THELMA AND LOUISE : TL;DR: THELMA AND LOUISE: DYKE REMIX” DIVERSIONARIES QUEER VERSION OF THE SAME BUT NOT THE SAME.

For those of you who thought Thelma and Louise of the movie died when they went over a cliff at the Grand Canyon while police were in pursuit, think again. 

Yup, they are alive and well as lesbians in their blue ‘66 T Bird in their afterlife. Think if you will, that what we expect, isn’t always what we get. 

Good news/Bad news: I remember the movie: Good news.  The only thing I remember about it is the ending: Bad news. The good news is that “TL; DL, Thelma and Louise: Dyke Remix” is full of surprises. 

The two protagonists Sophia Araujo-Johnson and Sara Porkalob are talented as are the high energy and very loud band members. T is sweet and  naive and L's bestie. L  is protective of her best friend'. 'The Basass Band is a  rock band made up of folks who are not cis men.'

Sophia Araujo-Johnson and Sara Porkalob

 The film is about girlfriends Thelma and Louise our co hero’s. In the play Thelma or T (Sophia Araujo-Johnson) and L …you get the point (Sara Porkalob) are on a journey to discover ‘Is there a right or wrong way to be gay?” 

Several years in the making, this world premiere production  with book and lyrics by Ella Rose Chary, music and lyrics by Brandon James Gwinn and directed by Sherri Eden Barber, “TL; Thelma and Louise: Dyke Remix” is a co -production with Moxie Theatre. Now executive director Jenny Chase and interim artistic director Stephen Brotebeck are completing what former artistic director Matt Morrow started before the pandemic. 

Sophia Araujo-Johnson and Sara Porkalob

Back to the story. TL are not alone in making decisions as to the right or wrong way to be queer. There are  the band members to consider: Marie (Lyric Boothe), guitar, Henrietta (Faith Carrion), aux instruments, Blazer (MG Green) bass and  Cubby (Steph Lehane.), drums. They all have their own ideas and have no trouble expressing them with song, dance and prance.

They sing and act out about 16 or 17 musical numbers. Unfortunately, the sound was  too loud the night I attended. The autistics as well were  not very good so that yours truly could barely understand a word. I did however get the gist of the first number: “Why Do Strong Female Characters Always Gotta Die?” Good question.

Sara Porkalab

Along with their gay Encyclopedia “Lesbiannica” and some animation, a few characters dressed in furry overstuffed costumes, (a la lobster and unicorn) and quite a few F bombs, “TL; DR Thelma and Louise: Dyke Remix”  plus the band, rolled merrily along finding their way to a happy ending with the understanding that to be Queer is whatever you want it to be. 

Define it. Be it. Live it. Love it. Their quest to find the answers took about 90 minutes and then some.

Both Sophia Araujo-Johnson and Sarah Porkalob do great work as T&L. Both seasoned and looking great.  Much of what they have to go through seems tricky but they were able to make the journey into the Dyke Remix feel real.  

Lyric Boothe, MG Green, Faith Carrion, Steph LeHane, Sophia Araujo-Johnson

And while I did not hear the words to most of the lyrics, “The World Is Our Oyster”, “Love Yourself”, “Let’s Keep Going”, as listed in the program, all seemed like a good beginning. 

The creative team: Steven Leffue, Sound Design; Annelise Salazar, Co-Lighting Design; Colby Freel, Co-Lighting Design; Chanel Mahoney, Costume Design; Yi - Chien Lee, Scenic Design; Sierra, Projection Design, Leah Osterman, Projection Design; Jasmine Villalino, Stage Manager. 

As in all new works TL; Thelma and Louise: Dyke Remix” will need some fine tuning by taking what they have now and elevating it to something bigger, with more depth added to the story.  

Enjoy.

See you at the theatre, 

Through June 9. 7 p.m. Thursdays; 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays

Where: Diversionary Theatre, 4545 Park Blvd., University Heights

Tickets: $26.50-$71.50

Phone: (619) 220-0097

Photo: Talon Reed Cooper

Online: diversionary.org

 

“NEXT TO NORMAL” : EVERY FAMILY HAS ONE

I may be prejudice, but “Next To Normal”, with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey, musical staging by Sergio Trujillo and music by Tom Kitt is one of my all-time favorite Tony Award winning shows.

“Next To Normal” opened on Broadway in 2009 and was nominated for eleven 2009 Tony Awards and won three, Best Score, Best Orchestration and Best Actress in a Musical for Ms. Ripley. Just for the frosting on the cake it also won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It will be playing at The Oceanside Theatre in Oceanside through May 26th. 

