Berkeley Rep Blog
Girlfriend resonates with teens at the student matinee
posted by Lizz Guzman on Wed, May 5, 2010
in At the theatre , Backstage buzz , School of Theatre
"Authentic, intimate, and romantic” is how the San Francisco Chronicle described Girlfriend at Berkeley Rep. And this was the show to which we were expecting a large group of high school students for the student matinee on April 29.
Berkeley Rep’s student matinees are a rare opportunity for high-school and middle-school teachers to expose their students to theatre and to the transformative power of art. Our hope at the School of Theatre is that the matinee serves as a memorable, educational, and fun theatre experience for all involved.
As the rest of the School of Theatre staff and I donned our nametags and took our positions a little before noon, I wondered what the audience response would be. I scanned the faces of the students as they arrived, but I could not read the energy of this crowd. How would these teens handle the sensitive subject matter and tenderness of the story?
As the house lights went down and the band picked up, I held my breath.
The reactions of the audience quickly put my mind at ease. It became clear as the show went on that the group really related to the awkwardness of first love and the challenges of being different. Every uncomfortable silence and rambling conversation was greeted with a knowing laugh. It seemed like this audience had a more profound connection and empathetic understanding of the situations and emotions in the play.
Were there uneasy giggles? Sure. Soon, however, the laughter and the chatter faded away. I could feel the nervous energy in the theatre turn to focused concentration. The teens seemed to be as moved by the tenderness and sweetness of the scene as I was. At the end of Act 1 when Mike leans in to kiss Will, the entire audience held its collective breath in anticipation. When the two actors finally kissed, the theatre erupted into cheers and screams, students and teachers alike on their feet. My skin prickled with goosebumps as the ovation continued. And continued. The actors and band had to finish the song above the applause that continued until the house lights came up for intermission.
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Berkeley Rep shows nab six Tony noms!
posted by Chad Jones on Tue, May 4, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
Today, two shows born at Berkeley Repertory Theatre nabbed six nominations for theatre’s most prestigious and coveted prize: the Tony Award. Green Day’s American Idiot, the thrilling rock opera that made its world premiere in Berkeley before bursting onto Broadway, netted nominations for three Tony Awards including Best Musical. In the Next Room (or the vibrator play), the comedy Berkeley Rep commissioned from Sarah Ruhl that became a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and marked the Broadway debut of Associate Artistic Director Les Waters, also received three nominations including Best Play. The winners of this year’s Tony Awards will be announced June 13 on CBS.
Combined with Carrie Fisher’s Wishful Drinking – another show developed at Berkeley Rep which found its way to Broadway – these popular productions have also received five nominations for Drama Desk Awards, five nominations for Drama League Awards, four nominations for Outer Critics Circle Awards, and one nomination for the Astaire Award.
"Local folks have long known that Berkeley Rep is devoted to developing adventurous new work," remarks Tony Taccone, the Theatre’s artistic director. "We are pleased that a much wider audience has had an opportunity to see and appreciate our work in the last several years, and naturally we’re honored to see these shows nominated for so many prestigious awards. We are grateful for the trust placed in us by the many partners who helped bring American Idiot, In the Next Room, and Wishful Drinking to Broadway."
American Idiot (seen in the photo above courtesy of mellopix.com) earned the following nods from the Tony nominating committee:
- Best Musical: American Idiot
- Best Scenic Design of a Musical: Christine Jones
- Best Lighting Design of a Musical: Kevin Adams
In the Next Room has garnered its share of attention during awards season as well. Today, the play pulled in three nominations for the Tony Award:
- Best Play: In the Next Room (or the vibrator play)
- Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play: Maria Dizzia (seen above at left with Hannah Cabell, photo courtesy of kevinberne.com)
- Best Costume Design of a Play:David Zinn.
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Sweet! Take a look at Girlfriend, our latest hit
posted by Chad Jones on Thu, Apr 29, 2010
in At the theatre , Our shows
Now that the world-premiere rock musical Girlfriend has extended its run through May 16 at Berkeley Rep, we invite you to take a sneak peek at the show. The show, starring Jason Hite (pictured above at left) and Ryder Bach), features songs from Matthew Sweet's classic album Girlfriend as well as a couple songs from Matthew's Altered Beast and 100% Fun.
News flash! Jason, Ryder, and the band will perform songs from the show this Saturday (May 1) on West Coast Live. The show begins at 10 a.m. on NPR stations including KALW 91.7 FM. The show is being broadcast from Freight & Salvage Coffee House, just across Addison Street from Berkeley Rep.
Another news flash! Amoeba Music is giving away tickets to Girlfriend on May 5 and 6. Enter at either the Berkeley or San Francisco stores. Find more information.
