The Laguna Playhouse

Beethoven, As I Knew Him

2010-05-07T17:54:00.000-07:00

Music to my ears? I think so. Hershey Felder returns to The Laguna Playhouse with the popular and critically acclaimed tour-de-force production of Beethoven, As I Knew Him May 11 - 23, 2010.

You don't have to play an instrument to appreciate Felder's performance of some of the most emotional and deeply moving music in history. Really, you don't even have to know classical music, the songs sing their own praises into the ears of any listener, no matter his background.

Felder's Beethoven, As I Knew Him is a dramatization of a little known true story as told in 1870 by the person who spent a good part of the maestro's last two years by his side.

Tickets to Hershey Felder's Beethoven, As I Knew Him are $40 to $70. For more information, call (949) 497-2787 or visit http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/.

Performance Dates:

May 11 - 23, 2010

Tuesday - Saturday at 8 p.m.

Saturday & Sunday at 2 p.m.

Thursday Matinees at 2 p.m.

The Boxcar Children

2010-04-15T13:53:00.000-07:00

THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE YOUTH THEATRE PRESENTS

THE BOXCAR CHILDREN

APRIL 23 - 25 AT THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE

Get ready for fun and adventure as The Laguna Playhouse Youth Theatre brings the cherished children's book The Boxcar Children to life on stage April 23 - 25.

Originally written in 1924 by Gertrude Chandler Warner and adapted for the stage in 1999 by Barbara Field, The Boxcar Children tells the story of four orphaned children during the Great Depression. After their parents drown in a boating accident, the children - ages 5 to 14 - run away when they overhear talk of putting them in separate foster homes. With the motto, "we stick together like glue," the children find an abandoned railroad boxcar and turn it into their home.

"The play reiterates the feeling of community and family, and that family sometimes takes different shapes and forms than what we think it's supposed to be," explains director Kelly Herman.

The Boxcar Children also explores the themes of personal integrity, maturity, and making do with what you have. In tough economic times, people begin to appreciate the things in life that cannot be bought, like the generosity and kindness of friends, family and strangers.

"With our current economic situation, it's a reminder that we can make good things happen even when we don't have a lot," says Herman.

According to Herman, this production of The Boxcar Children is being staged as it would have been done in the great depression.

"The actors never leave the stage, and all the music and sound effects are done on stage," she says. "Back in the 1930s, people would say ‘let's do a play!' so that is exactly what we're doing."

Of the play, The Seattle Times said, "Though the central story is the same, Field's script amplifies the psychological and social dimensions of the book considerably. With all the added material, The Boxcar Children has grown into an extended, more instructive and informative tale."

Performance Dates
April 23: 10 a.m. & 7:30 p.m.
April 24: 2 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.
April 25: 1 p.m. & 5:00 p.m.

Ticket Prices
Children: $18
Adults: $20

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787)
GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/

Insider's Map to The Second City History

2010-03-20T17:05:00.000-07:00

By Ashley Shafer

Celebrating over 50 years of funny, Chicago-based improvisational comedy troupe, The Second City, is well known for stirring up snickers with its satirical sketches. It is compiled of 11 full time touring ensembles, performing short scenes, songs and improvisational sketches at venues across the nation.

The Second City has theatres in Chicago and Toronto, as well as training facilities in those cities and Hollywood. The Second City Training Center is the largest school of improvisation and sketch comedy in the world. The "Harvard of humor," as The New York Times calls it, offers acting classes to comedians of all experience levels.

The Second City gained admirable clout in the 1970's when it contributed well-known comedians and alumni Bill Murray and John Belushi to Saturday Night Live television. Today the legend continues with SNL starlets Tiny Fey and Amy Poehler, also former Second City Citizens. Overall, Second City has contributed over two-dozen actors and writers to SNL.

Last December the comedy troupe kicked off its 50th birthday bash with "The Second City Alumni: One Night Only," which featured panel discussions and a series of classic sketches including a piece by Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell.

The Second City: Can You be More Pacific? has been specially crafted for its debut at the Laguna Playhouse. This show promises to deliver an avalance of laughs that will highligh the most comedic and relevant elements of what it means to be behind the Orange Curtain.

Second City Citizens: Alumni of the Second City include...

Bill Murray

John Belushi

Dan Aykroyd

Tina Fey

Stephen Colbert

Alan Arkin

Gilda Radner

Steve Carell

Chris Farley

Bonnie Hunt

Mike Meyers

Amy Sedaris

Sean Hayes

Martin Short

Joan Rivers

Rachel Draft

For more information on The Second City and to watch videos of The Second City sketches visit http://www.secondcity.com/

Can You Be More Pacific? at the Laguna Playhouse

2010-03-07T18:11:00.000-08:00

SECOND CITY COMES TO ORANGE COUNTY

WITH THE WORLD PREMIERE OF
CAN YOU BE MORE PACIFIC?
THROUGH APRIL 11 AT THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE

LAGUNA BEACH, CA - March 5, 2010 - Get ready for an outrageous evening of laughter when internationally acclaimed sketch-comedy troupe, The Second City, comes to Orange County March 16 - April 11, 2010, with the World Premiere of Can You Be More Pacific?, a custom-crafted production for The Laguna Playhouse that lampoons Laguna Beach and Orange County.

This show promises to deliver an avalanche of laughs that highlight the most comedic and relevant elements of what it means to be behind the Orange Curtain. Whether you're a life-long OC resident or a recent transplant, you'll see yourself, your neighbor or your favorite plastic surgeon lampooned on stage. From real housewives to theme park mania, this California adventure is a wild comedy ride that doesn't require a toll road.

Two Second City writers - Andy Cobb and Marc Warzecha - spent four days in OC soaking up the culture and talking to local celebrities, journalists, newsmakers, and muckrackers about the good, the bad and the ugly in and around OC. They soared over Irvine in the Great Park Balloon, ate tacos from a taco truck in Santa Ana, peered among the pews of the Crystal Cathedral, scoured Surf City, toured Newport Coast and cruised the toll roads.

Now, armed with fresh fodder and a renewed sense of what makes OC such a funny county, Andy and Marc have concocted a crazy sketch comedy show called Can You Be More Pacific? that's guaranteed to keep audiences laughing all night long.

Can You Be More Pacific? is the sixth regional-specific show created by the Second City, and celebrates the comedic troupe's successful 50-year history of zany comedy that has fostered such talented legends as Joh Belushi, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Gilda Radner, Stephen Colbert, Mike Myers, Amy Poehler, and Tina Fey.

Two Minutes of Theatre: The Secret Life of Girls

2010-03-06T09:07:00.000-08:00

Our interns, Ashley and Janelle, have been busy creating new episodes of Two Minutes of Theatre with the Laguna Playhouse!

Exclusion, gossip, rumors and cliques are just some of the bullying issues explored in 'The Secret Life of Girls.' Our interns go behind the scenes and interviews the cast about their experiences with teen bullying.

The Boxcar Children Audition Notice

2010-03-02T15:11:00.000-08:00

The Boxcar Children
Directed by Kelly Herman
Adapted by Barbara Field from the novels by Gertrude Chandler Warner
(For all ages)

One warm night four children stood in front of a bakery. No one knew them. No one knew where they had come from. Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny are orphaned and in danger of being sent to different foster homes. The four siblings run away and make their home in an abandoned railroad boxcar. Pursued by the authorities and a mysterious stranger, the children discover the rewards and perils of life on the run, as well as the joy of keeping their family together.

Youth & Mid-Teen Roles:
• Henry Alden (male) 14 - 16
• Jessie Alden (female) 14 - 16
• Violet Alden (female) 12 - 14
• Benny Alden (male) 10 - 12
• The Kid (male or female) 10 - 12
• Ensemble Children: homeless from Hooverville

Older Teen & Adult Roles:
• Mr. Alden (grandpa of children)/Officer Banning
• Sarah Calder
• Mrs. Alberts/Mrs. Truman (Sam's Mother)/Baker Woman
• Dr. Sam Truman/ Sheriff
• Cookie (male or female)
• Big Mike (male or female)

Prepare: A memorized 1 - 2 minute monologue & bring current photo, resume & conflicts

Schedule:
Auditions:
Friday March 12, 6:00 - 8:00pm
Saturday March 13, 11:00am - 5:00pm

Callbacks: Sunday March 14 (by invitation)
11:30 - 3:30pm Cold Readings

First Rehearsal:
Monday March 15, 7:00pm (Rehearses Eve & Sat)

Tech:
Tues & Wed, Thurs April 20-22 5:00pm - 11:00pm

Production Dates:
April 23 - 26 Weekend Performances & Matinees (7 Performances)

School Day Matinees:
April 23 - 26 Friday & Monday at 10:00am

ALL Auditions are appointment only!
Please call Wally Ziegler at (949)472-0061

Auditions are held at the Laguna Playhouse Production Center
23402 South Pointe Drive, Laguna Hills

March Madness at the Laguna Playhouse

2010-02-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

That's right, you read it correctly- March Madness at the Laguna Playhouse. With 3 performances in the month of March, there's sure to be a little madness around the theater :)

Monsieur Chopin
Feb 25 - March 7
Performances Thurs- Sat 8pm, Sat & Sun 2pm, Sun 7pm
Did you enjoy George Gershwin Alone? Hershey Felder will be performing the 2nd piece in his 'Composer Sonata' at the Laguna Playhouse. Join us as Frederic Chopin teaches piano lessons from his Paris salon in 1848. With the success of George Gershwin Alone, this event is sure to be a hit. Move quickly- Monsieur Chopin is a limited engagement and is selling quickly!
http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/onstage/special/monsieur-chopin/

The Secret Life of Girls
March 9 - 11
Performances Tuesday - Thursday 7:30pm
Did you know an estimated 160,000 children miss school every day out of fear of attack or intimidation by other students? Parents and teenagers can learn more about the solutions to emotional bullying in schools at a performance of The Secret Life of Girls, part of our Theatre for a New Generation. Aimed for children in middle school and high school, this would be a great opportunity for discussing issues that your young one may face at school.
http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/education/new-generation/

The Second City: Can You be more Pacific?
March 16 - April 11
Performances Tues - Sat 8pm, Sat & Sun 2pm, Sun 7pm (exclud 4/4), Thur 2pm on 3/18 & 4/1
The internationally acclaimed sketch-comedy company, The Second City, has custom crafted a production for The Laguna Playhouse to lampoon our beloved Laguna Beach and Orange County. This show promises to deliver an avalanche of laughs that will highlight the most comedic and relevant elements of what it means to be behind the Orange Curtain.
If you have lived in Orange County for any length of time, you will see yourself, your neighbor or your favorite plastic surgeon highlighted on stage for a good ribbing. From real housewives to finding sand in all the wrong places, this California adventure is a comedy ride that can’t be missed and won’t require a toll road.
http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/onstage/2010/tba/

Don't forget to add us on twitter @LagunaPlayhouse for daily updates about all our upcoming shows!

Hershey Felder brings his "Composer Sonata" to Laguna!

2010-01-27T15:07:00.000-08:00

Due to the immense popularity of Hershey Felder as George Gershwin Alone and excitement surrounding Monsieur Chopin at the end of February, the Laguna Playhouse is pleased to announce that we will be adding the third piece of Felder's "Composer Sonata," Beethoven as I Knew Him in May.

Interested in seeing the "Composer Sonata"? We have a special deal for you! Purchase tickets to two or more of these performances, and we'll give you 20% off your tickets! We'll even wave our normal $4 per ticket processing fee for a one time $4 fee covering all the tickets in your order! That's a potential savings of up to $50 per person!

George Gershwin Alone
Jan 12 - Feb 21
Performances Tues - Sat at 8pm
Sat & Sun at 2pm

Monsieur Chopin
Feb 25 - March 7
Performances Thurs - Sat at 8pm
Sat & Sun at 2pm
Sun at 7pm

Beethoven As I Knew Him
May 11 - 23
Performances Tues - Satur at 8pm
Thurs, Sat & Sun at 2pm

Dining Out Tonight?

2010-01-23T15:27:00.000-08:00

Make the most of your afternoon or evening with Hershey Felder as GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE by stopping by one of the restaurants in town! From BJs to Tivolli, there's something for everyone!

Two of our staff's favorite restaurants are offering discounts to our audiences as well!

The Lumberyard offers a complimentary dessert when you show them your ticket or ticket stub on the day of your performance! (limit one dessert per party of two) With the Lumberyard only a short walk away, it's a popular place for our audience to grab a bite or get drinks after the show.
http://lblumberyard.com/

Nirvana Grille is now offering 10% off your entire bill when you bring in your theater tickets before or after the show! Located down Broadway, Nirvana Grille is only 1 city block from the theater. Nightly Happy Hours and weekly dinner specials make this restaurant a favorite of locals and visitors!
http://www.nirvanagrille.com/

Spending more time in Laguna? Check out the Laguna Beach Visitors Bureau site for information about local events, hotels, and more!

Hershey Felder as George Gershwin Alone Press Release

2010-01-18T21:18:00.000-08:00

INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED and AWARD WINNING HERSHEY FELDER as GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE

January 12- February 21, 2012

LAGUNA BEACH, CA - December 16, 2009 - The Laguna Playhouse presents the popular and critically acclaimed final movement of Hershey Felder's "Composer Sonata" trilogy, HERSHEY FELDER AS GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE, a musical play directed by Joel Zwick with Music and Lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin and a book by Hershey Felder. GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE runs January 12 through February 21, 2010. The "Composer Sonata" comprises BEETHOVEN, AS I KNEW HIM; MONSIER CHOPIN; and his final movement, GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE.

In George Gershwin Alone - which won Ovation Awards for Best Actor in a Musical (Hershey Felder) and Best Musical - the internationally acclaimed actor, playwright and Steinway concert artist renders an intimate portrait of the legendary composer that provides a personal glimpse into Gershwin's early years, his personal life and his artistic genius. The evening is packed with many of Gershwin's most famous pieces, including "I Got Rhythm," "Someone to Watch Over Me," and of course, "Rhapsody in Blue."

The first popular composer to use jazz as the foremost musical element in the serious concert hall, George Gershwin absorbed the musical styles, rhythms and sophistication of the American spirit and created a musical language that made its mark on both the classical and popular music throughout the world. Hershey Felder brings to life the essence of the legendary composer and pianist, leading audiences through the fascinating rhythms of Gerswin's legendary songbook, while telling the tale of his tragically short life.

Critics across the country have raved about George Gershwin Alone. The Washington Post calls it "A heartfelt valentine wrapped up in stories and song." The Chicago Sun-Times said that "In an act of uncanny evocation that more often than not appears to verge on full-fledged channeling, the quadruple-threat performer Hershey Felder - an actor, singer, pianist and writer, and all of the first order - has brought the quintessential American composer back to life." USA Today enthused that "Felder effectively conveys the emotional roots and resonance of Gershwin's music. Performing gems such as 'An American in Paris' and 'Bess, You is My Woman Now,' he explains how the journeys taken by characters relevant to those works are reflected in the progression of notes, the chord changes, even the orchestrations." The New York Times stated that "George Gershwin Alone makes a great case for his subject as the American Mozart."

For more information on Hershey Felder as George Gershwin Alone, please visit the website www.gershwinalone.com

Performance Dates

January 12 - February 21, 2010
Tuesday - Saturday at 8 p.m. / Saturday & Sunday at 2 p.m.
Thursday Matinees January 14 & 28 at 2 p.m.
Sunday Evening January 24 at 7 p.m.

Ticket Prices
Preview Performances: $35 to $55
Regular Performances: $40 to $70

(Dates and times subject to change)

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: (949)497-ARTS (2787)

GROUP SALES: (949)497-2787 ext 229

VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com

MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

Winter Wonderettes Photos

2009-12-09T22:44:00.000-08:00

Haven't been able to get to the theater to see the Winter Wonderettes yet? The lovely ladies will be in Laguna until December 30th and you don't want to miss them!

