Berkeley Rep Blog
1,001 stories for the price of one
posted by Cari Turley on Wed, Oct 20, 2010
in News , Our shows
The Arabian Nights is back! The show that inspired nightly standing ovations in 2008 is returning for a limited engagement this holiday season. Until now, tickets were only available to subscribers, but now the hottest ticket of the season is available to everyone. So what are you waiting for? Call the box office at 510-647-2949 or buy your tickets online today!
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A taste of the good life
posted by Cari Turley on Fri, Oct 15, 2010
in At the theatre , Events
This week, Berkeley's own Tres Agaves Tequila gave away hundreds of free drinks in the courtyard before Compulsion and An Evening with Robin Williams. Did you get a taste? If you missed it, don't worry—we do this all the time! You can sample wine, beer, chocolate, champagne, vodka, organic produce, or other delights before most Friday 8pm, Saturday 8pm, and Sunday 7pm performances. New tasting events are being added all the time, so be sure to check our website often!
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How did we end up in this war?
posted by Pauline Luppert on Wed, Oct 13, 2010
in
Last week, October 8, 2010, marked the nine-year anniversary of the beginning of the current war in Afghanistan—mind boggling. Thousands of people have died. Trillions of dollars have been spent. As concerned citizens, as compassionate human beings, how do we wrap our heads around that? See a play? Well, actually, see 12 short plays presented in three parts.
General Sir David Richards, head of Britain’s Armed Forces, said recently that if he had seen the Tricycle Theatre's production of The Great Game: Afghanistan before he deployed to Afghanistan in 2005, he would have been a better commander.
Now, the production is coming to Berkeley Rep.
Here is a short preview:
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Guess who's gonna be on our stage next week!
posted by Pauline Luppert on Thu, Oct 7, 2010
in At the theatre , Backstage buzz , Our shows , Shows on tour
We've had some pretty stellar people on our stages in the two years I've been working at Berkeley Rep. Tony and Emmy Award—winning actor Mandy Patinkin will be on the Thrust stage this very evening. We've had a lot of performances sell-out of tickets. American Idiot sold so well we had to extend it before it even opened. An Evening with David Sedaris was sold out for months in advance of his appearance during our Fireworks Festival this past summer.
We've just announced a special event in The Roda. It will take place for only three nights—Sunday October 10, Tuesday October 12, and Wednesday October 13. It appears the event may set some new ticket sales records for us—and we haven't really done much marketing yet.
Have you heard about it yet? Here's a clue:
Robin Williams "Cyber Witches Coven" from Robin Williams on Vimeo.
Yup! Robin Williams will be here. Get a ticket while you can.
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Berkeley Rep gets yarnbombed
posted by Terence Keane on Tue, Oct 5, 2010
in At the theatre
If you've come to the Theatre lately -- or just walked down Addison Street -- you may have noticed the cute little cozies that someone knitted for the street signs.
To keep the poles from getting cold? Your guess is as good as ours...
Now someone sheds some light on this mystery. According to a story in the Monterery Herald, the cozies are the work of "a woman who calls herself Streetcolor to avoid attention from the authorities. And she's not selling a thing. She's 'yarnbombing,' spending at least 12 hours a day spinning yarn and knitting pole cozies. So far she has placed nearly 50 around the California towns of Berkeley, Oakland and Kensington."
"It's only going to be up for a while, and I think it enhances the area," she says. "It's just this momentary experience of it being more fun to be there."
Curious? Read all about it.
There's a debate about whether this is art or graffiti. What do you think?
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Billie Joe does St. Jimmy at the St. James
posted by Terence Keane on Thu, Sep 30, 2010
in Our shows , Shows on tour
Did you hear? Billie Joe Armstrong -- that local punk who grew up to be the international punk -- just made his Broadway debut in our production of American Idiot. Tony Vincent had to take a break for a few days to attend to a family matter, so Billie Joe stepped into the role! This week only, he's playing St. Jimmy at the St. James Theater in Times Square alongside the rest of our cast.
