“Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da
Funk” Ahmanson Theater, through Feb. 15 (213)
628-6772
A word like “tap” cannot possibly begin to describe
it.
What tap dance marvel Savion Glover does with his feet is at
once furious and beautiful. His feet move with such rhythmic
precision and electricity that it’s almost difficult for the
mind to completely process the tornado of movement.
And when Glover is backed up by the company in this musical he
choreographed and George C. Wolfe directed, it’s a rare,
impeccably-timed, dynamic merging of dance, music and history.
The musical follows the beat of African American culture from
slavery to the funk and noise of the New York streets. In
“Urbanization,” drummers and tap dancers perform on a
large metal structure, using sound and movement to recreate a
machine, showing African Americans’ role in the symbolic
machine of industry.
While thoughtful and informative, the show is full of comic
moments. This includes “The Uncle Huck-A-Buck Song” in
which Glover, with a curly-haired life-size doll attached to his
hands and feet, does a spoof of Shirley Temple dancing with Uncle
Huck-A-Buck, performed by Marshall Davis, Jr. Uncle Huck-A-Buck
represents actor/dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson.
While the music and songs would not provoke you to buy the
soundtrack, the incredible percussion work of bucket drummers Jared
“Choclatt” Crawford and Raymond A. King more than makes
up for whatever the music lacks.
And not enough can be said for the sensational Glover. Many
productions have been performed without Glover at the helm since he
originated the show on Broadway in the ’90s, but with him
back in swing, it’s something you should see.
“Pages of My Diary I’d Rather Not
Read” Hudson Mainstage Theatre, through Feb. 23 (323)
856-4200
Don’t be put off by the cheesy music video routine to
Pink’s “Dear Diary” in the opening (and closing)
of this funny, creative one-act.
Whenever the three cast members stay clear of synchronized
movements to bad pop songs, the production shines in its biting,
sarcastic wit.
The production is a pastiche of three young women reading pages
of their diaries, mostly caustic rantings about annoying people on
the 405, fathers gone astray, or boyfriends turned gay.
At times, the hard-nosed attitudes and constant complaining
becomes whiny and one-leveled, but for the most part the bitter
diatribes appeal to the misanthrope in all of us.
UCLA alumna Bree Turner pulls off Ivy, the suit-clad writer with
a chip on her shoulder who revels in her “brilliant”
ideas for TV shows. Betsie Devan plays Jane, the bubbly gal with a
ponytail, who reveals her wish for people who use car windows to
display Beanie Babies and Garfields to die a slow death.
Eydie Faye, the playwright, truly stands out among the trio as
Esther, a tough Jewish New Yorker who would be happy if she could
just play a dead crack whore on “Law and Order.” Faye
doesn’t miss a beat with her quippy zingers while she brings
dimension to the play with heartfelt monologues.
Faye has artfully constructed the monologues with an energetic
flow. The actors have also skillfully timed their lines to make an
entertaining 90-minute collage of the female psyche, even if it is
accompanied at times by the Pink music.