Tag: Larry Cornwall Award

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Hollywood Fringe Festival Reviews See it or Skip it Theatre

HFF18 day 2 – see it or skip it

With only two reviews to write from our first day of Fringe, we had lots of down time yesterday.  That gave us the chance to hit Big Lots and stock up on essentials for the next two weeks, and catch up on sleep.  Staying out of that hot sun was another good reason to lay low.

Finally it was time to head back down to the Fringe, and we had a couple of interesting shows to check out.  We were joined by our dear friend Rasika Mathur, the creator and actress who brought us last year’s My Hustle has ADHD, who met us at the Hobgoblin Playhouse for our first show of the evening.

TITLE OF SHOW:  The Story of my Life

VENUE:  The Hobgoblin Playhouse

REVIEW: This was our second show at this amazing venue, and once again that grand piano was the star of the show.  Although not an original show (it had a brief run off Broadway), it was nevertheless extremely well done by members of Chromolume Theatre, who exceeded our expectations in their interpretation of the songs and the material.  This was easily one of the best musicals we have ever seen at Fringe.  Andrew Schulman, who played Thomas and Daniel Koh, who played Alvin, truly embodied their characters, giving the audience an honest look at the lives of these two life-long friends, and the adventures they shared during that life.  The direction of Michael Marchak and the musical direction of Richard Bereni were also quite evident, as they worked the full gamut of our emotions, creating memorable moment after memorable moment.  The actors performance of “The Butterfly Song” had us in tears with the simple beauty of the story and the imagery that the words created in our minds.

RECOMMENDATION:  This one is our third straight no-brainer.  You simply must see this show, especially if you love music and want to be truly moved by a wonderful story about friendship.  This one deserves a long run.  You can still catch it on June 16 at 10 p.m. and June 23 at 7:30 p.m.   You can purchase your tickets here.

We had a little time before our next show, so Rasika suggested we grab a drink.  We headed over to the next venue, found a parking place, and walked around until we found the Next Door Lounge on Highland.  We had the Georgia Julep, and it was mighty tasty.  It was fun catching up with Rasika, comparing notes on the first show, and discussing what to expect from the next one.  After taking the obligatory selfie, and posting it to social media, we headed over to the Los Angeles LGBT Center for our next show.

TITLE OF SHOW:  The Dangerous Cures of Dr. B

VENUE:  The Los Angeles LGBT Center

REVIEW:  We didn’t know what to expect from this show, but since they had applied for the Larry Cornwall Award, we had to screen it.  The play is based on the true life antics of John R. Brinkley, a so-called “doctor” and radio pioneer who achieved infamy during the 1920’s and 30’s for his radical use of goat glands to “cure” male impotency and other problems.  This is not a “feel-good” show, which was painfully obviously in the quiet and introspective looks on the faces of the audience as they left the venue.  While Jess Weaver and Garrett Crouch did a great job of providing music within the context of the show, it did not rise to the level of necessity to the overall story that is required for the Larry Cornwall Award.  This was a truly dark story of a man who was in many ways just another Jim Jones or David Karesh, and the insane ways that people can ignore reality when it opposes their rosy picture.  Kudos to the Puckwit Gang, who turned in stellar ensemble performances and brought the sordid story to life.

RECOMMENDATION:      Even though you won’t leave the venue feeling better, this is a show you should definitely see.  Hopefully it will open  your eyes to the dangers of being blinded by any one person and their philosophy.  You can still catch it on June 13, 19 and 22 at 10:30 p.m., June 17 at 6 p.m., and June 23 at 8 p.m.   You can purchase your tickets here.

 

 

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Artists Worth Checking Out Hollywood Fringe Festival LA Music Critic Awards Monday Mashup Women in Entertainment

Monday mashup 2018: Vol. 21

We’re back with our final Monday Mashup for the month of May and it’s Memorial Day.  Please take a moment to honor the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice to secure and maintain the freedoms that we enjoy.  In the meantime, here’s the latest news in the indie world, as well as five new singles and music videos to get your week started.

HOLLYWOOD FRINGE FESTIVAL

The ninth annual Hollywood Fringe Festival kicks off on Thursday with a week of previews before the Opening Night Party on June 6.  Click on the link above for tickets to more than 380 shows.  We are heading down from Montana on June 10 and will be in town through the end of the Festival on June 24.  We will be reviewing around 50 shows, including 13 being considered for our Larry Cornwall Award for Musical Excellence.  Watch for our See it or Skip it reviews starting June 12.

LA MUSIC CRITIC AWARD WINNERS SHOWCASE

Don’t forget about our showcase on June 19 at The Mint, a world famous venue on West Pico Boulevard in Los Angeles.  We have 10 winners scheduled to perform, plus a special appearance by the original 90’s band Shiragirl prior to them leaving on the final Vans Warped Tour.  Tickets are available by clicking this link.  Don’t miss the chance to see the legendary Rusty Young of Poco perform.