Watch Billie Joe and his cohorts singing "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" during the curtain call on Tuesday night. Our managing director, Susie Medak, was there and she says, "The crowds were huge, and Billie Joe was awesome. Generous, scary, soulful." Which is, of course, perfect for the charismatic drug dealer he's portraying.
But don't take our word for it. You can read a review of his performance on MTV.com, or watch the accompanying video with interviews from thrilled fans who were lucky enough to be in the audience that night.
The New York Times notes that "Mr. Armstrong’s yearslong involvement in American Idiot, to the point of joining the cast, is without equal for a major American rock performer." Even better, our board member, Felicia Woytak, points out a comment posted about it on the Times' blog. An audience member penned a little ditty that puts the evening in context with the hallowed history of the St. James Theater:
ODE TO BILLIE JOE
We’d seen some people pull out flyers, did they think they would be good this week?
No there were many willing buyers, even us, and I’m a Gershwin geek
And as the lights went down we heard somebody say this stuff was quasi-punk
But as I listened to the sound I got swept in, well really who’d have thunk?
Some say he's singer more than actor, I won’t fight if that’s what someone claims
But I loved Billie Joe, John Gallagher and Green Day at the old St. James
Heck, I saw Patti walk the aisle there, she had us with “Sing out Louise”
Nathan wowed in The Producers; honey, pass the kish-kas please
Saw the Merm do her great Dolly there; oh bubbie, get your dad the pie
But then I saw this Billie Joe, I’m goin’ back three times, don’t ask me why
'Cause now your Mama listens to this stuff and Papa he gets mad and blames
The week that Billie Joe, John Gallagher and Green Day rocked the old St. James
It's going to be quite a week. Then Billie Joe heads off to Caracas, Venezuela to join the rest of the band for its South American tour. And American Idiot will keep on rocking Broadway for months to come.
Photo by Slaven Vlasic / Getty Images
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Sneak preview of Compulsion
posted by Pauline Luppert on Mon, Sep 27, 2010
in At the theatre , Our shows
Performances of Compulsion are selling out. Critics are raving. See for yourself:
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The critics are crazy about Compulsion
posted by Terence Keane on Sun, Sep 19, 2010
in
On opening night, the audience leapt to its feet to give Compulsion a standing ovation -- and now the critics have spoken. Even the little man in the Chronicle is jumping out of his seat in delight! Judging by these reviews, you'd better buy tickets soon if you don't already have them.
Robert Hurwitt in the San Francisco Chronicle: "RIVETING... Virtuoso acting is just one reason to see Rinne Groff's Compulsion, which opened Thursday at Berkeley Rep's Thrust Stage: Patinkin and his two castmates deliver the goods. But there is also Oskar Eustis' sleek, multifaceted staging and the way Groff revels in wrestling with knotty ideas in conflict. Her semifictional dive into one real Jewish writer's litigious battle over Anne Frank's diary is a compelling foray along a thin line between idealism and fanaticism... As his understandably fervent advocacy turns to vicious personal attacks on those he thinks are thwarting him – Lillian Hellman and Otto Frank in particular – Patinkin's descent into paranoia and the fanaticism of a true believer is as chilling as it is thrilling to witness... The spirit of Anne Frank hovers over the proceedings, intervening in unexpected ways, as Groff probes the psychology of politics and what happens when a person becomes an issue and a commodity."
Pat Craig for the Bay Area News Group (Mercury News / Oakland Tribune / Contra Costa Times): "STUNNING... It takes only seconds to forget you are watching Patinkin on stage. The actor completely immerses himself into the character of Silver, so the idea of seeing a celebrity on stage is barely considered… His story, based on the true-life author Meyer Levin, is told with puppetry, fantasy, comedy and drama in the aptly named Compulsion, a brilliant and emotional new play by Rinne Groff… Most striking, however, is that puppets (skillfully manipulated from high above the stage by Emily DeCola, Daniel Fay and Eric Wright) are used represent Anne and other members of her family. This allows the show to unfold on a fairly simple set, designed by Eugene Lee, with some stunning video projections by Jeff Sugg. It also lets director Oskar Eustis and his actors move seamlessly from fiction to fantasy and back, and to heighten the emotional explosions of the characters in the unfolding story."
