Curtain Call: Hell's Kitchen

Hell's Kitchen 9/10

This past weekend Cam took me to see this Hell's Kitchen play at The Pantages. Thankfully we found parking a few blocks away because their own parking is expensive as hell and ridiculous to get out of. We also stopped by Amoeba where she got a Rick James CD and I got a The Last Dragon shirt which drew too much attention when at The Grove with L. So we got to the show and I had no idea what the show was about other than it was loosely based on Alicia Keys' life. We had really good seats at a balcony where no one was in front of us which I am always a fan of.

Curtain Call: Six The Musical

Six The Musical 9/10

Cam and I went to see Six again a few weeks ago. L was supposed to come but felt under the weather. This is the show that made me wish that more live shows were shorter. 90 minutes no intermission in and out. The first time I saw this I was listening to a podcast and just heard about all these ladies so the information was fresh in my mind. Had to do some catching up. The first time I saw this there was one performer that was kinda weak but didn't affect the show and the same thing happened again this time but with a different character. This is still a super fun show and one I will see every time its at The Pantages. The sound was good as well. Its the exact same show as before so I'm not gonna get into the weeds describing what it is about.

Click here for previous Curtain Call.

Oh, I wanted to include a photo of how crazy the lobby was after the show. We wanted to get something but the merch wasn't all that interesting.

Curtain Call: Gem Of The Ocean

Gem Of The Ocean 8/10

Last night me, my lady L, and Cam went to see Gem Of The Ocean at the Long Beach Playhouse. None of us had been there before and we've been trying to see all the August Wilson shows. I have seen four now and each of them have seen others but we hadn't seen this one. In writing about this I am also going to talk about the theater itself because this was our first visit and I have to. We got to the theater which wasn't too hard to find and they had plenty of parking for free which was awesome. No going through tunnels or having to find a meter a mile away. Just straight up parking right there. The bathrooms are in the lobby and if you are waiting in line you will block one of the theater entrances and the door stays open. The ladies experienced this but I did not cause I went before we got there. Inside the theater it is small but not as small as The Fountain Theater where L and I saw Freight and she got lost in Lil Murda's eyes. I'll include a picture of the setup.

Curtain Call: Paranormal Activity

Paranormal Activity 2/10

Last night my lady traversed rainy LA weather for this show. She had fought to get tickets with their website not working and even having to contact them over the phone like this was 2002 to get us some tickets. She finally did and boy that was a waste of time. Best part of the evening was getting some really good food at The Little Jewel of New Orleans. Seriously. Great food. Have to go back. Anyhoot, so we got in line for parking and had to go eight levels down before we found a spot. We get inside and the place is pretty crowded. We had seats further back but we were able to see the entire stage not that it mattered. I'll explain why later.

Curtain Call: Joe Turner's Come and Gone

Joe Turner's Come and Gone 10/10

On Sunday me and my lady were invited by my best friend to go see this play over at A Noise Within. My lady had never been to this location and I had been a few other times I think just for these August Wilson shows. This was by far my favorite one in terms of acting, music, sound design, humor, intensity, and feelings during and after the show. I have already discussed how I felt after seeing The Piano Lesson and some of the people that were in that were in this. I kept saying I am gonna be a snob because at this point I have seen shows with the same people as well as director. The director of this did that amazing Twilight: Los Angeles show.

This is set in the early 1900's at a boardinghouse run by Seth and his wife Bertha. People come and go while a few stay for years at a time paying $2 a week for lunch and dinner as well as a room. Damn, that sounds like such a good deal. The weird spiritual aspect is brought by Bynum (because now I know a variation of this guy is in every show) using pigeon blood for rituals. There is also Jeremy who was recently arrested for being drunk in public (saw him in Topdog/Underdog). This guy Rutherford shows up and he is known as a people finder. He also has Seth make him some dustpans. Bynum explains to him about a “shiny man” who told him the secret of life and how he has been searching for him once again. Rutherford is like “Sure...let you know if I see him.” Next Harold Loomis and his daughter Zonia show up.

Curtain Call: Some Like It Hot

Some Like It Hot 6/10

Last week my lady and I went to see Some Like It Hot at The Pantage's Theater. I am not even gonna complain about how I couldn't understand about 60% of what was being sang by some of the performers because if you at the Pantage's at this point you accept the fact that they somehow have the worst sound system of any live theater I've been to. My lady got the tickets at a discount and the place wasn't packed. Also, the ushers were acting like workers at a polling place. I have seen the film version of this movie and liked it a lot and have seen it a few times as recently as last year so the story is fresh in my head. Well, nuts to that because this is very different than that version.

