October: Spooky, Funny, Renewed Production Companies, and Lots of New Plays!

 

Goodnight Moon at SCT

October has a fair number of spooks poking their noses onto our stages. Annex Theatre is resurrected. Zinzanni is back. There has to be at least ONE thing you’ll be dazzled by this month! Get outcher calenders!

 
Residency at Lotte Hotel, Teatro ZinZanni, 10/12/23-3/31/24
The legendary theatrical cirque experience, and Lotte Hotel Seattle, the premiere luxury hotel of downtown Seattle announce a new circus residency. This one-of-a-kind holiday run of performances promises an opulent, world-class extravaganza in the breathtaking setting of the hotel's largest venue, the Grand Ballroom in The Sanctuary. The Teatro ZinZanni dinner-and-show experience will bring the talents of Kevin Kent, Elena Gatilova and more to tease and tantalize. (Matinee 12PM, Evening 7PM)
www.zinzanni.com/seattle

 
Goodnight Moon, Seattle Children’s Theatre, 10/12/23-11/5/23
Goodnight Moon has been cherished by generations for over 40 years, and SCT’s lively musical production has been popular all over the country since the world premiere in 2007. Children and families can enjoy the surprise and delight of Bunny’s imaginative detours on the way to dreamland. In this intimate production, everyone will revel with Bunny in the fun of jumping cows, dancing bears, and a room that springs to life! (Ages 3+)
www.sct.org

 
Miss You Like Hell, Strawberry Theatre Workshop, 10/12/23-11/11/23 (at 12^th Ave Arts)
A teenager and her estranged mother—an undocumented Mexican on the verge of deportation—embark on a road trip across the United States to mend their frayed relationship. Combined with the musical talent of Erin McKeown, Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes artfully crafts a story of the barriers and the bonds of family, while also addressing the complexities of immigration in today’s America.
www.strawshop.org

For the History Books – “Autocorrect Thinks I’m Dead”

 

Cast members of Autocorrect Thinks I'm Dead (Jason Tang)

Autocorrect Thinks I’m Dead
Sound Theatre Company
Through September 24, 2023
 
A long time ago, when I started reviewing theater, someone told me that reviewing was very important because a stage production is a living thing that only exists while the art-makers are making it. A review of it marks it in time as having existed. I, therefore, think it’s even more important when it’s a world premiere work where I am one of the few folks that was privileged to see it.
 
Sound Theatre Company mounted an intricate and somewhat complicated production of Autocorrect Thinks I’m Dead by Aimee Chou. Aimee is Deaf, but her work is not siloed into plays for Deaf folk. She’s writing for everybody. And it was a sold-out run! Except that the entire last sold-out weekend had to be cancelled because of illness.
 
This quirky, fun play is described by their blurb thusly: “Three Deaf roommates get more than they bargained for when mysterious messages from Alexander Graham Bell start appearing on a vintage teletypewriter phone (TTY). Told in American Sign Language (ASL), spoken English, and English captioning, (it’s a) twist on horror, a genre known for challenging culture and subverting expectations. It features a majority-Deaf and Hard of Hearing cast and creative team – with a set created by a Deaf scenic designer and lighting designer.”
 
Aimee Chou has also written Humanly Possible, Plumb Crazy Pipe Dream, and the shadow puppetry film Motherclucker! This is her first main stage production.

Huey Thrills (Again!) with Help of Fab Hometown Ensemble!

 

Cassi Q Kohl, Diana Huey, and Shaunyce Omar (Photo: Tracy Martin)

The Little Mermaid
The 5^th Avenue Theatre
Through October 8, 2023
 
As good as any Broadway NYC show, our area is blessed with a wealth of gorgeous performers who get to shine now in The Little Mermaid! We then are double-blessed to have Diana Huey return “home” to let us hear her crisp, clean, soaring voice – every bit as good as the first time she starred as Ariel on the 5^th Ave stage in 2016. Maybe even better!
 
Huey broke the mold in 2016 to star in a national tour as the first Asian American performer to star in the show. Rumors had it that there were some ugly adventures in some parts of the country where people somehow could not fathom how a mermaid could be Asian. It was also her biggest role, at that point, carrying a huge Broadway hit show on her shoulders. Now, seasoned by a move to NYC and dozens of performing opportunities, she is sure-finned and in perfect voice to do it again.

Expansive September List Provides Great Entertainment Options

 

I’m working on expanding this list to include nearby cities and towns and hamlets that are near enough to get to easily. But that means the list for September is pretty massive. It’s exciting because it truly seems “back to normal,” and is wonderful to see. Get outcher calendars!

