Stage Reviews
The Canoe This Interactive Asian Contemporary Theatre production isn’t a comedy or a drama. It’s more of a fable, set on a magical Polynesian island with talking animals and plants. The central character is a bookish teenage girl who decides to learn how to paddle one of those oceangoing canoes. The story moves on Hawaiian time as the girl learns and grows. But the mood is nicely sustained, with pleasing performances by community actors.
Broadway Playhouse , 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday, $12-$14. 4010 El Camino Avenue, 452-6174 or iactdy@cs.com. Through November 17. J.H.
The Full Monty This stage version (based on the British movie) transfers the action to economically depressed Buffalo, N.Y., where a closed factory has put six guys out of work. Short on cash and suffering from a loss of social status, they embark on an unlikely new career path as male strippers. There are numerous underwear scenes and plenty of teasing references to penis size, but, basically, it’s a buddy story and a fun one at that.
Sacramento Community Center Theatre ; 8 p.m. daily with 2 p.m. matinees on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday; $10-$65. 1301 L Street, 557-1999 or 264-5181. Through November 17. J.H.
Hurlyburly The setting is Tinsel Town in the early 1980s, in a “stag apartment” replete with weed, pills, coke and booze—served for breakfast. The major players are four men on the fringes of the business who are angry at their former wives and who are amnesiacs concerning the children they have spawned along the way—totally selfish. They are too smart by half, and they haven’t an ethical bone in their bodies. But they do possess a bizarre, humorous charm, even as they bed their best friend’s girlfriend behind his back. Hurlyburly features strong performances from community actors, including Martin Lain (addled and nervously babbling) and Mike Begovich (cool, collected and in the game purely for himself). This one’s dark, but on the mark.
Actors Theatre, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, $12-$14. 1616 Del Paso Boulevard, 925-6579. Through December 8. J.H.
Just the Guy Jack Gallagher returns for another limited run of his recent one-man show. Gallagher contrasts his working-class youth (as an Irish-American kid back east) against his close encounter in Lotus Land with prime-time TV stardom. The show is peppered with jokes, reflecting Gallagher’s past as a stand-up comic, but also contrasts two very different work ethics. It’s also a cautionary tale about Hollywood.
B Street Theatre ; 6:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday; $20-$25 or $15-$19 for subscribers. 2711 B Street, 443-5300. November 5 through November 17. J.H.
The Odd Couple This is one of Neil Simon’s most uncomplicated and genuinely funny plays. When you combine the winning script with this winning production, it’s a win-win scenario all the way around. The Odd Couple revolves around the unlikely relationship between the slovenly sportswriter Oscar and his persnickety, anal-retentive friend Felix. Much of the credit for this male-bonding sentimentality goes to the Chautauqua’s great cast.
Chautauqua Playhouse ; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday (November 10 and 17); $12. 5325 Engle Road, Carmichael, 489-7529. Through November 23. P.R.
The Queen of Bingo Sisterhood really is powerful—and pretty funny, too—in this winning little comedy. But the two middle-aged characters in this show are anything but self-empowered; they’re playing bingo in a church hall, grousing about another lady who’s taken their lucky chairs, relating tales of junk-food excess and getting giddy when they get a winning card. Sue Madden and Trish DeBaun bring sympathy, energy and insight to what easily could have been less-dimensional characters.
Thistle Dew Dessert Theatre , 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, $14-$18. 1901 P Street, 444-8209. Through November 23. J.H.
Toyer This psychological thriller sounds terrifying. A psycho stalks women and, instead of killing them, stabs them in the cerebral cortex, thereby disabling them for life. This may have worked in Gardner McKay’s novel, but the book doesn’t translate into good theater. Shrinking this novel into a two-scene drama also shrinks everything else—the plot, the characters, their reactions and, ultimately, the suspense. And because so much was tossed out in the process of getting it onstage, the biggest loss is logic, though the cast and crew give it a valiant try.
Celebration Arts Theatre ; 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday; $6-$12. 4469 D Street, 455-2787. Through November 9. P.R.
The Woman in Black A woman in black is haunting the Delta King. Her ghostly figure is beckoning from aboard the Old Sac paddleboat. You say you don’t believe in ghosts? Well, this production of a chilling story of creaking floors and spooky English moors will make a believer out of skeptics. This play is truly theater of the mind, with language and illusions locking this haunting story in your head and fear in your heart.
Delta King Theatre ; 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday; $14-$16. Aboard the Delta King, 1000 Front Street, Old Sacramento, 995-5464. Through November 16. P.R.