There are so many great things about the Girlfriend, but we have to give a special shout out to the four women in the onstage band. Music director Julie Wolf (who also plays rhythm guitar and keyboard and provides backup vocals) has collaborated and toured with the likes of the Indigo Girls, Ani DiFranco, and Sia, among many others. Lead guitar and backing vocalist Shelley Doty has several bands, including Clair, Shelley Doty X-tet, and Sistas in the Pit. Bassist Jean DuSablon is in Clair as well, and drummer ieela Grant founded Sistas in the Pit, one of the Bay Area's great power trios.
You don't really see the amazing women of the band in this video, but you can hear them! Enjoy.
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Idiot heaven: opening night on Broadway
posted by Bert Reptile on Thu, Apr 29, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
Kristin Cato, Berkeley Rep’s bookkeeper, was part of the Theatre’s delegation to New York for the Broadway opening of American Idiot. You can see Kristin in the photo below (courtesy of Mina Morita), her head poking through almost dead center. The group includes, from left, Mary Susskind, Terence Keane, Sally Smith, Amy Potozkin, Kristin, Emika Abe, Maggi Yule, Tom Pearl, Andrew Susskind, Karen Racanelli, Christine Bond, and Susan Medak.
Below are Kristin's observations of this once-in-a-lifetime event.
Ah, the hum and beat of New York. Taxicab blurs and Times Square’s over-sized phantasmagoria of molten corporate psychedelia splatters across skyscraper. It’s the ‘hood where musical theatre still lives large. And it’s an ironically glamorous, frenetic, yet apt setting for American Idiot, a tale of an underbelly youth’s false start in the metropolis of his (broken) dreams. After all, the youth does belt out “One nation controlled by the media/Information age of hysteria” in the opening number.
Being a big fan of the show during its Berkeley run, I had been hankering for months to see the Broadway production, and had contemplated an overdue visit to the Big Apple. So naturally I was thrilled to win a ticket to opening-night festivities in a staff lottery. What a gift and opportunity! Thank you, lottery goddesses!
About a dozen of my fellow Berkeley Rep co-workers also flew in from the Bay Area. We met up at the legendary Sardi’s next door to the St. James Theatre for a pre-show reception, compliments of Board member Sally Smith. I gazed around at caricatures of the famous – past and present – plastering the walls of this dark-wooded restaurant. I easily spotted the hand-drawn faces of Sophia Loren, Tom Brokaw, Rosie O’Donnell, and Kermit the Frog. Many others looked vaguely familiar. I had seen them in something, somewhere. Little did I know, I would be partying with Rosie O’Donnell in a couple of hours, alongside Serena Williams, Michael J. Fox, a host of TV stars, and of course, Green Day and the American Idiot cast. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
It was time to head to the theatre!
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Roda Theatre transformed for ONSTAGE! Check out the festive photos...
posted by Chad Jones on Wed, Apr 28, 2010
in Events
The world premiere of the ONSTAGE! gala, held last Saturday in the spectacularly decorated Roda Theatre, made for quite a memorable evening. San Francisco Chronicle "Social City" columnist Catherine Bigelow wrote a wonderful piece about the event in today's newspaper.
For those of you who weren't able to attend, Cheshire Isaacs, Berkeley Rep's art director, was there with his camera and provides the following glimpses of the festivities...
Meet the chefs: (back row from left) Artistic Director Tony Taccone, Mattea Soreng, Jennifer Sherman, Charlie Hallowell, Jean Pierre Moullé, (front row) Board President Marjorie Randolph, Managing Director Susan Medak, Samantha Greenwood, Charlene Reis, Mary Canales, ONSTAGE! Committee Chair and Board Member Felicia Woytak, and Director of Development Lynn Eve Komaromi.
Randy Laroche and David Laudon dressed to the nines for ONSTAGE!
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Celebrating the next generation of theatre professionals
posted by Chad Jones on Tue, Apr 27, 2010
in Events
At Saturday night's wonderful ONSTAGE! gala in the Roda Theatre, guests were asked to "raise the paddle" in support of the Berkeley Rep fellowship program. Each season, more than a dozen fellows spend 11 months directly involved in the Theatre’s daily operations and learn alongside an accomplished company of artists, administrators, guest directors and designers.
At the gala, guests watched this remarkable video (created by Pauline Luppert, our marketing and multimedia manager).
Then, in about five minutes, guests donated an impressive $55,500 to support next season's fellows! Our thanks to all who gave so generously.
Visit our website for more information about the fellowship program.
