Category Archives: Theater

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and the bah humbugs

December 18, 2015 8:14 AM , Leave a Comment ,

I’ve been on a theater kick for the past couple of years and we are right now at the tail end of the 2015 Fall theater season in Houston.  I just have to say that the theater scene in Houston keeps getting better and better all the time.  Houston has gained a national reputation for its fine dining choices and I can see a time when it gains a name as a live theater mecca as well.

But anyways, some of the local troupes that I follow put on Christmas and holiday related plays to cap the year.  Stark Naked Theater put on “Ho Ho Humbug 2.0“, Bayou City Theatrics put on “The 12 dates of Christmas“, and the Classical Theater Company put on “A Christmas Carol“.

The last is of course the classic Charles Dickens story and I wanted to see it as I’ve never seen it performed live but the other two were contemporary stories set in or near present day America and dealt mainly with how we perceive and deal with this time of year.

For better or for worse, people in this country have come to associate this holiday season with certain things.

  • Religion of course.  This is a christian holiday and at one time this was a predominantly christian nation.  Whether you agree with it or not you can’t deny that there is an influence there.
  • Traditions that bind us to certain European countries where Americans originated from
  • Commercialism which is more of an american tradition.

From the late 19th century till about the Mid 20th century this was the Christmas season (the term “holiday season” wasn’t in widespread use).  Government, Church, and commercial interests helped spread and foster the season and developed it into what we came to know as Christmas time.

But then in the mid 20th century we began to see this change over time.  People started to notice that this time of year didn’t resonate with everyone.

One of the earliest examples was the Peanuts Christmas TV special where one of the characters proclaimed that Christmas was a racket and controlled by some company “back East”.  This illustrated the disconnect that some people had always felt around this time of year.

Mass media began to notice that besides the Christian majority that there were people from other faiths in this country and that more and more new Americans were arriving from non western European lands.

At the same time, commercial interests were moving to leverage the holiday for all it was worth.  Store displays are now put up as much as two months in advance and even though there has been some consumer backlash over this, they don’t seem to care that much.

I thought about all these points as I attended the plays I mentioned up above.

Christmas Carol is of course the original story about someone who has disconnected from the holiday.  Scrooge had consciously made a decision to set himself apart from humanity.  The spirits show him that this was not always the case and that he still had time to fix this condition.

12 dates of Christmas was a story about a woman who loses her fiance at Thanksgiving time and for the next 12 months has disastrous dates with various men.  She reflects on how “family centered” that the holidays can be and how single people can feel ostracized around the holiday season.

Ho ho Humbug 2.0 was the most poignant of the three.  A writer, that hates the holidays, needs a temporary job to make his rent and by accident winds up playing a store Santa Claus.  Through some soliloquies the writer explains that even as a child he had never connected to Christmas and that he felt that this job was a farce.

As the play progresses and he interacts with his co-workers and with the customers, he comes to see that Christmas means so much more than the commercialism, the decorations and customs, and even the religious aspect.  Christmas had a distinct meaning to everyone he met.  In the end he doesn’t embrace all the aspects of the holiday but he comes to find a way that he can celebrate the season and make it his own.

I think that last point is the most important.  I see some people decrying the holidays as being too commercial, too religious, too superficial.  But then I look around at people from other parts of the world cheerfully celebrating the holiday and pretty much just ignoring the bits that they don’t like or understand.

For example, Christmas is huge in Japan for the gifting aspect.  Not many Christians there.  I know some Jewish families that put up Christmas trees and focus in on the gift giving and celebration aspects.  Last year I was on vacation in the tropics at this time of year and I saw some of the locals decorating their hut with a Christmas tree.

I guess what I am trying to say is that you need to make the holiday your own in order to enjoy it.  Most people enjoy the season out of habit.  But for those that find the season to be a chore or a bother, I think that if you look more closely that there is something there for you to enjoy as well.

 

Merry Christmas

Posted in: Christmas, consumerism, culture, current events, holidays, Houston, life in general, pop culture, theater, thought , Tagged: ,

The appeal of the stage

August 16, 2015 6:38 AM , Leave a Comment ,

I have to say that on the whole I admire actors.  Being able to pull off a performance as they do.  Not just reciting lines but moving to specific places on stage, affecting moods to transmit mood.  Being able to do it over and over on command for several performances and then forgetting it all and moving on to the next production.  It’s quite a skill.

But I think I admire the plays more.  It takes talent to adapt something written on paper and to imagine how you would portray a particular sentiment so that an audience would understand your meaning is a feat.

