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KPFA - Bay Area Theater

KPFA - Bay Area Theater

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 Bay Area theatre reviews with KPFA theatre critic Richard Wolinsky, plus interviews with local Artistic Directors, actors and directors. Older posts include interviews witth former associate KPFA theatre critic C.S. Soong. Dates when reviews airs can be found at http://bookwaves.homestead.com/Theatre_Reviews.html2026KPFA 312700 Political Science Politics & Government
Episodes
  • Review: “A Streetcar Named Desire” at ACT Toni Rembe Theatre

    Review: “A Streetcar Named Desire” at ACT Toni Rembe Theatre
    Jan 27 2026
    KPFA Theatre Critic Richard Wolinsky reviews the Streetcar Project’s production of “A Streetcar Named Desire” by Tennessee Williams at ACT Toni Rembe Theatre through February 1, 2026. TEXT OF REVIEW (some changes were made during recording and cuts for timing were made for radio). ​​​​​The greatest of plays often allow for multiple interpretations. We see that all the time in Shakespeare. We see it in Arthur Miller, in the musicals of Rodgers and Hammerstein, even in August Wilson. And of course we see it in Tennessee Williams. Most interpretations of Williams’ second play, A Streetcar Named Desire, are inhibited by the famous movie, which catapulted Marlon Brando to fame. It’s hard to see Blanche Dubois beyond Vivien Leigh’s faded Southern belle, and it’s even harder to see the crude Stanley Kowalski past Brando’s scream of “Stella!” But those interpretations, however close to Williams’ wishes, obscure the play’s lyricism and more to the point, his greatest creation, Blanche Dubois. This production by The Streetcar Project, now at ACT’s Toni Rembe Theatre through February 1st, which has played in a variety of site-specific spaces, changes the paradigms, first by removing all props and sets, and second by discardmg the characters’ accents, particularly that of Blanche Dubois, played by project co-creator, Lucy Owen. In addition, the full text has been restored. In this production, the stage area is fully open, bounded on three sides by two rows of audience members on folding chairs. Characters wander on and off stage, their voices carry but their bodies are sometimes hard to find.. it can feel like a reading, a radio play, but not always, and not in Act Two. What this shows now is that Streetcar is clearly Blanche’s play. Whether with her sister, Stella, beautifully embodied by Heather Lind – their sisterhood is palpable, or with Mitch, Stanley’s friend who falls for Blanche, played by James Russell as a product of his era, or with the brutal Stanley, performed by Brad Koed, who never quite escapes Brando. Without the accent, without the affectations, Lucy Owen’s Blanche is revealed as brilliant, incisive, misunderstood and wronged. Her lies are no longer signs of weakness; they’re not delusional; they’re necessary for her survival, and the survival of her pride. It’s a fascinating interpretation, which Williams’ poetic dialogue om;y amplifies. She’s caught in the trap of her times, and it’s brought her down low. While much is gained here, something is also lost. Concessions to time and place come from the sound system and from costumes, but much of the action becomes incomprehensible without visible cues and with only the four actors. The giant stage, the cavernous theatre weaken the passion between Stella and Stanley. Chemistry vanishes when characters seem a football field apart. Would such a strong Blanche break so thoroughly at the end of the play? But whatever those issues, this is a Streetcar well worth visiting in its short run, through February 1st. For more information, you can go to act-sf.org. I’m Richard Wolinsky on Bay Area theatre for KPFA. The post Review: “A Streetcar Named Desire” at ACT Toni Rembe Theatre appeared first on KPFA.
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    3 mins
  • Review: “Sunday in the Park with George” at Shotgun Players Ashby Stage

    Review: “Sunday in the Park with George” at Shotgun Players Ashby Stage
    Dec 10 2025
    KPFA Theatre Critic Richard Wolinsky reviews “Sunday in the Park with George” at Shotgun Players Ashby Stage extended through January 31, 2026. Text of Review: The late great composer lyricist Stephen Sondheim tackled a variety of subjects in his work, from an examination of relationships in Company to obsession in Passion, to gun culture in Assassins But two shows seem a bit more autobiographical, Merrily We Roll Along, which incorporates elements of his own life, and Sunday in the Park with George, which examines the role of the artist, both as creator and promoter. Because of the large cast and the giant canvas of the show itself, pun intended, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Sunday in the Park is usually presented in large venues. Now Shotgun Players has taken on the Pulitzer Prize winning musical in the moreintimate confines of the Ashby Stage in Berkeley, running through January 31st, 2026. Musically, lyrically, in most ways, Sunday in the Park is sui generis. Act One focuses in on the creation by Geroge Seurat of his room sized masterpiece, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, while Act Two takes place a century later as another George, his great-grandson attempts to get funding for his own art exhibit. Critics, money, getting it right, painting the perfect hat. The songs themselves serve as musical counterparts to the pointillist art George Seurat is creating on stage. The late Steven Sondheim: (actuality) As with all Sondheim musicals, lyrical precision takes as much precedence as singing voice and acting. This particular show also requires harmonies that blend together into something gorgeous and almost unearthly. Here, the Shotgun production succeeds beautifully. It also succeeds with Kevin Singer in the lead role, who fully embodies both Georges with an almost innate sense of what the creators had intended. He is complemented by Mara Sotelo, whose voice enhances Sondheim’s most exquisite music. The intimacy is a different matter. A relatively small space is made smaller by putting audience members on both sides of the set, and when the entire cast is performing at once, it all feels cluttered and chaotic, actors seemingly tripping over one another. The duets, with the stage now empty, feel static. But the glorious music, the brilliant lyrics, the harmonies, the actors in the leading roles, and of course, \the play’s focus on art and artists, make this Sunday in the Park with George well worth visiting. Sunday in the Park with George plays at Shotgun Players Ashby Stage through January 31, 2026. For more information, you can go to shotgunplayers.org. I’m Richard Wolinsky on Bay Area theatre for KPFA The post Review: “Sunday in the Park with George” at Shotgun Players Ashby Stage appeared first on KPFA.
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    7 mins
  • James Lapine on his collaboration with Stephen Sondheim

    James Lapine on his collaboration with Stephen Sondheim
    Dec 10 2025
    A short excerpt from a 2019 interview with James Lapine, who collaborated with Stephen Sondheim on “Sunday in the Park with George” and “Into The Woods.” Sunday in the Park with George plays at Shotgun Players Ashby Stage through January 31, 2026. “Into the Woods” plays at San Francisco Playhouse through January 17, 2026. The post James Lapine on his collaboration with Stephen Sondheim appeared first on KPFA.
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    7 mins
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