Curtain Call: Topdog/Underdog

Topdog/Underdog 9/10

Last weekend Cam took me to see a play at the Pasadena Playhouse called Topdog/Underdog. Terrible title for a great show. I had been to this place once before and liked it. Lots of leg room so you don't have to get up every time someone passes. This is about two brothers, Lincoln and Booth (I know, right?) who have very honked up lives. Lincoln works dressing as Abraham Lincoln at a theme park of sorts where guests get to assassinate him all day. Booth steals everything he can and wants Lincoln to teach him how to be as good as Lincoln once was at three card monte. Lincoln says he does not touch the cards anymore. Booth spends most of his time talking shit to Lincoln about how he is divorced, lives with Booth on the couch, and isn't as good at three card monte as he used to be. I mean, this dude just needles him every chance he gets!

Curtain Call: Harry Potter And The Cursed Child

Harry Potter And The Cursed Child 9/10

This is gonna have some spoilers! L and I went to see this a couple of weeks ago at The Pantages. Thankfully this was not a musical because that theater is known for having a terrible sound system. We went and had dinner beforehand which was awesome on Hollywood and then hunted for parking because screw paying like 30-something bucks to be trapped underground and waiting an hour to leave. My best friend gave us the tickets for this and I am so happy because this show was incredibly fun and visually the best use of effects I have ever seen live.

Curtain Call: The Piano Lesson

The Piano Lesson 7/10

This past weekend Cam took me to see this play in Pasadena. The last play was super good and this one was also good but, my god, it was long. This lady Berniece lives with her daughter, Maretha, and her uncle, Doaker. One day her brother Boy Willie shows up with a guy named Lymon and a truck full of watermelon to sale. Boy Willie wants to sell all the watermelon and head back to buy some land. Lymon is on the run from the law.

Curtain Call: Sweeney Todd

 

Sweeney Todd 9/10

Months ago Cam and I went to see this at A Noise Within. I really like this place after being here a couple times. I knew the basic story or at least I thought I did. I knew people being made into food was a part of the story. This is about a guy that returns to London and has revenge and murder on his mind. He is there with this young guy that is super excited about London. Todd is there to get back at some people for the murder of his wife and find his daughter. One day he meets this baker who makes gross sounding dishes and after he kills someone she realizes that dumping the body would be a waste of perfectly good meat and start a successful people pie business.

Curtain Call: Doña Perón

Doña Perón 9/10

Last night Cam and I went to a show at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. I was not sure what to expect and thought that this huge dance thing happening outside was it. I was wrong. Her friends showed up as well and we went into this fancy ass looking building. I felt very under-dressed for this place. I have never seen a ballet or dance thing like this before. I read the program before it began to get the gist of the story and what is crazy is that the performances were done so well that I still would have gotten the gist of the show even without it.

Curtain Call: King Hedley II

King Hedley II 8/10

This weekend I went to see this play at A Noise Within with my best friend. We got there as it started to drizzle and got to the ticket booth only to be told that the tickets did not exist. She asked what we should do and I was like “Get something to eat” because I had been up since 5am and was hungry again. They said they had a few more tickets and sat us in the front row. We were both like “Um...” because I don't wanna sit front row for anything. So we sat and saw that the stage had this rubber dirt all over it and knew it was gonna flew towards us at some point. And by the way, there were quite a few seats available and we did not need to be sat that close to the stage. I like this place but they were having all kind of ticket finding issues when we got there. Now that is over I can talk about the play.

Curtain Call: The Wiz

The Wiz 6/10

I liked this show but whenever I talk about it I sound like I am just complaining about what I didn't like or was confused about. L. took me to see The Wiz at The Pantages (notoriously bad sound system) for my berfday after a nice dinner and avoiding crazy ass rain. I was excited when I saw that Wayne Brady was playing The Wizard of Oz after seeing him in Kinky Boots. Well, guess what? No Wayne. No Brady. Let me get to discussing the play. It starts off with...wait. I am not gonna sit here and type out what The Wiz is about. If you have seen The Wizard of Oz and The Wiz then I can say that this is a combination of the two which is kind of confusing. Its called The Wiz but Dorothy is in school and not a teacher. She is also on a farm and not in Detroit. This is me being puzzled from the start. I push that away and keep watching.