Miller outdoor theater in Hermann Park

Miller outdoor theater in Hermann Park

It takes a particular type of writer to pull it off.  The act of adapting a story can be somewhat arduous .  In some cases it can prove to be impossible.  Some writer’s styles (Lovecraft for example), some media (some comic books) don’t easily lend themselves to be turned into plays or movies.

So what is the appeal of going to see a live play?  I think when it’s done properly and you have a good script and talented actors that it’s not so much a recitation of the author’s words as much as it is a peek into someone else’s life.  You forget that you’re in a theater surrounded by strangers and the story begins to be transmitted straight into your mind.  You can get involved in this other world for an hour or two and see a conflict evolve to its final climax and resolution.

One thing I never understood about public school is when they would take classic plays and force the kids to recite the plays in class.  It was a ridiculous chore and I could tell most of the kids hated it.  The teachers did it because it was mandated but even they had no real appetite for the material.  The old English text didn’t make much sense to the kids.  The words were dead. I remember at one point a kid had recited a joke in “As you like it” and the professor had to explain that it was a joke.

Instead they should have taken the class on a field trip to see real professionals put life and passion into the words.  Let kids see the anger and confusion in Hamlet, hear Macbeth and his inner turmoil over killing his king, laugh along at some of the jokes in midsummer’s night dream.  That’s how these pieces were meant to be received.

I don’t get to go as often as I like but when I do I find that we have so many options in Houston that you can really find a wide variety of pieces ranging from light comedies to heavy and thought-provoking pieces.  I always feel that it’s time well spent.

Posted in: activities, theater, thought, writing

Jesus Christ Superstar – Play review

April 26, 2015 6:39 AM , Leave a Comment ,

I discovered Bayou City Theatrics (BCY) this year and have been pleasantly surprised by the level of professionalism of this young, tiny, but extremely talented theater company.

BCY is located in downtown Houston on Capital street just around the corner from the Flying Saucer pub.  You can in fact hear the patrons next door if it’s a particularly raucous night.  The playhouse is tiny, maybe 70 seats in total and the stage is small.  But don’t any of these factors dissuade you.  This troupe of performers is well worth going to see.  BCY mainly focuses on Broadway musicals.  So far I’ve caught two plays and they were both well worth it.

I recently caught the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar”, a musical dealing with the last days of Christ and his relationship with his apostles and in particular with Mary and Judas.

BCY gives the play a contemporary flavor.  The actors are all dressed in modern street clothes and the sets resemble inner city settings rather than ancient Jerusalem.

The play begins with Judas shooting up and rather worried about the growing popularity of Jesus and how Jesus is not using his fame to do more for the poor.  He also worries that the Romans will crackdown on Jesus and his apostles if they are not careful.

The other apostles and Mary argue that everything will be fine and that Jesus should not worry.  Judas chides Jesus for not doing enough to help the poor but Jesus counters that he by himself cannot help out everyone.

Meanwhile the high priests, led by Caiphas and Annas, decide that Jesus is becoming a threat to them and that he may bring down the wrath of the Romans on them.  So for the good of everyone Jesus must die.

Judas becomes jealous of Mary’s relationship with Jesus and goes to Caiphas.  He convinces himself that betraying Jesus will be for the greater good and promises Caiphas to betray Jesus.  Annas offers Judas money for the betrayal and tells him he can donate the money to the poor.

At the last supper Jesus seems to know that the end is near and tells his apostles that soon things will go wrong and that they will deny knowing him. He teaches the apostles to eat and drink to remember him and as they all fall asleep he goes out to the gardens to pray where Judas is waiting for him.

Judas kisses Jesus and betrays him.  Jesus is arrested and taken to trial.  He is repeatedly asked if he is the son of God but only replies “That’s what you say”.  He is taken to Pontius Pilate, the roman governor, and gives the same answer.  Pilate begs Jesus to recant but Jesus won’t.  Finally Pilate is forced to condemn Jesus.

Judas in the meantime realizes the horrible mistake he has made and is overcome with remorse.  He wails in horror and finally hangs himself.  Mary and Annas pass by and discover Judas and run off horrified.

As Jesus is being crucified the spirit or ghost of Judas comes to Jesus and mocks him asking him if this is really what he wanted all along.  Jesus does not answer.  In the finale the apostles and Mary all lament his passing and tell how he has affected them all.

BCY makes very good use of their performers and their small stage.  Although narrow it is a deep stage and the scenery work is very well laid out.  This allows the audience to get the experience of seeing a much larger stage.  As I said before the cast is dressed in contemporary clothes and the theme is somewhat urban.  The players look like they might be modern street people.  I think this works very well in helping the audience connect to the material.

