It often can seem that life is a relentless sea of terror and peril, and perhaps nothing is scarier than impending social plans you wish you could cancel. In the world premiere of the dark comedy SEA OF TERROR, brilliantly written and directed by Emmy Award winner Sam Catlin, we first meet Ben and Alice (John Ales and Julie Dretzin) who are facing an evening hosting friends for a casual get-together. Her anxiety over wanting everything to be perfect to impress the other couple leads Alice into an OCD frenzy, causing Ben to over-react emotionally each time she goes overboard. Is the toilet clean enough? Is the food arranged just right on the table? Should Ben change his shoes to impress the taste of their friends Danny and Doris (Paul Schulze and Amy Scribner) rather than wear sneakers for his own comfort? Is the right music playing since Alice cannot find the Christopher Cross CD? Their anxious unraveling around this routine socialization takes us on a gut-busting ride through the quartet’s uneasy evening. Certainly, something appears to be getting in the way of them being able to relax around each other, but what is it?
Originally presented as a workshop performance, Catlin’s newly revised 90-minute play features four exceptionally talented actors who pull you into this relatable tale of two couples maneuvering their way around each other, especially since their previous gathering did not go well. With the hope things will be better this time, the stage is set for what should be an easy gathering – until the attraction between one member of each couple explodes into a confrontation put into motion by the most efficient manipulator of them all. But you will have to figure out who that is as I’m not telling! And as you laugh along the way, I guarantee you will not see the Twilight Zone-style twist ending coming until it happens!
Catlin’s play will ring true for those of us just beginning to invite friends back into our homes after the COVID pandemic forced us all to stay indoors and not socialize with others. Even now, it might be difficult for some to leave the comfort of their homes to sit in a theater with strangers seeing an unknown play. But trust me, Sea of Terror will get you laughing at the bickering behavior which must be familiar to most couples wanting to impress others, even though nothing can ever be truly perfect. And yet we keep on trying, making ourselves neurotic in the process. Sound familiar?
Produced by Joanna Colbert and Julie Dretzin, Short Drive Entertainment and Filmsocial are presenting the World Premiere of Sea of Terror at the Hudson Mainstage Theatre, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd. in Hollywood. The limited engagement runs through October 29 on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 8 p.m.; and Sunday matinees at 3 p.m. (Dark October 12, 13, 14, and 15). Tickets start at $45 available at (323) 856-4249 or www.Onstage411.com/SeaOfTerror. Appropriate for adult audiences.
The winner of seven Tony Awards, FOLLIES has attained mythic status through the years, and its score is considered one of the finest in all musical theatre thanks to its astounding composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim and author James Goldman who tell the story of a reunion of ex-Follies performers in a crumbling theater, told through a parade of brilliant songs. Amid the reminiscing, two middle-aged couples (Ben and Phyllis, Buddy and Sally) confront some unpleasant truths about their past, their present, and the questionable reality of their marriages and future, performed through songs by their current and younger versions of themselves, letting us see how their past led to where the couples are now.
Highlights from the Musical Theatre Guild’s production directed by Jason Graae with Musical Director Brad Ellis and Choreographer Lee Martino, included a standing ovation for “Broadway Baby” performed by the unforgettable 95-year-old Guild member Helen Geller, a popular theatre and film mainstay going back many decades. And who better to play the oldest member of the Follies reunion girls, with Geller pocking fun of herself as the perfect person to portray Hattie Walker while using a walker! She had the audience in the palm of her hand from start to finish.
Also memorizing the audience were Guild members Brent Schindele as Ben, Teri Bibb as his wife Phyllis, Roger Befeler as Buddy, and Anastasia Barzee as his wife Sally. Each of their emotionally impactful solos were performed to perfection and earned standing ovations, especially Sally’s “Losing my Mind,” Buddy’s comical “Buddy’s Blues,” Phyllis’ “Could I Leave You” and “The Story of Lucy and Jessie,” and Ben’s “Live, Love, Laugh” performed in top hat and cane. Both numbers performed by their younger selves, Will Collyer (Young Ben), Chelsea Morgan Stock (Young Phyllis), Gabriel Navarro (Young Buddy), and Ashley Fox Linton (Young Sally), were as entertaining as they were insightful.
Other numbers of note included “I’m Still Here” performed by Jennifer Leigh Warren as Carlotta, “Ah, Paris!” by Susan Edwards Martin as sexy Solange, “One More Kiss” by Mary VanArsdel and Bryce Charles as Heidi and Young Heidi, and the show opening “Beautiful Girls” sung to perfection by Paul Wong as Roscoe.
Like the reunion portrayed in the show, the concert-version of Follies took place on one night only – Sunday, October 1, 2023 as Musical Theatre Guild’s inaugural production at the Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center, Eli and Edythe Broad Stage at 1310 11th Street in Santa Monica. Like all MTG mainstage productions, ASL access was provided for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing patrons.
Musical Theatre Guild’s 2023-2024 Season concludes with The Wedding Singer, performing on Sunday, March 10, 2024, at 7 p.m. Tickets and more information about all Musical Theatre Guild productions and performance events are available at www.musicaltheatreguild.com. While there, sign up for the Guild’s email list.
JoBeth Williams and Peter Strauss star in the hilarious, romantic courtroom classic, LOVE AMONG THE RUINS, written by James G. Hirsch and Robert A. Papazian, from a film script by James Costigan, directed by Michael Arabian with Conwell S. Worthington, II as the Supervising Producer. In this newly reinvented version, Jessica Medlicott (JoBeth Williams), once a great actress, is now a beautiful and wealthy widow. She is accused of “breach of promise” by a handsome young Naval officer who claims she promised to marry him. Her only hope may be the greatest barrister at the Old Bailey, Sir Arthur Granville Jones (Peter Strauss).
But Jessica is no ordinary client and the sparks that fly as she drives Sir Arthur to distraction will keep the audience guessing, laughing, and crying until the very end. The cast also features (in alphabetical order): Tony Abatemarco, Gigi Bermingham, Nima Dabestani, C.J. Blaine Eldred, Martin Kildare, Amir Talai, and Wendy Worthington.
The Papazian Hirsch presentation of Love Among the Ruins takes place at the El Portal Theatre, 5969 Lankershim Blvd., in North Hollywood 91601 from Friday, October 6 to Sunday, October 29, on Wednesdays at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., Sundays at 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Tickets are available at elportaltheatre.com and Loveamongtheruins.net, or via phone 818-508-4200.