Looking for a great show to take your friends to over the Holidays, well then this is it! If you want to see something a little more risque than the usual Holiday show then rush over to the MET Theatre and check out their smash hit production of Avenue Q. Due to popular demand the DOMA Theatre Co. has extended the run by almost two months. Read my original review of the production here and see just why it is one not to miss!
Now Playing through February 3rd.
Fridays @ 8 pm: Nov 30; Dec 7, 14, 21; Jan. 4, 11, 18, 25; Feb. 1 (dark Dec. 28)
Saturdays @ 8 pm: Dec 1, 8, 15, 22; Jan. 5, 12, 19, 26; Feb. 2 (dark Dec. 29)
Sundays @ 3 pm: Dec 2, 9, 16, 23; Jan. 6, 13, 20, 27; Feb. 3 (dark Dec. 30)
Sundays @ 7:30 pm: Dec 2, 9 and 16 only
The popular, inappropriate puppet musical Avenue Q has recently released the rights for public productions to be performed. Therefore this is my second review of the musical in the last three months and the third overall production I have seen. It is a musical that brings catchy songs, the universal love of puppets and real life situations together in a comedic and enthralling evening. This musical is filled with many imitations and mocking of real world people and persona’s, therefore the impersonations and representations need to be as accurate in order to be their comedic best. The DOMA Theatre Company has done a stellar job in staying true to the characters and script that calls for stellar puppeteers and the voices to make the characters come to life.
Director Richard Israel has created his cast and production to be as close to the original work as possible. The memorable puppet-like voices that can be heard on the Original Broadway Recording are being very closely represented at The MET Theatre. The talented cast has done a great job re-creating these characters in this hilarious mock Sesame Street. Libby Letlow, Puppet Coach and actress has not only coached the actors to bring their characters to life but she has brought life to the puppets herself.
Playing several characters throughout the show and being the second arm to Nicky and others, Letlow’s expressive puppeteering almost steals the show. It is hard enough creating a character, but the ability to create a character using your own body as well as that of a puppet and making sure both are expressive in the same ways, is a craft all to its own and this cast has captured it.
During the show the main character Princeton (Chris Kauffmann) decides he wants to collect money to help out his friend/girlfriend Kate Monster (Danielle Judovits). During this number, “The Money Song” the cast goes out into the audience and asks for money. It is funny and well done, however what very few people realized is that they are actually collecting money. On your way into the theater there is a tiny sign that states all money collected during the performance will be given to Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts. This is a fabulous and amazing idea, except that I, like most of the audience didn’t see the sign until leaving the theater. I think this is a wonderful thing they are doing but I do suggest that they make an announcement before the show starts so the audience is aware, because it truly is a wonderful idea.
As mentioned earlier I have seen two other productions of this musical, both from theater companies with more funds and resources then DOMA and I will have to say that as a whole there is not much difference from the quality of the productions. Some of the casting choices I liked better in the other two productions and yes it was obvious in the presentation that this was a smaller theater company and venue. However, what DOMA has is heart and lots of it. No matter what I have gone to see there, the cast is always 100% committed and everyone from the people who greet you, seat you or pour you your drink, are all so enthusiastic to be there and that is infectious. They have truly found their “purpose” in life, and that is to provide musical theater to the Hollywood area.
If you have not seen Avenue Q, then you are truly missing out. It is one the most refreshing musicals to come from Broadway in years. With DOMA’s current production running through December 16th you have plenty of opportunity to see it now, in all of its’ comedic puppet glory.
**Due to the popularity of DOMA productions and the show Avenue Q performances are selling out, please be advised to purchase tickets early.
Some musicals are meant to make you laugh, some make you cry and some are made just so you can have fun. Xanadu is the latter; adapted from the preposterous and utterly strange 1980’s cult classic movie starring Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly. To prepare myself for DOMA Theatre Company‘s latest production, I suffered through the 90 minutes of bizarre non-sense that is the movie. Luckily the stage version is immensely more entertaining than the movie, because it take parts of the movie and presents it as a completely ridiculous comedy whilst poking fun at the era it was born out of.
Featuring some fantastic ’80’s classic music, appropriately psychedelic costumes, actors who fit their roles perfectly and very witty dialogue, Xanadu is quite an entertaining evening. DOMA has not always received great reviews from me, but I am pleased to say that this time they have delivered something I highly recommend. It is not a dose of normal musical theater, and a thorough story with beautiful musical numbers is not what Xanadu is about.
Xanadu is the story of Clio (Lovlee Carroll), one of the 9 daughters of Zeus who is a muse sent to inspire Sonny Malone (Matt O’Neill). Sonny is a typical Venice, CA surfer dude who wants to be a painter but has no idea how to do that. Clio goes undercover as an Australian roller skater named Kira, and brings Sonny together with someone she had been a muse to some 40 years earlier, Danny Maguire (David Michael Trevino) in order to open up a roller disco. (How VERY ’80’s). Throughout the show, Clio’s sisters, two of them played to FAB-ulous hilarity by Alan Lee and Bradley Sattler, weave in and out helping and hindering her progress.
The plot itself is pretty absurd and not to be taken very seriously by the audience or the cast. Ultimately what you need to know about this show is – it is a fun musical and DOMA is having a ball with it. Under the direction of Hallie Baran, the actors are playing it to the extreme and it works. Xanadu is not a musical you go to for phenomenal voices, though Trevino and Carroll do have them. Nor is the dancing out of this world, though Lee’s high kicks and constant splits are no less than incredible. The skating is fun, the music will get you moving and the lines coupled with the comedic timing of the cast will give you plenty to laugh about.