"Tied neatly with a pretty bow, the show is packaged precisely to induce just the right amount of laughs and to entertain enough to fill its audience with yuletide giddiness"- Broadway World

"The four mildly dysfunctional but lovable women who first entertained playhouse audiences in 2008 with The Marvelous Wonderettes provide the same mix of mid-century pop songs, patter, petty rivalries and minor-league life crises that writer-director Roger Bean gave them the first time around." - Paul Hodgins, OC Register

"What makes a successful musical revue? Look no further than Roger Bean and his Wonderettes, the Marvelous Wonderettes, that is. It's Christmas, so they're the Winter Wonderettes and what sheer heaven!" - Don Grigware

OC Register Interviews Winter Wonderettes Director, Roger Bean

2009-11-27T11:39:00.000-08:00

By Paul Hodgins
OC Register
November 25, 2009

Over the last few years, Roger Bean's life has been pretty much taken over by four modestly talented female singers who call themselves the Wonderettes.

Bean, a playwright and director, admits that he spends more time than he ever imagined dealing with his fictional creations, who hail from Springfield (Bean chose that hometown because it's the most common name for an American city – he wants the Wonderettes to be from nowhere and everywhere).

"In the last couple of years, my life has mostly been taken up with Wonderettes-related stuff," said Bean, who has spent several weeks preparing "Winter Wonderettes" for a production at the Laguna Playhouse, where it opens Nov. 28. "Recently there have been 'Wonderette' shows in New York and Chicago and Florida and Hawaii."

Last year, local audiences got their first taste of the winsome foursome when the original incarnation of the show, "The Marvelous Wonderettes," played at the Laguna Playhouse.

The Wonderettes are catty, vindictive, backbiting and blithely egotistical. They're also the best of friends who have been performing as close-harmony singers since high school.

The group consists of Missy, the prim, level-headed one, easily the quartet's most talented singer; Cindy Lou, a statuesque beauty with a sultry delivery and that annoying sense of entitlement beautiful people exude; excitable Betty Jean, whose got some creative differences with Cindy Lou; and Suzy, a gum-chewing, lovable bimbo who has a budding romance going with Richie, the guy who runs the show's lights and isn't afraid of demonstrating his luminous love from the tech booth.

"Winter Wonderettes" is a sequel of sorts to "The Marvelous Wonderettes," which begins in 1958 when the four girls are still in high school and ends 10 years later, when life has started to deliver its tribulations and rewards.
"'Winter Wonderettes' takes place about six months after the first play ends," Bean said. "There's a little bit of movement that's happened. You find out that Missy, who got proposed to onstage, has been married. Richie is married to Suzy. She's had twins and she's pregnant again. She's turning into a baby factory."

The story is set in Harper's Hardware, where Betty Jean has worked since high school. The Wonderettes have transformed the drab place into a Yuletide-themed wonderland. Mr. Harper is due to appear at the end of the evening as Santa Claus, as he does every year to hand out everyone's eagerly anticipated Christmas bonus envelope.

But this year, Harper is a no-show. Betty Jean runs off to find him but comes back with the envelopes instead. Everyone opens them to discover not cash but pink slips. Harper's Hardware is closing its doors forever.
"I think everyone will really identify with that part of the show this year," said Bean, who penned "Winter Wonderettes" back in 2003 when unemployment was far less of an issue than it is today.

Bean is quick to reassure us that things aren't as dire as they appear. It was never his intention to delve into heavy issues with the Wonderettes franchise.

"I wanted to steer clear of the weightier things happening at the time. Getting into the Vietnam War, for example, would have been too rough for this little jukebox world I created."

One hallmark of Bean's shows is his use of period music, both popular and obscure, to define the Wonderettes' style and help tell their stories. "Winter Wonderettes" contains traditional Christmas carols, midcentury pop songs that everyone knows and a few not-so-familiar tunes as well: "The Man With the Bag," "Run, Rudolph, Run," "Christmas Will Be Just Another Lonely Day" and "Suzy Snowflake."

"I go through a lot of songs when I put these shows together," Bean said. "I listen to them over and over, and stories begin to take shape. I think, 'I'd love to have this song in the show. Whose story does it fit into?' After many listenings the solution will come to me about how the songs could be part of somebody's story line."

Bean once thought that the success of the Wonderettes would give him a certain amount of free time. No such luck.

"I run my own licensing company now, which looks after the Wonderettes as well as three other shows that are my own. Every once in a while I find a short period to write something new. But the more success I have the busier I get. I used to think, 'When I get to a certain level of success I'll be able to do whatever I want.' But once you create something like this, you spend a lot of your time maintaining it."

Coastline Pilot Stuart Little Preview

2009-11-10T11:20:00.000-08:00

Theater Preview: A Mouse is in the House
Preview by Tom Titus
November 5, 2009

There’s a mouse in the house this weekend and next — very old mouse actually, born in 1945 as a literary cousin of Charlotte the barnyard spider.

“Stuart Little: A Musical Fantasy” is the Laguna Playhouse’s youth theater production, opening tonight for a two-weekend engagement as the latest incarnation of the story created at the end of World War II by E.B. White, best known for the children’s classic “Charlotte’s Web.”

Stuart, as most kids (and many adults) are aware, is a little mouse, just two inches tall, who’s “born” into the Frederick C. Little family in New York. He’s a determined underdog trying to survive in a real people’s world.

“Yes, ‘Stuart Little’ is now a musical,” says Donna Inglima, director of the playhouse’s Youth Theater, who’s staging the production. “It should come as no surprise that this beloved story would be made into a play (in 1973) and then into a musical.”

The White book has been adapted by Joseph Robinette, with music by Ronna Frank.

“The Laguna Playhouse Youth Theater is fortunate to get the rights to produce this ‘cuter than a mouse’ piece of delicious storytelling that features absolutely adorable songs and crazy characters,” the director adds.

“It’s also interesting to note that E.B. White has written a story that’s immersed in a world that combines human and animal interaction long before Gary Larson’s (Far Side) cartoon strips became so prevalent and popular,” Inglima said.

As is the case with all youth theater productions at the playhouse, “Stuart Little” will receive a full professional staging. This show is one of a two-play subscription series of plays and musicals based on popular books or stories aimed primarily for children of elementary and middle school ages.

“The staff for each production is drawn principally from the playhouse’s Youth Conservatory Program,” Inglima explains. “Open casting is ‘age-appropriate,’ which means that young people play young people in the plays with content similar to G or PG-rated movies.”

Youngsters (and their parents) attending “Stuart Little” this weekend and next will be treated to musical numbers such as “Paddle Your Own Canoe,” “Feed Him Up,” “Size” and “Nighttime in New York.”

The latter is sang by a quartet of cats.

http://www.coastlinepilot.com/articles/2009/11/06/blogs_and_columns/on_theatre/cpt-titus110609.txt

2 Minutes of Theater: Winter Wonderttes Rehearsal

2009-11-09T17:53:00.000-08:00

We just started a new segment called 2 Minutes of Theater with the Laguna Playhouse in which we hope to do weekly updates about upcoming shows in- you guessed it- 2 minutes or less!

Our first podcast features rehearsal footage from Winter Wonderettes and director Rodger Bean explaining what the show is about. We've got all sorts of ideas for upcoming segments. Anything you'd like to see? Leave us a comment or email ctrela@lagunaplayhouse.com

Wonderettes cast includes Bets Malone, Misty Cotton, Julie Dixon Jackson and Susannah Hall. Meghan, our host, is the girl behind this blog and many of our tweets on twitter! Thanks to Chris Trela, the Director of Communications, for the idea, filming, and editing!

Laguna Playhouse Celebrates 89!

2009-11-03T08:45:00.000-08:00

During the October 22nd performance of "Moonlight and Magnolias," the Laguna Playhouse celebrated several special events! First, we had a very special guest come out and speak during our Stage Talk, actress Ann Rutherford, who played Scarlet O'Hara's little sister in Gone With the Wind. Stage Talk, usually when the audience asks questions to the actors and crew, was taken over by Ann's charisma and fun personality.

October 22nd also happened to mark the 89th anniversary of Laguna Playhouse! And believe it or not, Ann's 89th birthday was also later that week! We rolled out a birthday cake and the entire audience sang happy birthday to Ann and the Laguna Playhouse.

Here's some clips from the interview. More can be found at http://www.youtube.com/user/TheLagunaPlayhouse

How did you hear about the movie and get the role?

What was it like working with Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh?

Stage Scene LA Review

2009-10-22T12:19:00.000-07:00

Review by Steven Stanley
October 10, 2009
http://stagescenela.com/html/moonlight_and_magnolias.html

Hollywood legend has it that movie mogul David O. Selznick shut himself, director Victor Fleming, and script doctor Ben Hecht inside his office for five straight days, the three men subsisting entirely on a diet of bananas and peanuts, as Hecht rewrote the entire script of Gone With The Wind, a book he’d never read.

Playwright Ron Hutchinson imagines what might have happened behind those closed doors in his hit comedy Moonlight And Magnolias, now getting its first L.A./Orange County big stage production at the Laguna Playhouse (moving to the La Mirada Theatre For The Performing Arts in November). Blessed with Andrew Barnicle’s expert direction, sensational performances by Jeff Marlow (Selznick), Brendan Ford (Fleming), Leonard Kelly-Young (Hecht), and Emily Eiden (harried secretary Miss Poppenghul), and an absolutely gorgeous set designed by Bruce Goodrich, Moonlight And Magnolias is a show which will delight, entertain, and elucidate anyone who’s ever seen GWTW, and that’s just about everyone on the planet, right?

At lights up, Selznick has just shut down production on the movie, Sidney Howard’s script having proved unfilmable, and called in Hecht, screenwriter of Wuthering Heights, Nothing Sacred, Design For Living, and uncredited scribe of countless more movies in need of doctoring. The head of Selznick International Pictures has also fired director George Cukor and summoned Fleming to take over filming, despite the fact that Fleming still has two more weeks left on The Wizard Of Oz. Fleming, under contract to GWTW distributor MGM, has no choice but to acquiesce. Hecht, on the other hand, takes quite a bit more persuading—and $15,000 (about $225,000 today!) for his five days of work.

Since Hecht hardly has time to read the novel’s more than 1000 pages, Selznick has Fleming help him reenact the book’s key scenes, with the very macho Fleming portraying both Melanie and Prissy, and Hecht typing like a demon. As the hours and days pass, the men become more and more harried, the office gets messier and messier, and Miss Poppinghul’s hair takes on a life of its own. For audiences at the Laguna Playhouse, the result is some of the most hysterical physical comedy of the season, and a priceless lesson in Hollywood history.

In the 1930s it was common practice for screenwriters to change whatever they saw fit when adapting novels for the screen, and Hecht wants to change both the book’s setting and its time period (no Civil War movie ever having made money). Selznick, however, is adamant—Gone With The Wind will stick to Mitchell’s plot (and dialog), even if it means having an immoral hero and heroine and no romantic fadeout for Scarlett and Rhett. Then there’s the matter of the slap Scarlett gives to Prissy when the slave girl returns without a doctor in tow to the room where Melanie is about to give birth. Hecht imagines the slave girl giving an impassioned anti-slavery speech, and you can imagine how that would go off in 1930s America, especially in the still segregated South.

Besides the sheer entertainment value of Hutchinson’s script and the fly-on-the-wall sensation of being witness to Hollywood history, Moonlight And Magnolias also provides a glimpse of a time not quite so “golden” as social conservatives would have us believe. Not only “Negroes” are second-class citizens in 1930s Hollywood. Even Tinseltown’s uber-powerful studio heads find themselves unable to buy homes in upscale Hancock Park, nor can their bank accounts buy them memberships in the “best” country clubs, as Selznick finds out when Hecht telephones WASP producer Nunnally Johnson with a simple question, “David O. Selznick...American or Jew?” Guess what Johnson replies, as do the two other All-American power players Hecht phones?

Still, politics aside, Moonlight And Magnolias is mostly just great, entertaining fun, and some of the best acted fun you’ll see this or any month. The always marvelous Marlowe adds Selznick to the list of nebbishes he’s so masterful at embodying. Kelly-Young is perfection as the increasingly frazzled Hecht, and a master of the sarcastic retort to boot. Ford is a great, handsome, macho Fleming, his easy masculinity making his female impersonations all the funnier. Eiden makes the simple line “Yes, Mr. Selznick” worth its weight in gold. Rarely has an actress made so much out of so little to such hilarious effect.

Goodrich’s set is so elegant with its wood paneling, art deco wall engravings, and plush leather sofa and armchairs that it could have been transported directly from 1939 MGM to the Laguna Beach playhouse. Top marks too to Julie Keen’s period costumes, Paulie Jenkins lighting (especially for the way she lights the skyline seen through the office’s big picture windows), and Julie Ferrin’s sound design.

Having now seen Moonlight And Magnolias, I’m eager to get my hands on a Gone With The Wind DVD and re-experience one of the greatest films of all time. I know that from the opening notes of Max Steiner’s score to Scarlett’s “Tomorrow is another day!”, my viewing experience will be that much richer for having been inside Selznick’s office those five fateful days.

Critics Rave About Moonlight & Magnolias!

2009-10-20T12:38:00.000-07:00

Not only is Moonlight and Magnolias getting standing ovations just about every night, but the critics are raving as well! Show runs until November 1st and tickets are still available on our website.

In Andrew Barnicle's riotous staging of the 2004 play at Laguna Playhouse, we're invited to examine both the hilarity and the drama of a Hollywood mogul acutely aware of the many figures nipping at his heels, from gossip columnists to rival producers," writes Eric Marchese in the OC Register. "The actions of the play's trio of stars plays like vintage screwball comedy from the 1930s and '40s, with plenty of scurrying about, shouting, hurtling insults and snappy comebacks, slapping, mugging and more. Despite the lack of traditional action, Barnicle and his cast, though, keep things fresh. In a relatively small role, even Emily Eiden, as Selznick's yes-girl, garners laughs with her rote recitation of the line "Yes Mr. Selznick," her response to nearly his every question or command. Read the complete OC Register review!

In the Event News, Joseph Sirota calls the play "a barn-burning crowd pleaser. This smashingly tasty production at the Laguna Playhouse satisfies our curiosity while bringing us two hours of non-stop smiles and laughter. Also enlightening and insightful, it smartly examines what truly drives gifted, high-achievers we salute. Hat's off to the amazingly funny, yet movingly 'human' four cast members who deliver this immensely demanding play with perfection: Jeff Marlow as dazzlingly driven to win-or-die Selznick, Leonard Kelly-Young as Hecht, master screenwriter with an underlying philosopher's soul, Brendan Ford as Fleming, tough, hardworking street kid-- turned Hollywood director and Emily Eiden as Miss P, cute exec-assistant, working to a frazzle to support these crazed guys rescuing the film."

"Exquisitely directed by Andrew Barnicle," notes Ben Miles in the Riverside Press Enterprise . "Jeff Marlow portrays David O. Selznick with biographical exactitude. Completely convincing in each moment of his characterization, Marlow's incarnation of Selznick is a pinched-nerve of a performance, replete with energetic neurosis. As Ben Hecht, Leonard Kelly-Young is a cynical, dry-witted delight. In one instance, Kelly-Young is convulsed in laughter; it is so genuine a moment that the guffaws quickly become contagious. Brendan Ford plays auteur Victor Fleming as a forceful lug. It's easy to envision Ford's Fleming as a Bligh-like tyrant on the sound stage. After all, Fleming was accused of slapping the young Judy Garland. Also, Emily Eiden, as Selznick's secretary, Miss Poppenghul, has several wonderful moments of comic naturalism. What's more, with Bruce Goodrich's convincing 1930s office setting, Julie Ferrin's rich sound-scape, as well as Paulie Jenkins's lighting design and Julie Keen's spot-on costuming, The Laguna Playhouse provides for us an entertaining and informative staging of this enjoyable show."