Someone must be paying attention. 

Danny Holmes, Melissa Fernandes and Berto Fernandez

Family illness is at the core of this heartwarming, touching yet gut wrenching and brilliant musical, bordering on operatic (it’s considered a rock opera) proportions. With and Melissa Fernandes and Berto Fernandez in the leads, this production pulses energy throughout.

Melissa Fernandes, Berto Fernandez, Salema Gangani

The story centers on Diana Goodman (Melissa Fernandes) at the heart of the Goodman family. The glue that holds it together, for better or worse, is her husband Dan (Berto Fernandez) 

For eighteen years the Goodman family, for reasons you will learn when you see the play yourself, has been struggling to cope with Diana’s Bipolar disease, anxiety and the trickle down effects of a series of mental disabilities, much to the detriment of their daughter Natalie (Salima Gangani) and son Gabe, (Danny Holmes) “Super Boy and the Invisible Girl”, and husband Dan.  

Melissa’s voice is vibrant, pulsating, solid and on mark. Her portrayal of Diana is heartbreaking, somewhat like an open wound that won’t heal. She is a lost soul deep in her schizophrenia with moments of lucidness that conjure both pathos and humor much to the credit of Yorkey’s lyrics.

Daniel Filippi,  Danny Holmes, Melissa Fernandes

Her interpretation of “I Miss The Mountains, I Miss The Pain”, where she recognizes that ‘everything is perfect, nothing is real”…and she misses her life, just about sums up her tortured and drug laden mind. It gives us insight to her agony. On the outside, she goes through the motions but just beneath the surface there is a ticking time bomb ready to explode at any moment. 

No one dies of an incurable illness in “Next To Normal”. The sickness that’s paralyzing this suburban family is a silent killer because it destroys life little by little red, green and white, chewable and swallow whole pill at a time. (“Who's Crazy/My Psycho pharmacologist”).

Melissa and Berto

Daniel Filippi making his Oceanside Theatre debut, is a perfect fit into this company’s rendering as one of Diana’s many psychiatrists. He has the look, the voice and the right comportment adding another dimension and a bit of comic relief to the role.  

Fernandez’ Dan, who has the patience of a saint, holds on desperately to what he thought he had and what he wants (“It’s Gonna Be Good”, “Better Than Before”). His performance is brilliant, painful and heartbreaking as he struggles, barely to keep it all together unerringly one breakdown at a time. His intense singing style, his words and emotions come on strong with eagerness and hope as he makes his way through the maze of his wife’s illness.  His, he relates after cleaning up from Diana’s attempt into the abyss, is just a slower suicide. (Catch Me I'm Falling"/“A Light in the Dark”).

Daniel Filippi and Melissa Fernandes

Salima Gangani’s Natalie gives a near perfect portrayal of the rebellious and musically talented teenager who finally comes back to the fold, from the devil you don’t know to the devil you do know.  (“Maybe/ Next to Normal”) Her soaring voice is beautiful with just the right amount truthfulness. Matching her in clarity and passion, as he moves when least expected in and out of their lives, touching them all, is Gabe (Danny Holmes), brother and son who holds the key to his families many secrets. (“I’m Alive”) His physical attributes, good looks and nimbleness give him the tools to tool around Reiko Huffman’s multi -tiered, wooden framed industrial looking set in the burbs.

Marion James Magtibay and Salima Gangani

Natalie’s stoner boyfriend, 16 year old Henry, comfortably played by Marlon James Magtibay, compliment the two as a they muddle through a budding relationship (“Super For You”) floundering and coming together. 

Fortunately for us director Frankie Errington, Dr. Randi Rudolph, Musical Director and Alyssa “Ajay” Junious, Movement Consultant formed the perfect troika to set into motion every step the cast took. 

Kevin “Blax” Burroughs’ lighting design created a ‘light unto the world’ as most of the characters has some sort of light object either on them or were arranging tiny lights in the outline of their suburban  home brought both light and darkness into this somber look at the underside of mental illness, yet always with a ray of hope at the end of the tunnel.  Props and set dressings where ‘things’ were stored or kept, and arranged by McKenna Foote. 

Zoë  Trautmann designed the current day clothing.

In the background the five piece band with Dr. Randi Rudolph conducting and on Piano, Nikko Nobleza on Guitar, Jared Pasimio on Bass, Mike Dooley on Drums and Abigail Allwein on Violin. 

Danny Holmes, Marion James Magtibay, Melissa, Salima Gangani and Daniel Filippi

Staging a musical about mental illness might not be for everyone, but I would recommend this one highly. Pulling the covers over our heads is not an option for helping someone in need and someone is in need every moment of every day. 

