Amelie: I really enjoyed the show at Berkeley Rep, and think the cast is terrific. Samantha Barks does not look like Audrey Tatou did in the film, but she makes for an equally charming but different Amelie. And the voice - wow. I have seen and enjoyed Adam Chanler-Berat in a couple of other shows and he is well cast as Nino, and charming as well.
Compared to the film - well, it doesn't compare to the film It does not have the same magical quality, and most importantly, it does not seem French - and I think that's important. The score is fine on its own, and there are some very nice songs, which tell the story, but music has no French tone at all (to my ear - and no accordion that I noticed!).
I'm okay with the standard idea of actors not speaking a foreign accent when you know they would be speaking a foreign language if the audience were not English-speaking. However, here I think it would be a benefit to use accents across the board (I believe some characters do, but by far not all). Chanler-Berat, in particular, seems very American.
The staging is good, with a number of imaginative elements, but part of the story involves a foot-chase, and those done on stage just don't usually work. Other scenes from the film do work well, especially the two finally coming together at the end.
My daughter Erin (the huge fan of the film) and I felt this just is not a good film to put on stage, as so many parts of the film's success are cinematic - unusual camera angles, etc. Difficult to do on stage.
It reminded us both of a very favorite show of ours, Amour. But Amour, with Michel Legrand's score, was/is very French, which works extremely well.
Overall, I do recommend the show, but don't expect the feel of the movie.
Sidenote: I also recommend happy hour at the Five bar at the Hotel Shattuck. Berekely is a charming place. I don't recommend the drive from SF on a Friday afternoon ...
Dogfight: I saw this at Second Stage when it played there. I loved it then and I still do. The SF Playhouse production is solid, with a terrific cast. The staging is better, I think, than Second Stage's. The score is really terrific (though I can recall three or four songs that each sound like a song in another show - one from The Full Monty, one from The Last Five Years ... maybe it's just me).
The leads are particularly great - Jeffrey Brian Adams is pretty incredible, bringing a lot of complexity to the character, and Caitlin Brooke is smart and funny and poignant. I liked their chemistry as well.
And SF Playhouse puts on a great opening night party - thanks for allowing us to share the evening.
We had a wonderful, whirlwind trip to San Francisco (Erin's first visit), and a deadly red-eye flight (still resting up). Wonderful visit with Richard, of course, one of my favorite people in the world.
SF Playhouse is doing City of Angels next summer - I may be back.
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