Opening Night Slideshow- Moonlight & Magnolias

2009-10-19T21:35:00.000-07:00

Gone With the Wind- Behind the Scenes

2009-10-13T16:46:00.000-07:00

GONE WITH THE WIND

Compiled & edited by Christopher Trela

Few books captured the imagination of our nation like Gone with the Wind. The only novel written by Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind is set during the American Civil War and Reconstruction. It follows the story of Scarlett O’Hara, the daughter of an Irish immigrant plantation owner, as she pursues romance and endures the hardships of war.

The novel won the 1937 Pulitzer Prize and was adapted into an Academy Award-winning 1939 film of the same name. It was also adapted during the 1970s into a stage musical called Scarlett, and a new musical stage adaptation (titled Gone With The Wind) played in London's West End in 2008.

It took Mitchell seven years to write the book and a further eight months to check the thousands of historical and social references. The title is taken from the first line of the third stanza of the poem Non Sum Qualis eram Bonae Sub Regno Cynarae by Ernest Dowson: "I have forgot much, Cynara! gone with the wind." Scarlett O'Hara uses the title phrase when she wonders if her home, a plantation called Tara, is still standing, or if it was "also gone with the wind which had swept through Georgia." More generally, the title has been interpreted as referring to the entire way of life in the South as having "gone with the wind."

The novel was almost titled after the final line in the book, "Tomorrow is another day," but there were several books at that time close to the same title, so Mitchell selected a new title: Gone with the Wind.

Gone with the Wind is one of the most popular books of all time, selling more than 30 million copies. Time magazine included the novel in its 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005.

FROM BOOK TO FILM

Directed by Victor Fleming (who replaced George Cukor), the epic movie version of Gone with the Wind stars Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Leslie Howard, and Olivia de Havilland.

Gone with the Wind received ten Academy Awards, a record that stood for twenty years. In the American Film Institute's inaugural Top 100 American Films of All Time list of 1998, it was ranked number four, although in the 10th Anniversary edition of that list in 2007, it dropped two places to number six. Rhett Butler’s (Clark Gable) farewell line to Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh), “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn,” was voted in a poll by the American Film Institute in 2005 as the most memorable line in cinema history.

The movie has sold more tickets in the U.S. than any other film in history, and is considered a prototype of a Hollywood blockbuster. It is undoubtedly one of the greatest and most popular films of all time and one of the most enduring symbols of the golden age of Hollywood.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Selznick replaced the film's director three weeks into filming and then had the script rewritten. He sought out director Victor Fleming, who, at the time, was directing The Wizard of Oz. Fleming was dissatisfied with the script, so Selznick brought in famed writer Ben Hecht (who was working on the Marx Brothers’ comedy At The Circus) to rewrite the entire screenplay within five days.Original Gone with the Wind screenplay writer Sidney Howard’s first submission was far too long and would have clocked in at six hours. Producer David O. Selznick wanted Howard to be on the set to make revisions, but Howard refused to leave New England. Revisions were instead handled by a host of writers, including Ben Hecht.

By the time of the film's release, there was some question as to who should receive screen credit, but despite the number of writers and changes, the final script was close to Howard's version. Howard's name alone appears on the credits, possibly a salute to his memory as well as his writing, because Howard died tragically at age 48 in a farm tractor accident prior to the movie's premiere.

The casting of the two lead roles became a complex, two-year endeavor. Many famous or soon-to-be-famous actresses were either screen-tested, auditioned, or considered for the role of Scarlett, including Jean Arthur, Lucille Ball, Tallulah Bankhead, Joan Bennett, Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Frances Dee, Olivia de Havilland, Irene Dunne, Joan Fontaine, Greer Garson, Paulette Goddard, Susan Hayward, Katharine Hepburn, Miriam Hopkins, Carole Lombard, Ida Lupino, Merle Oberon, Norma Shearer, Barbara Stanwyck, Margaret Sullavan, Lana Turner and Loretta Young.

For the role of Rhett Butler, Clark Gable was an almost immediate favorite, although other actors under consideration were Gary Cooper and Errol Flynn.

Principal photography began January 26, 1939, and ended on June 27, 1939, with post-production work concluding on November 11, 1939. Director George Cukor, with whom Selznick had a long working relationship, and who had spent almost two years in preproduction on Gone with the Wind, was replaced after less than three weeks of shooting. Olivia de Havilland said that she learned of George Cukor's firing from Vivien Leigh on the day the Atlanta bazaar scene was filmed. The pair went to Selznick's office in full costume and begged him to change his mind. Selznick apologized, but refused. Victor Fleming was called in from MGM to complete the picture, although Cukor continued privately to coach Leigh and De Havilland. Another MGM director, Sam Wood, worked for two weeks in May when Fleming temporarily left the production due to exhaustion.

Cinematographer Lee Garmes began the production, but after a month of shooting what Selznick and his associates thought was "too dark" footage, was replaced with Ernest Haller, working with Technicolor cinematographer Ray Rennahan. Most of the filming was done on "the back forty" of Selznick International studio. The location scenes were photographed primarily in Los Angeles County or neighboring Ventura County. Estimated production costs were $3.9 million, a princely sum in those days.

OPENING NIGHT

On September 9, 1939, Selznick, his wife Irene Mayer Selznick, investor Jock Whitney, and film editor Hal Kern drove out to Riverside, California with all of the film reels to preview it before an audience. The film was still unfinished at this stage, missing many optical effects and most of Max Steiner's music score. After arriving at the Fox Theatre, Kern called for the manager and explained that they had selected his theatre for the first public screening of Gone with the Wind and that he could make an announcement of the preview, but was forbidden to say what the film was.

When the film began, there was a buzz in the audience when Selznick's name appeared, as audiences had been reading about the making of the film for the past two years. In an interview years later, Kern described the exact moment the audience realized what was happening by stating “when Margaret Mitchell's name came on the screen, you never heard such a sound in your life. They just yelled, they stood up on the seats...and when the title Gone with the Wind came on the screen, it was thunderous!”

The film premiered in Atlanta, Georgia, on December 15, 1939, as the climax of three days of festivities that included a parade of limousines featuring stars from the film, receptions, thousands of Confederate flags, false antebellum fronts on stores and homes, and a costume ball. Eurith D. Rivers, the governor of Georgia, declared December 15 a state holiday. The New York Times reported that thousands lined the streets as "the demonstration exceeded anything in Atlanta's history for noise, magnitude and excitement.’"

LEGACY

Gone with the Wind was given theatrical re-releases in 1947, 1954 (widescreen), 1961, 1967 (70 mm stereophonic), 1971, 1989, and 1998. The film made its television debut on the HBO cable network in June 1976, and its broadcast TV debut in November of that year in two parts on the NBC network, where it became at that time the highest-rated television program ever presented on a single network, watched by 47.5 percent of the households sampled in America, and 65 percent of television viewers. Ironically, it was surpassed the following year by the mini-series Roots, a saga about slavery in America.

In 1989, Gone with the Wind was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Interview with Moonlight and Magnolias Director, Andy Barnicle

2009-10-06T21:33:00.000-07:00

Q: What made you want to do this particular play?
A: I saw the premiere at the Old Globe in San Diego some years ago, and I felt that one day it would be a good fit for me and Laguna Playhouse. I'm at my best with comedy that has heart, and this one surely does. The story of the creation of the screenplay for Gone with the Wind also reveals some interesting things about the ethnic tension in Hollywood in what we usually refer to as the "glory days." Maybe they weren't so glorious after all.

Q: This is based on real characters and a real situation. What challenge does this pose on you and the actors as far as being authentic to history?
A: The play is actually Hutchinson's speculation on what happened. He has altered the actual circumstances slightly in order to create a unity of time, place and action so that the pressure of finishing the project is greater on the characters. My research has shown that, in actuality, the trio of main characters took nearly a week on this job, they were only holed up in Selznick's office for one long day and then came in for regular workdays after that, and they only finished the first half of the movie so that Selznick could begin shooting again. Otherwise, most of the circumstantial facts are true. I think enough time has passed that most folk don't carry an actual memory of the physical behavior of Hecht, Selznick and Fleming, but we are seeking actors who won't completely betray type.

Q: How much research on the real life people involved in this play will you and the actors do? Will there be a group screening of GWTW for actors and crew?
A: I have read whatever biographies and auto-biographies exist about these characters. I suspect that I have retraced Hutchinson's research steps, because I found the source material for many of the lines and ideas in the play. There's a lot of material, especially a collection of Selznick's daily memos, which were prolific, which sometimes Hutchnison quotes.

Q: The play reads at times like a rapid fire Marx Brothers-style movie, and the overall feel is very comic. How difficult is it to stage/direct this kind of play?
A: The difficult task here is to stage the farcical moments in balance with, or outgrowths of, the serious ideas. Creating comedy that seems possible will allow the motivational forces behind these real people to manifest themselves. If we go too far in either direction we will have a problem--a really slick farce that doesn't allow for the human urges underneath, or a too serious play that has occasional bizarre and unlikely behavior in it. All in all, the theory is to find out who the people are and what they want in order to justify the extreme behavior. These men have needs so great, and there is so much at stake, that they are driven to extreme behavior. If this extreme behavior gets disconnected from its need to exist however, what results are cartoon characters who are difficult to invest in.

Moonlight and Magnolias TV Spot

2009-10-05T17:52:00.000-07:00

See more videos from the Laguna Playhouse on YouTube at
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheLagunaPlayhouse

Moonlight and Magnolias Rehearsals

2009-09-30T10:39:00.000-07:00

Moonlight and Magnolia rehearsals have been underway! Here's some photos of the cast and crew preparing for the show. It's a fun show, sure to make you laugh! Moonlight runs Oct 6- Nov 1st!

Moonlight and Magnolias

2009-09-28T15:07:00.001-07:00

TAKE A COMIC ROMP THROUGH HOLLYWOOD’S GOLDEN AGE WHEN THE
LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS THE ORANGE COUNTY PREMIERE OF
MOONLIGHT AND MAGNOLIAS OCTOBER 6 – NOVEMBER 1, 2009

Play is Loosely Based on the True Story of how Producer David O. Selznick, Writer Ben Hecht and Director Victor Fleming Rewrote the Script to Gone With the Wind

LAGUNA BEACH, CA – August 28, 2009 – What happens when three Hollywood hotshots undertake the daunting task of rewriting the script to Gone With the Wind—in only five days? Find out when The Laguna Playhouse presents the Orange County premiere of Moonlight and Magnolias, October 6 – November 1, 2009. The play is written by Ron Hutchinson and directed by Andrew Barnicle.

Famed film producer David O. Selznick decides to stop the filming of Gone with the Wind three weeks into production because he wants a rewrite of the unwieldy script. He hires Ben Hecht to do the job in only five days. Only one problem: Hecht has never read the novel! So, Selznick summons Hecht and Gone With the Wind director Victor Fleming to his office and locks the door. Subsisting on a diet of bananas and peanuts, the three men spend five days crafting a screenplay for what will become one of the most successful films of all time.

Based on a true story, this wildly funny and engaging tale illuminates the behind the scenes business of movie-making during the golden age of Hollywood. The Nashville City News says “whether you’re a fan of GWTW or simply enjoy good farce, check out Moonlight and Magnolias. Frankly my dear…it’s pretty damn funny.”

“I saw Moonlight and Magnolias at the Old Globe in San Diego some years ago, and I felt that one day it would be a good fit for me and The Laguna Playhouse,” notes Barnicle. “I'm at my best with comedy that has heart, and this one surely does. The story of the creation of the screenplay for Gone With the Wind also reveals some interesting things about the ethnic tension in Hollywood during what we usually refer to as the ‘glory days.’ Based on this play, maybe they weren't so glorious after all.”

This is a co-production with McCoy Rigby Entertainment & La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts.

PERFORMANCE & TICKET INFORMATION

Previews
October 6 – 10, 2009

Opening Night Gala
Saturday, October 10: 7:30 pm
(By invitation only / press night)

Regular Performances
October 11 – November 1, 2009
Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinees October 8 & 22 at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening October 18 at 7:00 p.m.

(Dates and times subject to change)

Ticket Prices

Preview performances: $30 to $50
Gala Opening Night performance: $115
Regular performances: $35 to $65

Student Tickets (except Fri and Sat eves): $10 to $15

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com

MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

TCG's Free Night of Theater 2009

2009-09-24T15:51:00.000-07:00

Laguna Playhouse will be participating in the 5th Annual TCG's Free Night of Theater. A limited number of free tickets will be available for performances of Moonlight and Magnolias on October 6th and 7th at 8pm.

This is a great opportunity to get out and go to see live theater! If you haven't been to our theater, this is a great chance to come and see what our performances are like. Who knows, you might like what you see! To sign up, visit http://www.freenightoftheater.net/shows/show_detail.cfm?id=301

Want to try something new? There are over 40 different events in Orange County that are also participating in the event. From the Pacific Symphony to OCPAC to the Maverick Theater, there's something for everyone. You can see a listing of all the events happening in Orange County at http://www.freenightoftheater.net/shows/show_listings.cfm?region=36

Theater Communications Group (TCG) created the Free Night of Theater program in 2005. Last year, nearly 650 theatre companies, in 120 cities from coast to coast, opened their doors to over 65,000 new theatergoers. Taken from the TCG website, the goal is aimed at "people who can (and do) become paying customers, while still successfully reaching groups that are currently under-represented in theatre audiences across the country." For more information on TCG and their programs, you can see their website at http://www.tcg.org

Menopause the Musical Reviews

2009-09-03T09:37:00.000-07:00

Reviews taken from http://www.menopausethemusical.com/

Moonlight Masquerade

2009-08-21T13:36:00.001-07:00

Friday, October 30, 2009
6:30 to 10:30 pm

Participate in a sparkling evening of revelry at Tivoli Too! where you will enjoy dinner, dancing, music, live entertainment and an exciting multi-prize opportunity drawings at a costume themed soirée.

Bewitching music by the Blue Breeze Band, lavish buffet dinner, spooky spirits and beverages, tricks 'n treats, and Mummy Madness Opportunity Drawings.

Major event sponsors may have an opportunity to select costumes representing their favorite theatrical character loaned by The Playhouse costume shop. See sponsorship details.

Moonlight Masquerade is a signature production of The Laguna Playhouse. It offers a unique approach to celebrating great theatre with your friends, family, clients and colleagues.

Moonlight Masquerade is The Laguna Playhouse’s most important fundraising event. Proceeds of this event help to fill the critical gap between what it costs to bring great theatre to our community and what we can earn through ticket sales. See underwriting details .

We hope you will choose to support The Playhouse through Moonlight Masquerade.

For more information, contact Anne Morris amorris@lagunaplayhouse.com or by telephone at 949-497-2787, ext. 225.

Your participation is welcomed and appreciated!

Broadway World's My Way Review

2009-08-10T11:14:00.000-07:00

MY WAY: Swingin' and Swayin' Frank Sinatra Revue Continues Through August 23 at the Laguna Playhouse
By Michael L. Quintos
August 10, 2009

When Frank Sinatra passed away in May of 1998, America, it seemed, lost one of its most iconic and treasured song stylists. Sinatra in his day was one of only a handful of artists that transcended mere celebrity star status, thanks to a career that spanned film, television, recordings, and the stage. With a style often imitated (and at times parodied) even today, Sinatra popularized the Great American Songbook, thanks to his signature vocals and easy, confident persona. Many consider his recordings to be the definitive versions of any given song he touched.

Sinatra's rich and extensive catalog explains why The Laguna Playhouse's production of MY WAY: A MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO FRANK SINATRA is jam-packed with almost 60 songs from his decades-spanning repertoire. Here the musical revue doesn't present his work in the form of the usual (often clichéd) impersonator that looks and sounds like "Ol' Blue Eyes," but rather as an honest-to-goodness, bare-bones tribute of the songs that made him a twentieth century icon. Much like Ain't Misbehavin' showcased Fats Waller's music in a non-narrative format, MY WAY presents Sinatra's songbook via four excellent singers in front of a dimly-lit jazz nightclub setting...complete with, naturally, a full bar and a full moon. Between categorized song medleys, John Fredo, Casey Erin Clark, Jason Watson and Karen M. Jeffreys intersperse quotes, anecdotes and recollections from Sinatra's life. They talk of a bygone era when women were coy and the men swept them off their feet with class, style, confidence, and a martini.