Curtain Call: Freight The Five Incarnations of Abel Green

Freight The Five Incarnations of Abel Green 10/10

This past weekend L. took me to see one of the best live performances I have ever seen. It is called Freight: The Five Incarnations of Abel Green. It stars J. Alphonse Nicholson who I know from seeing in the background of a few TV series and also on the show P Valley. This is a solo show and I don't think I've ever actually seen a solo show live before. He plays a man named Abel Green and it goes through five different monologues and each one is a different version of Abel throughout time. The first one takes place in the early 1900s where he is part of a minstrel show. The second one he's a faith healer who gets really popular and very wealthy only to discover the truth about his healing abilities and his faith. The third one he's an FBI informant that's pretty much snitching on the Black Panthers in the 1960s. The fourth he's an actor who has all of the guilt for turning his back on a friend after discovering he is HIV positive. The final one he's a homeless man around 2010 and he tells a story of how he became that way.

Curtain Call: Inherit The Wind

Inherit The Wind 10/10

Last night Cam took me to go see an incredible performance of Inherit the Wind. I had not heard of this story and did not know anything about it going in but I am so glad I went because this was one of the best plays I have ever seen. It also shows that you do not need a lot of flash to make a show good and entertaining. The people on stage had on regular street clothes the set consisted of about three or four tables and some chairs. Audience members who won a lottery were allowed to sit in the jury box and they were also people from the audience sitting on stage. I had never been to the Pasadena Playhouse before and it was a pretty good size. Parking was a breeze and right near the theater which was nice. I am too used to praying for parking downtown or taking out a mortgage to pay for parking at the Pantages.

Curtain Call: A Soldier's Play

A Soldiers Play 10/10

This past weekend L. took me to see A Soldier's Play. I didn't plan on going when she first mentioned it because I saw the movie and didn't feel a need to see the play. I see live theater with music and happy and we had watched A Soldier's Story fairly recently and I thought it would be a bummer live. I was super wrong. This was one of the best shows I have seen (and it had some music!). They made great use of such a minimal set. Flashbacks done with different lighting. Beds slid back so an office could be brought in. The acting was just phenomenal and the show moved quickly and did not feel long at all.

Curtain Call: Six The Musical

Six: The Musical 9/10

This was a fun ass play! I forgot that I was even going to this with Cam a few weeks ago. We headed to The Pantages to check this out. Now, we all know that this theater has one of the worst sound systems but for whatever reason it was on point that evening. I sat down having zero idea what the show was about or anything. All I knew was that a lot of people in the crowd had little crowns on and a very flamboyant man in the audience I hoped wouldn't ruin the show for me.

Curtain Call: Twilight Los Angeles 1992

Twilight Los Angeles, 1992 10/10

"Nearly thirty years after the Los Angeles uprising following the Rodney King verdict, Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 returns home to the Mark Taper Forum to be reimagined with an ensemble cast for a new generation of audiences. A powerful piece of living record and one of the most important works in the history of the Taper, Twilight is a stunning and seminal play that explores the devastating human impact of the five days of uprising following the Rodney King verdict. From nine months of over 300 interviews conducted during the year following the uprising, playwright and scholar Anna Deavere Smith crafted a play that goes directly to the heart of the issues of race and class."

Curtain Call: Oklahoma!

Oklahoma! DNF/10

Full disclosure: me and Cam left during intermission. She had tickets to the play Oklahoma and I didn't know anything about the story. She did. We got there early and chowed down on some good Lemonade and headed over. Had great seats in the balcony pretty much dead center as you can see from the photos. I will point out some good about the show. The seats were comfy. The lady singers were incredible and too good to be in this. Also the unintentional humor that was riddled throughout this uneven show. There were parts where the audience didn't know if they were supposed to laugh, clap, or whatever. I was one of them. So after some weird ass experimental footage was shown on a large screen and the lights came up Cam started laughing. Not a “this is fun!” laugh, but a “What the fuck am I watching?!” laugh. I asked if she wanted to leave, she didn't want me to leave if I wanted to see the rest of the show. I said I was totally cool with bouncing so we did and headed to Jack In The Box.

Curtain Call: Cats

Cats 7/10

This past Saturday Cam took me to see Cats at the Pantages Theater. We had seen it there before back in 2019 and I remember seeing the commercials for it back in the 80's on TV and all I knew that someone flew away on a giant hubcap. I was wrong. It was not a hubcap. We got there early and wolfed down some Vito's pizza outside and took our amazing seats. I have never had seats that close at this theater and it helps because I tend to be in the balcony and this theater is known for having terrible sound. So we sat behind this weird old white dude that wanted to talk to everyone (I ignored him because he didn't have a mask and I don't talk unless I wanna) and this older Black couple where the husband kept taking his mask off and on and moving weirdly to the music. Otherwise the audience was pretty okay. And, and the wife of the mask man trying to film the last act, being told to stop, trying one more time, and being told to stop again. People are trash.