Jerry Friedman on KGO-AM: "A MUST SEE... Berkeley Repertory Theatre opened its new season in its usual manner, with another winning production: Rinne Groff's gripping drama Compulsion, skillfully directed by Oskar Eustis, and starring the masterful Mandy Patinkin... Patinkin portrays his character magnificently with dynamic force and appears to be actually living the role. The other two members of the cast are equally superb... It is such a pleasure to witness the outstanding performance of Mandy Patinkin. It's an acting masterpiece! Compulsion will be heading to New York's Public Theatre next February, and is now playing at Berkeley Rep thru October 31st."
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Compelling coverage of Compulsion
posted by Terence Keane on Fri, Sep 17, 2010
in News , Our shows
We kicked off the new season last night with the opening of Compulsion. The reviews aren't out yet, but the media is already talking about the show.
Asked why he chose to take on this role, Mandy told the Chronicle, "When I read the script, I was in a little cabin in Colorado. Oskar Eustis sent it to me, and it really hit a nerve in my gut, and I couldn't get over how much I related to it. I called up Oskar and said, 'You're not allowed to do this without me. If you do, I'll have to find some way to hurt you.' My reaction to the play was just very personal and very visceral. I'd rarely read anything I'd had that kind of reaction to, so I pulled out every stop in the world to try and make it happen."
You can read the entire Chronicle story here. Mandy was so articulate in his interview with Leba Hertz that the Chronicle decided to post more excerpts on its blog. Check it out.
Sue Fishkoff wrote about Mandy for JTA as well:
The intensity Patinkin brings to all his work stands him in good stead to play Sid Silver, the Levin character in this play. Silver, like Levin, is a man seared by images from the concentration camps and completely absorbed with bringing what he believed was Anne’s true message to the world...
“It’s about his obsession with an idealistic vision of humanity that this child represented, and his core belief that it must be respected, protected and guarded in perpetuity, and rekindled every day,” said Patinkin. “This play asks us, to what degree are we willing to go for what we believe in? Is the cost worth it? Are we living in a world of endless compromise?”
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I dig making playlists the most
posted by Pauline Luppert on Wed, Sep 15, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
For almost every show at Berkeley Rep, one of my favorite assignments is to assemble pre-show playlists for our lobbies. The music should set the mood for the show. I read the script, do a little research, bounce ideas off of the literary manager, go crazy at the iTunes store, and rip a few iPods. For John Leguizamo’s Klass Klown, I pulled together a lot of Reggeaton and Hip Hop. For Concerning Strange Devices from The Distant West, I collected contemporary Japanese pop. For Compulsion, I’ve put together a collection of jazz standards and popular songs recorded in the 1950’s—including a variety of influential Jewish American artists, like the Gershwins, Benny Goodman, Stan Getz, and Al Jolson.
Generally, I like to throw in at least one cheeky reference to something in the play. In this case, because Compulsion’s character Sid Silver, like the real-life character Meyer Levin, is married to a beautiful French woman, I threw in Nat King Cole’s rendition of "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup" (album cover pictured right).
Without further ado, here’s the full pre-show lobby playlist for Compulsion (song title, artist, album title):
- "Caravan," Thelonious Monk, Monk Plays Duke Ellington
- "Sh-boom," Crew Cuts, 1950's Hits & Highlights, Vol. 7 (pictured right)
- "Sweet Sixteen," Al Jolson, The Ultimate Jazz Singer
- "This Can't Be Love" (from The Boys from Syracuse), Benny Goodman, Essential Benny Goodman
- "Everything Happens to Me," Billie Holiday, Lady Sings the Blues
- "Beyond the Sea (La Mer)," Django Reinhardt, Djangology
- "Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup," Nat King Cole, The World of Nat King Cole
- "Israel," Miles Davis, The Birth of the Cool
- "Bewitched," Doris Day (song and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart), 1950's Hits & Highlights, Vol. 7
- "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," Louis Armstrong (co-written by Oscar Hammerstein), Hello Dolly
- "Star Dust," Pat Boone, Star Dust