For two acts, the robust quartet—in individual solos, duets and as the full quartet—sing, swoon and dance through some very familiar and even not-so-familiar songs Sinatra had recorded over the years. It is remarkable and astonishing to realize just how much music Sinatra actually made his own, as one familiar standard after another came in succession. But instead of merely imitating Sinatra's musicality, we are treated to some beautiful and often charming arrangements by Stephen Kummer, Donald Jenzcka and Vince di Mura (the latter contributing his talents as the night's hardworking piano accompanist). These jazzed-up arrangements serve the quartet's vocals well, especially the ballads and the showstoppers.

The musical numbers include many Sinatra staples: "The Way You Look Tonight," "All of Me," "My Funny Valentine," "Summer Wind," Chicago Is (My Kind of Town)," "The Lady is a Tramp," "That Old Black Magic," "Witchcraft," "I've Got You Under My Skin," "All the Way," "Fly Me to the Moon," and, of course, "My Way."

Sinatra, for lack of a better word, was a "player," which in today's terminology translates into a smooth ladies' man with a confident swagger. This is a recurring theme of the night, as the quartet blazes through their song sets with vigor. For a tribute revue of a male icon, Act 1, ironically enough, belongs to the ladies. Clark and Jeffreys outshine the men with their interpretations of Sinatra's more familiar repertoire. Jeffreys' vocals are a treat, pairing her naturally cute charm with a subtle yet seductive style. Clark, an obvious powerhouse vocalist, is delightful but, at times, appears too affected in her interpretations, which in a smaller venue like the Laguna Playhouse could be a distraction away from her amazing vocal prowess. When all four singers do sing together, the harmonies are simply enchanting, like ear candy.

The men, though, step up (literally and figuratively) in Act 2. Watson is a wonderful singer and hoofer, gliding from one end of the stage to the other with the greatest of ease. Fredo magically transforms into Sinatra in several songs as well, but not as a caricature or weak Vegas mimic. Instead, thanks to some impressive pipes and a showman's gusto, Fredo offers more of a generous homage to the Chairman of the Board. The song cycles in the second act start off decidedly melancholy, referencing Sinatra's public penchant for booze and women. Songs like "Drinkin' Again" and "One For My Baby" is punctuated by the cast "getting permission" to drink "real" champagne on stage. The quartet take turns singing "It Was A Very Good Year," with the right amount of nostalgia and longing.

More famous Sinatra upbeat tunes follow like "Nice N' Easy," "You Make Me Feel So Young," and "Fly Me To The Moon" before segueing into a Medley called "Songs for Survivors" which, the quartet explains, is in essence the life Sinatra led. They then transition into a rousing rendition of "That's Life" that had the audience cheering and clapping along (or at least, attempting to clap along to the drum beats). And, of course, the night's finalé of "My Way" was moving, touching, and appropriately reverent.

Conceived and directed by David Grapes, MY WAY is a peppy, entertaining, though safe revue with a cast of talented singers. What the production lacks in pizazz and style is saved by a songbook of familiar, enjoyable tunes. So, in a way, Sinatra's mantra is true: how do you ensure an entertained audience? "Sing Good Songs!"

Photo: From L to R: Jason Watson, Karen Jeffreys, Casey Erin Clark and John Fredo. "My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra" July 7 - August 23, 2009 at The Laguna Playhouse. Photo credit: David Grapes.

-----

MY WAY: A MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO Frank Sinatra was conceived by David Grapes and Todd Olson. The book is by Todd Olson. The original production, as well as this production at the Laguna Playhouse, is directed by David Grapes.

Performances continue at The Laguna Playhouse through August 23. Shows run Tuesday through Saturday evenings at 7:30 pm and Saturday and Sunday Matinees at 2 pm. Tickets to any performance are available by purchasing tickets in person or by calling the box office at (949) 497-2787 ext. 1 (group tickets, dial ext. 229) or by visiting their web site at http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/. The Laguna Playhouse is located at 606 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach, CA.

Youth Theater Classes for Fall/Winter

2009-08-08T16:05:00.000-07:00

Lots of Youth Theater information to report! Is your child interested in creative drama, acting, or musical theatre? The Laguna Playhouse's Youth Theater program is regarded as Southern California's Most Highly Acclaimed Children's Theater. Below are upcoming acting and musical theater classes for the fall.

Deadline to register for fall classes is September 17, 2009. All classes take place at the Laguna Playhouse Production Center in Laguna Hills. You can call 949.497.2787 ext. 305 for directions. More information can be found on our Youth Theater website.

Fun with Acting/ Mondays
(Ages 6-8)
This class is an excellent introduction to acting. Structured self expression and creative dramatics through acting exercises. Students increase concentration, memorization, and imagination. Final showcase on the last day of class.
Enrollment is limited. Age requirements are firm.
Dates: Sept 21-Dec 14 (no class on Oct 12)
Day/Time: Monday 4:00-5:30pm
Fee: $240
Instructor: Jane Hilary

Acting Fundamentals/ Tuesdays
(Ages 9-11)
Learn how to act in a fun and supportive environment! Learn monologues, short scenes, improvisation, and audition techniques. Individual creative needs will be nurtured and explored. Final showcase on the last day of class.
Enrollment is limited to 12. Excellent preparation for the Laguna Playhouse Conservatory Program.
Dates: Sept 22-Dec 8
Day/Time: Tuesdays 4:00-6:00pm
Fee: $240
Instructor: Jane Hilary

Intermediate Acting/ Wednesdays
(Ages 11-13)
Explore acting exercises, two person scenes and ensemble work, while enhancing your acting skill level. Final showcase on the last day of class.
Enrollment is limited to 12. Class progresses each session. Students are encouraged to continue study.
Date: Sept 23-Dec 16 (No class Nov 25)
Day/Time: Wednesdays 4:00-6:00pm
Fee: $240
Instructor: Jane Hilary

Acting for Teens/ Thursdays
(Ages 13-18)
All students are welcome. This class offers continuous work on "using and working from self." Small class szie allows each student to work to his or her potential. Audition techniques, monologues, scene study, improvisation, and basic character work. Class moves along rapidly and progresses each session.
Date: Sept 24-Dec 17 (No class Nov 26)
Date/Time: Thursday 6:30-8:30pm
Fee: $240
Instructor: Jane Hilary

Musical Theatre Audition Class
(High School Freshman- Seniors)
This class is aimed at high school students. Serious students only. Focusing on audition techniques and preperation for college and/or high school. Individual repertoire, voice building, and rehearsal tracks included. The last class is a presentation/showcase.
Maximum 15 students.
Date: Oct 5- Nov 9
Day/Time: Monday 7:00pm- 9:00pm
Fee: $175
Instructor: Diane King Vann

Audition Notice- Stuart Little

2009-08-01T17:18:00.000-07:00

AUDITION NOTICE- STUART LITTLE, A Musical Fantasy
Dramatized by Joseph Robinette, Music by Ronna Frank,
Lyrics by Joseph Robinette & Ronna Frank
.

Directed by Donna Inglima

Musical Direction by Diane King Vann, Choreography by Ellen Prince

Casting All Rolls- Ages 12-Adult
for the Musical Version of the Classic story by E.B. White about a Mouse (born to human parents) and the adventures encountered as Stuart grows up.
.

Adult and Youth Actor/Singers/Dancers. All vocal ranges (SATB). Alto belters to Soprana, Tenors, Baritones. Singers must have the ability to hold harmonies. Various types of movement required. Technical dance background is a plus. Special Skills- Ukulele, improvisation, juggling, rollerblading, tumbling, fencing, a plus. Fun and wacky character roles. Adult travel stipend offered.

Stuart Little, a mouse with remarkable abilities
Mr. Little, a human
Mrs. Little, a human
George, Stuart's brother, a human
Snowball, the Little's cat
Dr. Carey, a dentist
Harriet Ames, a girl Stuart's size
Leroy, a bully
Margalo, a bird
Malty, Babette, Angie & Tige, cats
River creatures (Mayfly, Otter, Earthroom, Frog, Spider, and others)
Ensemble Members: Youth and Adults to play neighbors, School Superintendent, School children, passengers, etc.

Audtion Requirements: Acting - Singing - Dancing

PREPARE: One MONOLOGUE - Contemporary 1 1/2- 2 minutes (Memorized)
One SONG - Up-Tempo Musical Theatre song (32 Bars- Memorized)
No tapes or CD Tracks. Standard show tunes acceptable. Accompanist Provided.

BRING: Photo & Resume. Printed piano/vocal music in correct key.
Appropriate clothes for movement and dance at the audition.
Your schedules and date books as you will fill out a conflict sheet at the audition

DATES: VOCAL AND MONOLOGUE- Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sept 9, 10, 11, 7:00-9:00pm
DANCE AUDITION (by invitation only) Saturday, Sept 12, 1:00-4:00pm
CALLBACKS: (by invitation only) Sunday, Sept 13, 1:00-5:00pm

FIRST REHEARSAL: Tuesday, Sept 15
(Rehearsals will be weekday evenings and one weekend day)
TECH WEEK: Tuesday & Wednesday Nov 3-5
(late afternoons & evenings both days)
TECH/DRESS: Thursday, Nov 5
PERFORMANCE DATES: Nov 6-15
(evenings and matinees plus mid-week shows)
STUDENT MATINEES: Thurs & Fri, Nov 12 & 13 at 10:00am
(You need to miss school/work)

Auditions are by appointment only!
To make an appointment, please call Wally Ziegler at (949) 472-0061
Auditions will be held at the Laguna Playhouse Production Center
23402 South Pointe, Laguna Hills
For recorded directions, call (949) 497-2787 ext 305.

Youth Theater Upcoming Season

2009-07-31T11:04:00.000-07:00

Want to introduce your children to live theater? Laguna Playhouse has an excellent Youth Theater program geared to children in elementary and middle school. For older children, Theatre for a New Generation features issue-oriented plays that are chosen based on their relevance to their These performances are created by professional directors and designers, and cast and staff for each production are drawn principally from the Playhouse’s Youth Conservatory Program.

Stuart Little, A Musical Fantasy
Runs November 6- November 15
Based on the book by E.B. White
Adapted by Joseph Robinette
Music by Ronna Frank
Lyrics by Joseph Robinette and Ronna Frank
Stuart Little is no ordinary mouse. Born into a family of humans, he lives in New York City with his parents, older brother George and a a cat named Snowbell. Though shy and thoughtful, Stuart is a great lover of adventure.

The Box Car Children
Runs April 23-25
By Barbara Field
Adapted from the novels by Gertrude Chandler Warner
One warm night, four children stood in front of a bakery. No one knew them. No one knew where they had come from. Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny are orphaned and in danger of being sent to different foster homes. The four siblings run away and make their home in an abandoned railroad boxcar. Pursued by the authorities and a mysterious stranger, the children discover the rewards and perils of life on the run, as well as the joy of keeping their family together.

The Secret Life of Girls
Runs March 9- 11
By Linda Daugherty
An honest unflinching dramatization of teen-girl angst and the tumultuous, destructive world of girls' bullying. Based upon interviews with girls on the giving and receiving end of bullying, the play highlights the imact of "cyberbullying," the facilitation of mean-spirited behaviours through the use of cell phones, instant messaging, email, and chatrooms.

(All Programs and Dates subject to change, more information to come)

Menopause the Musical Returns to the Laguna Playhouse

2009-07-28T12:56:00.000-07:00

After an extremely popular run in 2007, Laguna Playhouse is pleased to welcome back Menopause The Musical for a special run, September 1-27, 2009.

Menopause The Musical is set in a department store, where four women with seemingly nothing in common but a black lace bra meet by chance at a lingerie sale. The all-female cast makes fun of their woeful hot flashes, forgetfulness, mood swings, wrinkles, night sweats and chocolate binges. A sisterhood is created between these diverse women as they realize that menopause is no longer The Silent Passage! It is a stage in every woman’s life that is perfectly normal!

Since March 2001, the hilarious show has entertained and inspired women from coast-to-coast and internationally. This laughter-filled 90-minute production includes parodies from the classics of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. Menopause The Musical has launched a women’s movement that has superseded entertainment and has become a must-see event!

Read more about Menopause The Musical at http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/onstage/2008/menopause/about_mtm.php

And check out the 2007 Summer Callboard Issue for more Menopause fun! http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/downloads/CallboardSummer2007d.pdf

You can also read OC Register's review from 2007 at http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/healthfitness/article_1725592.php

Performance & Ticket Information:

Ticket Prices:$40 to $70

Performances

September 1-27, 2009

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.

(Dates and times subject to change)

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787)
GROUP SALES: 888.868.8587 ext. 11
VISIT: http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/
MOULTON THEATRE:
606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

Notes from My Way Director, David Grapes

2009-07-25T15:48:00.000-07:00

In the days after May 14, 1998, I did what most Americans did: watched the multitude of tributes to the recently-departed Frank Sinatra. His old TV concerts, interviews, and films filled nearly every available television channel.

I was always taken by Sinatra’s ease, his "cool," and the epic in-your-face way that he chose to live his life. I wondered, “How could that be translated into an evening of theatre?” The solution was obvious. The key was in the music. I knew that I had to create a theatrical piece about this man. I called Todd Olsen, a former student and collaborator, and we started to work.

After some quick research, Todd and I were amazed to learn that the man had recorded nearly 1400 songs. We marveled at how he sustained a career over six decades, and we were intrigued by his remarkable way with a simple lyric, his musicality, his artistry, and the way he controlled both the song and the audience.

Frank really was the first teen idol and the first singer to have tremendous power in multiple mediums. There are really only a few stars today with the same kind of star power that Frank had. He was the first star to be hounded by the paparazzi, and his battles with the press are legendary. Frank lived his life out loud and let the chips fall where they may.

Todd and I got busy working on My Way. The first workshop was a book musical at Artpark in March of 1999 and included much of the same music you will hear at this performance. I then moved to Tennessee Rep in Nashville in 2000 and brought Todd in as my Associate Director. It was my idea to rewrite the show into a revue format so we added our arranger friend Vince diMura and started fresh.

We decided to choose songs based on themes we wanted to explore. We tried to include the "signature" songs, but also wanted to include songs that not everyone would immediately recognize, but had great versions that had been recorded by Sinatra like “I Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry.” We added and we cut until we landed on the 57 songs that folks will hear during this performance. There always seems to be “the one that got away” and for us it was “Luck Be A Lady Tonight.” I confess that we really wanted to use it, but were never able to obtain the rights to use that song in My Way.

As we worked on this show, Todd and I set a goal not to create a show that needed an impersonator, but to first and foremost create a theatrical event, which is why we have two men and two women in the piece. I tell people that there is only one Sinatra and he is gone. What lives on is the music that Sinatra loved and that meant so much to him. We can bring that music to life in a style that embraces the true essence of Sinatra as the artist and "saloon singer."

If you’re coming to The Laguna Playhouse to see a group of actors impersonate Sinatra, then you have come to the wrong show. The goal of My Way has always been to construct a musical revue that recalls the essence of the man through the glorious music he sang. We want to celebrate Sinatra's mystique, and his myth, using the music he loved best: the American standard. We have tried to create a respectful tribute to a figure unlike any other in the last century.

We hope that audiences come away with the feeling that they’ve had a magical experience at the theatre, that it was romantic, sophisticated and engaging, and that they’ll leave the theatre with a renewed respect and admiration for Sinatra and the music he sang.
You can follow David Grapes on twitter @DavidGrapes

We Love Twitter!

2009-07-20T11:02:00.000-07:00

Want your theater information in 140 characters or less? Follow us @lagunaplayhouse on twitter!

Here's also a listing of great theatres and other tweeters in the Orange County and LA area.

