Second Row Center Blog
There’s an old Latin saying. “Aestivo Tempori est Shakespeare!” Roughly translated: There’s no better time to watch Shakespeare than in the summertime! I don’t know when summer became so connected to the Bad Bard of Avon, but there’s no denying that the moment the weather gets nice, along comes a troupe of iambic-pentameter talking actors …
Continue reading ““Twelfth Night;” “Cymbeline” – July 8, 2015″
One of the cool things about the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the current season of which I have been reporting on lately, is the way it often programs shows that cleverly comment on each other in interesting ways. This year’s festival, which runs through November 1st up in Ashland, Oregon, has one particularly creative pairing of …
Continue reading ““The Count of Monte Cristo;” and “A Long Day’s Journey Into Night” – July 6, 2015″
The good, the bad and the ugly. It’s not just the name of an old Clint Eastwood movie. It’s also a fitting way to think about this year’s Oregon Shakespeare Festival, currently running in Ashland on OSF’s three world-class stages. Yesterday I talked about the VERY GOOD “Head Over Heels,” a new musical by Jeff …
Continue reading ““Antony and Cleopatra;” and “Secret Love in Peach Blossom Land” – July 2, 2015″
Well, the recent Supreme Court ruling affirming marriage equality to all couldn’t be better timed, ‘cause the big celebration’s already started up in Ashland, Oregon, and this dance party’s got somethin’ special on the record player. It’s got the Go-Go’s. Well . . . it has a bunch of Go-Go songs, if not the actual …
Lets talk about inspiration. Inspiration is often likened to lightning striking, or an electric bulb popping on over our heads. Metaphorically, when light suddenly appears, when lightning suddenly strikes, it means we have been inspired, either with a new idea or with a new sense of energy and excitement. Theater has long been in the …
There’s no denying it. Music is a powerful force. Music can express the deepest of human emotions. And there are, obviously, many different styles and forms of music. One could easily make the argument that no two forms of musical expression better convey the depth of human feeling than do OPERA and the mighty SPRITUALS …
Continue reading ““Falstaff;” and “Choir Boy” – June 17, 2015″
Making an audience laugh is not an easy task for any playwright, or for the actors indebted with bringing the author’s words to life on stage. Humor is primarily a matter of taste. Where one of might think a joke about geometry is hilarious, another prefers to watch an actor plummet headlong into a birthday …
Continue reading ““The North Plan;” and “The Clean House” – June 3, 2015″
No one’s ever done an official scientific study on this, but I have observed certain conspicuous distinctions between the way adults react to the story of Peter Pan, and how children respond to the same story – whether we’re talking about the 1911 novel by J.M. Barrie or the various stage versions, and especially the …
Let’s face it – it’s not always easy to look on the bright side of life. Laughter helps, but getting there often requires a helpful boost. If you are looking for something to give your laughing-and-smiling impulses a comedic kick in the pants, you are currently in luck. Right now, there are two shows running …
Continue reading ““Noises Off;” and “One Man, Two Guvnors” – May 20, 2015″
Theater is all about transformation, and transformation is never easy. But transforming one of the best-loved movies of all time into a stage musical? That’s a huge challenge, because the expectations are always so remarkably high. So it takes guts, creativity, and a whole lot of daring-do, all of which are on vivid display in …
Continue reading ““Mary Poppins;” and “Crazy For You” – May 14, 2015″