The idea is to relate how much of a celebrity Jesus was in his own time and how much of an effect he had on Jerusalem society that he was perceived as a threat by the ruling classes.  I think this makes the material much more relatable to today’s audience.

Overall I am enjoying the work that BCY is putting out and look forward to the rest of their season.  I would highly recommend catching a performance at this venue.

 

Posted in: review, theater

Taking what’s offered

March 11, 2015 6:59 AM , Leave a Comment ,

Life has been hectic this year.  Along with the stresses of work and trying to get some side projects going, I have some family responsibilities to tend to and on top of that a cold laid me low for about a week.  With all that going on, I have hardly had any time to relax and enjoy life.

Making plans with friends has been fairly difficult as in some cases I’ve had no certainty when I would have time to relax or if I would have time to relax.  As a consequence I’ve had to make the most of what time I did have to relax.

Programs from some plays that I've recently attended.

Programs from some plays that I’ve recently attended.

One thing that I’ve been relying on lately has been Houston’s outstanding theater scene.  Ranging from off broadway touring companies to small venues to amateur dinner theater, we are extraordinarily blessed with a lot of acting talent in this town.

The nice thing about the local theater scene is that it is usually fairly easy to get tickets, they are rarely sold out.  The theaters are usually fairly small so even the “cheap seats” are good seats.  The acting and production values of the local troops are fairly high so you get more than you pay for.  Lastly, most theater companies have online ticket sales so I can usually book a seat just hours before a performance.

Comparing this to movies?  In some ways better and in some ways not as good but I would not say worse.  I mean with movies of course you can be totally immersed in the story world.  It’s all very visual and the story is all there to see.  With plays you have to use some imagination.  Even the most lavish stage props and backgrounds won’t look totally real.  But with a live human actor right in front of you speaking the lines and instilling the lines with emotion you somehow get more into the story than you would with a movie. Difficult to explain unless you’ve been to one of these plays.

For me at least these plays have helped take the edge off life lately and have given me a bit of a release on those days that life seems to be ganging up on me.

If you ever need to take the edge off or if you are just curious, I would highly recommend it.

 

Posted in: activities, culture, current events, entertainment, Houston, theater

The god game – review

September 18, 2014 6:18 AM , Leave a Comment ,

[Author’s note.  This is a review of the theater play “The God Game” put on by Stark Naked Theater in Houston.  As always this will contain spoilers so you may want to skip this post.]

 

I am coming to like minimalist theater more and more.  Set dressing doesn’t add that much to the performances and the material being presented and I think that is the point of live theater.  I mean you can go to a movie for big budget effects and impressive visuals but in these smaller minimalist theaters the content of the play is what captivates the audience.  The Stark Naked theater company does an admirable job in this respect.   Using little to no set dressing they provide entertaining stories and plots that rival those being put on by the bigger theater companies in Houston’s theater district.  I’ve been more and more impressed by the level of professionalism and their performances each time that I go.

The God Game is no exception.  The play is set in a small house in Virginia.  A Senator (Tom) and his wife (Lisa) are planning their wedding anniversary when an old friend (Matt) shows up.  Matt is a political activist and wants to get Tom to run as Vice president with a political opponent with extremely opposing social and political views.

Tom is not sure he wants to support this candidate as the candidate is extremely religious and Tom is an agnostic.  Tom doesn’t want to compromise his principles by pretending that he is religious just to win the election.  Lisa is quite religious but she and Tom have come to a modus vivendi for all their married life and this offer threatens to disrupt the couple’s carefully crafted marital peace.

In the background is a parallel subplot involving Matt who was the lover of the Senator’s brother until the brother died in a car accident.  At first Lisa is cold towards Matt but as they discuss the accident they come to realize that they had no reason to be distant.  She also admits that she doesn’t want Tom to run for Vice president if it means that he has to pretend to have a faith that he really doesn’t have.  In her eyes this would lead to the corruption of Tom.

Matt argues that Tom could do real good and make substantive change on many other issues if only they would give in on “this one little thing”.  Tom starts to come around in his thinking about pretending to have faith but Lisa gets offended by the notion.  Tom explodes and admits that he is not an agnostic but a full-blown atheist and does not believe at all.  Lisa storms out of the room but returns and declares that she will support Tom in his candidacy but will not be a party to any sort of fraud.