@ocpac

@southcoastrep
@BostonCourt
@OCWeekly
@culturemonster

@OCFamily
@CoA_Theater
@MusicalsinLA

@SparkOC

@vitaminOC
@LATheatreWorks
@furioustheatre

@PasPlayhouse

LA Times "MY WAY" Review

2009-07-18T13:54:00.001-07:00

Review: "My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra" at Laguna Playhouse
By Charles McNulty
Tuesday, July 14, 2009 at 2:30pm

Death has a way of putting the kibosh on immortal longings, but as Michael Jackson’s recent passing makes clear, legends ultimately belong to their fans. And “My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra,” which opened Saturday at the Laguna Playhouse, is a groupie’s dream.

Conceived by Todd Olson and the show’s director and choreographer, David Grapes, this revue, performed by a cast of two men and two women, pays homage to America’s all-time coolest crooner by trotting out a few dozen of the more than 1,300 songs Ol' Blue Eyes recorded in his unbelievably prolific career.

Conceding that Sinatra's mighty trumpet of a voice and gift for naturally taking ownership of lyrics are inimitable, the singers shy away from impersonation. Of the four performers, John Fredo (Man No. 1) is the most similar, but even he can only vaguely approximate the seemingly effortless magic of the Chairman of the Board’s belting a tune with the alacrity of a saloon dweller throwing back a scotch.

So instead of imitation, we get two hours of genial flattery. Sinatra die-hards, easily singled out by their undulating shoulders, lapped it up like yummy tapioca pudding. For the rest of us, there was an extensive (maybe too extensive) offering of old standards to enjoy.

True, the production, marked by crisscrossing couples and church-social amiability, occasionally invoked the strolling banality of “The Lawrence Welk Show." But who could complain about a treasure-trove of hits that includes such Sinatra signatures as “I’ve Got the World on a String,” “One for My Baby (And One More for the Road)” and “Fly Me to the Moon"?

Fittingly, the set, designed by Bruce Goodrich, situates us in a nightclub, with a bar on the left, a jazzy trio on a raised platform in the middle and an intimate booth on the right for a little cozy serenading. Biographical details (concerning Sinatra’s origins, storied romances and all-important likes and dislikes) are sprinkled throughout, but the overarching narrative is about saluting an icon.

"My Way" seems pitched, reasonably enough, to a graying demographic. After the group performs “Strangers in the Night,” Casey Erin Clark (Woman No. 1) observes, “I bet everyone in this audience has a memory associated with that song.” Hard to imagine those words being spoken at a Black Eyed Peas concert, but if there’s anything to the notion that “half the U.S. population over 40 was conceived while their parents were listening to the music of Frank Sinatra,” the younger generation may owe Sinatra more than it realizes.

The quartet harmonizes pleasantly. Clark has a seductive high range and a sophisticated air that contrasts nicely with Fredo’s guyish charmer. His snappy deep voice and tap dancing panache are the liveliest elements of the show; her torch-song sound is the most haunting.

Karen Jeffreys, as the bubbly ingenue (Woman No. 2), and Jason Watson, as the energetic fellow raring to reap adulthood’s rewards (Man No. 2), offer glimpses of Sinatra’s early years. They seem less seasoned than their counterparts, but they provide endearing, if less distinctive, company.

Theatrically speaking, however, this visit to the Sinatra shrine doesn't amount to much more than a breezy musical survey. In fact, there are moments when it felt as though the show could be unfolding in a hotel lobby bar, albeit one with a first-rate band. (James Leary on bass and Drew Henwall on drums both thrive under pianist and musical director Vince Di Mura’s passionate conducting.)

Drama isn't part of the equation. Like Jackson’ recent memorial at the Staples Center, there’s a willful innocence to this endeavor that would prefer to deflect dicey realities. Apparently, Sinatra liked dry martinis and leggy broads the way Jackson liked Peter Pan and Ferris wheels. If there’s a dark side, it gets glossed over by the extolling script.

As Watson explains, “For those of you who followed Sinatra’s career, you know that there were as many ‘Franks’ as there are states in the union. There was the husband, the father, the jilted lover, the skinny Dorsey crooner, the gutsy Capital swinger, the lion in winter, the life-liver, the rat-packer, the drinker, the guy’s guy. The only man in America who could wear a tuxedo the way John Wayne wore chaps.”

We should all be so lucky to have our earthly legacies so winningly summed up. But then this is a portrait in music that is meant to be adulatory, a thank-you to the man who, as Clark’s father told her, “had sung the soundtrack to his life.”

A hat-tipping finale of “My Way” along with (what else?) a reprise of the theme from “New York, New York” reseals the myth of an undeniable master.

-- Charles McNulty

"My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra," Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach. 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays. (Call for exceptions.) Ends: Aug. 23. $40-$70. (949) 497-2787. Running time: 2 hours

Follow Charles McNulty and other LA Times Art writers on Twitter @culturemonster

My Way Review- Broadway World

2009-07-14T12:37:00.000-07:00

Sinatra Their Way: At the Moulton Theatre at Laguna Playhouse Through 8/23

by Don Grigware

Monday, July 13, 2009; Posted: 07:07 PM

Broadway World

My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra created by David Grapes & Todd Olson directed by David Grapes Moulton Theatre at Laguna Playhouse through August 23.
Frank Sinatra has been impersonated in The Rat Pack and in various night club settings. Some actors do him very well, such as Stephen Triffitt in The Rat Pack Live at the Sands; others do not even begin to do him justice as in Louis & Keely Live at the Sahara, so maybe it's just as well that we do not get this treatment in My Way at the Laguna Playhouse. Although, somehow, when I saw the graphic advertisement for the show, that's what I expected. No, indeed, this is a revue of his music, neatly packaged and tied up with a bow. Four super-talented artists sing and chat about ole' blue eyes, quoting him a bit and telling a little story now and again about his womanizing or philosophy of fast living.

David Grapes has put together a slick piece that is high on entertainment, but hardly cutting edge. The performers are all good...with music that is... inspirational. It lingers for all time. As Sinatra himself once said about the key to his success: SING GOOD SONGS! Of course, the Italian immigrant who became a band singer, movie star and a great legend, was never humble for a second. He hoped that people lived to be 100 and that the last voice they heard would be his.

Moving around the spacious bar set (Bruce Goodrich) with the ease and poise that made Sinatra a demigod, Casey Erin Clark, John Fredo, Karen Jefferys and Jason Watson entertain for 2 hours, singing individually, in couples and all together... favorite standards such as "My Funny Valentine", "All of Me", "High Hopes", "New York, New York", "The Tender Trap", "That Old Black Magic", "Witchcraft", "All the Way", "That's Life" and of course, "My Way". The songs are divided into categories like: Songs for Survivors, a Losers Medley, a Moon Medley (Remember Sinatra's concept album in the 60s to coincide with Earth's moonwalk?), Young Love, Love and Marriage, and a Broadway/Film Medley.

There's even an encore - which Sinatra never did -"I'll Be Seeing You". It's a nice celebration of the spirit of Sinatra who gave us a song for every mood, every emotion.

The second act is more reflective than the first with each performer drinking alone: "Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry", "One for My Baby" and "It Was a Very Good Year". The last was a favorite of mine at a very early age; I guess I was old before I was young and understood life as Sinatra obviously did when he sang about it.

Costumes here in black (Lou Bird) are elegant, particularly the ladies' dresses with a touch of either blue or mauve. Great musical accompaniment from: Vince Di Mura at the piano, Drew Hemwall on drums and James Leary on bass. They never stop cookin'!

Overall, a great dinner theatre or cruise ship evening full of beautiful music but low on surprises. Go for the foursome: I particularly loved Fredo's terrific tapping and Clark's clean and sultry vocal stylings.

My Way Production Photos

2009-07-10T11:24:00.000-07:00

Production Photos by David Grapes

My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra
Laguna Playhouse

July 7- August 23, 2009

Upcoming 2009-2010 Season

2009-06-27T19:00:00.000-07:00

We're pleased to announce our 2009-2010 Season! Full of music and laughs, these productions are sure to entertain! Single tickets are available for all performances, or you can save money by purchasing either a Full or Design-Your-Own subscription. You can visit the website http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/tickets/subscriptions/full/ for more information on the plays and purchasing tickets.

My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra
July 7 – August 23, 2009
Conceived by David Grapes and Todd Olson
Book by Todd Olson
Directed by David Grapes
Frank Sinatra. He’s the icon of cool – from classic elegance to contemporary “fedora” hipster. My Way: A Tribute to Frank Sinatra celebrates the pivotal moments of Sinatra’s life which would solidify his legendary status. This musical song review will take you from his early beginnings in New York during the 1940’s swing era, to the bright lights of Las Vegas with the Rat Pack in the 1960s, and to his final performances in the 1990s as “Chairman of the Board.” As Stephen Holden wrote for the 1983 Rolling Stone Record Guide: “Frank Sinatra's voice is pop music history.” Come hear the songs that his voice made history.

Moonlight and Magnolias
October 6 – November 1, 2009
By Ron Hutchinson
Directed by Andrew Barnicle
Making movie history is not easy! Just ask film producer David O. Selznick, who stops the filming of Gone with the Wind three weeks into production because he wants a rewrite of the unwieldy script. He hires playwright Ben Hecht to do the job—in only five days! Only one problem: Hecht has never even read the novel. So, Selznick summons Hecht and Gone With the Wind director Victor Fleming to his office, locks the doors and closes the shades. Subsisting on a diet of bananas and peanuts, the three men spend five days crafting a screenplay that will become the blueprint for one of the most successful films of all time. This wildly funny and engaging tale illuminates the behind-the-scenes business of movie-making during the golden age of Hollywood.

Winter Wonderettes
November 23 – December 20, 2009
By Roger Bean
Directed by Roger Bean
The Wonderettes are back! Set six months after the end of The Marvelous Wonderettes, this seasonal sequel finds the girls returning to their hometown for a Holiday celebration with their family and friends, complete with great Wonderette renditions of ‘60s holiday tunes. Wonderette member Betty Jean is in charge of her company’s Christmas party, so naturally the Wonderettes are the logical choice for the entertainment. But when Santa turns up missing, the girls must use their talent and creative ingenuity, plus some great holiday tunes such as “Little Saint Nick” and “It’s a Marshmallow World,” to rectify their holiday party without the jolly big guy in red. The result is, of course, marvelous! This energetic and entertaining show is guaranteed to delight audiences of all ages.

Hershey Felder as George Gershwin Alone
January 12 – February 7, 2010
Music and Lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin
Directed by Joel Zwick
Book by Hershey Felder
Internationally acclaimed Hershey Felder personifies “America's Composer” and renders an intimate portrait of musical legend, George Gershwin. This multi-award-winning production of Hershey Felder as George Gershwin Alone is a musical event for all to experience and ignites an entirely new inside perspective of the historic composer's early background, personal life and artistic genius. With sold out performances around the globe, this is a musical sensation not to be missed!

Play #5 – The Second City: Can you be More Pacific?
March 16- April 11, 2009
Directed by Andrew Barnicle

The internationally acclaimed sketch-comedy company, The Second City, has custom crafted a production for The Laguna Playhouse to lampoon our beloved Laguna Beach and Orange County. This show promises to deliver an avalanche of laughs that will highlight the most comedic and relevant elements of what it means to be behind the Orange Curtain.If you have lived in Orange County for any length of time, you will see yourself, your neighbor or your favorite plastic surgeon highlighted on stage for a good ribbing. From real housewives to finding sand in all the wrong places, this California adventure is a comedy ride that can’t be missed and won’t require a toll road.

"My Way: A Tribute to Frank Sinatra"

2009-06-26T15:42:00.000-07:00

THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE KICKS OFF ITS 2009 – 2010 SEASON THIS JULY WITH
MY WAY: A MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO FRANK SINATRA
Musical Revue runs July 7 – August 23 and features
Four Singers and 60 Sinatra Songs

LAGUNA BEACH, CA – May 26, 2009 – Someone once asked Frank Sinatra how he became so successful. His response: “Sing good songs!”
Thanks to his skilled vocals and gift as a storyteller, Sinatra turned the good songs he sang into timeless treasures. Nearly 60 of those songs can be heard during the musical revue My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra that runs July 7 – August 23 at The Laguna Playhouse. The show is directed by David Grapes, who conceived the revue along with Todd Olson.
My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra celebrates the pivotal moments of Sinatra’s life which solidified his legendary status, and recalls the essence of the man through the glorious music he sang. Four singers (two women and two men) croon Sinatra tunes on a nightclub-style set—a suitable ambiance for songs from the man who always dubbed himself “a saloon singer.”
From his early big band beginnings in the 1940s on through his glory days in Las Vegas with the Rat Pack in the 1960s and ending with his final performances in the 1990s as “The Chairman of the Board,” My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra is packed with the swingin’ songs that made Sinatra the hip prince of popular music. Whether he exuded classic elegance or contemporary casual, Frank Sinatra was – and still is – the ultimate icon of cool.

Performance & Ticket Information:
Ticket Prices:
Preview performances: $35 to $55
Opening Night Gala: $101 to $116
Regular performances: $40 to $70

Previews:
July 7 - 10, 2009

Opening Night Gala:
Saturday, July 11, 2009

Regular Performances
July 12 – August 23
Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinees July 9 & 23 / August 20 at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening July 19 at 7:30 p.m.
(Dates and times subject to change)

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com
MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

Laguna Beach Summer Festivals

2009-06-25T17:33:00.000-07:00

There's a lot going on in Laguna Beach this summer! If you're coming into town to see "MY WAY: A Tribute to Frank Sinatra," you might want to stop by these great festivals as well!

Sawdust Art Festival
http://www.sawdustartfestival.org/
Dates: June 26- August 30, 2009
Times: Open 10am- 10pm Daily
Prices: Adults $7.50, Seniors $6.00, Children (6-12) $3.00
About: The Sawdust Art Festival is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public and promoting the art created in Laguna Beach.
Classes, workshops, and fun summer entertainment for the whole family! Over 200 exhibitors made up of Laguna Beach's finest artists in various medias including ceramics, copper, glass, jewelry, leather, painting, photography, sculpture, textiles, wood and more.

Art-a-Fair
http://www.art-a-fair.com/
Dates: June 26- August 30, 2009
Times: Open Sunday- Thursday 10am- 9pm
Friday- Saturday 10am-10pm
Prices: Adults $7.00, Seniors/Students/Military: $3.50, Children under 12 free with adult
About: View and buy art directly from the exhibitors! Great variety of two and three dimensional art is represented including oils, watercolors, pastels, acrylics, drawings, mixed media, photography, sculpture, jewelry glassworks, pottery, and furniture. Events, performers, lectures, and workshops are listed on the festivals website.

Festival of the Arts
http://foapom.com/
Dates: July 5- August 30, 2009
Times: Daily 10am- 11:30pm
Prices: Adults $7.00, Seniors/Students: $4.00, Children under 12 free with adult
About: Over 140 premiere artists gather for one of Southern California's finest art events! Artwork includes paintings, sculpture, pastels, drawings, serigraphs, photographs, ceramics, jewelry, etched and stained glass, fiber arts, handcrafted furniture and even scrimshaw. On top of the artist exhibitions, Festival of the Arts offers many daily events and lectures which can be found on their event calendar. Also home to the world famous Pageant of the Masters which runs every night at 8:30pm. Tickets should be bought in advanced.

Interested in all three festivals?
Best deal in town, check out the Passport to the Arts. Get unlimited admission to three of the biggest art festivals in California all summer for only $19! Also, selected retailers and merchants throughout Laguna Beach are offering added discounts. If you're coming into town, definitely check out the Passport to the Arts.

