Mr. Drama himself, Samwise Gamgee aka SammyI have been on a quest to enlighten myself to new adventures these last few months, with some travel, wine tastings, museums, and theater. Last week my husband and I went to see a play put on by the 3-2-1 Children's Theater. All proceeds of the event supported that local theater group, which is run surprisingly by an 18 year-old woman, who has been directing plays for this group since she was 14. The talent that these children have is utterly amazing! The sets and costumes were designed by the young actors, parents and local supporters of this children's theater group.
This weekend Tim and I had the chance to see, in limited release at the Buena Park Community Recreation Center, a play put on by the All American Melodrama Theater in Long Beach called, My Big Fat OC Wedding The Musical. Let me start off by saying, this was one of the most enjoyable experiences I've had an a long time! Unfortunately for everyone the curtain closes on the show August 27th. The writing by Kevin Park was ingenious! I don't think I've laughed so hard in a long time. No section of Orange County was safe from ridicule. I found myself nudging my husband, who did grow up in the OC, every few minutes. The play was about a rich man, Darren Deed, from South Orange County, Irvine to be exact, who falls for Mia Lott (Me A Lot, get it) from the not so exclusive, Buena Park. For the Long Beach production, I think the characters were from the OC and the IE, but were changed to represent Buena Park.
Audience participation is required to achieve the full experience. Our audience last night was moderately engaged, not, by any means, the fault of the actors. I booed at the villain, cheered for the hero and awed for the Buena Park Princess who worked at Medieval Times Dinner and Show (LOL).
By far, my FAVORITE characters were Leena Lot (Lean A Lot get it), Mia's mom, and Aunt Lottie, Mia's aunt. At one point Aunt Lottie uses "Sassafras Pants" in one of her lines. Anything that ends with the word pants has me rolling on the floor in a fit of laughter. As I myself try use either, fancy pants, honey pants, nah-nee pants, and kristy pants on a regular basis. Is there anyway I can copyright the word pants? I don't think so, just wondering :-)
As I said earlier, the play ends tonight. If My Big Fat OC Wedding, is any indication of what comes out of the All American Melodrama Theater in Long Beach, they can guarantee that I will be a regular attendee. I'm not going to give you all the upcoming shows, but I will include the link to their website so that you can check it out for yourself , and I will tell you that I'll be seeing both their upcoming Halloween and Christmas Shows.
The cost of the shows in Long Beach are $20 and you do have the option of purchasing "dinner" separately. I use quotes because from their menu it looks more like snack type foods, but who cares, everything is reasonably priced. Last night's show lasted roughly two hours, just the perfect amount of time. I'll say one thing for sure, it didn't seem like we were sitting there for two hours. On a side note each act was short (only 2 acts) with one 15 minute intermission in between. After the final act there is one more 15 minute intermission and the a Special Vaudeville Comedy Revue, considered to be Act III. I'm not sure if they do this for all their shows, but we'll see in October.
This show gets 4 out of 5 Gerber Daisies. Only because I wish the actors came out a little further into the crowd. (There was some crowd involvement) and the first two acts were better than the third, the special vaudeville comedy revue.
As always I'll leave you with a quote, this time by British actor Kenneth Haigh, You need three things in the theater--the play, the actors and the audience and each must give something.
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