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"The Red Velvet Cake War"

Details: Category: Jane's Reviews; Created on Saturday, 12 May 2012 23:49; Written by Jane Zussman

THE RED VELVET CAKE WAR is the perfect complement/antidote(?) to Copenhagen (the last show we saw) and beautifully illustrates the wi-i-i-i-de range of tastes theatre can satisfy, from spinach to cake... and thank goodness there is room for both!

This was the "cake," of course, with plenty of punchline-punch on the side. This script is another in the Texas-cartoon genre by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten, authors of past Starlight hits (Hallelujah Girls, Southern Hospitality...etc.). (Linda says they are writing another and want Starlight to host its world premiere in the future; stay tuned.) Director Lisa Sodman Elzinga keeps the fun rolling.

EVery character is a caricature and the jokes keep coming. Energetically on-the-verge-of-a-nervous-breakdown Gaynelle (Marni Holmes) foolishly bets her house in an ill-advised Cake Contest wager with mean, self righteous Aunt La Merle (Lee Helder) and "high jinks ensue," as they say. The web of revenge/lust/cake/crime/missing eyeballs... is not something you want explained here. It's enough to know that this is silly fun from the get-go, with treats like Winifred Olds as CeeCee, a sort of Texas-hick Martha Stewart TV hostess — Colleen Patton as Peaches the sex-starved mortuarial cosmetologist — Jan Ross as the unibrowed Jimmie Wynette fighting with Susan Derosa as bitchy Bitsy — Sue Chmurynsky as a German psychologist who starts out prim, but just wait... ‚ geriatric lovebirds Harlow Claggett chasing Mary Herrbach — Bob Murrell as the green-haired weirdo who gets his kicks taking photos of dead people — Carl Sodman trying to bring a little law and order to this bunch — and Michael Hays, coming full circle from his impressive "full spinach" role as the evil Heydrich in Conspiracy last fall at RWT, to a "full-cake" wacko performance as a goofy one-eyed suitor.

Mitch Stutes a.k.a. Jonathan Stars

Details: Category: Announcements; Created on Saturday, 12 May 2012 23:49; Written by Jonathan Stars

Mitch Stutes (a.k.a. Jonathan Stars) is a sometime actor and son of Marion Stutes who was active years ago at LCP and was great in the old Social Security Scandals... ANYway, Mitch has written a BOOK -- that's to be featured by the same Café Scientifique that featured RWT's Copenhagen last month. SO, a semi-theatre related event that promises to be intriguing:

On Tuesday, May 15, at 7:00 PM, I will be giving a special technology presentation at Schuler Books, and I'll also introduce my Sci-Fi/Mystery novel "N-hanced." I will have a few copies of an advance edition available for $12 (it's $20 + shipping on Amazon under the title "2035." You can get the Kindle version for $4.99.)

Cafe Scientifique is part of LCC Science Department's outreach program. My presentation is titled, "THE FUTURE OF MANKIND: The merging of man and machine. Will we be the Borg?"

"Phantom of the Opera"

Details: Category: Jane's Reviews; Created on Tuesday, 08 May 2012 09:12; Written by Jane Zussman

We usually don't attend High School shows -- too many OTHer shows on our docket, but Bob Mellor, a very experienced and sophisticated theatre-goer, told us we had to catch Grand Ledge HS's Phantom of the Opera, which he rated "as good as a Wharton professional touring show." And he was right. Wow. I had heard they raised $80,000 to produce this show, which seemed over the top and I wondered if high school performers could measure up to the cost of the professional backdrops, special effects and costumes, hiring a string section to augment the 34-piece orchestra…but they did. And what was even more amazing is that the leads (except "Raoul"/Tyler) were double cast. The phenomenal singers Bob was raving about were not the same phenomenal ones we saw at the next day's matinee. Kudos to Robert Mueller, Tim Wright, Linda Burns, Erin Fillingham, Tyler Lorencen, Mara Carter, Nicole Paparelli -- and their brave director Steve Delp, and all who contributed both talent and $$ to this wonderful production. The show we saw was sold out, and it's over now -- but will never be forgotten by those who were part of it.

TYSP Auditions for "Based on a Totally True Story"

Details: Category: Audition Notices; Created on Tuesday, 08 May 2012 09:12; Written by Jane Zussman

For the Renegade Theatre Festival this summer, Touch Your Soul Productions will be doing "Based on a Totally True Story" by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.

AUDITIONS will be May 29th and callbacks will be May 31st.

The parts are:

Ethan - Playwright and comic book writer
Michael - Ethan's boyfriend, also a writer
Tyler - Editor at DC Comics
Mary - Movie producer in Hollywood
Dad - Ethan's dad who is going through a divorce
Apple Boy - Works at Apple Store in SoHo, hates his job
Kim's Guy - Works at a video store, loves his job
Hot L.A. Guy - Hot actor

Pulsar Awards to be held at Riverwalk Theatre

Details: Category: Announcements; Created on Tuesday, 08 May 2012 09:12; Written by Jane Zussman

Lansing City Pulse's PULSAR AWARDS will be held at Riverwalk Theatre this year -- a free-of-charge event, less elaborate than those of previous seasons.
Pulsar Awards Ceremony
Monday, June 11, 2012
6:00pm
Admission is FREE. Reservations are not needed.Come out and take one last look at the 2011-2012 theatre season in this ceremony honoring shows throughout the Lansing area.

NOTE that Riverwalk's BARNEY AWARDS will be at 8pm the following Saturday at Riverwalk with a music entertainment program directed by Jane Falion and a reception to follow. This is also free of charge -- and honors shows in the Riverwalk season only.

Greater Lansing Ubiquitous Theatre (G.L.U.T.) Online --- Editor-in-Chief: Jane Zussman --- Published by: Aaron Herrbach

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