Critics Rave About "Empty Plate"

2009-06-15T15:27:00.000-07:00

"The ensemble cast is strong on all fronts, proving their comedic as well as dramatic chops." - OC Register http://www.ocregister.com/articles/victor-one-life-2435669-claude-antoine

"EMPTY PLATE is a thoughtful, surprisingly emotional comedy that's easy to digest & appreciate" - Showmag.com
http://ow.ly/fNoQ

"...Hollinger's witty dénouement adds the final frosting to the theatrical cake." - Backstage http://ow.ly/dKZi

EMPTY PLATE is "a tangy comedic soufflé." - StageSceneLA
http://tinyurl.com/qw2k2a

"Hollinger’s comedy is highly original & largely unpredictable. I only predict that you’ll laugh- a lot"- The Examiner
http://ow.ly/aKrk

Pictures from "An Empty Plate in the Cafe Du Grand Boeuf"

2009-06-10T15:15:00.000-07:00

See additional press pictures at http://lagunaplayhouse.com/press/photos/EmptyPlatePressPhotos.php

"Empty Plate at the Cafe du Grand Boeuf"

2009-06-03T16:48:00.000-07:00

LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS THE WEST COAST PREMIERE OF
AN EMPTY PLATE IN THE CAFÉ DU GRAND BOEUF
MAY 26– JUNE 28, 2009

LAGUNA BEACH, CA – May 7, 2009 – Looking for something to fill your theatrical plate? Whet your appetite with the West Coast Premiere of An Empty Plate in the Café du Grand Boeuf, running May 26 – June 28 at The Laguna Playhouse. An Empty Plate in the Café du Grand Boeuf is written by Michael Hollinger and directed by Andrew Barnicle. It stars Adrian Sparks, Jeff Marlowe, Stasha Surdyke, Marc Cardiff, Graham Miller, and Amy Kay Raymond.
Victor, a wealthy American expatriate living in Paris in 1961, owns the fabulous Café du Grand Boeuf, the world's greatest restaurant reserved solely for his private dining pleasure. He arrives one summer evening after a trip to Madrid in a very bleak mood—his idol Ernest Hemingway has just committed suicide, and Victor’s doomed love affair has finally ended. As his fastidious French staff fusses over him, he announces his decision to starve himself to death! The staff attempts to dissuade Victor by seducing him with a lavish seven course menu filled with decadent culinary delights, but they find that the way to a man’s heart may not be through his stomach. This dark comedy that the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin calls “a humorous dish of witty wordplay” celebrates the joys of cooking, sex, bullfighting, and the works of Hemingway in a funny yet bittersweet tale of the absurdities and contradictions inherent in being human.
“Hollinger has a deep respect for the human condition, including its frailties, so regardless of the absurdity of some of the situations his characters are in, they always respond in a distinctly human way,” notes Barnicle, who thinks audiences won’t really know what the play is all about until the end. “That is a very good thing, by the way.Nobody should be sitting around waiting for the ending because they already know what it’s going to be. Hollinger is a master of the unexpected.”
Barnicle says he’s had to overcome a number of obstacles in bring this play to life, including obtaining the services of a professional bullfighting consultant and a tuba teacher, and making sure the numerous French phrases in the script are properly pronounced. But that’s not all.
“The main challenge will be in drawing the audience into a world that is somewhat askew from our reality,” explains Barnicle. “The plot features a wealthy man who owns a restaurant that serves nobody but him. Sounds whacked. But then again, Howard Hughes took up an entire floor of a hotel in Las Vegas for years and never came out. The trick is to make the weirdness plausible within the world of the play.”
“Another challenge is that the play deals with rather deep philosophical issues,” adds Barnicle. “I’m calling it ‘romantic existentialism.’ I have no idea what that means. The staging should be right in our wheelhouse: single location, elegantly appointed. Casting is always the most important element of the production. There is a character who plays the tuba, and that posed a slight problem. But it will be worth it--we all know that a tuba is funny and French horn is not. That’s a basic rule of comedy.”

Performance & Ticket Information:
Ticket Prices:
Preview performances: $25 to $45
Opening Night Gala: $115
Regular performances: $30 to $65

Previews:
May 26 – 29, 2009

Opening Night Gala:
Saturday, May 30, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.

Regular Performances
May 31 – June 28
Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinees May 28 & June 11 at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening June 21 at 7:00 p.m.

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com

"Til Death Do Us Part" Pictures!

2009-04-08T13:38:00.000-07:00

See more photos from the show at http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/press/photos/LateNite3photos.php

Youth Theater Happenings

2009-04-06T15:01:00.001-07:00

Lots of things coming up for our Youth Department! Here's a quick overview of events- details and tickets can be found on our website at LagunaPlayhouse.com

YOUTH THEATRE CLASSES & WORKSHOPS
Spring Registration Deadline April 15
Sign-ups for theatre classes are now open! Spring Classes include Creative Drama (Ages 6-8), Acting II (Ages 9-12), and Acting for Teens (Ages 13-18). Meeting times vary depending on classes. For details about each class including dates, meeting times, prices, and what is covered in the classes, please visit the Youth Theatre website.

A LITTLE PRINCESS
May 8 – May 17, 2009
By Frances Hodgson Burnett
Adapted by June Walker Rogers
Directed by Kelly Herman
The classic heartwarming story of the real magic made by a loving heart. When Sara Crewe’s father is made bankrupt, Sara is reduced from enormous wealth to terrible poverty. At Miss Minchin’s school, where she had been a privileged student, she is now forced to work as a servant. But Sara has a loving heart and a quick imagination, and she knows that with the right spirit she can remain a princess inside.
For ages five and up.

NUMBER THE STARS
May 12 – 14, 2009
Newberry Award Winner in 1990
Written by Lois Lowry
Adapted by Dr. Douglas W. Larche
Directed by Donna Inglima
Ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen and her best friend Ellen Rosen often think about life before the war. But it's now 1943 and their life in Copenhagen is filled with food shortages and Nazi soldiers marching in their town. Both girls try to maintain normal lives under Nazi occupation, but after it’s announced that the Jews of Denmark are being “relocated,” Ellen moves in with the Johansens and pretends to be part of the family. Annemarie is then asked to go on a dangerous mission, and somehow must find the strength and courage to save her best friend's life.
For ages 13 and up. Parental guidance and attendance is recommended.

BY THE GREAT HORNED SPOON
May 16, 2009 at 10am
Part of the Imagination Celebration, the Youth Theatre's TheatreReach will be doing a special performance of By the Great Horned Spoon. The year is 1849 and the California Gold Rush is on! Together with his fearless butler, Praiseworthy, young Jack Flagg sets out to save his Aunt Arabella's fortune. On a ship bound from Boston to the California gold fields, they stow away, and the wild, swashbuckling adventures begin.
For tickets visit http://tickets.lagunaplayhouse.com/tickets/reserve.aspx?performanceNumber=1916
For more information about Imagination Celebration visit http://www.ocimaginationcelebration.org/

YOUTH THEATRE CHARITY GOLF TOURNAMENT, AUCTION, AND DINNER
May 29, 2009 at 1pm
Tijeras Creek Golf Club, Rancho Santa Margarita
Tee off for Youth Theatre! The 9th Annual Laguna Playhouse Youth Theatre Charity Golf Tournament, Auction, and Dinner has been announced for Friday, May 29, 2009. After a day on the green, dinner and entertainment will be provided by members of the Youth Theatre Program.
Sponsorships are also available.
For more information, please see http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/support/events/GolfTournament.php

OC Register Interview with Maripat Donovan, Creator and Performer of "Late Nite" Series

2009-04-06T14:38:00.000-07:00

April 2, 2009
Orange County Register
By Paul Hodgins

New 'Late Nite Catechism' comes to Laguna

Sister has been good to Maripat Donovan.
"Sorry I missed your call," Donovan said when she picked up the phone on the interviewer's second attempt. "I was swimming in my pool." Who knew the wimple would lead to such wealth?
The phenomenon known as "Late Nite Catechism" is well into its second decade, and other Sisters (all of them as funny as she is, Donovan claims) have brought the franchise to theaters throughout the country. Donovan, its originator, still can't quite believe her good fortune.
"When I first started this in Chicago back in '93 I really had no idea how it would be received," said the writer-actress, who is putting the finishing touches on the show's latest incarnation, "'Til Death Do Us Part," which will make its world premiere this weekend at the Laguna Playhouse.
Donovan plays a sometimes stern but sharp-witted veteran nun with a mission: to remind wayward Catholics (and teach the rest of us) about the theories, practices, quirks and beliefs of her religion.
"Each of the shows is a series of classes that sister is teaching," Donovan explained. "In the first show (Late Nite Catechism") she's a substitute teacher. She does a basic overview of what people need to know.
"In my next show, I decided that she was such a good teacher that she has the job full-time. She has a lot of elements that she can bring in: her own banner, a film strip." Donovan focused a little more tightly on a subject: how to avoid going to hell.
Donovan's next show tackled the issues of Christmas.
"I cover the birth of Jesus and the Nativity – all the stuff that Catholics talk and argue about during the Christmas season."
"'Til Death Do Us Part" is a continuation of Sister's methodical analysis of the Sacraments. This time Sister concentrates on the rites and rituals surrounding marriage and death.
"It's definitely a continuance of the series. Sister tries something new in her teaching – she happens to think that this game show she's devised will teach you about compatibility." Donovan issues a warning: audience participation is a big part of the show.
IMPROV IS KEY
Improvisation has always been a crucial part of "Late Nite Catechism," Donovan said.
"When I first started, there was one interactive moment where I gave away a glow-in-the-dark rosary as a prize. That was it. But because I'm both the playwright and the performer I can pretty much do whatever I want, so I grew that element over the years. I always like to deal with people talking during the show, people coming in late, that kind of thing."
Donovan studied improvisation from early in her career, so she always felt comfortable with it as an element of the show. "After I gave myself permission to do it, it just grew and grew and grew."
Donovan has made sure that Sister modernized her teaching methods over the years as her instructional prowess developed. No more filmstrips for this up-to-the-minute nun.
"Sister has a laptop now. In this show she's checking her Facebook account before class. Sister has grown along with the culture and the technology."
Though Donovan's performances as Sister seem completely improvised and loose, she relies on director and collaborator Marc Silvia to help her structure her creation.
"He's been my director for a long time. He understands the character completely. He kind of prods me along and he helps me to be more organized; he's a good second ear. But in the end it's pretty much my voice, and he respects that."
Donovan has been trying out her new material for the last few weeks in a small theater in the South Bay, but she considers the Laguna Playhouse her home. Various "Late Nite Catechism" incarnations have been offered there for years as a nonsubscription event that played on off nights, usually Mondays. Their popularity prompted the Playhouse to give Sister a slot on its regular season, Donovan said.
"The Playhouse has always felt like my home theater. It's a beautiful place; the staff is spectacular. They know how to put butts in seats.
"And audiences there know how to have a good time, yet they're not obnoxious. They just want to laugh and have fun with you."
Has Donovan's freewheeling show ever gotten into trouble with audiences that were, well, too participatory?
"The only place I've had trouble with an audience is in New York. Everyone is out to prove that they're funnier than me. And guess what? They never are."

Til Death Do Us Part: Late Nite Catechism 3

2009-03-23T12:47:00.000-07:00

LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS THE WORLD PREMIERE OF
’TIL DEATH DO US PART: LATE NIGHT CATECHISM 3
MARCH 31 – MAY 3, 2009Maripat Donovan returns to The Laguna Playhouse with her hysterical new show about love and marriage

LAGUNA BEACH, CA – March 11, 2009 – Class is back in session! Maripat Donovan returns to The Laguna Playhouse as everyone’s favorite “Sister” in the world premiere of ’Til Death Do Us Part: Late Nite Catechism 3, running from March 31 – May 3, 2009. This “one-nun show” is written by Donovan with Marc Silvia, and is directed by Silvia.

The Laguna Playhouse has previously staged three of the shows in the Late Nite Catechism series: Late Nite Catechism, Late Nite Catechism 2 and Sister’s Christmas Catechism. Donovan portrayed Sister in all three productions.

’Til Death Do Us Part: Late Nite Catechism 3 is the latest class to be unveiled in this sinfully funny series. After teaching countless students all about the saints, venial sins, guilt, limbo, and more, Sister is now offering up her hilarious lessons on the Sacraments of Marriage and Last Rites, including her own wacky version of The Newlywed Game. Classroom participation is a must, so bring along your sweetie and your sense of humor for some quality time with Sister, the feistiest new couples counselor in town. As always, each performance is unique and will appeal to people of all ages and faiths.

“Every performance is different, but that’s what makes it more interesting and more exciting—you never know what you’re going to get,” says Donovan. “By talking to people during the show, I get to know who is who, who we should pick on and who to leave alone. It’s a skill you develop over the years of doing interactive theater.”

Performance & Ticket Information:

Ticket Prices: $30 to $70

Previews:
March 31 – April 3, 2009

Opening Night Gala:
Saturday, April 4, 2009: 7:30 p.m.
(By invitation only and press night)

Regular Performances
April 5 – May 3, 2009

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinees April 2 & 16 at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening April 26 at 7:00 p.m.

Special Student Ticket Pricing: $15 - $20
(All Performances except Friday/Saturday evenings)

Special Half Price Tickets for Teachers and Military with ID
(All Performances except Friday/Saturday evenings)
FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787)
GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/
MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

"Ella" Reviews Online

2009-03-09T12:53:00.000-07:00

Ella
March 04, 2009
By Les Spindle
http://www.backstage.com/bso/news_reviews/other_news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003947911

In this 2007 bio-musical, making its West Coast debut, Tina Fabrique takes the role of Ella Fitzgerald (1917–96), a jazz singer whose stellar stage and television appearances and remarkable recording career (netting 13 Grammys) earned her the nickname "first lady of song." Although Jeffrey Hatcher's skeletal book provides interesting details about the entertainer's largely guarded personal life, culminating in a heart-rending finale, what makes this piece such a treasure is Fabrique's bravura delivery of 23 Fitzgerald hits, backed by a scintillating four-man onstage combo.

Looking elegant in gowns designed by Alejo Vietti, Fabrique bears a strong physical resemblance to Fitzgerald. Though Fabrique's vocal instrument sounds quite different from Fitzgerald's, it's powerful and technically accomplished. Fabrique expertly captures the 'scat' style Fitzgerald was known for. Fabrique's first-rate singing and formidable stage presence convincingly evoke the aura of a legendary performer. But above all, her renditions are simply a joy to hear -- from the playful exuberance of "A-Tisket, A-Tasket" (written by Fitzgerald and Van Alexander) to the myriad emotions of Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies" to the lilting grace of the Gershwin brothers' " 'S Wonderful."

The framing device is Fitzgerald's 1996 live appearance in Nice, France, a week after the death of her beloved half-sister. Fitzgerald's longtime producer, Norman Granz (Harold Dixon), urges her to let down her defenses a little -- drop one song in favor of adding more patter and open up about her personal grief. This prompts her to share tidbits about her life with the audience, leading into songs illuminating the various incidents. This is essentially a solo play: Dixon's appearance is fleeting, and the musicians (pianist-conductor George Caldwell, drummer Rodney Harper, bassist Clifton Kellem, and trumpeter Thad Wilson) deliver scattered lines of dialogue. In one delightful sequence, Wilson joins Fitzgerald in duet, pulling off a knockout imitation of Louis Armstrong. Rob Ruggiero's direction is taut and seamless, design elements are classy, and Danny Holgate's music supervision and arrangements soar. As for Fabrique, another Gershwin brothers song that she croons sums it up best: "Oh, Lady Be Good."

Ella: Opening Night!

2009-02-27T11:36:00.000-08:00

Come and experience the wonderful and touching performance by Tina Fabrique in the musical, Ella. With the help of a live band, Fabrique embodies the spirit of Ella Fitzgerald singing songs such as, That Old Black Magic, A-Tisket A-Tasket, Cheek to Cheek, Blue Skies, and many more!

Opening Night of "Ella"

2009-02-23T13:11:00.000-08:00

Check out pictures from the Opening Night Reception for "Ella"!
Great evening for the actors, audience, press, staff,
and even the theater interns!!

Photos from "Ella" at Laguna Playhouse!

