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Theater
A Mammoth Achievement
The Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s masterful revision of the Mozart opera “The Marriage of Figaro” is less classical redux and more the sort of performance that brings a much-needed draught of fresh air to fustian art forms that have little or nothing to do with our lives. Theatre de la Jeune Lune’s “Figaro” throbs with the vigor and beauty of its operatic antecedent, but the company, who brought down the house two years ago with their traveling masterpiece “The Miser,” adds so many subtle embellishments (all without mangling the epic gorgeousness of Mozart and Lorenzo da Ponte’s beloved libretto) that the show transcends its formula quite effo More
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Theater
Leave Before Last Call
Let’s face it—the one-person show is typically the refuge of the very interesting or the very narcissistic. And when the person in question happens to be a prime specimen of cinematic and cultural arcana, the scales are almost always tipped in favor of vainglorious tell-alls. “Wishful Drinking” (which might have been more appropriately titled “Carrie Fisher Spills the Beans about Her Life, Willy-Nilly”) is one such example. More
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Theater
Verbatim Theater
James Baldwin believed fervently in the salvific power of literature -- and in the power of a writer to affect change. “I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.” There were limitations to that power, he believed, but had no other course than to address whatever corrupted principalities permeated the day. More
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Theater
Get Into the Holiday Spirit
‘Tis the season for holiday fare, and would Christmas really be complete without paying homage to the god of the dancing nutcracker? The San Francisco Ballet version of "The Nutcracker" is particularly special, since the War Memorial Opera House was the first American venue in which the beloved piece was performed, back in 1944. And to this day, both venue and performance still dazzle. More
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Theater
Fleecing Heroism
Macarthur Genius and playwright Mary Zimmerman describes her affinity for mythology this way: “As a child, myths always felt to me like grown-up fairy tales. Like fairy tales they contained adventures and supernatural elements…but I always sensed that there was a serious and darker layer to them.” Greek mythology is, as Zimmerman alludes to, alluring for its depth and fantastic symbolism. But these canonical myths are simultaneously intimidating for their layered darknesses. More
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Theater
Quake on Stage at The Berkeley Rep
“I am a real frog,” declares a green-gloved and generally Dr. Seussishly-outfitted character from the stage of the Berkeley Repertory Theater. “In fact, I am the sum total of all frogs!” And with these auspicious words, Frog himself sets out -- enlisting only the help of a flabbergasted tax collector called Mr. Katagiri -- to save Tokyo from Worm and his ruinous, subterranean undulations. More
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Theater
Feel-Good and Unfaithful
I haven’t seen Oprah Winfrey’s eponymous prime-time talk show in years, but it’s hard to deny her presence in our cultural milieu. Whether I’m eyeballing the needlessly self-aggrandizing covers of O magazine at my grocery store’s checkout stand, getting the scoop on a tawdry celebrity confessional on Oprah’s hot seat, browsing her book club selections at Borders, or reading a mawkish inspirational piece on Ms. Winfrey’s symptomatic do-gooding, I’ll be the first to admit that she’s officially planted her flag. More
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Theater
The Civil War and All its Repercussions
It was at Appomattox Court House in rural Virginia in 1865 where General Robert E. Lee surrendered the confederate army to Union commander, General Ulysses S. Grant, formally ending the Civil War. With this surrender, Appomattox itself has come to represent a point in history where two warring factions made peace. And within Philip Glass’ ambitious, though sometimes uneven, opera, Appomattox is put forth as the point in history when the groundwork for future race relations and battles within America were laid. More
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Theater
Allow Yourself to be Seduced
Camille Saint-Saens’ "Samson and Delilah" is perhaps one of the most violently erotic operas in all of history. Far be it from the frivolous coquettishness of librettos like "Don Giovanni" or "La Traviata" -- which despite their illustriousness, border on inconsequential melodrama -- the love story of "Samson and Delilah" is nicely tempered by stuff like religious oppression, psychic torment, and the poignancy of heartbreak, made all the more glorious given the bleak Old Testament mise en scene. More
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Theater
Musical Theater That Revels in Horror, and Humor
There's no doubt, a growing sub-culture has emerged of musical theater fans who want to see complex orchestration, comedic flair, and macabre songs about the business endeavors of a butcher barber and pie maker working in cahoots. For them, “Sweeney Todd” is the pinnacle of all such productions, turning musical expectations of sweet love stories and comedic song and dance into the reality of a tale centered on the barbaric transgressions of the infamous “Demon Barber of Fleet Street” -- Sweeney Todd. More
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