Berkeley Rep Blog
Listening in on Les Waters
posted by Chad Jones on Fri, Mar 12, 2010
in Backstage buzz
Richard Wolinsky, the host of the KPFA show Cover to Over Open Book, took the above photo of Mt. Fujii, and we share it with you (with his permission, of course) in honor of Richard's interview with Les Waters, Berkeley Rep's associate artistic director and the man at the helm of Concerning Strange Devices from the Distant West, which happens to be set in Japan.
The show aired today and can be enjoyed at anytime thanks to KPFA's online archive.
Listen to the interview.
Les is a fascinating guy, and you'll hear about his youth in a small Lincolnshire town (the name is considered an English joke because it has a four-letter word buried in it — you'll have to listen to the interview to find out what that might be). He also talks about his early career at the Royal Court Theatre in London.
He delves into his most recent project, directing the world premiere of Naomi Iizuka's Strange Devices (running through April 11), and discusses his next project, the rock musical Girlfriend, now in rehearsal.
Les provides some marvelous insight into Strange Devices, offers his thoughts on the 2010/11 season, and talks about what it's like to direct on Broadway (or, as Les refers to it, "Disneyland").
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The agony and the ecstasy of Mike Daisey's Steve Jobs
posted by Chad Jones on Wed, Mar 10, 2010
in Backstage buzz
Last week, when we announced the shows of our new season, we figured a few of the names would jump out at people. We knew people would be thrilled at the prospect of Rita Moreno's autobiographical one-woman show, and they were. We knew people would be tickled by the inclusion of Lemony Snicket's The Composer Is Dead. And they were.
We also figured that techies — especially in Silicon Valley — would take note of Mike Daisey's new work, The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs. Boy, did they ever.
Once the press release hit, the Internet, from CNET to the New York Times' blog and everything in between, lit up like a Jobs hotline. Some of the stories embellished the show's announcement with details that it would be heading to Broadway after its stop in Berkeley or that Mike would be playing the role of Apple co-founder Jobs.
All of this buzz prompted Mike to address the tech journalists on his website. In addition to pointing out the correct spelling of his name (not like the flower), Mike felt the need to point out that he is a monologuist, a person who performs monologues as himself, not as a character, in direct address to the audience. In Mike's case, that means he mostly sits behind a table, refers to his notes, and talks to the people before him as part of a smart, funny conversation.
The big clarification was in defining the scope of the show. Here's what Mike wrote: "I will not be playing the `role' of Steve Jobs. The monologue concerns Steve Jobs' rise and fall and rise, Apple, industrial design, and the human price we are willing to pay for our technology, woven together in a complex narrative."
Mike is definitely a guy you want to keep up with, so visit his site often. Today's post just happens to be a re-post about someone who tangled with Jobs over a software patent. Very interesting....
Above photo: Mike Daisey, monologuist, demonstrates his craft. Photo by Ursa Waz
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Strange and wonderful! Read the rave reviews and take a tantalizing peek
posted by Chad Jones on Fri, Mar 5, 2010
in At the theatre
The reviews for Naomi Iizuka's Concerning Strange Devices from the Distant West are fantastic.
In the San Francisco Chronicle, the Little Man is jumping out of his chair! Here's more:
“Scintillating…a sexy puzzle…The shards of story, vintage and modern photos, lies, surmises, history and tattoos set the mind spinning about topics as varied as the art and commerce of photography, the ways in which humans love and use one another, a century of intercourse between Japan and America and the mutable relationships between appearance and reality…So full of casual clues and odd payoffs that every moment is worth close attention…A puzzle that haunts the mind long afterward.”
And then there's this from the Bay Area News Group:
“Dazzling…A sly, elliptical play…Tantalizing images shimmer throughout…Touches on issues of art, authenticity and the elusive nature of perspective. It’s shot through with provocative visuals and intellectually stimulating themes.”
KGO 810AM raves, “Another winner from Berkeley Rep! With its intricate, clever combination of lights, sounds and visuals, it will absolutely amaze you. When I say this is a `must see,' I really mean it. I give it a `Wow!'”
And the good reviews keep coming. Find more at Beyond Chron and Stark Silver Creek.
Now see for yourself. Explore Strange Devices with this tantalizing peek:
Top photo: (from left) Kate Eastwood Norris, Bruce McKenzie, and Johnny Wu in Concerning Strange Devices from the Distant West. Photo courtesy of kevinberne.com
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Strange Devices goes Tokyo pop!
posted by Chad Jones on Thu, Mar 4, 2010
in At the theatre , Backstage buzz
At last night's festive opening of Concerning Strange Devices from the Distant West, audience members could be found grooving and bopping around the Roda Theatre lobby. And when there's grooving and bopping, requests for playlists inevitably follow.
So here you have it — the greatest hits of the Strange Devices lobby.
"Sugar Water" by Cibo Matto from the album Viva! La Woman
"So Exclusive" by m-flo from the album Beat Space Nine
"Sci-Fi Wasabi" by Cibo Matto from the album Stereo Type A
"Kokirikobushi" by OMODAKA from the album Cantata No. 147
"Sataandagi No Uta" by Nuu from the EP Akari
"Planet Tokyo" by Puffy Ami Yumi from the album Hi Hi Puffy Ami Yumi
"Twist Barbie" by Shonen Knife from the album Burning Farm
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Rita returns! Daisey blooms again! Snicket (de)composes! And more in 2010/11 season
posted by Chad Jones on Wed, Mar 3, 2010
in At the theatre
It's a big day here at Berkeley Rep.
In addition to celebrating tonight's official world premiere of Naomi Iizuka's Concerning Strange Devices from the Distant West, we also announced the 2010/11 season — and not just part of the season or shows "under consideration." It's the whole, glorious season.
You can explore the season on our website. We are also happy to provide links to stories about the new season in
- the San Francisco Chronicle
- the San Jose Mercury News / Bay Area News Group
- Playbill
- TheaterMania
Rob Hurwitt's Chronicle story ends with a funny quote from Tony Taccone, Berkeley Rep's artistic director. Tony is talking about his debut as a playwright with a script for Rita Moreno's autobiographical show that ends the season. Shortly after that world premiere, he'll be dashing up to Ashland, Oregon to work on Oregon Shakespeare Festival's world premiere of Ghostlight, another play he has written — this one developed with Jonathan Moscone, artistic director of California Shakespeare Theater.
Rob quotes Tony as saying: "I realize this is artistic suicide, the height of arrogance. The way the schedules worked out, I open Rita's show here and go up the next day for rehearsals on Jon's play. Unreal, huh? I should just slit my wrists now."
Check out the comments at the bottom of the story where a reader has written: "Don't slit 'em, Tony! Call Geoff first! You guys are Bay Area treasures." Geoff, of course, is Geoff Hoyle, whom Tony will be directing in the world premiere of Lemony Snicket's The Composer Is Dead next season.
Above photo, from left: The Great Game: Afghanistan, Rita Moreno, Mike Daisey, and Lynn Nottage are all part of the 2010/11 Berkeley Rep season.