2009-02-18T12:35:00.000-08:00

The new musical about "The First Lady of Song," Ella Fitzgerald!
February 17- March 22, 2009

See more photos on our press page at
http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/press/photos/ELLAphotos.php
or on Facebook or Myspace

"Ella" at the Laguna Playhouse!

2009-02-18T12:30:00.000-08:00

ORANGE COUNTY PREMIERE OF ELLA ARRIVES AT
THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE FEBRUARY 17 – MARCH 22, 2009

Musical Biography of the First Lady of Song stars Tina Fabrique as Ella Fitzgerald and features a Live Jazz Combo and 20 Hit Songs

LAGUNA BEACH, CA – January 19, 2009 – It’s a life lived out loud in the Orange County Premiere of Ella, an exhilarating new musical about the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald, that runs February 17 – March 22 at The Laguna Playhouse. The play was conceived by Rob Ruggiero and Dyke Garrison. Book is by Jeffrey Hatcher, with musical direction and arrangements by Danny Holgate. Ella is directed by Rob Ruggiero.

Starring Tina Fabrique as Ella, this theatrical event weaves myth, memory and music as it tells the uplifting and poignant story of one of the greatest jazz and pop vocalists of the 20th century.

It’s 1966 and the fabled songstress is preparing for one of the most important concerts of her career. As she jams with the musicians and gets ready to meet the audience, Ella reflects on her life, her secrets and the love of music that made her soar. Featuring more than 20 of her most famous hits, including “A Tisket, A Tasket,” “How High the Moon,” “That Old Black Magic,” and “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” this swinging new musical invites audiences to fall in love all over again with the magic and soul of Ella Fitzgerald.

“Ella is a dream come true for me,” said director Rob Ruggiero, who conceived the show along with Dyke Garrison. “I have always been a fan of jazz, and her amazing body of work seemed to cry out for a theatre piece celebrating the life of Ella Fitzgerald. Our journey has afforded me the greatest privilege taking a closer look at this brilliant musician, and really getting to know her past, her struggles, her dreams, her desires, her connection with her music, and her audience – her real story, so to speak.”

Performance & Ticket Information:
Ticket Prices: $30 to $70

Previews:
February 17 – 20

Regular Performances
February 22 – March 22, 2009

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinees February 19 & March 5 at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening March 15 at 7:00 p.m.

Special Student Ticket Pricing:
$15-$20 All Performances except Friday/Saturday evenings

Special Half Price Tickets for Teachers and Military with ID:
All Performances except Friday/Saturday evenings

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787)
GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com
MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

ELLA

2009-02-13T16:22:00.000-08:00

An exhilarating new musical the D.C. Theatre Scene calls "an upbeat and sassy production the channels the energy and pizzaz of the legendary jezz singer, ELLA FITZGERALD."

Buy your tickets to day buy calling the Laguna Playhouse at 949-479-2787!

2009-01-20T13:56:00.001-08:00

We’ve added clips of “Around the World in 80 Days” to YouTube!
There’s five scenes for you to view on our BRAND NEW YouTube page.
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheLagunaPlayhouse

There’s only a few more weeks left!
This is not a show you want to miss!

Find out more on the Laguna Playhouse website!

Around the World in 80 Days Takes Off!

2009-01-06T15:55:00.000-08:00

STAGE ADAPTATION OF AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS
TRAVELS TO THE LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE
JANUARY 6 – FEBRUARY 8, 2009

Orange County Premiere combines Humor and Adventure in this
Theatrical Tour de Force as Five Actors play Three Dozen roles

LAGUNA BEACH, CA – December 5, 2008 – Get ready for a theatrical rollercoaster ride of epic proportions as The Laguna Playhouse presents an exciting stage adaptation of Around the World in 80 Days January 6 – February 8, 2009. This Orange County Premiere is a co-production with San Jose Repertory and is directed by Michael Butler, artistic director of Center Repertory Company of Walnut Creek.

Adapted by Mark Brown from the classic novel by science fiction pioneer Jules Verne, Around the World in 80 Days follows the tale of proper London gentleman Phileas Fogg, who strikes a wager with fellow members of the Reform Club that he can travel around the world in a mere 80 days—a mighty feat in 1872. With him goes his trusty French servant, Passepartout, while tenacious Detective Fix – who has mistaken Fogg for a fugitive bank robber – shadows him every step of the way. On his journey, Fogg encounters romance, adventure and a host of colorful characters who both help and hinder his progress. Will Fogg make it back in time to win the wager?

This fast-paced, clever comedy has been called “Jules Verne meets Monty Python… a flat-out frenetic farce" by the San Jose Mercury News, while Metro Silicon Valley says that it’s “a genuinely fun, ingenuously produced and witty show that can be enjoyed by all ages.” Aisle Say San Francisco calls Around the World in 80 Days “a rewarding evening of entertainment with lots of laughter.”

An interesting note: Director Michael Butler has laced the production’s ambiance with a playful nod to the “steampunk” genre of science fiction. As Metro Silicon Valley points out “one of the most extraordinary aspects of the production is how brilliantly the stage is utilized…the production is styled in the opulent esthetic of steampunk, a growing retro-futuristic movement that combines Victorian finery with modern technology. The set has the distinct feel of being located inside a giant ticking watch, complete with a huge manually revolving central stage that is sporadically set into motion by stagehands for fast, dramatic effect.”

Performance & Ticket Information:

Ticket Prices: $25 to $65

Previews:
January 6 – 9

Opening Night Gala:
Saturday, January 10: 7:30 p.m.
(By invitation only and press night)

Regular Performances
January 11 – February 8, 2009

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinees January 8 & 22: 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening, February 1: 7:00 p.m.

Special Child Ticket Pricing:
Ages 5 thru 18: $10 - $15 All Performances

Special College Student Ticket Pricing:
$10 - $15 All Performances except Friday/Saturday evenings

Special Half Price Tickets for Teachers and Military with ID:
All Performances except Friday/Saturday evenings

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/

Tis the Season!

2008-12-23T15:40:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays from the Laguna Playhouse!!

Check out our myspace and facebook pages for special ticket offers!

http://www.myspace.com/lagunaplayhouse

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=1208355891&ref=name

Sneak Preview: AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS

2008-12-04T11:13:00.000-08:00

It may still be December, but January is right around the corner, and so is an exciting new production of "Around the World in 80 Days." Co-produced with the San Jose Repertory Theater, this show is based on the Jules Verne novel and directed/designed with a steampunk twist. It's sure to be a treat for all ages, especially with five actors playing more than three dozen roles!

Proper London gentleman, Phileas Fogg, strikes a wager with fellow members of the Reform Club that he can travel around the world in a mere 80 days-- a mighty feat in the 1870s. With him goes his trusty French servant, Passepartout, while tenacious Detective Fix, who has mistaken Fogg for a fugitive bank robber, shadows him every step of the way. On his journey, Fogg encounters romance, adventure, and a host of colorful characters who both help and hinder his progress. Will Fogg make it back to win the wager?

"Jules Verne meets Monty Python... a flat-out frenetic farce, where the slapstick hits the fan."

-San Jose Mercury News

Runs JAN 6-FEB 8, 2009. Get your tickets now!

Enjoy some humor this Christmas with SISTER’S CHRISTMAS CATECHISM

2008-12-04T10:58:00.000-08:00

Everyone's favorite nun is back with a holiday show that will keep audiences laughing. This Christmas season, Sister will tackle the question that has been puzzling historians through the ages: Whatever happened to the Magi's gold? Think CSI: BETHLEHEM as Sister engages the audience to help solve the mystery through a forensic examination of the nativity scene. Sister hunts under the manger and over camel humps in her quest for clues.

Runs DEC 15-24, 2008! Get your tickets now!

Leaving Iowa Review from the OC Register

2008-11-21T12:32:00.000-08:00

Leaving Iowa had a fascinating opening night last Saturday at the Laguna Playhouse. Here is the review from the OC Register.

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/clue-manton-laguna-2230420-playhouse-don

'Leaving Iowa' will leave you with conflicted feelings
Review: Poignant play combines laughs, big issues at Laguna Playhouse.
By PAUL HODGINS
The Orange County Register
Comments 0 Recommend 5

Who among us has never experienced that special purgatory called the family vacation?
Ah, the memories: Long, tedious car trips to nowhere or, worse, the home of hated relatives; promising roadside attractions that fail to deliver; back-seat fights. "I'll give you something to cry about!" was a phrase coined during such times.

It's a wonder that nobody thought of turning this fertile field into theater before Tim Clue and Spike Manton seized upon it. The result, "Leaving Iowa," is a lightweight but funny and often poignant then-and-now tale, making its West Coast debut at the Laguna Playhouse after a successful life in the Midwest.

Don (Kevin Symons) is a Boston journalist who has returned to his childhood home in Winterset, Iowa facing a grim task. He didn't make it to his father's funeral, and now, three years later, he's come to dispose of dad's ashes. Getting sprinkled on the homestead where he grew up was the old man's only request, and it's a family embarrassment that the urn still resides in the basement. Don's sister (Erin Bennett) finds it only after hours of searching.

After receiving elaborate instructions from his mom (Jill Brennan) about how to drive dad's wheezy old car, Don makes the two-hour trip to his grandparents' home, only to discover their modest abode has been bulldozed; a big-box supermarket now stands in its place.
Don is floored. What should he do now with dad's remains?

Don's present-day journey is told in tandem with a series of flashback scenes. We witness the family's last trip together: a long and mishap-filled journey to Hannibal, Missouri, the birthplace of Mark Twain. Dad (Gregory North) is a schoolteacher with a passion for the minutiae of American history. No site marker is too insignificant for his lingering attention.

During the past and present trips' many unexpected detours, two busy and amusing supporting actors, JJ Rodgers and Roy Abramsohn, provide a strange gallery of characters: an overly enthusiastic Civil War re-enactor and his bored-to-death colleague; a couple of wacky mechanics; a near-mute busboy and his associate, the most talkative waitress in the world; a husband-and-wife team of lonely pig farmers whose only claim to fame is living in the geographic center of the continental U.S.

Clue and Manton have made part of their livings in standup comedy, and their script sometimes suffers as a result, as does this production, which is directed by Clue. There's an overly glib air and constantly frenetic dynamic in some scenes – qualities that can quickly wear out their welcome.

But this writing duo has a keen ear for the inherent comedy, subversive tactics and push-pull battles that characterize family relationships.

There are certain moments that had Saturday's audience nodding in recognition: a scene in which dad's passenger-seat instructions and interruptions drive mom into a seething fury behind the wheel; a wheedling episode in which Don and his sister manipulate their father into stopping at a dubious roadside attraction; dad fulminating over an elephantine RV blocking his way.
(The car scenes are presented with a big dollop of make-believe on John Berger's set, which gives us lots of atmospheric background but wisely lets the actors recreate the claustrophobic hell of automobile travel.)

And those of a certain age will sympathize with Don wanting to do right by his dad, now that it's too late for it to matter. Like so many men, Don is tortured by the knowledge that he never let his father know how much he loved and appreciated him. Don's attempt to assuage that guilt, and the journey of self-discovery that it takes him on, raise "Leaving Iowa" above the trivial.
This production features a comically gifted cast that mixes familiar with new faces.
Laguna Playhouse regular Symons nicely underplays Don. With his hangdog face and slouchy posture, Symons gives Don exactly the right mien – a middle-aged guy who's not particularly happy with the road travelled so far.

As Don's sister, Bennett has a field day projecting pre-teen hyperactivity. She's clearly an actress with vivid memories of the psychology and techniques of sibling teasing.
Brennan is the quintessential Midwestern mom, whose cautious nature and determined diplomacy tamp down some surprising passions. "She's an unstoppable helping machine," Don complains, not seeing as we do that if she didn't obsess over something her head would explode.
It's North's portrayal of the family patriarch, though, that will stay with you. He creates an instantly recognizable "regular dad" archetype: a penny pincher and schedule minder, a petty tyrant with a soft heart, a man who thinks he's in control but is often bested by his manipulative family.

North goes beyond what the role requires in the silent scenes, when dad hovers ghostlike on the margins as Don appeals to his ghost. North's gaze speaks volumes to anyone who has mid-life regrets about their departed parents. It says, "I know you loved me. Be happy. Move on with your life." That's a message worth taking home after the lights come up.
Contact the writer: 714-796-7979 or phodgins@ocregister.com

NOSTALGIC COMEDY LEAVING IOWA ARRIVES AT LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE

2008-11-04T16:39:00.000-08:00

NOSTALGIC COMEDY LEAVING IOWA ARRIVES AT THE
LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE FOR ITS WEST COAST PREMIERE
NOVEMBER 11 – DECEMBER 14, 2008

New play by Tim Clue and Spike Manton is a Sentimental
and Humorous Ode to Families—and Family Vacations

Remember those childhood family vacations you tried to forget? Those memories will come flooding back when you come to The Laguna Playhouse for the West Coast Premiere of Leaving Iowa by Tim Clue and Spike Manton November 11 – December 14, 2008.

Told in flashback, this hilarious sentimental comedy about a journalist who returns home to Winterset, Iowa to find a final resting place for his father’s ashes is a nostalgic ode to days gone by. As the journalist searches for the perfect spot to scatter the ashes, he relives the summer vacations he spent as boy trapped in the family station wagon en route to uninteresting historical sites with well-meaning but naïve parents and a bickering sibling. With a generous dollop of humor and a heart as big as the Midwest, Leaving Iowa shows us that the journey really is as important as the destination.

“Comedy is a familiar companion, and so are memories,” says Clue. “Who hasn’t been in their car and heard a song on the radio, and all of a sudden you’re transported back to a specific time and place. That’s what I want this play to do. It’s a time capsule that needs to be captured both humorously and sincerely at the same time. Where the movie Vegas Vacation made mockery of vacations, I hope Leaving Iowa is more of a sentimental journey.”

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHTS

TIM CLUE

My first writing gig was – and still is – stand-up comedy. However, in 1991 I established Short Story Theater with Marco Benassi, a multimedia theatrical company that combined short fiction adaptations with documentary footage. Greek Streets was the theater’s inaugural work; using short stories by Chicago’s Greek scribe Harry Mark Petrakis. Other Definitions of Confinement premiered at the National Jewish Theater in 1993 and introduced the life and writings of Russian political prisoner Dmitry Stonov. In 1997, Coloring Potential, focused on the stories of Chicago’s inner-city youth. In 1999, Spike Manton and I wrote and directed a Chicago-based television sitcom pilot Tiny Pig that made into the ‘can’, but not on TV. Like all failed projects, it is currently being adapted into a comedy musical. Leaving Iowa is also being written as a screenplay. I grew up in Rochelle, IL, and I still live in Chicago with my wife, Kathryn Lake, and one cat, no kids, and no station wagon.

SPIKE MANTON
I was born on a farm in upstate New York, but my parents moved us to a bustling metropolis of almost two thousand people, where I grew up in your standard 1960’s family unit of four kids, two parents and one station wagon. As child number three, I am very familiar with the seating location known as “the way back.” After graduating Bradley University, I moved to Chicago, quit my cushy Procter & Gamble sales job, got married and began a career in standup comedy. Standup lead to some cable TV shows like Evening at the Improv, MTV and Comedy Central and more importantly, a career in radio. Over the past 10 years I have been on The Steve Dahl Show, ESPN Radio and the LOOP. Along the way, I have been trying to create, write and produce from right here in Chicago with my college friend, Tim Clue. Leaving Iowa is the best example of executing that plan to date. Finally, I need to credit my wife, Tami for the work she did with the production. It was way more than Group Sales, and while I’m still not sure I recommend working with your spouse, I am more than grateful.

Performance & Ticket Information:
Ticket Prices: $25 to $65

Previews:
November 11 – 14

Regular Performances
November 16 – December 14, 2008

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Thursday matinee November 13: 2:00 p.m.
Wednesday matinee November 26: 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evenings, November 30 & December 7: 7:00 p.m.
(no performances on Thanksgiving Day, November 27)

Special Half Price Tickets for Students, Teachers and Military with ID:
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday Evenings / Saturday Matinees

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com
MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

Opening Night

2008-09-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

The west coast premiere of Don't Talk to the Actors opened on Saturday night at the

Laguna Playhouse. Here are some photos caputred during the reception...

