Stage Reviews
Alexander Who’s Not Not Not Not Not Not Going to Move The Children’s Theatre of California leads its fourth season with this very appealing musical, bringing together many of the best performers from the company’s first three years. Rick Kleber is back (huzzah!), with hilarious performances in four comic roles. Regulars Lauren Adams, John Lamb, Kathryn Morison and Anthony D’Juan, along with newcomer Laurie Geigel, likewise play multiple parts. Peter Story is the stubborn but sympathetic Alexander, who tries to get himself adopted by the neighbors, looks for a hiding place (if his parents can’t find him, they can’t make him move), steps in dog poop (yuck!), gets teased by his big brothers, etc. Director Dave Pierini stages the show in a way that will entertain viewers of any age. We saw Alexander with an enthusiastic group of kids, parents and grandparents, but the show’s good-natured irony also makes it a worthy choice for a date.
Children’s Theatre of California; 7 p.m. Friday, 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday, and 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sunday; $15 for children and $20 for adults. 2711 B Street, (916) 443-5300. Through October 29. J.H.
Let the Eagle Fly This musical about Cesar Chavez and the United Farm Workers is something you should consider in three aspects, each more important than the last. First, it’s a very ambitious, large-scale community production (and some performers are more seasoned than others). Second, it’s the West Coast debut of a well-written new musical, with several songs—especially the signature union anthems—that stay with you long after the show ends. Third, it’s a show about a man and a movement that arguably changed California history and opened the way for most of today’s Latino leadership. Let the Eagle Fly is well worth seeing, even though this particular production doesn’t always soar in theatrical terms, because it reverberates with California’s politics and history and reflects how we got to where we are today.
The Space at California Stage; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday; $15-$19, $12 for those who bike or walk to the theater, and $10 per person for families of five or more. 2509 R Street, (916) 451-5822, www.calstage.org. Through October 8. J.H.
Lune, Pronounced Loony The new B Street Theatre production, a world-premiere comedy commissioned by the theater, starts off with a great premise: Base a play inside the Acme Co., made famous in Looney Tunes for its cartoon explosives. Include colorful costumes and wacky hairdos, cartoon voices, slapstick silliness and “Boing!” sound effects. Add a talented cast and clever dialogue. Unfortunately, any resemblance to a cohesive plotline was forgotten. It’s a work-in-progress that hasn’t arrived yet, and it’s a shame, because there is so much imagination infused in the play and production.
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, with 2 p.m. shows on October 11, 18 and 25; $25-$30. 2711 B Street, (916) 443-5300, www.bstreettheatre.org. Through November 5. P.R.
Movin’ Out This touring show returns to Sacramento. It’s an assemblage of 20-odd pop songs written by Billy Joel and performed by a Joel-like “piano man,” with choreography by the notable Twyla Tharp. Reviewing the show’s first visit in November 2004, Patti Roberts wrote, “If you go for the music, you’ll leave talking about the brilliant dance numbers. There is no dialogue, just song blending into song, with the dancers expressing emotions not only in movement, but also in facial expressions. [The dancing is] imaginative, thrilling, theatrical, sizzling and thoroughly original.” Roberts also cautioned that “the story line with which Tharp links Joel’s songs together often feels forced and disjointed” and added that a full evening of Joel’s music gets repetitive. Broadway Series, various times, $15-$65.
Sacramento Community Center Theater, 1301 L Street, (916) 557-1999, www.calmt.com. Through October 8. P.R.
Pump Boys and Dinettes This amiable revue features four car mechanics (singing about catchin’ catfish) and two sexy waitresses from the cafe next-door (pourin’ coffee, bakin’ pies and hopin’ for good tips). There’s a lot of flirtation, but there are only flickers of a story. The cast (especially Andrea Eve Thorpe and Michelle Hillen) puts zip into several of the up-tempo songs, which are a feel-good crazy quilt of borrowed country, rockabilly, blues and gospel styles. It’s very soft-focus and sentimental: The mechanics never get greasy, and disappointments are soon forgotten. But the point here is escapist fun, which is what the show delivers, in a friendly, small-scale, hokey way.
Studio Theatre, 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, $22-$24. 1028 R Street, (916) 446-2668, www.thestudiotheatre.net. Through October 8. J.H.
The Vagina Monologues SacActors.com revives its long-running show. Reviewing it in 2005, Patti Roberts wrote, “This play with the gutsy title takes a taboo subject matter—a basic body part of every woman—and makes it acceptable to talk about. For this production by SacActors.com, three actresses trade off monologues in front of deep-red velvet panels. The performances examine not only the word, but also the body part, and all the shame, power, fear and beauty that vagina owners carry with them. The play is great fodder for after-show conversations.”
Geery Theater, 8:30 p.m. Friday and 9 p.m. Saturday, $14.50-$17.50. 2130 L Street, (916) 451-4152. Through November 12. P.R.