In the final scene Tom stands with Lisa declaring his candidacy for vice president.  He takes a question about his faith from a reporter.  As he tries to invent a noncommittal answer that would give the impression that he was religious he finds that he cannot.  Instead he asks the voters and the audience that instead of asking about his faith, why not have faith in him.

It’s a very powerful play and asks many questions.  How do our ideas of faith come out in daily life and in our work?  What principles are we willing to shed to accomplish something greater?  How do we live and interact with others that believe in different things than we do?  Very thought-provoking.

 

 

Posted in: review, theater

The importance of being Earnest review

April 13, 2014 6:31 AM , Leave a Comment ,

Classical Theater Company (CTC) closes out its season (an all too short season in my opinion) with my favorite Oscar Wilde play, “The importance of being Earnest”.  I’ve previously covered the Dr Faustus performance back in February.

Typically CTC will tweak classic plays to make them more contemporary and relevant to current events.  They chose to do “Hamlet” with a nod to the controversy of the NSA surveillance scandal that was going on at the time.  With “Earnest” they didn’t really tweak it as the play takes place in 1895 and is pretty relatable to today’s audience.

“Earnest” was Wilde’s masterpiece and forms the basis of many of the romantic comedy movies of the last 75 years.  The misunderstandings, the unspoken loves, the complications are all elements to fans of romantic comedies.  Besides that “Earnest” held up a mirror up to Victorian society and exposed some of the ridiculous but all too real opinions and mindsets of the upper class of the era.

The play opens up to Algernon (or Algie) lounging at home.  Algie is a lazy and overprivileged young man.  He doesn’t work and spends all his time pursuing carnal pleasures.  He is expecting his Aunt and his cousin to visit for tea when his friend Ernest from the country shows up.  Ernest is similar to Algie in that he also doesn’t work and lives off his investments.

Ernest is pining for Algernon’s cousin, Gwendolyn, and wants to court her but Algie objects due to an incident in the recent past.  Algie found Ernest’s cigarette case and it is inscribed “To Jack from his little Cecily”.  At first Ernest pretends that this is his aunt but finally confesses that Cecily is his ward and that his name is really Jack.  He has been assuming the name Ernest in order to visit London and lead a double life.  Far from being horrified, Algie congratulates him for his “bunburying” as Algie calls it.  Algie has been doing the same thing but in reverse.  He assumes the name Bunbury while visiting the country to carouse and carry on.  Ernest tells him about his ward, Cecily, and Algie is determined to meet her but Ernest won’t give him his country address for fear that Algie will corrupt her.

Algie’s aunt, Lady Bracknell, arrives with Gwendolyn.  While Algie  distracts his aunt Ernest asks Gwendolyn to marry him.  She readily agrees but when the subject of his first name arises, she confesses that she loves the name Ernest and would not accept being married to a “Jack”.  He then determines to get his name changed at the first opportunity.  Lady Bracknell returns.  She objects to the engagement due to the fact that Ernest is an orphan and was left in a handbag at Victoria station.  As he cannot account for his lineage, Lady Bracknell determines that he is unacceptable and leaves.  Gwendolyn promises to marry Ernest even if she has to run away.  Ernest gives her his address in the county while Algie listens in secret.  Algie calls his butler and gets ready to visit Cecily in the country.

Act 2  begins in the country.  Cecily and her governess, Miss Prism, are in the garden preparing her lessons and discussing “Uncle Jack’s” worthless brother Ernest and his latest escapades.  Miss Prism disapproves of Ernest but Cecily is thoroughly fascinated.  Algie arrives.  He tells everyone that he is Ernest and has come to see his brother Jack, knowing very well that Jack is in London.  Miss Prism won’t leave them alone but Reverend Chausable arrives and asks Miss Prism out for a walk.

Cecily is fascinated by Algie and tells him that she is quite disposed to marry him.  Algie finds himself unexpectedly smitten but when the subject of names comes up it turns out Cecily also adores the name Ernest too and won’t marry him otherwise.  Algie decides to get himself re-christened by Reverend Chausable.

Meanwhile Jack arrives in mourning clothes.  He has decided to “kill off” his fake brother Ernest.  He tells Miss Prism and the reverend that his brother died from a cold in Paris.  He asks Reverend Chausable to re-christen him Ernest in honor of his brother.  Cecily and Algie arrive and Jack is forced to accept Algie as Ernest or else expose the charade.

Act 3 begins with Gwendolyn arriving in the country.  She has run away to be with her Ernest.  She meets Cecily and they both find out that they are both engaged to “Ernest”.  After getting into a huge argument, Jack and Algie arrive and they have to explain the whole farce to their respective fiancées.  Both Cecily and Gwendolyn are furious at being lied to.  They break off their engagements.

