With The Dungeon, the Dragon and the Wizard of Doom: A D&D Holiday Show Adventure Arcata Playhouse is bringing the British tradition of a Christmas pantomime to Humboldt once again. Pantomimes are often thought of as silent endeavors but this incarnation is the opposite. Christmas pantomimes, or “pantos,” are community centered, derived theater that combines […]
Doranna Benker Gilkey
Posted inFront Row
Exit Theatre’s Getting Dark Stays Sharp
While Cal Poly Humboldt stages Greek tragedy, above the Arcata Plaza, the Exit Theatre presents Getting Dark: Three One-Act Comedies by local playwright Daniel Lehman. The theme of getting dark is presented differently in each vignette where Lehman asks heavy questions in light ways without ever getting saccharine. The first, Is He Sick? is an […]
Posted inFront Row
The Surreal Tragedy of Antigone
Greek tragedy is considered the root of western theater, though its original format can feel strange and stiff to our modern sensibilities. The themes are still relevant, touching as they do on the human condition and broad philosophical questions. Cal Poly Humboldt students, under the guidance of director Cynthia Martells, found creative ways to bridge […]
Posted inFront Row
She the People
What the Constitution Means to Me, now playing at the 5th and D Street Theatre, connects the Constitution of the United States, a cryptic, venerated document, to our everyday lives. Playwright Heidi Schreck (portrayed by Natasha Samuelsen in this autobiographical show) recounts her experience to the audience as a teenager traveling the country to earn […]
Posted inFront Row
To Err is Hilarious
The Play That Goes Wrong went very well at Ferndale Repertory Theatre on Saturday night. In this slapstick play-within-a-play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields, the Cornely Drama Society presents The Murder at Haversham Manor. The society has just exactly enough members to put on the classic murder mystery set in the English […]
Posted inArts + Scene
A Maximalist Romeo and Juliet
William Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is one of the most produced and adapted plays in the history of western culture. Its themes and quotations are intricately woven into our cultural zeitgeist. A myriad of options are a click away on streaming devices. Sure, you can watch Romeo and Juliet with guns and […]
Posted inArts + Scene
9 to 5: The Musical Clocks in at FRT
You don’t have to be a fan of Dolly Parton to appreciate 9 to 5: The Musical, now at Ferndale Repertory Theatre, but if you are, you’ll probably love it even more. . The music and lyrics are written by Parton, the book by Patricia Resnick. It’s of course based on the 1980 movie by […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Clue is Game
A dark and stormy night outside a lush mansion on Van Duzer Theater’s stage sets the melodramatic tone for Cal Poly Humboldt’s Department of Dance, Music and Theatre production of Clue by Sandy Rustin. The madcap, stylized parlor game whodunit is based on the movie of the same title, which was inspired by the board […]
Posted inArts + Scene
All the President’s Frantic Women
POTUS Or, Behind Every Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive by Selina Fillinger is a fast-moving farcical comedy set in the White House during a fictional presidency. The President has (yet again) said something awful at the worst possible moment. His chief of staff Harriet (Christina Jioras), her beleaguered intern Stephanie (Ximena […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Mystery and Mirth
The Game’s Afoot If local theater awards existed, North Coast Repertory Theatre’s last production of the season, The Game’s Afoot, would be nominated for several coveted (and imagined) Woody awards. With ugly Christmas sweaters, oversized magnifying glasses and half-in-the-bag smiles smattering the audience, the production is lively, spirited and fun. Despite my having one of […]
Posted inArts + Scene
Into the Woods’ Complicated Ever After
Modern renditions of fairytales are simplistic, bland stories that encourage learned helplessness and non-consensual kissing — a far cry from the dark folk tales collected by the Brothers Grimm. The musical Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine, now being performed at the Van Duzer Theatre by the Cal Poly Humboldt Department of […]
Posted inWedding Feature
The Wedding Painter
THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO CAPTURE SPECIAL MOMENTS There are many ways to capture special moments at your wedding for posterity. A professional photographer will take care of posed and candid moments of your big day, sending the best ones to you to languish in boxes or digital storage until you have time to put […]