NEW SINGLES

Our first single today comes from Kris Angelis, who has won several of those LA Music Critic Awards, among others.  She is currently working on her follow-up to the award-winning EP Heartbreak is Contagious.  Here is her latest single, “Photobooth.

https://soundcloud.com/krisangelis/photobooth/s-NbTKU

Our second single comes from Sonofa King, the son of the legendary Ben E. King, who has recorded a cover of his father’s biggest hit, “Stand by Me.”  It is part of a tribute album he made, which covers ten songs performed by his dad.  Watch for our album review shortly.

Next up is the new single, “All This Noise,” from the forthcoming EP by Dead Ceremony.  We love the vibe of this future pop hit, and can’t wait to review their EP.

Our fourth single today is so hot you’d be a “Fool” not to love it.  Check out the latest from Canadian R&B singer Sara Diamond.

Our final single is “Just in Case,” courtesy of Christina Custode, an artist we previously featured here on Monday Mashup.  She reminds us of Sara Bareilles, and we love it.

NEW MUSIC VIDEOS

First up is the band Pros & Icons, who are trying to upstage Taylor Swift by releasing a video cover of her song “I Did Something Bad” before she has the chance to do so.  It is a bold endeavor, and we think they nailed it.  What do  you think?

Next is Franny and Zooey, an Australian duo with heavenly harmonies.  Check out their video for “My Love.”  We want to hear this one on the radio.

Our third video comes from Swedish singer Alice Boman, with a live performance of her song “Heartbeat.”  This one will take your breath away.

Our next music video is for all the David Bowie fans.  Check out “Perfectly Imperfect,” the first video by The Sick Bags.  Let us know what you think.

Our final video this week comes from Stephen Michael Murphy, and is a lyric video for his song “Never Ever Here.”  We think it’s the perfect song to close out this edition of Monday Mashup.

 

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Awards Fringe Shows Hollywood Fringe Festival Reviews See it or Skip it Theatre Women in Entertainment

HFF 17 – see it or skip it (day 8) part 1

What a Fringe experience we have had.  We saw six  shows on Saturday and plan to see three more today, bringing our total to 37 shows in 9 days.  Quite a run.  Saturday was one of the most diverse days of Fringe we have ever experienced, and we are happy to share our reviews with you.

But before that, here are our nominees for the first Larry Cornwall Award for Musical Excellence, which will be handed out today at the Fringe Awards show at 6 p.m. at the Montalban Theatre:

Under the Jello Mold

Nosferatu

The Girl who Jumped off the Hollywood Sign

Lights Camera Lyla: The Second Act

Magic 8 Ball (My Life with Asperger’s)

TITLE OF SHOW:  Middleschoolandia

VENUE:  Sacred Fools Main Stage

REVIEW:  An interesting musical, written by a 12 year old girl and her mother, based on her journal about the trauma caused by attending middle school.  The entire cast, with the exception of the Dad, Teacher and Advisor, were children, and they taught the adults how to do a show.  It was cute, like Alanis Morissette on steroids, full of angst and satire, but not quite as tight as it could be.  Some of the songs were too basic, but the overall gist was that the three years of middle school were a rite of passage that every child must endure.  As Dad says in closing, “There are scarier things in life than Middleschoolandia, like Trumperica!”  It was a worthy effort and several of the kids were outstanding, both in the vocal deliveries and their characterizations.  Hats off to Carson Goring, who wrote the show and portrayed Ashley, Mia Ruhman, Cheyenne Rimando, Lilly Mae Stewart, Veronica McFarlane, Jacob Accardo, Kai Johnson, Jacob Smith and Lily Hightower who portrayed the children; Carlos Chavez, Amsara Holly, and Nikki Lewis, who portrayed the Wild Teens, and to Steven Bray for his portrayal of Dad.

RECOMMENDATION:  It was an interesting show that has the potential to become something even better.

TITLE OF SHOW:  Chemo Barbie:  My Lady Bits’ Journey Through Breast Cancer

VENUE:  Asylum @ Studio C

REVIEW:  If there were an award for the most tender, emotional and inspirational show at Fringe, then Chemo Barbie would win hands down.  I have personally never cried so much during a Fringe show as I did at this show, which tugged at my heart and connected with my past experiences with friends and family.  As a cancer survivor myself, this show hit me like a ton of bricks, giving me new found courage to live even stronger than before.  Heather Keller is a powerful actress with the emotional strength to make her journey relatable to her audience as well as inspire them to live.  The show was wonderfully directed by Jessica Lynn Johnson, who squeezed out an amazing story of triumph and hope from the tragedy that could have been Keller’s life.  Believe me when I tell you that seeing Chemo Barbie is a life-changing experience I will cherish forever.

