Class move by the Quacks, I guess

Los Angeles Kings legend Anze Kopitar is calling it a career after this season and although he's currently injured and not playing (which is making the Kings worse than usual, they just dropped two in a row to Anaheim) the Ducks organization presented him with this honor:

 

I thought it was nice of them, although no matter how long this team is in existence apparently they'll never learn that Mickey Mouse ears just don't go with hockey. But it's the thought that counts and Kopi is (and always has been) a class act, so they got that part right.

 

I'm sure he'll treasure it always.

 

"Back to the Future: The Musical"

Great Scott!!! I finally got to see Back to the Future on stage!

 

I had a blast. Basically, this is a show created by people who love the film for people who love the film, and that includes me.

 

The cast was terrific. I always wonder what it's like for a relatively unknown actor to have to take on an iconic role associated with a famous actor, but Caden Brauch was a terrific Marty McFly. He had the same youthful energy and excitement Michael J. Fox brought to the film role. Burke Swanson was a hilarious George McFly. When he came out at the end as the successful version of George, he looked almost identical to Crispin Glover in the film. Zan Berube had a terrific energy as Lorraine, and Don Stephenson was appropriately bonkers as Doc Brown. Ethan Rogers was a hilarious and imposing Biff Tannen (his bio in the program describes him as "much nicer in person" than Biff). The role of Goldie Wilson is beefed up in the show and Cartreze Tucker did a wonderful job, especially in one song where he really got to show off his amazing singing voice. And of course, it was a kick to see the DeLorean, kitted out as the unlikely time machine.

 

The songs are all original, except when "Johnny B. Goode" is performed at the dance, and at the end of the show, when the cast performs "The Power of Love" and "Back in Time". A lot of work goes into this show, and they use a lot of projection for locations and to give the DeLorean the appearance of speeding up to the crucial speed of 88 miles per hour. And yes, O'Reilly Auto Parts still lists the flux capacitor on their website. It was a total nostalgia fest for the 1980's, including era fashion and hair, as well as costumes duplicated from the original film.

I didn't get a picture of it when I was leaving (because I was driving), but there was a DeLorean in the parking garage with the license place TIMELESS (I can't remember the exact abbreviation as I passed it quickly). So cool.

Back to the Future: The Musical is a lot of fun and I highly recommend it. It's playing at Segerstrom Center for the Arts through January 5 before heading to San Diego and the rest of its North American tour.

 

Now I just need to find a real time machine so I can go back to the 80's and stay there.

You learn something new every day

I had never heard this story until today:

No judgement/opinion one way or the other. Just interesting.

 

Both produced some legendary films. But yeah, Hitch was never going to make a family-friendly film. God knows how he would have presented Disneyland on film if he'd gotten the chance (the merry-go-round scene in Strangers on a Train, anyone?)

Theater: "Murder on the Links" at Laguna Playhouse

Murder on the Links

Written and Directed by Steven Dietz (based on the novel by Agatha Christie)

Cast: Omri Schein (Hercule Poirot), Kim Morgan Dean (Captain Hastings), Jennifer Erdmann (multiple), Brian Mackey (multiple), Jessica Mosher (multiple), Matthew Salazar-Thompson (multiple)

First, let me say that overall this was a fun romp that I really enjoyed. It's running through June 18, so you still have time to check it out. Also, this is a great theater. If you're in the middle section I don't think there's a bad seat in the house (can't comment on the side sections) and there's cheap public parking right across the street from the theater - $4 for the entire day. 

 

Having said that, there were several things about this production that I found jarring. I went in expecting something in the vein the Poirot series, but in this show the story is played for laughs. Once I understood that I was good, and there were some really funny moments. Also played for laughs was Poirot himself, which also took a while to get used to. Schein played him a bit goofy, which is at odds with the ultimate Poirot (David Suchet) so many fans are used to, but again, I was able to go with it once I realized that's how this production handled the adaptation.

Most jarring was the casting of a female actor to play Captain Hastings. They didn't turn Hastings into a woman, so there wasn't really any reason to do this other than needless virtue signaling. Kim Morgan Dean gave a great performance, but throughout the play her being a woman playing Hastings was a major distraction, and as both a writer and viewer, I know that anything that takes your audience out of the story isn't a good thing. I just don't see why this was necessary other than to make some sort of statement. Imagine a show where a male actor takes a role away from a female actor. I don't think I need to elaborate any more on that. Terrific performance, but distracting from beginning to end.

