Review: “The Savannah Sipping Society” in Rutherford

by Beulah F. Vega * Napa County’s Valley Players presents the Jones Hope Wooten comedy The Savannah Sipping Society at the Rutherford Grange through March 15. Directed by Debbie Baumann, this look at women of a certain age brings a perspective often missing from the stages around our area.  Middle-aged Randa Covington (Christina Julian)  finds…

Review: “Boeing Boeing” in Santa Rosa

by Cari Lynn Pace * A Parisian bachelor, armed with only an airline flight schedule and a disapproving maid, successfully juggles simultaneous romances with three gorgeous flight attendants. It’s a setup for international disaster when an American buddy visits and endeavors to learn relationships from the master. Marc Camoletti’s Boeing Boeing, directed by Justin Smith,…

2nd Review: “Shirley Valentine” in Sonoma

by Harry Duke * A middle-aged British woman, wife, and mother wonders whatever became of herself and sets out to rediscover life in Willy Russell’s Shirley Valentine. Jennifer King stars in the one-woman show now running on the Rotary Stage in the Sonoma Community Center through Feb. 22.     We meet Shirley in her Liverpool home…

Review: “Mary Poppins” in Santa Rosa

by Harry Duke * An upside-down family gets right-sided with the help of a practically perfect nanny in P.L. Travers classic Mary Poppins. In between the 1964 Disney film adaption and its belated 2018 sequel, Cameron Mackintosh put together a Broadway musical that featured elements of the Disney film along with new material. Santa Rosa’s…

Review: “Shirley Valentine” in Sonoma

by Cari Lynn Pace * A middle-aged housewife tosses her worn apron aside and packs a silk kimono for the Greek Islands.  Meet Shirley Valentine, a charming woman in Liverpool, England who does everything for everyone, including her spoiled daughter and demeaning husband. Shirley doesn’t complain as she talks aloud, examining her life and the…

Review: “Romeo & Juliet” in Santa Rosa

by Beulah F. Vega * Santa Rosa’s 6th Street Playhouse delves into the world of Shakespeare once more with its production of Romeo & Juliet running through Feb. 15 on their Monroe Stage. Director Drew Bolander’s adaptation is a traditional (almost) fully uncut production. If you don’t know Romeo & Juliet, the simplest explanation of…