The Cast: Chris L. McKenna, Emily Eiden, Eileen T'Kaye, Steve Vinovich,

Denise Moses,& Joel Polis

Director Rick Sparks and Emily Eiden as Arlene

Joel Polis as Mike and Chris L. McKenna as Jerry

Artistic Director Andrew Barnicle and Playwright Tom Dudzick

"DO SEE 'Don't Talk to the Actors'"

2008-09-15T13:58:00.000-07:00

Critics praise the West Coast Premiere of Don't Talk to the Actors at the Laguna Playhouse...

"Smartly directed and well-cast production of Tom Dudzick’s backstage-mayhem comedy Don’t Talk to the Actors hits all the right notes at Laguna Playhouse.

Dudzick intertwines the humor with welcome moments of insight and adds some ballast with a touch of tragedy in the second act.

At the Laguna Playhouse, director Rick Sparks shows a deft touch with the script's mercurial turns, and he definitely knows how to maximize the laughs, aided by a cast of talented actors who connect convincingly with their characters."

-O.C. Register

Check out the rest of the article at http://www.ocregister.com/articles/jerry-actors-broadway-2157299-story-mike

"If you are looking for great, unstoppable laughter, don't miss the West Coast Premiere of the backstage comedy "Don't Talk to the Actors" by Tom Dudzick, at the Laguna Playhouse. This thoroughly entertaining and hilarious play is good old fashioned story-telling--something rather hard to find in live theater these days. "Don't Talk to the Actors" is a must see."

The Cypress Chronicle By David Barr

http://media.www.cychron.com/media/storage/paper910/news/2008/08/21/Opinion/Theater.Review.dont.Talk.To.The.Actors-3423698.shtml

"Don't Talk To The Actors" but Meet the Cast

2008-09-04T13:47:00.000-07:00

The cast of Don’t Talk to the Actors at the Laguna Playhouse features Emily Eiden as Arlene, Chris L. McKenna as Jerry, Denise Moses as Lucinda, Joel Polis as Mike, Ellen T’Kaye as Bea, and Steve Vinovich as Curt.

EMILY EIDEN most recently appeared at South Coast Repertory in the Alan Ayckbourn farce Taking Steps (directed by Art Manke). Other favorite theater credits include Tonight @ 8:30 and Mother Courage and Her Children at The Antaeus Company, The Crucible and A Christmas Carol at International City Theatre, Charlotte’s Web and Miss Nelson is Missing at Mainstreet Theatre Company, and The Cradle Will Rock and Twelfth Night at Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum. Emily earned a degree in Ancient and Medieval Mediterranean History from Pomona College and currently narrates Griffith Observatory’s planetarium show, Centered in the Universe.

CHRIS L. MCKENNA began his acting career at age seven when he was cast as Dopey in a community theatre production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. McKenna made the transition to TV and film at age 11 and has since worked consistently including an award-winning three-year stint on “One Life to Live,” and appearances on “The Practice,” “That 70’s Show,” “The District,” “That’s Life” and “Touched By An Angel.” He was a series regular on WB’s “Opposite Sex” and has been featured in many films including In & Out, King of the Ants, and Art School Confidential. Chris has also appeared in over 40 stage productions, most recently in the role of Tony at The Geffen Playhouse production of You Can’t Take It With You.

DENISE MOSES originated the role of Grandma Nunzio in the off-Broadway production of Tony ’n Tina’s Wedding, a role she reprised in Los Angeles and San Francisco. She has toured the U.S. with her original one woman multi-character comedy show. Previous Rick Sparks directed productions: Highballs Ahoy, Tallulah, They Shoot Horses, Don’t They, A Charlie Brown Commercial Christmas, and Dead Bride Running. Other stage credits: The Wizard of Oz (Santa Barbara CLO), The Foreigner (Grove Theater Center), Lend Me a Tenor (Grove Theater Center). TV credits include: “Gilmore Girls,” “General Hospital,” “Passions,” “Almost Perfect,” “Totally Hidden Video,” “The New America’s Funniest People” and “My Talk Show.” Commercial roles include: housewives, office workers, nun, wicked witch, school cafeteria lady, spontaneously combusting spinster & the Mona Lisa. Denise earned her Equity card playing Porky Pig and her SAG card as a dancing egg.

JOEL POLIS most recently appeared in the West Coast premiere of Defiance at the Pasadena Playhouse, the Rubicon Theater production of The Diary of Anne Frank, and Odyssey Theatre production of Pound of Flesh. A former USC gymnast and circus performer, Joel received his MFA from Yale Drama School before moving to New York where he acted off Broadway and in regional theaters, in such plays as Family Business at the Astor Place, The Baby Dance (the original production directed by Jenny Sullivan) at the Lortel, Pasadena Playhouse and Long Wharf. In Southern California Joel played Cassius in Dan Sullivan’s Old Globe production of Julius Caesar, Clarence in Richard III at the Odyssey Theatre, Wolf in Riga at the John Anson Ford, and Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. His numerous TV credits include “CSI,” “CSI NY,” “CSI Miami,” “Law and Order,” “The Unit,” “Seinfeld,” “Cheers,” “Northern Exposure,” and “Chicago Hope.” Film credits include The Thing, The Rookie, It’s My Party, and Tumbleweeds. Joel lives in Venice Beach, where he teaches and produces theater.

EILEEN T’KAYE most recently appeared as Paulette in the world premiere musical Gulls for The Theatre@Boston Court, which followed her critically-acclaimed portrayal of Fraulein Schneider in Cabaret at International City Theatre. The recipient of a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award as well as two L.A. Weekly and three Drama-Logue Awards, Ms. T’Kaye has had the pleasure of performing such diverse roles as Tess in The Credeaux Canvas, the dual role of Mattie/Mrs. Higby in the world premiere of Rick Sparks’ They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, Miss Furnival in Black Comedy, Phyllis in Death Defying Acts, Maxie in June Moon, Rebecca Felderman in Morning Star, Penny Sycamore in You Can’t Take It With You, Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, and many more. Screen appearances include the Deputy Mayor of New York on the PBS series “The Eddie Files,” and the evil Drake Queen in the films Magic in the Mirror and Fowl Play. Ms. T’Kaye is the Founding Producing Director of the Boston Court Performing Arts Center in Pasadena.

STEVE VINOVICH appeared last season at The Laguna Playhouse in Art. Broadway credits include Loose Ends, Lost in Yonkers, The Magic Show, The Robber Bridegroom, Jerry Herman’s The Grand Tour, and David Hare’s The Secret Rapture. Steve has played the lead in The Foreigner and Special Occasions at the Pasadena Playhouse, The Price and On Golden Pond with Charles Durning at The Laguna Playhouse, The Robber Bridegroom at the Mark Taper Forum, as well as Bells are Ringing, Strike Up the Band and Babes in Arms for Reprise, and Awake and Sing, Golden Boy, Divorcons and All My Sons at Pacific Resident Theater. He played George in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf and Uncle Peck in How I Learned to Drive at the Nevada Conservatory Theater, and did the Broadway tour of Neil Simon’s The Dinner Party. Steve’s films include The Santa Clause, Awakenings and Mannequin, and he was the voice of Puffin in the animated feature The Swan Princess. He has done hundreds of commercials and TV shows, including “Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Cold Case” and “Malcolm in the Middle.” He is a graduate of the Julliard Acting School under John Houseman, and is a three-time winner of the LA Drama Logue Awards.

RICK SPARKS (Director) has won numerous awards for his work as a Director, Writer, Producer, Actor, Sound Designer and Choreographer. Favorite productions include his adaptation and staging of They Shoot Horses, Don’t They, and the rock n’ roll epic, A Clockwork Orange, which garnered a LA Drama Critics Circle award for Direction. Other favorites include the Colony Theatre’s production of Clutter, the original LA premieres of Charles Busch's Psycho Beach Party and John Patrick Shanleys’ Where’s My Money? Sparks directed the well-reviewed Off-Broadway subversive comedy smash, Down South, and the long-running Hollywood theater hit, Dead Bride Running. As an actor, he appeared on Broadway in Cats, Les Miserables, and Sunset Blvd.

TOM DUDZICK (Playwright) has created a series of semi-autobiographical comedies that have been performed in theatres from New York to Los Angeles and dozens of cities in between. His plays have broken box office records at Buffalo Studio Arena, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and Chicago’s Northlight Theatre. His first big hit, Greetings!, a Christmas-themed family comedy produced by the legendary Arthur Cantor and starring veteran film and television actor Darren McGavin, was produced on Broadway. For his next play, Tom semi-fictionalized his family and renamed them the Pazinski’s, called the play Over the Tavern and turned it into what the Chicago Tribune called, “one of the biggest grass-roots successes in American regional theatre of the last few years.” He wrote two popular Over the Tavern sequels: King o’ the Moon and The Last Mass at St. Casimir's. Tom’s most recent play, Don’t Talk to the Actors, had its World Premiere in September 2007 at Buffalo’s Studio Arena Theatre, and receives its West Coast Premiere at The Laguna Playhouse.

Performance & Ticket Information:

Ticket Prices: $25 to $65

Previews:
September 9 – 12

Regular Performances
September 14 – October 12, 2008

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening, October 5 at 7:00 p.m.

Special Half Price Tickets for Students, Teachers and Military with ID

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com
MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

FREE TICKET CONTEST - Be Our Friend

2008-09-04T13:30:00.000-07:00

The Laguna Playhouse is giving away FREE tickets to "Don't Talk To The Actors"

for Tuesday, September 9, 2008 at 8:00pm.

To enter the contest you have to be "our friend" on either MySpace.com or Facebook.com, then look for information about the tickets. Contest ends TODAY (Thursday, September 4, 2008) at 5:00pm.

The Laguna Playhouse will be conducting more ticket give-aways through Myspace and Facebook.com. So friend request us now!

www.myspace.com/lagunaplayhouse
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Laguna-Playhouse/11739883639

Don't Talk To The Actors - West Coast Premiere

2008-09-02T14:30:00.000-07:00

The Laguna Playhouse presents the west coast premiere of:

DON'T TALK TO THE ACTORS

By Tom Dudzick

September 9 - October 12, 2008

Don’t Talk to the Actors follows the adventures of fledgling playwright Jerry Przpezniak and his fiancée Arlene Wyniarski, who are suddenly swept up in the whirlwind of New York's theatre scene when Jerry's autobiographical play is optioned for Broadway. It's a young playwright's dream, but the characters and dilemmas they encounter (including a 1980s television star and his bawdy television wife, a distressed stage manager and an unflappable out-of-town director) provide the ingredients for a hysterical comedy of epic proportions that The Buffalo News calls “drop-dead, scream-out-loud, tear-wrenchingly funny.”

According to Dudzick, Don’t Talk to the Actors is based on his experiences when his own first play, Greetings!, was produced on Broadway.

Performance & Ticket Information:

Ticket Prices: $25 to $65

Previews:
September 9 – 12
Regular Performances
September 14 – October 12, 2008

Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.
Sunday evening, October 5 at 7:00 p.m.

Special Half Price Tickets for Students, Teachers and Military with ID:

FOR INFORMATION & TO PURCHASE TICKETS:
CALL: 949.497.ARTS (2787) - GROUP SALES: 949.497.2787 ext. 229
VISIT: www.LagunaPlayhouse.com
MOULTON THEATRE: 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California

Making Way for A Moveable Feast

2008-08-26T12:41:00.000-07:00

With the fall weather this October comes The Laguna Playhouse's 18th annual A Moveable Feast evening! On Monday, October 13th, 2008 The Playhouse will have patrons mixing and mingling over some of Laguna Beach's own world-class gastronomic delights. More than ten local establishments are participating and patrons can choose whichever they please.

Here's how it will work:

Act I: The evening begins at The Laguna Playhouse with a lively reception featuring champagne, hors d'oeuvres, and fabulous live and silent auctions on the stage of our intimate Moulton Theatre.

Act II: Guests proceed to their favorite local restaurant (pre-selected from ten or more participating fine dining establishments) for a fabulous entrée course.

Act III: Guests proceed to a second pre-selected restaurant (or they may choose to stay where they are and relax) for coffee and a sumptuous dessert.

Not only has this event attracted large numbers of participants in the past, but this unique form of dining keeps patrons returning for more. Join in on the fun and get a taste of Laguna Beach like never before!

Check out http://www.lagunaplayhouse.com/ for more information on the event.

Here are some photos of last year's Feast!

Updates from the Playhouse!

2008-08-25T13:46:00.000-07:00

The end of the month will mark the end of The Marvelous Wonderettes run at the Laguna Playhouse and it has been an incredible one at that! Having surpassed projected ticket sales, the Wonderettes have won the hearts of every audience member and will surely have left their legacy at the Playhouse by their last performance on Sunday August 31st. On behalf of the Playhouse family, we thank the cast and crew for a memorable summer musical!
Stay marvelous!

Wasting no time, the crew will begin assembling the set for our next play, Don't Talk to the Actors next week. Rehearsals for the play are already in full swing and we have no doubt this one will be a hit as well! To satiate your theatrical appetite, here are a few snapshots of the cast in rehearsals.
Check out www.lagunaplayhouse.com for more information on the production and stay tuned for more updates!

Photo Credit: Chris Trela

Left to Right: Chris L. McKenna, Steve Vinovich, and Emily Eiden

Photo Credit: Chris Trela

Left to Right: Steve Vinovich, Emily Eiden, and director Rick Sparks

Discounted Ticket Prices!

2008-08-11T13:05:00.001-07:00

We are pleased to announce discounted ticket prices for Students, Teachers, and Military with Valid ID starting at $17.50! The discount applies to performances on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturday Matinees, and Sunday Evenings. Don't miss your chance to see this energetic and uplifting musical at the Laguna Playhouse!

Also, we added performances on Sunday Evenings of the Marvelous Wonderettes at 7:00 p.m. to satisfy your Wonderettes appetite! Tickets start at $30. Hurry fast, the show closes on August 31st!

We'll see you at the Playhouse!

The Marvelous Wonderettes are spending their summer in Laguna!

2008-08-07T10:26:00.000-07:00

THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES ARE HERE!
Regular Run:July 13 – August 31
Performances:Tuesday – Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.

Written and Directed by Roger Bean
Take four endearing characters, add nearly two dozen classic pop songs from the 50s and 60s, mix it with an engaging story, and you have a recipe for an unforgettable evening of musical theater! This cotton-candy colored, non-stop musical blast from the past transports audiences back in time to the 1958 Springfield High School prom, where we meet The Wonderettes: Betty Jean, Cindy Lou, Missy and Suzy—four girls with hopes and dreams as big as their crinoline skirts, with voices to match. As they talk and sing about their lives and loves, audiences are treated to the girls performing such songs as “Lollipop,” “Dream Lover,” “Stupid Cupid,” and many more. This must-take trip down memory lane!

"It's tremendously fun!" - VARIETY
"Exceptional" - LOS ANGELES TIMES
Winner! LA Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Ensemble and Best Choreography

TICKET INFORMATION
949-497-2787 ext. 1 (group tickets ext. 229)
www.lagunaplayhouse.com
In PersonBox office is open daily from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.

Theatre Address:
606 Laguna Canyon Rd., Laguna Beach, 92651

Parking Information:
Laguna Beach is a popular destination year round. On weekends and holidays we encourage theatre patrons to allow plenty of time for parking. Limited parking is available behind The Laguna Playhouse. A modest fee applies. Additional parking is available across the street in a municipal parking lot.

Laguna Playhouse Loves Locals

2008-07-21T11:14:00.001-07:00

Through the run of Marvelous Wonderettes (July 8-August 31), The Laguna Playhouse is dedicating every Sunday matinee to its deserving locals. The locals will have to present proof of residency at the box office to receive $10 off each ticket.

Check out our organization website @
www.lagunaplayhouse.com