After making apologies and both pledging to be re-christened Ernest, the men manage to assuage their fiancées anger and restore the engagements.

Just as all seems well, Lady Bracknell arrives looking for Gwendolyn.  She still opposes Gwendolyn’s engagement.  Algie tells her of his engagement to Cecily and she opposes this until she finds out how much Cecily stands to inherit.  But now Jack objects.  As her guardian he won’t allow the wedding unless Lady Bracknell approves his nuptials.

Miss Prism arrives and Lady Bracknell recognizes her.  It turns out that decades earlier Miss Prism left a handbag with a baby in Victoria station.  At first Jack thinks she is his mother but Miss Prism corrects him on this point.  At this moment Lady Bracknell informs Jack that he is in fact the son of her sister and is therefore Algie’s older brother.  Though she knows Jack was named for his father she can’t remember his first name.  After some research, they determine that Jack’s real name had actually always been Ernest and he declares that at last he has realized the  importance of being earnest.

One thing I will say is that CTC missed an opportunity here to relate this to the “Peter Pan Syndrome“.  Both Jack and Algie are prime examples of males that live for the moment and for their selfish pleasures rather than growing up and accepting responsibilities that their contemporaries are embracing.  I feel something could have been done with this.

The play lasted a little over two hours but the jokes came constantly and the time seemed to pass by quickly.  A thoroughly enjoyable experience.  I can’t wait till the next season of CTC begins sometime in the Fall.

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Dr Faustus review

February 4, 2014 6:32 AM , 2 Comments ,

I love small theater venues.  You get a much better sense of what’s going on and the story becomes more intimate.  Actors spend long hours not just memorizing lines but practicing acting and reacting to each other and to the story.  It’s nice to be close enough to see all of that.  Large venues can be impersonal but small venues bring the action almost into your lap.

The Barnvelder (or the Barn) is such a place.  The stage dressing is minimal and the costumes are pretty spare but the acting is top-notch and really that’s what you’re there to see.

I first became aware of the Classical Theater Company at a convention a couple of years ago.  As the name suggests they do only classical works of theater but with small modernizing twists here and there.  Dr Faust was a good example.  The actors were all dressed in 1920s style clothes and old-time music played in the background on a Vitrolla but the story itself wasn’t changed.

Most people just know Dr Faust for the catchphrase “Faustian bargain” but know little more than that.  Often they will confuse it with the American short story “The Devil and Daniel Webster” and assume it ends well.

In the story a young German student is deciding what course his life will take.  He is bored with medicine, law, science, and considers religion to be stifling.  However he is fascinated with necromancy and sees it as a liberating field of study that will set him above his fellow-man.

He summons a devil called Mephistopheles and asks for this power.  Mephistopheles  answers that he can only do that if Lucifer allows him and the price for that would be Faust’s soul.  Faust readily agrees without thought and signs a contract for 24 years.  He assumes he has cheated Lucifer as he does not believe that the soul exists and that when he dies nothing will happen to him even though Lucifer has made it plain what it will happen and introduces him to the seven deadly sins.

So for the next few years Faust and Mephistopheles travel the world and do whatever they want.  They pester the Pope, they meet with royalty, they summon the spirits of Alexander the great and Helen of Troy, and generally Faust has a good time, until he meets an old man on a country road.

The old man tells Faust that he has squandered the most precious thing he owns for petty gains and that he will spend eternity in torment for it.  This creates doubt in Faust and his resolve cracks.  He thinks about repenting but Mephistopheles chastises him.  Faust says that he will never again repent if he could spend a night of passion with Helen of Troy.  Mephistopheles grants his wish.

As his time is coming to an end Faust becomes more and more worried.  He begins to see that he has made a horrible bargain.  On his final day on Earth he tries to repent and pray but is restrained by the bargain he had made with Mephistopheles.  He cries out to the mountains to hide him, to the ground to open up and swallow him and to the stars to lift him up but it is to no avail.  Hell opens up and drags him off.

The play itself was portrayed by 4 actors.

James Belcher from the Alley theater acting company portrayed Mephistopheles

Adam Gibbs played the title role of Faust,

Dain Geist who had previously played Hamlet played the part of the chorus as well as other small parts such as Lucifer, and the pope,

Joanna Hubbard who played Ophelia in Hamlet was also part of the chorus and other small parts such as Helen of troy and a cardinal.

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