Deep Purple Wiggle, Theatre Battery, 9/1-10/23 (opened last week) (world premiere)
Milo Cramer writes about Bro and Sibling who are twins in their thirties who, up until now, have self-identified as dudes. When one comes out to the other as non-binary (without either of them fully knowing what it means), a queer Pandora's box is opened. A new comedy (with music) about contemporary masculinity. Theatre Battery practices Radical Hospitality: No-Cost Admission for All!
https://theatrebattery.strangertickets.com
 
Matt & Ben, Artswest, 9/7/23-10/1/23
From the mind of multi-award-winning writer and actress Mindy Kaling, Matt & Ben depicts its Hollywood golden boys – before J-Lo, before Gwyneth, before Project Greenlight, before Oscar… before anyone actually gave a damn. When the screenplay for Good Will Hunting drops mysteriously from the heavens, the boys realize they’re being tested by a Higher Power.  A hilarious satire on the real and imagined difficulties of pursuing a dream.
www.artswest.org
 
Autocorrect Thinks I'm Dead, Sound Theatre Company, 9/7-30/23 (at 12^th Ave Arts) (world premiere)
Local playwright Aimee Chou writes about three deaf friends moving into an old house during the centennial anniversary of Alexander Graham Bell's 1922 death, unaware that things go bump in the night. But when a vintage teletypewriter phone (TTY) becomes a landline to the afterlife, the trio finds themselves in a madcap caper of portals - between the hearing and deaf, and living and dead. Meshing historic and technological realities with the theatrical absurd, this tale is both a homage and a home to horror fans of all generations.
www.soundtheatrecompany.org
 
Dream Hou$e, Washington Ensemble Theatre, 9/8-25/23
Set in a rapidly changing neighborhood, two sisters sign up for a reality tv show to sell their childhood home after the passing of the family matriarch. As Julia and Patricia perform for the camera, they confront their own desires, aspirations, and the sacrifices they are willing to make to achieve them. What is the cultural cost of progress in America? Is cashing in always selling out?
www.washingtonensemble.org

Go See Bethany Seeing the Stars - Copious Love at WOL

Bethany Sees the Stars

Copious Love Productions

Through September 9, 2023

What if you got a letter telling you to apply to go to Mars, and then you get a letter saying you've won a spot, but you will have to leave Earth forever?

That's what happens to 15-year-old Bethany (Jade Guillory-Kaub), who dreams of escaping from her life and heading to the stars. She tells her momentous news to her best friend, Fay (Lauren Megan McCarthy), and eventually to a nerdy loaner, Atlas (Lola Rei Fukushima) who joins them to become the Heroic Trinity.

But how are the teens supposed to cope with their friend leaving them? 

This is the premise of a sweet and thoughtful script, a world premiere by Emily Golden. It's fanciful (constellations come to life and speak to Bethany), and manages to tackle a number of real-life conundrums while helping us explore our own reactions about wanting to escape our own realities.

Well-directed by Kathryn Stewart, the tiniest of quibbles is that it could have a slightly faster pace, but she brings out a great level of emotions from the cast without overwhelming our own, allowing us to feel our own feelings. Set design by Jordan Gerow is spare and quick to change, keeping the pace up. Lighting by Adem Hayyu and sound by Alison Kozar bring the atmospheres needed to life.

The cast is cohesive and engaging. The young people are real and relatable. Daniel Christensen as the father brings a leavening presence that is also very relatable to those of us who are parents. Similarly, Olivia Lee is a warm and funny mother. Lee and McCarthy get to play the constellations Cassiopeia and Andromeda, and become very different characters, and show their range to good effect.

There's only one more weekend to see this moving play. It's well worth your time, if you're a teen or a parent or someone who also has looked to the stars to wonder or escape.

 

Super Musical at Taproot: The Hello Girls ends this weekend

 

Rebecca Cort, Miranda Antoinette, Cassi Q Kohl,
Lauren Engstrom, and Jessica Ziegelbauer
(Photo by John Ulman)

The Hello Girls
Taproot Theatre
Composer/Lyricist Peter Mills, Book/Lyricist Cara Reichel
Through August 19, 2023
 
This musical is a treat from start to finish. It is also such a pleasure to be able to experience full-blown musicals on stage again. Taproot’s choice is a wonderful summer treat!
 
Likely, you won’t know the true history this musical is based on. But boy! is it fun to find out about it!
 
During World War I, at a time when women were sorely underemployed and shunted into very specific “pink” jobs, some women found themselves employed as telephone operators. It was a newer profession, since telephones themselves were pretty new. Operators used large banks of plug-in boards where they had to learn which cords to specifically plug into which switch, quickly and seamlessly. This was a good job across the country.
 
Logically, the need for seamless, fast telephone service applied to the Armed Services, particularly in a war situation. As the war heated up, the generals realized that telephone connections were crucial, and that the reality was that the best operators were women. They were needed in France and had to be bilingual. This is the story of how a bunch of pioneering, brave women fought their way into the military and became unsung heroes of the military communication network.
 
The cast at Taproot is top-notch. It is mostly an ensemble piece with one star turn from Cassi Q Kohl as Grace Banker. Kohl is onstage almost every minute as the woman with natural leadership skills and an innate sense of self-esteem. She is indefatigable, with a belting power that lasts throughout the entire show – which is about two and a half hours. She is riveting.