Santa Cruz Theater

2010 GOLD AWARDS
It's that time again! We couldn't possibly let awards season pass without recognizing Santa Cruz's best coffeehouses, donuts, dive bars, yoga studios, solar companies, neighborhoods, karaoke nights .... you get the picture.
Results will be announced in our March 31st issue. Last day to vote: Feb. 24.

Click here to vote. Don't forget to vote for your favorite Theater Troupe *cough-Someone Else's Clothes-cough*

The Willing Suspension Armchair Theatre

What: Gary Young & Maria Elena Caballero-Robb bring students from Georgiana Bruce Kirby Preparatory School to read poetry and other literature on themes of their concerns.

When: 7:30 PM, Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, March 1st, 2nd and 3rd.

Where: Capitola Book Café,, 1475 41st Ave, Capitola; Monday, March 1,

and Santa Cruz Actors’ Theater 1001 Center Street, Santa Cruz;

Tuesday & Wednesday, March 2 & 3

Cost: donation will be shared with a project chosen by the students.

Information: www.santacruzactorstheatre.org/
Business Office: Gerry Gerringer, 831-425-1003

Don't miss your chance to be captivated by this cozy, mystery-comedy, dinner-theater piece!

Come see Norman Beim's "Jewel Thieves: A Preposterous Comedy" , directed by Steve Brenner and produced by "Head-Elf" Rita Wadsworth of Elf Empire Productions http://www.elfempire.com/

Three Sundays only: March 7, 14, and 28, 2010.
For reservations please call Peachwoods @ Pasatiempo: 426-6333.
Dinner seating: 5:30 p.m. with a special stimulus price of only $40.00
Price includes: show, dinner, tax, and gratuity!

A stranded stranger, Harold Busby, (Dennis Vierra) is invited into the elegant country home of retired film legend, Gloria Desmond, (Tara McMilin) where he encounters a mysterious countess (Elizabeth Hammock) and a substitute butler (Chris Arias). Suspicions arise about everyone's identity and purpose in the home. The intrigue and the laughs build as all attention turns to Gloria's precious jeweled Mandarin Necklace.

The Valley Press called the 2003 Santa Cruz production of JEWEL THIEVES “...a glittering feast…a hilarious ride to what becomes a full fledged mystery.”

Come join us for the newest romantic heartfelt comedy,"ROSE'S DILEMMA", in its Northern California premiere by one of America's greatest playwrights, Neil Simon. The author of such Broadway hits, "The Odd Couple", and "The Goodbye Girl". Find out what happens when the ghost husband of fame author, Rose Steiner, visits her nightly trying to convince her to finish the novel he was writing before he died.

Opening Valentine's Day weekend at the Broadway Playhouse, 526 Broadway, Santa Cruz California February 12th thru February 28th. Thursday, Friday, Saturday 8pm; Sunday matinee 3pm. $16 General, $14 Seniors, Thursday all tickets $12. For advance tickets brownpapertickets.com. Or at the door. Visa and Mastercard accepted. Box office opens 7pm; Sundays 2pm.

This was a nice surprise

From Ann Bennett today in the Santa Cruz Sentinel year end theater review:

"Another of the year's surprises was the appearance of a new company calling itself Someone Else's Clothes, which produced the evocative "Seascape with Sharks and Dancer" at the Broadway Playhouse. The lovely little drama, carefully directed by Manuel Yoro, was sprinkled with rich touches of comedy, and featured powerful and touching performances by Annie Sell and Chris Arias."

Goobye 2009, Hello 2010!!!

2009 turned out to be a pretty good year. Got myself published in "Kiss or Kill: Contact Scenes of Love and Strife for Young Actors" by Wilma Marcus Chandler and Steve Ramshur. Then (with Chris Arias), established "Someone Else's Clothes," a theater company here in Santa Cruz, California. We opened our inaugural production, Don Nigro's "Seascape with Sharks and Dancer," on September 25th, 2009 to great reviews:

New theater company opens with promise
By ANN BENNETT - Sentinel correspondent
Posted: 10/01/2009 01:30:18 AM PDT

One of the nicest things about reviewing theater is the occasional surprise -- the show that suddenly appears out of nowhere and knocks your socks off. A new theater company in Santa Cruz -- with the piquant name Someone Else's Clothes -- pulled off that trick last weekend with an engaging and absorbing drama that captivated a small crowd at the Broadway Playhouse at the Santa Cruz Art League.

Working in association with West Performing Arts, the company chose a small gem for its inaugural show -- but one that requires an unusually dramatic dedication by a cast of only two performers. The play, "Seascape with Sharks and Dancer," by Don Nigro, is a beautiful and evocative look at an unlikely relationship that develops between two young people of strikingly different backgrounds who meet under unusual circumstances -- and confront and comfort each other despite their conflicting views of life and commitment. It's a poignant drama that is taut with tension and sprinkled with delightful unexpected comedy.

Chris Arias is Ben, a serious 28-year-old aspiring novelist who supports himself by working as a librarian; Annie Sell is the 20-year-old Tracy, a lost and emotionally fragile drifter who crashes into Ben's life and changes his world.

Arias and Sell take to the stage with effortless ease, readily establishing the companionable magnetism of two actors who are able to work together with extraordinary comfort. Each establishes a richly believable character and never strays from that persona, giving the play an extraordinarily fine depth of emotion.

As Ben, Arias is a gentle romantic who finds the confrontational Tracy both appealing and frightening; his portrayal is rich and endearing as he tries to cope with the unexpected drama in his life and offer traditional comfort in a non-traditional situation. Arias is warmly restrained and shyly determined, and his occasional indulgence in humorous observation provides wonderfully funny and unanticipated comedy.

It is Annie Sell's splendid performance, however, that propels the play. Sell captures Tracy's deep unhappiness and frenetic energy with beautiful conviction, and projects the young woman's pain and defensiveness relentlessly. From Tracy's coy and flirtatious attempts at control to her angry dismissals and rejections, Sell has the character nailed. Her vulnerable Tracy is on an emotional teeter-totter that could easily slide into a caricature of hysteria, and Sell keeps her in check with elegant control.

The couple is directed by Manuel Yoro with perfect timing and emphasis; the drama flows and cascades through the pair's tentatively developing trust -- and erupts spectacularly at intervals along the way.

The set no designer named is rich with detail and costumes by Amanda James are nicely appropriate.

"Seascape with Sharks and Dancer" is a fine script; playwright Nigro makes use of excellent dialogue to develop his story, and the comedy provides an unusually satisfying counterpoint to the drama. The play is powerful and touching, and Arias and Sell bring the characters to life with stark and compelling skill. It's a grand introduction for this new theater company -- let's hope that Someone Else's Clothes continues to offer such a great fit.



What's on tap for 2010? More writing, more directing, more producing and maybe a film? Keep following this blog throughout the year to keep updated on "Someone Else's Clothes" future productions and anything else that tickles my fancy.