| Monday, February 16, 2009 |
| The search for intelligent life in St. Petersburg |
One thing I always notice when I'm here in Florida is that the local media refers to this region as "the bay area," or sometimes "the Bay area." Back home in California, the papers always call our part of the country "the Bay Area" -- note the caps. We're not modest! San Francisco is the City in the Bay Area! All others are mere pretenders!
Spending more time here, however, has proven that there is some culture here beyond Kenny G at the Mahaffey Theater or, heaven forfend, "Gilligan's Island: The Musical." I saw an ad for a local production of "King Hedley II" by August Wilson, and immediately got excited because of my previously stated goal to see all 10 plays in Wilson's Century Cycle ("Hedley" is the 1980s installment). I will admit that I assumed it would be super easy to get tickets for a serious piece of theater here, but no, when I went online to buy, the shows were essentially sold out. Undaunted, I figured I'd just show up at the box office an hour before Saturday's showtime, and luckily, a couple of great tickets had just been turned in.
The American Stage Theater seems to produce a mix of what I suppose could be called crowd-pleasing plays ("Tuesdays with Morrie," "A Tuna Christmas") and more challenging work ("Lysistrata"). They are going to be presenting all ten of Wilson's Century Cycle plays over the next decade, so lucky St. Pete residents are guaranteed to be able to see them all. And they should, because the production of "King Hedley II" was absolutely top-notch, brilliantly directed (by Bob Devin Jones) and acted. It's a three-hour play about a Pittsburgh ex-con who wants to open a video store, but in that economically challenged era, the only way he knows how to raise the money is by selling stolen refrigerators and robbing a jewelry store. The play has a small and nimble cast of six, all of whom do an amazing job in this emotionally draining show (Alan Bomar Jones, as aging hustler Ellmore, was especially good). I'm sorry I'll miss their production of "Fences" this coming September. And considering the strong community support American Stage receives, I shall no longer be a San Francisco theater snob when I visit this bay area -- I'll be checking the web to see what play they're putting on, and buying tickets far in advance! |
posted by 125records @ 8:03 AM  |
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Name: Sue
Home: San Francisco Bay Area, California, United States
About Me: Email me: talk at interbridge dot com
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