See you at the theatre.

When: 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays; through May 24

Where: Oceanside Theatre Co. at the Brooks Theater, 217 N. Coast Highway, Oceanside

Tickets: $40 

Photo: Ken Jacques

Online: oceansidetheatre.org 

Family, Friction, Food and Frolic All Jam Packed into “Stir” at The Old Globe.

The Old Globe in Balboa Park is mounting a world premiere production of “Stir” on the Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre in the round through May 26th. Deftly directed by Marcela  Lorca  and co-written by friends Melinda Lopez (Mariana) and Joel Perez (Henry), who also co- star. “Stir” is about food, family, frolic and  friction.

Melinda Lopez, Al Rodrigo, Joel Perez

Food has always been a panacea for love for my family. As a youngster I remember my grandmother (Bubbie) standing over a large pot of chicken soup all day long skimming the fat off the top. My guess is that her mother before her did the same; my mother did it and so did yours truly up to a point. My Dad owned a grocery and Deli and his love of food was in the way he handled it. My oldest daughter bakes Challah, my youngest daughter is a chef by profession and my middle daughter is always praised for her BBQ chicken. You might have noticed that the person writing this has absolutely no cooking prowess and she likes it that way. 

"Stirs" center is about many things: an old family recipe, ‘Classic Cuban Black Beans’ (the recipe is in the program) that brother and sister remember was the food the family ate when funds were low and when on camping trips in the White Mountains of New Hampshire when they were young; the Pandemic, isolation, and memories. 

Joel Perez with green pepper

As adults, Mariana lives in Upstate N.Y. with her soon to be divorced husband (their 2 adult daughters are out of the house) and Henry lives in Orlando, Fla. with their father, Papi (an authentic Al Rodrigo) in a senior retirement home. He went there to help his father with his sick mother and never left. Add to that the isolation brought on us by the Pandemic and you have a lot going on in this 90 or so minute show.  

Henry is gay and single right now. Both he and his father wrangle about where to scatter their mother’s ashes. Henry wants to spread his mother’s ashes in N.H. (his happy place) to finally put her to rest. Papi is not  O.K. with that. Now, ‘stir’ in the fact that the country has just gone through the roughest years of Covid 19, their mother's death. Mariana is still frozen in time. She has not left her house in 4 months and has  gone through cash and personal items like her car to pay for the divorce and is ready to sell their mother’s prized piano. 

Joel Perez, Melinda Lopez and Al Rodrigo

Brother and sister communicate through Zoom while sharing the Black Bean recipe. Yes, they are actually cooking on stage every step of the way. We see the steam coming from the fry pan, smell the onions as they are being diced and watch them ‘Stir’ the pot so as not to let anything burn especially their emotions.  

Commissioned by the Old Globe in their ‘Powers New Voices Festival’ along with “English’ and “Age Of innocence”, “Stir” was a  long time coming (16 weeks) because  both friends were out of work due to Covid. So, what do creative friends, living in different parts of the country, do? Why they Zoom. 

Melinda Lopez on Zoom

Just as an FYI, I still do Zoom classes with my friends, but we know in advance what we will be talking about. In “Stir’, it’s a crap shoot as to what will come up between sharing and cooking a recipe, airing out events that happened between siblings with different memories (I have that in my house)  

while still keeping the conversations and tensions above board before closing the computer down.

Scenic designer Diggle and Production Stage Manager Chandra R.M.S Anthenill cleverly designed the set so that there are two working tables almost mirroring each other with ingredients for the bean recipe, pots, pans, running water,  stove top, storage areas and space for the actors to move around in their ‘own space while never getting in the others’ way. They also carry their laptops so there is continuing talking to each other. Some of the script calls for Spanish but not so that an audience member would have to understand, it goes in and out so fast. 

Credit to lighting designer, Cha See, costumes by Christopher Vergara, and sound by Fabian Obispo. 

Joel Perez and Melinda Lopez

“Stir’ is both charming and funny, has great energy, and brings the past into view, all with a different take. Yes, we all felt isolated, frustrated, and lived in fear, but as we move on, we can look back and assess where we are now, and hopefully smile at our progress and the silly things we did to keep the home fires burning. "Stir" does all that and some.

Enjoy!

See you at the theatre.

When: Runs through May 26. 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays 

Where: Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, @The Old Globe.

 1363 Old Globe Way, Balboa Park

Tickets: $33 and up

Phone: (619) 234-5623

Photo: Rich Soublet II

Online: theoldglobe.org