Chuck's Choices for the weekend of July 26, 2019

This week: a classic opera, a send-up of a classic movie, and a nostalgic look at a classic time when the USA was actually united against fascism.

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New This Week:

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The All Hands on Deck Show

Lindenwood University presents The All Hands on Deck Show on Saturday, July 27, at 3 pm. " Join us as we pay homage to the days of Bob Hope and war-bond drives, in a show that features Broadway Veterans Jody Madaras and Valerie Hill, a cast of New York voices, the rich sounds of the 9-piece ALL-LIVE Hollywood Victory Caravan Big Band Orchestra, classic commercials, tight harmonies, Broadway tap-dancing, impromptu skits, and 42 of the Greatest American songs ever written -- not to mention a full-circle patriotic salute to the American way of life. Come celebrate the U.S.A. 1942-style with The All Hands on Deck! Show." Performances take place at the Scheiegger Center for the Arts on the Lindenwood campus in St. Charles, MO. For more information: lindenwood.edu.

My take: This nostalgic tribute to the patriotic shows of World War II originated in Branson, where it continues to play on a regular basis. Reviews of the tour elsewhere have been pretty positive, and it's worth recalling a time when (unlike today) America was largely united in the war against fascism. The 1940s had a lot of problems which, as far as I can see, this upbeat revue ignores, but as I wouldn't expect a production like this to take on a subject that complex, I can hardly say that's a criticism. Bottom line: it looks like great fun.

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La Bohème
Photo by Dan Donovan

Union Avenue Opera presents Puccini's La Bohème Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM, July 26 - August 2. Performances take place at the Union Avenue Christian Church, 733 Union at Enright in the Central West End. The opera is sung in Italian with projected English text. For more information, visit unionavenueopera.org or call 314-361-2881.

My take: By the time Puccini and his librettists got around to translating Henri Murger’s episodic 1849 novel Scènes De La Vie Bohème into the 1896 opera La Bohème, it had already enjoyed a considerable European vogue, so it’s not surprising that La Bohème has gone on to become a favorite of opera companies around the world. The classic tearjerker has been produced many times here in St. Louis (most recently by Opera Theatre in 2016), but a good production is always worth seeing, and given Union Avenue's track record, I expect this one to be solid.

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Jaws: The Parody
Photo by Kayla Lindsay

St. Louis Shakespeare's Magic Smoking Monkey Theatre presents Jaws: The Parody, through July 27. Performances take place at the Regional Arts Commission in University City. For more information: www.stlshakespeare.org

My take: Magic Smoking Monkey Theatre, the illegitimate love-child of St. Louis Shakespeare, got its start by concocting its own scripts from pop culture detritus like the films of Ed Wood and superhero cartoons. In recent years they have branched out to making fun of of material that, unlike Ed Wood's collected works, didn't suck in its original form. "The bigger the original's special effects budget," writes Paul Friswold at the Riverfront Times, "the funnier the Magic Smoking Monkey version becomes, thanks to cardboard sets, dollar-store props and the actors' wild-eyed willingness to try anything for a laugh." Sounds about right.