The Tosca Project, The New Century and Opus
The Tosca Project is a collage of dance pieces—a flowing group of images of which many are exquisite. It features very little dialogue and is motivated by the history of North Beach's Tosca Café located on Columbus Ave. I became acquainted with this "watering hole" before shipping out to Australia in the fall of 1944. The bar featured opera music on the jukebox, and local opera singers would sing to the patrons. When I was discharged from the Army Air Force in 1947, one of the first places I returned to was the Tosca Café. The Tosca Project is a dance-theater soufflé, which begins as bartender (Jack Willis), suffering from the loss of his long love, comes into the bar in 1919. Sabina Allemann gracefully dances Puccini's heroine in his fantasy dream. There is a succession of dance vignettes featuring the Jazz Age and the Charleston, and a melancholy rainstorm group dance representing the Great Depression of the 1930s and the World War II jitterbug as well as serviceman leaving for the Pacific Theatre of War. Things continue with servicemen coming from the war and a sailor who has been shelled-shocked dances crazily on the stage. It's an effective piece of theatre. There is a "hepcat" ballet from the '50s and a depiction of the '60s hippie era, as well as an ode to the gay disco culture that took hold of our city. One of the most effective pieces of theatre is a brief scene of the 1989 earthquake with awesome sound effects by Darron L. West. The production ends with an homage to the dot-com era with frenzied dancers running around with briefcases on their heads. Throughout the production we are introduced to ballet dancers Pavlova and Nijinsky, and a Russian immigrant (Rachel Ticotin) who loves her nesting dolls; current owner Jeannette Etheredge and her ballet-obsessed mother Armen Bali are represented by dancers as well. There is also a sketchy subplot that involves a musician who finds a haven here as a fugitive from racial injustice but stays on as the bartender's right-hand man, played by Gregory Wallace. Peter Anderson (The Overcoat) is particularly adroit in capturing feelings without dialogue in many of the scenes, including a clumsy tramp who gets his head caught in a door during the 1989 earthquake. The show features many outstanding dance pieces, including a beautiful pas de deux for a sailor and his girl as he leaves for the Pacific War. This is danced elegantly by Pascal Molat and Lorena Feijoo. Douglas W. Schmidt's scenic design features a great detailed set of the actual Tosca Café that still exists at the corner of Broadway and Columbus. Lighting by Robert Wierzel and costumes by Robert de La Rose add to the dramatic flair of this excellent dance-theatre piece. Seeing the production might remind one of Ettore Scola's 1983 Le Bal. The Tosca Project ran through July 3rd at the American Conservatory Theatre, 415 Geary Street, San Francisco. American Conservatory Theatre opens its 44th season with Scapin by Moliere opening on September 16 and running through October 17th. For tickets call 415-749-2228 or on line at www.act-sf.org. Photo: Kevin Berne
The New Conservatory Theatre Center is currently presenting Paul Rudnick's zany comedy The New Century. This is a rollicking bill of short plays that feature a Long Island patron who has three gay children; a flamboyant over-the-hill cable TV who dishes about gay life; and a Midwestern craftswoman who talks about the joys of making toaster cozies—with outstanding performances by Marie O'Donnell, Patrick Michael Dukeman and Deborah Rucker. The farce begins with a comic delight, a hilarious soliloquy by gifted performer Marie O'Donnell playing Helene, a Long Island Jewish matron who is the mother of three gay children. She is addressing the Massapequa chapter of the Parents of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, The Transgendered, The Questioning, The Curious, The Creatively Concerned and Others. She talks about her children: Ronnie, who has become Veronica a transgendered lesbian; David, who's into scatology; and a gay tennis player. David is vividly performed by Seth Michael Anderson dressed completely in leather from head to toe. The second scene features Michael Patrick Dukeman hilariously playing the pastel-wearing, overly fey Mr. Charles who has a television cable program called "Too Gay" on a community station in West Palm Beach. This elderly homosexual has been chased out of New York City by younger gay men. The zingers come fast and furious ("What causes homosexuality? I do"). He is assisted by hunky Shane played sensually by Seth Michael Anderson. Michael Patrick Dukeman gives us the history of gay theatre in a breathtaking 60-second tour de force of acting. He also tells us how you can tell if