“Frank Sinatra’s voice, his stage presence, his whole Sinatra ‘thing,’ it was one-of-a-kind,” says director Jennifer King. “There was a time when I might not have thought Sinatra was my thing, but now, I love him. I could listen to his songs forever and never get tired of them.” King is currently helming “My Way:…
Some plays, not surprisingly, get a little old after a decade of repetition. Others, miraculously, get better. The key, as evidenced by David Yen’s 10th annual performance of David Sedaris’ Santaland Diaries, at Left Edge Theater, is changing things up from time to time. Adding a fully stocked bar to the set one year, and using…
“The human voice,” composer Richard Strauss once said, “is the most beautiful instrument of all, but it is the most difficult to play.” He could have added the words, “at Christmas time,” and few would have blinked an eye, because it’s true. At Christmas time, there’s nothng more beautiful than the human voice lifted in…
Dave and Juliet Pokorny have had quite a year. Not only have they produced eleven individual story-sharing contests under the banner of their monthly West Side Stories series (now in its seventh season, with most winning stories printed monthly in the Argus-Courier). They also produced October’s massive Wine Country Spoken Word Fest, bringing storytellers and…
Ellie Condello has been dreaming of a world under the sea since she was three. “That’s when I first saw the movie The Little Mermaid, or so my mom tells me,” laughs Condello, a senior at Analy High School. “I immediately fell in love with the character of Ariel, and dreamed of being her. My…
I have been serving as a weekly theater critic for over 16 years, beginning with my review of Poona the Fuckdog at Actors Theatre in June 2001. Reviewing (certain complications aside) has been a constant joy and challenge, an awesome responsibility and a truly life-changing privilege, one I’ve taken very seriously. I’ve loved every minute…
Earlier this week, the Marquee Theater Journalist Association held a party at Confluence Taproom in Santa Rosa, announcing the winners of the second annual MTJA awards. I was one of the presenters, along with fellow MTJA members Harry Duke, Alexa Chipman and Barry Willis. A total of 15 recipients were named. Santa Rosa Junior College’s…
In the average 24-hour-day, we make thousands of decisions, never knowing when a seemingly innocuous choice – grabbing coffee at Starbucks (where the future love of our life is standing in line) or Peets (where a runaway car is about to kill 12 patrons) – could have life-changing repercussions. Speaking of choices. Right now, at…
Actor and writer Brittany Law—a “life-long Star Wars fan”—was thinking about Episode VII: The Force Awakens when a bizarre idea occurred to her at roughly the speed of light. “I was watching the movie,” Law recalls, “and I suddenly realized, ‘This would make a great musical!’” She was as serious as a Mynock chewing on a power cable. “It just seemed…
The late, great Ann Richards, former governor of Texas and certified political icon, had a colorful style and a commanding presence that inspired a generation of women, and a fair number of men, to enter the world of politics themselves. After Richard’s death of cancer in 2006, Emmy-winning actor Holland Taylor (‘Two-and-a-Half Men,’ ‘The L-Word,’ ‘Legally…
North Bay Stage and Screen 