Above photo: The 2009-2010 Berkeley Rep fellows: (standing) Emily Hartman, Seth Fly, Rachel Viola, Viqui Peralta, Mina Morita, Matt Avery, Silvie Deutsch, Elana McKernan, Euphrates Dahout, Elizabeth Guzman, Alexandra Friedman, Kashara Robinson (kneeling) Katherine Wepler, Beryl Baker, Nora Merecicky Not pictured: Sarah Nowicki
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Girlfriend extends through May 16!
posted by Chad Jones on Fri, Apr 23, 2010
in At the theatre , Our shows
Critics and audiences are in love with Berkeley Rep's new Girlfriend, and now this world-premiere musical event is extending for one week, through May 16! Tickets go on sale today!
Added performances are
- Thursday, May 13 at 8pm
- Friday, May 14 at 8pm
- Saturday, May 15 at 5pm & 9pm
- Sunday, May 16 at 7pm
Visit our online box office or call the box office at 510 647-2949 to order your tickets today! Box office hours are noon to 7pm Tuesday-Sunday.
Critics have been writing love notes to Girlfriend, which features music and lyrics by Matthew Sweet and a book by Todd Almond. The San Francisco Chronicle calls the show "an exhilarating joy," while the San Jose Mercury News describes it as "a delicate gem." The San Francisco Examiner raves, "A rare treat—authentic, intimate and romantic, and, as the ‘I’ve Been Waiting’ lyric goes, ‘perfect in so many ways.’"
And the great reviews just keep coming. Here are a few more.
Above photo: Jason Hite (left) and Ryder Bach in the world-premiere musical Girlfriend at Berkeley Rep. Photo courtesy of kevinberne.com.
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American Idiot opens on Broadway to rave reviews!
posted by Chad Jones on Thu, Apr 22, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
American Idiot nearly blew the lid off the St. James Theatre when it opened in New York Tuesday night. From Berkeley Rep to Broadway, and the reviews are amazing! Here are a few.
"Invigorating, moving, and thrilling! Performed with galvanizing intensity by a terrific cast, the emotional charge is as memorable as the music. A true rock opera!" — Charles Isherwood, New York Times
"A groundbreaking musical event! Told with a soaring theatricality that stretches the boundaries of what's possible on Broadway, American Idiot is a global knockout!" — Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
"It will electrify and overwhelm your senses! This adrenalized gut-punch of a musical holds you in its white-knuckle grasp." — David Cote, Time Out New York
"The first great musical of the 21st century!" — Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Times-Star
The cast recording was released Tuesday as well. Green Day appears on the album, and Billie Joe Armstrong sings alongside the actors you saw in Berkeley.
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Video message to the Broadway Idiots
posted by Chad Jones on Tue, Apr 20, 2010
in Backstage buzz , Our shows
The Berkeley Rep School of Theatre's Teen Council created a message to the cast, creative team, and crew of American Idiot, which opens tonight at the St. James Theatre.
To catch you up on all things American Idiot, here are a few good links:
Billboard's cover story, which includes a good video interview
And here's an MTV clip called From Punk Rock to Rock Opera (some of the shots are from Berkeley Rep rehearsals, and if you look sharp, you can catch a glimpse of Artistic Director Tony Taccone — in a red tie):
Watch MTV's half-hour documentary American Idiot on Broadway.
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Great Girlfriend coverage in the LA Times
posted by Chad Jones on Mon, Apr 19, 2010
in At the theatre
A fantastic feature about the creation of Girlfriend appeared over the weekend in the Los Angeles Times. Read the story.
Writer John Horn spent time in the rehearsal hall and interviewed director Les Waters, playwright Todd Almond, and composer Matthew Sweet.
Talking to Todd about how he took a favorite album of his youth, Matthew Sweet's Girlfriend, John writes: "Almond says he designed the show so that audience understands the loneliness of being gay and alone. 'I want those boys to feel isolated, like I did,' he says. And yet Sweet's music gives them (just as it did for Almond) hope."
John's story captures Matthew Sweet's reaction to the show as well: "I thought it was really cool — to show how they are trying to put across all of these feelings in a sideways way," Sweet says. "I wanted the album to be really universal. The songs were very personal to me, but it makes me proud and makes me glad that other people could relate to it. That somebody who is gay could relate it — that's fantastic."
Charles McNulty reviewed the production for the Times. Read his review.
Here's a sampling:
High schoolers have a knack for turning even banal occasions into karaoke moments, which is why Will and Mike’s eruptions seem perfectly natural. Granted, most such spontaneous outpourings aren’t backed by a band as hard-charging as the all-female one led by musical director Julie Wolf that accompanies the boys, but the effect of hearing “I’ve Been Waiting” and “You Don’t Love Me” will bring you back to your own awkward age, even if this is your first encounter with Sweet’s accessible sound.
Above photo: Girlfriend director Les Waters and playwright Todd Almond. Photo courtesy of Robert Durrell for the Los Angeles Times.