about the technical aspects of the show as well, including the costume design by Ms. Doggett.