RECOMMENDATION:  This show is a MUST SEE and truly worthy of an extension.  Don’t miss your opportunity to be inspired.

TITLE OF SHOW:  An Evening with John Wilkes Booth

VENUE:  The Flight Theatre at the Complex

REVIEW:  History has always told us about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln from the victim’s side.  This show explored it from the view of the assassin, actor John Wilkes Booth, exploring his reasons and frame of mind in creating and carrying out his conspiracy to kill Lincoln, General Grant and Secretary of State Seward.  It was an insightful journey through the mind of a killer, and Stephen Spiegel was excellent in bringing the audience along.  The show was wonderfully written and directed by Lloyd J. Schwartz.  Although it did drag at times, the overall pacing was good and the acting was well done, resulting in an interesting show.

RECOMMENDATION:  This show is worthy of your attention, and we recommend that you See it if it returns for an extension.

 

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Fringe Shows Hollywood Fringe Festival Reviews Theatre Women in Entertainment

HFF17 – see it or skip it (day 2) part 1

Friday was such a wonderful day.  Got up early to work on my first reviews and to tell our story about our journey down to the Hollywood Fringe Festival.  Afterwards, we headed out for lunch and then drove around and visited some of our old haunts, like Fry’s Electronics, before heading down to the Fringe for the first of five shows.  Three of the shows on our evening schedule were included in our Ten Most Anticipated Shows at HFF17.

TITLE OF SHOW:  Quantum Entanglement

VENUE:  Sacred Fools Black Box

REVIEW:   Katelyn Schiller blew us away with her amazing How to be a Virgin (in 12 morally ambiguous steps) last year, so we were really looking forward to her new show Quantum Entanglement.  Unfortunately, it was not what we expected.  In a way, that is good, because the show was beautiful.  The problem was we’re not sure what it is.  To quote Schiller’s character Andromeda, “(we) wanted to give the gift of understanding, but we couldn’t.”  We talked to several other attendees afterwards, and none of them could put a finger on just what we had experienced.  It was a beautiful show, but what was it trying to say?  The best we could come up with was that it was about relationships, and that everyone who sees it will take from it what they need, based on their own experiences with relationships.  That being said, it was definitely one of the most different Fringe shows we have ever encountered, and for that we were fortunate to have seen it.  We would love to hear your take on this show.

RECOMMENDATION:  If you love the unexpected and exciting aspect of Fringe, then this is the perfect show for you.  Remaining performances include June 17 at 2:30 p.m. and June 23 at 6 p.m.  On the other hand, if you only like typical theatrical performances, then you may want to skip this one.

TITLE OF SHOW:  Hot Dates

VENUE:  The Three Clubs

REVIEW:   The title of the show doesn’t really convey the story, but it is definitely a good marketing ploy.  I mean, who wouldn’t want to spend some quality time with a babe as hot as Shiragirl?  She takes us on a time trip through her life, spouting off those dates like they were page markers in the story of her journey.  What makes it even better is that she can sing and dance, as well as act, and she uses all of these things to describe her life.  This is another show that used the creative skills of Deana Barone, while at the same time using brilliant Natalie Mitchell to direct this amazing show.  It also came in at #10 on our “most anticipated” list.  Needless to say you will not leave this show unentertained.  We also encourage you to click the link above and check out Shiragirl’s Facebook page to find out more about the incredible life of Shira Leigh.

RECOMMENDATION:  We think you should definitely See it.  She still has one more performance on June 24 at 6:30 p.m.  It’s definitely worth attending.

TITLE OF SHOW:  The Girl who Jumped off the Hollywood Sign

VENUE:  Lounge 2 Theatre

REVIEW:  Joanne Hartstone comes to us from her native Australia, where she has already won two awards at the 2017 Adelaide Fringe.  This show was #5 on our list of “most anticipated” shows at HFF17, and it definitely did not disappoint.  We have always been fans of Hollywood’s Golden Age, and it became quickly obvious that Hartstone had done her research in crafting this timeless story.  This show was also the first one we reviewed that had submitted to be considered for our first Larry Cornwall Award for best use of music in a non-musical show.  Hartstone set the bar for the competition quite high.  In the words made famous in the “Men on Film” skits from In Living Color, it earned “two snaps and a trip around the world.”  Hartstone’s voice is amazing as she performs songs by Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, The Andrew Sisters and Jean Harlow, to name a few.  Hartstone would have been a star with them had she lived back then.  We are thankful she decided to bring us this amazing show from down under.

RECOMMENDATION:  You simply must See it.  Hartstone has several remaining shows on June 17 at 6 p.m., June 18 at 4 p.m. and June 22 at  8 p.m.  Don’t miss it.