THEY DID THE BUNNY HOP DURING THE FINAL CHORUS OF DON’T BE THE BUNNY!!!! OMFG!!!! IT FITS PERFECTLY AND IT’S HILARIOUS! This is the fifth production of this musical that I’ve seen (on Broadway, technically off-Broadway; the national tour at OCPAC; PCPA Theatrefest in Solvang; Laguna Beach High School) and I learn something new every time I see it. It is such a brilliantly constructed musical with thought-provoking content wrapped in comedy that I could see it five more times and still not be tired of it. The music is jazzy and fun, the dialogue and lyrics pop with cynicism and wit and the characters are lovable despite of, and even for, their depravity. Now enough ranting about how great the show is. Some minor negative values for this production: it is a community college production run by community college students for many of whom this is their first time. … Continue reading →

A decent production of one of my favorite musicals, my first complaint is with the program. It kind of awkwardly describes whats actually going on in the play. It says that the story has two plot lines: one is an author writing the screenplay of one of his novels and the other is that same author dealing with the Hollywood politics as his screenplay is torn to shreds (or something to that effect). It also has two “cast lists”: the Hollywood cast and the movie cast. It is kind of hard at first blush to interpret that statement if you’re unfamiliar with the play, so let me try and lay it out for you in a less confusing manner. Stine, the author of City of Angels, is adapting his novel into a screenplay for his director, Buddy Fidler. While Stine is writing the screenplay, we see the film noir detective … Continue reading →