Theater Reviews: Groundlings Holiday Show, The First Jo-el, Diva on the Verge - Page 2 - Stage - Los Angeles - LA Weekly
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Theater Reviews: Groundlings Holiday
Show, The First Jo-el, Diva on the
Verge
Also, Bob Baker's Nutcracker, Broadway Holiday and more
By L.A. Weekly Theater Critics Thursday, Dec 23 2010
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GO THE FIRST JO-EL The Troubadour Theater Company, led by writer-director-star Matt
Walker, is back at the Falcon Theatre for its annual Christmas show. This time, it's the nativity
story set to 18 of Billy Joel's songs. The concocted yet sophisticated story permits them to break
into song whenever possible, replacing Joel's original lyrics with their own twisted ones. Hence
lyrics such as "We're having a child/But she's always a virgin to me." Bethlehem innkeepers
Nicholas and Greta (Jack McGee and Lisa Valenzuela) have a daughter, Letty (Katie Nunez),
who's pregnant and still undecided on marriage to gormless Manolo (Matt Morgan). Enter the
three wise men, who've become two hard-boiled wise guys, Gold (Matt Walker) and Myr
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THEATER REVIEWS: A CHICAGO CHRISTMAS CAROL,
EXIT 10, THE LAST DAYS OF JUDAS ISCARIOT, OUR
BEDS ARE CROWDED
Also, The Stories of Cesar Chavez, Traveling Carnival
Freakshow, West Side Story and more
(Brandon Breault), plus Frankenstein (Morgan Rusler, who also doubles as Herod),
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incorporating a bit of Three Stooges–style slapstick into their appearance. But when another
pregnant couple from out of town shows up, it turns out there's no room at the inn for Mary and
Joseph (Katherine Malack and Matt Walker). Everyone is in good voice, especially Nunez and
Valenzuela. The live five-piece band keeps the hit tunes pumping out under the musical direction
of drummer Eric Heinly. Especially noteworthy are Hayan Charlston's sizzling sax and clarinet
performances. Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank; Fri., 8 p.m., Sat., 4 & 8 p.m., Sun.,
4 & 7 p.m., through Jan. 16. (Pauline Adamek)
GO GROUNDLINGS HOLIDAY SHOW Director Damon Jones incorporates some winning
ideas in this holiday-themed show, making it one of the best this reviewer has seen here in some
time. By greatly increasing the number of improv sections and embellishing them with some
http://www.laweekly.com/2010-12-23/stage/theater-reviews-groundlings-holiday-show-the-first-jo-el-diva-on-the-verge/2/
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Theater Reviews: Groundlings Holiday Show, The First Jo-el, Diva on the Verge - Page 2 - Stage - Los Angeles - LA Weekly
12/23/10 10:54 AM
time. By greatly increasing the number of improv sections and embellishing them with some
imaginative directorial twists, Jones fully utilizes the considerable comedic talents of his cast (Jim
Rash, Nat Faxon, Charlotte Newhouse, David Hoffman, Steve Little, Laird Macintosh, Jillian
Bell). In one segment, cast members were asked to do improvisations according to the styles of
different film directors, and the results were amazing. Jones also has thrown in some colorful
costuming schemes, nowhere more apparent than in the hilarious skit "Kringle 5," featuring
Santa Claus as a space pirate battling hostile aliens and lesbian crew members. Other skits that
corralled big laughs were "Nativity Scene," where an irate boss tries to find out who ate Jesus,
Mary, Joseph and the manger; "The Last Temptation," which finds some holy folks carried away
by their sensual sides; and the dangerously funny "Baby New Year," where Steven Little, dressed
in diapers, hat and pacifier, shares his own brand of holiday cheer with the audience. Groundlings
Theater, 7307 Melrose Ave., W. Hlywd.; closed. (Lovell Estell III)
URNED HAPPINESS Laughter may be the
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best medicine when grief's symptoms won't
subside, but in Ernest Kearney's thinly plotted
enter email
comedy about a family's collective wacky
reaction to the death of their maligned
matriarch, the prescription runs out fast. Kim
Slideshows
(Julie Mann) and Maggie (Kal Bennett) have
just arrived home from their mother's funeral.
Gal Crazy at
Holiday Hot Mess
We quickly learn that the deceased was as
tender with her children as a lion with a steak,
but the uptight Maggie struggles to maintain a
proper degree of respect for the dead while Kim
cracks wise. As the women grapple with their
XXX-mas:
Naughty or Nice
Burlesque
hate-tinged, guilt-ridden grief, they also fight
over ownership of mom's ashes: No one wants
the old lady's urn. Complicating matters are the
husbands, Lloyd (Joe Corgan), who hated mom
so much that he split the scene when Julie took
on the caretaker role in mom's final days, and
Randy (Gary Rubenstein), an emasculated wuss
with no intention of honoring his browbeating
late mother-in-law by agreeing to accept the
urn. Kearney, who also directs, is wise to take a
stab at mining the potential humor in the
postmortem scenario, but the corny jokes fall
flat in the hands of unpolished performances.
The rising action peaks with the entrance of a
clown hired to play the funeral, a groaner of a
PHOTO BY CHELSEA SUTTON
The First Jo-el
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Theater Reviews: Groundlings Holiday Show, The First Jo-el, Diva on the Verge - Page 2 - Stage - Los Angeles - LA Weekly
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