the man sitting next to you is gay ("He's saving his Playbill. And he's awake"). Mr. Charles tells the audience that he can make anyone gay and comes down from the stage to approach the audience. A young pregnant woman played charmingly by Amelia Mulkey comes up from the audience onto the stage and the ostentatious host does a ritual on the unborn child. The New Century's third scene features the marvelous Deborah Rucker playing Barbara Ellen from Decatur, Illinois, who has been treated for depression, entertaining the Junior Chamber of Commerce with her kooky inventions of home crafts, such as a tuxedo for her toaster and a hand-sewn evening dress for her cat. This elderly woman tells the audience that she was somewhat confused when she heard about 9/11 ("I thought it was something about 'muslin terrorists'"). The hilarious scene turns serious with a poignant ending when she talks about her son who died from AIDS. After intermission, all of the characters are brought onto the stage in a scene in a Manhattan maternity ward where the young woman has just had her baby. The characters discuss matters involving their current gay life. This is a puzzling act, and it seems out of character from the first act. Seth Michael Anderson shines in this scene as he describes the wonders of shopping for inexpensive designer fashion at the New Century in lower Manhattan. George Maguire has fine tuned this fast-paced play, and Jeffrey LaLonde's costumes are vibrant, especially for Mr. Charles (in yellow and pink). This is a feel-good play that has more zingers than one could wish for. The New Century plays through July 11th at the New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness at Market, San Francisco. For tickets please call 415-861-8972 or visit www.nctcsf.org.
The Lazara quartet has been requested to play a nationally televised command performance at the White House in one month. The musicians have their backs against the wall since they have replaced one of the violists with a gifted but inexperienced player. On top of that problem, Elliot (Richard Frederick), the leader of the group, wants the quartet to play the very difficult Beethoven's "Opus 131." The audience sees the growing tension, anxiety and doubts about getting ready for the televised performance. Opus's opening tableau is breathtaking as we see four persons dressed in tuxedos, their bodies stock-still but with instruments and bows ready to play Beethoven's "Opus 130," which can be heard through the sound system. The actors connect with the music perfectly in this beautiful scene. During the rehearsal scenes we see each member as a complex character, some benevolent and some portentous. All of the parts are extremely well cast by director Meredith McDonough and beautifully acted. Mark Anderson Phillips is outstanding as Dorian, who is the most talented of the group but very unstable due to pills. He has been fired by his longtime lover Elliot for his bizarre behavior. The drama has flashbacks where we see that Dorian is indeed strange and hypertensive. He makes participating in the group unendurable when he does not get his way. Mark Anderson Phillips gives a skillful performance. Richard Frederick gives an excellent performance as the leader Elliot. He comes out with wonderful discourses, such as what he says of a musician: "That's precisely the problem. He doesn't make music, he extrudes notes. It's like trying to make love with a kitchen appliance." Jackson Davis is flawless in the role of Alan the second violinist. He has some of the wittiest lines in the drama. He plays the role like a laid-back musician who does not want to get into the heavy dramatics going on between Dorian and Elliot. Kevin Rolston is perfect in the role of family-man cellist Carl. He has his feet on the ground while the rest of quartet members seem to be disintegrating before the White House concert. Jennifer LeBlanc gives a fine performance as the replacement for Dorian. She plays the role as a woman with charm and intelligence but a lack of self-confidence. However, she is an enchantingly hard-working beauty with a bow. Erik Flatmo has designed a lustrous recording studio-like box set. McDonough has instilled the characters with life, and you actually believe they are playing instruments, thanks to Cliff Caruthers's sound design. Opus played through June 27th at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro Street, San Francisco. TheatreWorks' next production will be the world premiere of Auctioning the Ainsleys by Laura Schellhardt opening at the Lucie Stern Theatre, 1350 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto on July 14 and running through August 8th. For tickets call 650-463-1960. Photo: Mark Kitaoka
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