Xanadu is one of DOMA‘s best productions and it plays at the MET Theatre in Hollywood Friday through Sunday until October 7th.
Sitting in the small 99 seat Met Theatre waiting for the latest DOMA Theatre Company production to begin, became quite an event as the ushers tried to stuff well over 100 people into the hot, already crowded theater. 15 minutes after the posted start time, the show finally started and the stage quickly became just as crowded as the audience. The already immensely popular Jekyll and Hydeis a dark musical about a man’s struggle with his dreams and inner demons.
The musical itself calls for an ensemble, but the Director, Marco Gomez seemed to go a bit overboard with the number of cast members for the size of stage that they had to perform on. In fact, the size of the theater seemed to hinder this potentially amazing production in many ways.
The group dance numbers such as “Murder, Murder” seemed overwhelming by the number of people on the stage. The choreography by Angela Todaro seemed like it would be fun and catchy but it was lost in the overcrowded stage. The other downfall of the size of the theater was the sound system. The theater is obviously not big enough to house a full orchestra and I tried very hard to put aside my loathing of canned (pre-recorded) music for this production. However, the volume on both the soundtrack and microphones were up a little too loudly and it became very distracting and at times, painful. This was most noticeable for the songs sung by Cassandra Nuss, who was stunning in the role of Lucy. Nuss has a fabulous voice and at times she was mind blowing, especially in “Someone Like You”. However due to the size of the theater, Nuss’ belting into the microphone made my eardrums ache.
Aside from the sound flaws, the talents of the cast were obviously there. Though Chris Kerrigan (Dr. Jekyll/ Mr. Hyde) does not have the greatest of voices, he is a fantastic actor. He did an outstanding job of switching between his character’s alter egos of Jekyll and Hyde. In some scenes the switches were constant and he never messed up, he was in tune with both characters and it was fascinating to watch. Especially in the scene “Confrontation”, Kerrigan is captivating with his battle between good and evil, his desperation to conquer the evil Hyde is heart wrenching.
The acting skills of both Kerigan, Nuss as well as the other female lead Amber Gildersleeve, made me yearn for this production to fix its flaws. This was opening weekend of a four week run and though it is doubtful that they will get rid of some of the over sized cast, if they do turn down the sound system a few notches, this performance could be extremely powerful and enjoyable. Unfortunately, if the sound is always at that level, it may just leave you with a headache; forgetting about the incredible performances the production possesses.
*If you happen to go to a production of Jekyll and Hyde and they have fixed the sound system please let me know and I will write a note for future viewers.
Theatre in Los Angeles is a new world to me. It’s often hidden and sometimes magnificent and occasionally the venue outshines the performance the actors are giving, which is the case this time. The DOMA Theatre Company has set up permanent residence at the MET Theatre in Hollywood, directly off of the 101 on Santa Monica Blvd. This gem of a theatre is all inviting and has many things I love about theatre. A parking lot, a greeter who tells you where to go and what the night will be like and a pianist to entertain you before the show and during intermission. Once I sat down at their cute cabaret like seats, and the lights went down, my happy wonderland feeling started to melt away.
Official Poster
“Songs for a New World” by Jason Robert Brown has marvelous songs and much like “Putting it Together” is a mashed together medley of the composer’s work; unlike “Putting it Together” there is no story line. The songs themselves are fabulous to listen to and I suggest you get the CD. With no real plot line, the show itself maneuvers through the songs, which is each a story within itself. All set within a bar/nightclub each performer laments or rejoices on a certain moment in his or her life with a well-written Robert Brown song. This particular production, which runs through June 3rd, needs a little more work and is not currently very good. Each of the four cast members has their own moments, but the two performers with the most moments are the two women of the show.
Andrea Arvanigian is young, beautiful and has a vivacious voice to match. Though she is not flawless throughout the show, her youthfulness and heartfelt acting of her many solos often leave a smile on your face. AnnaLisa Erickson, pulls ahead with her hilarious facial movements and acting skills that hit her solos out of the park. Particularly memorable is Surabaya-Santa, which will leave you rolling in the aisle. Her Stars and the Moon would be stunning if she were allowed to be center stage, with only a spotlight on her and no side acting by the ensemble, who are trying to portray the scene she is singing. The two male performers, Mookie Johnson and Malek Hanna have a little more work to do in order to bring their performances to the ladies’ levels. Johnson improves as the show goes forth, but Hanna’s performance seems strained and over-the-top. Often, when all four sing together it is awkward and the four strong voices do not meld well together. Overall the direction by Marco Gomez seems sub-par, he has pretty good performers who he could have showcased better if it weren’t for the mediocre lighting, quite often the spotlights were only lighting half of the singer(s) and the sub par dancing.
“Songs for a New World” still has a few weeks to run and with the experience of the four performers on stage it will no doubt improve with time. This is not a bad production, but it is not a great production either. It has its moments that make the show worth going to see. If the lighting is fixed, the harmonies are tightened and if each performer works on their own personal flaws within the show then this production could be stellar. All in all the venue is definitely worth a trip to Hollywood, the employees there will make you feel welcomed and well taken care of, before, during and after the show, and the catchy and wistful tunes will absolutely get stuck in your head.
alittlenightmusing 