KCRW's Theatre Talk

Pysch-o Awards

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 06 May 2010 21:44:00 EST

It?s no surprise that awards?and awards shows?are more arbitrary and less official than they would have you believe, but this year?s two biggest theater awards have shown just how imperfect and devalued these awards can be.

HD or Not HD: That Is the Future?

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 21:44:00 EST

Today we're going to talk about the future of theater ? and how you may be watching it at movie theaters or even on your laptop...

L.A.'s Ears Are Ringing

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 21:44:00 EST

Last week and this week have been a festival of riches for fans of big, innovative operatic work. The main event that kicked off one week ago was Los Angeles Opera's Ring Festival LA. The centerpiece of this two-and-a-half month celebration is of course is the four part, 17-hour tetrology, The Ring of Nibelung, Wagner's epic work about Gods, mortals and a new world rising out of the ashes of the old. The festival lasts through the end of June and features all sorts of performances, lectures and other events that are all connected to Wagner, The Ring, and the Norse myths that serve as the basis for the four operas....

Linguistic Elegies

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 21:48:00 EST

A big, ambitious, and rough new drama is currently receiving its World Premiere in Culver City. It's called The Wake and it's a must-see before it moves north to Berkeley Rep and inevitably east to New York...

Truly Awake

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 21:44:00 EST

Love and Forgiveness

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 21:03:32 EST

One of the best Off-Broadway plays of last year ? one that hasn't made it to Los Angeles yet ? was titled Becky Shaw. Written by veteran Law & Order writer Gina Gionfriddo, Becky Shaw was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and it offered a wonderful, dark look at modern love and relationships.

American Masters

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 21:44:00 EST

In the world of theatrical American music two men stand out. In musicals, it's Stephen Sondheim and in opera, it's John Adams. This week, here in Los Angeles, both men are receiving faithful and lively revivals of the first works they composed in these forms they are most famous for...

Scottsboro Boys and Detroit Dreamgirls

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 21:44:00 EST

There are some subjects that just feel right for musicals ? a singing family in the Alps, for example, or a backstage look at dancer's audition. And then there are subjects that don't feel so right for musicals ? like lynch mobs or electric chairs. Los Angeles saw one such musical last year: Jason Robert Brown's Parade, a dark show about anti-Semitism in the south during the early 20th century...

Bridge Project, Globe Project?

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:45:00 EST

Okay, we have to talk about Shakespeare. Last week I was in New York to see this year's installment of the Bridge Project, an ambitious, imperfect but exciting endeavor that attempts to stage repertory theater at a high, international level of quality...

Junkers

podmaster@kcrw.org (James C. Taylor) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 21:44:00 EST

The lives of artists, especially painters, are very tempting to put on stage. Not only do you have the inherent conflict that comes with tempestuous artistic personalities, but you also have a singular visual element to give the show...