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| Sara Porkalob and her real grandma, Maria Porkalob, Sr. aka "The Dragon Lady" (Joe Iano) |
July means Free Theater – in the parks, of course. Go to http://greenstage.org/sotf/ to see the
whole schedule including children’s shows for the annual Seattle Outdoor
Theater Festival, July 9 and 10 all over Volunteer Park. That weekend explodes
with eight (8!) other shows, so unless you’re a clone, you’re going to miss
something. Get out those calendars!
The Aliens, ReAct, 7/1-24/16 (at West of Lenin)
In the back of a Vermont coffee shop, a pair of society's
misfits spend their days singing songs, writing novels and lamenting past
loves. When a young barista asks them to leave, the duo initiate him in the
ways of the world, the writings of Bukowski, and the true worth of life. A 2010
Obie Award-winning play by Annie Baker.
Big Fish, Taproot Theatre, 7/6/16-8/13/16
Edward Bloom has never been much of a dad, but as fantasy
wages war with reality his tall tales of mermaids and giants may make his son a
better man. Let yourself be reeled in by this adventurous and romantic musical
as a son fishes for the answer to the looming question: Is Edward Bloom a
lunatic, a liar or a living legend? Taproot’s summer musical.
Hamlet, Seattle Shakespeare Company/Wooden O, 7/7/16-8/7/16 (at a park near you)
A Danish prince sees his father’s ghost beg for justice in
his murder and goes about proving his uncle killed his father. Does he go mad
or is he pretending? Spoiler alert: In the end, everyone dies.
Love’s Labours Lost,
Seattle Shakespeare Company/Wooden O,
7/7/16-8/7/16 (at a park near you)
The King and his friends vow to abstain from women’s company
for three years. They plan to devote their time to academics. The Princess of
France and her ladies arrive for a visit just as the vows leave the men’s lips.
It’s will against want and heart against head in this delightful summer
romance.
Twister Beach, Marxiano Productions and Café Nordo,
7/7-30/16 (world premiere)
Twister Beach is a modern parody of the ‘60s summer party
films in the style of Beach Blanket Bingo and Bikini Beach. Lampooning the
Seattleite travelling abroad, this cabaret show centers around a foursome of
young lovers just trying to have a little fun at a very dangerous beach with
violent storms and man-eating sharks. An immersive and interactive production
complete with beach games, classic summer sing-a-longs, dancing, squirt guns, a
live band, tropical food, and tiki drinks.
Cymbeline, GreenStage, 7/8/16-8/13/16 (at a park
near you)
King Cymbeline banishes daughter Imogen’s love Posthumus
from the kingdom because he wants her to marry royally and produce a proper
heir. The Queen, her stepmother, wants her own son Cloten to marry her and
plots to kill both Imogen and Cymbeline in a power grab. Posthumus, in Italy,
makes a really dumb bet that leads to lots of trouble. Still, everyone manages
to overcome mistrust and jealousy to live happily ever after. Except the Queen
and Cloten, who as bad guys get what they deserve.
The Merry Wives of
Windsor, GreenStage,
7/8/16-8/13/16 (at a park near you)
There’s this Falstaff fellow who thinks he can bamboozle
some women, and boy have they got another thing coming for him!
Daisy, ACT Theatre, 7/8/16-8/7/16 (world
premiere)
Straight from the Icicle Creek Festival, where playwrights
from around the country vie for an opportunity to spend a week with
professional actors workshopping their scripts, Sean Devine’s Daisy gains the main stage at ACT
Theatre! This explosive play explores the power of manipulation in advertising
and the clear moment in television history that launched the age of negative
attack ads, and forever changed how we elect our leaders. (The title refers to
the famous ad with a little girl, a daisy, and a mushroom cloud.)
Things You Can Do,
Live Girls! Theatre, 7/8-31/16 (at
ACTLab) (world premiere)
A drunken kiss, an icy plunge, and a reckless act of
revenge. Playwright Kristen Palmer takes on the issues of global climate change
through the lens of a family on the verge of a meltdown. Brilliant scientist
Stevie returns home in the midst of a devastating personal crisis, only to find
her family members frozen in isolation and her hometown losing its footing.
Speed the Plow, Theatre9/12, 7/8-31/16
This scathing dissection of the Hollywood Industry exposes
the sexual dynamics and political maneuvers within this male-dominated
"bizness." The balance is upended when one of two Hollywood producing
partners gets promoted to Head of Production. But the presence of an enigmatic
temp worker is the surprising catalyst for David Mamet's explosive
confrontations.
Suffering Inc., Pony World, 7/8-30/16 (at 12th
Avenue Arts) (Reprising from 2011)
Using only lines of dialogue from the plays of the Russian
master Anton Chekhov, Pony World combines their company’s whimsical style with
Chekhov’s dark humor and heartache in this updated version of their 2011 work.
The staff at New Life Capital are experts in estate planning, bankruptcy,
office romances, and regret. Suffering Inc. invites its audience to experience
a week in the life of a typical American office, exploring universal hopes and
disappointments through sales calls, broken printers, puppets, and poetry.
A Gentleman’s Guide to
Love & Murder, 5th Avenue
Theatre, 7/12-31/16
This touring production of the 2014 Broadway hit is the
uproarious story of Monty Navarro, a distant heir to a family fortune who sets
out to jump the line of succession, by any means necessary. All the while, he’s
got to juggle his mistress (she’s after more than just love), his fiancée
(she’s his cousin but who’s keeping track?), and the constant threat of landing
behind bars! Of course, it will all be worth it if he can slay his way to his
inheritance… and be done in time for tea.
The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Sound Theatre Company, 7/7-24/16
Set in a time-bending, seriocomically imagined world between Heaven and Hell, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot is a philosophical meditation on the conflict between divine mercy and human free will. This work from Stephen Adly Guirgis adds to a series of Guirgis plays presented by various Seattle companies.
The Crossing, Theater Schmeater, 7/15/16-8/13/16
(world premiere)
It’s 1932 and Amelia Earhart is about to make a dangerous
solo crossing of the Atlantic. Other women aviators has been swallowed by the
Atlantic, but she is determined to be the first to survive. Based on the true
story of her solo flight, The Crossing
is a haunting musical retelling of that story: a brave young woman risking all,
a mature man withdrawing into a self-protective shell of doubt, and the unbound
natural forces that ultimately control all men’s fates, all come into sharp
focus in this compelling new work.
The Dragon Lady, Sara Porkalob and Theatre Off Jackson,
7/21-30/16
Sara Porkalob presents an updated full length version of her
solo story about the real life adventures of her grandmother. It is the year of
the Water Dragon and the eve of Grandma Maria’s 60th birthday. By the light of
the karaoke machine, fueled by pork dumplings and lumpia, she shares a dark
secret from her Filipino gangster past with one lucky grandchild. Ripping apart
the memories of her five children’s so called “childhood dystopia”, she sings,
dances, and kills her way through 40 years of faulty memories made to make her
look like a bad mother. 3 generations, 6 women, 1 Dragon Lady.
Terra Incognita, Annex Theatre, 7/29/16-8/29/16 (world
premiere)
Nadia is a recovering alcoholic who is being haunted by her
dead lover. Sheila is an aging social worker whose greatest fear is dying
alone. Although at first these women appear to have nothing in common, they
uncover disturbing truths that bind them on a deeper level. In this fearless
play about addiction and loss, the professional and personal collide as the
characters navigate the broken terrain of their lives, confront their own
mortality, and face their greater demons… and angels. By up-and-coming
playwright Benjamin Benne.
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