But like I said, this production of Murder on the Links is overall an enjoyable two hours. Plus, I hadn't been in Orange County since...probably the last time I was at Laguna Playhouse was to see Harvey in 2019. I really need to get out here more often, it was like having a vacation from Los Angeles. I wish it wasn't so far away.

Theatre: "The Little Foxes" at South Coast Repertory

The Little Foxes was presented by South Coast Repertory on the Segerstrom Stage in Costa Mesa.

 

 

 

The Little Foxes

Written by Lillian Hellman

Directed by Lisa Peterson

Starring Shannon Cochran, Matthew Arkin, Marco Barricelli, Jamison Jones, Tessa Auberjonois, Jess Andrews, Hunter Spangler, Kaci Hamilton,

Zalen D. King, Lea Coco

Alabama, 1900. Ben and Oscar Hubbard stand to earn millions by funding an industrialized cotton mill. But first they'll need their calculating sister, Regina, to secure the seed money from her dying husband. When he refuses, the siblings stop at nothing to satisfy their own ambitions and keep the wealth in the family. It is Regina, however, with razor-sharp intellect and diabolical gentility, who is the most ruthless. Ferocious and funny, this classic takes an absorbing look at all sides of the American Dream. (From SCR website)

The film version of The Little Foxes starring Bette Davis is one of my all-time favorites, plus I have an audio copy of a performance from L.A. Theater Works that is fantastic, so I was really looking forward to seeing this live.

The first thing that happened was that the original date I had selected was canceled due to COVID-19 issues. When I got the cancellation email I thought I was out of luck as far as seeing this show. However, SCR quickly got me into another performance. I was impressed by how well they handled the situation.

This is the set. The picture doesn't really do it justice, but I loved it and had to get a shot of it. Notice the arch framing the stage is off-kilter? I loved that touch, showing that what goes on in this home is crooked and dysfunctional. There was also a lot of furniture, which was utilized heavily by the cast. This was my first time at Segerstrom and I was surprised that the theatre was a lot smaller than I was expecting, but while I had a great view from almost dead center, I don't think there's a bad seat in the place other than the extreme edges. Nice little theatre.

I was also intrigued by how the actress playing Regina Giddens would fare. In addition to Davis' legendary performance in the film, Tallulah Bankhead played the role during its original Broadway run. That's a lot of star-powered shoes to fill. Turns out Shannon Cochran's effortless performance was more than up the the standards of the role. She made a terrific Regina. Barricelli and Jones were spot-on as Ben and Oscar, and I enjoyed Spangler's portrayal of the slimy Leo. Another thing I noticed in retrospect is how well the cast handled the southern accents, so props to Dialect Coach Nathan Crocker.

The one glaring issue with the performance was that Arkin, who was a replacement in the role of Horace, apparently didn't have enough time to prepare and carried script pages on stage throughout the performance. Horace doesn't show up until part-way through the action, and is deathly ill and therefore not active, so it wasn't as noticeable as it could have been - in fact, at first I thought the character was carrying a newspaper - but as he began turning pages there was no hiding it, and really no attempt to. He was listed as a replacement (along with Hamilton filling in as Addie), which isn't unusual; I've seen that at shows in the past. But I'd never seen or even heard of an actor carrying script pages with him the entire time he's onstage. Apparently COVID has really affected the cast as discussed in this review, so I'm not unsympathetic. But it was hugely distracting. 

 

On top of that, for some reason there were two brief intermissions rather than a single, longer one, which I would have preferred. Each break took me out of the story. I would preferred not to have an intermission at all during this show. I know it's a little over two hours, but the time during the performance flew by. I'm not sure why they felt the need to interrupt it twice.

Overall it was a well-done show, and without the aforementioned issues, would have been great.

I was also pleasantly surprised how easy it was to get from L.A. to Costa Mesa for a weeknight performance (a straight shot down the 405 for me). I was anticipating a dreadful rush hour drive, but apparently I was going against traffic and the drive was not bad in L.A. and full-speed once I got behind the Orange Curtain. The drive home, without any traffic, went by in a flash. So even though it's way out in the OC, it's definitely worth doing again in the future.