Theater Listings

For the Week of Sept. 21-27

Comments (0) By Derek Thomas Tuesday, Sep 18 2007

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THE ROOT Greed is the vice in Gary Richards’ drama. ARK THEATER COMPANY, 1647 S. La Cienega Blvd., L.A.; Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 7 p.m.; thru Nov. 17. (323) 969-1707.

THE SPOT Danny LeGare’s coming-of-age dramedy set in a bar. THE BANSHEE (FORMERLY THE GENE BUA THEATRE), 3435 W. Magnolia Blvd., Burbank; Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; thru Sept. 22. (818) 761-6551.

GO SUFFRAGETTE KOANS See New Reviews.

Westside, Beaches

GO GULLIVER’S TRAVELS Joshua Zeller’s bawdy, scatological adaptation of Jonathan Swift’s political satire rockets by, yet loses none of its Augustan bite. Lemuel Gulliver (the likable Keythe Farley) is the ship surgeon who voyages to four “remote nations of the world,” finding, along the way, increasingly unflattering reflections of contemporary human behavior. Zeller’s telling of the classic only rarely strains to draw direct parallels with the 21st century, but by evening’s end, we don’t feel some sense of a larger story. P. Adam Walsh directs the enthusiastic ensemble. Actors’ Gang at the IVY SUBSTATION THEATER, 9070 Venice Blvd., Culver City; Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; thru Oct. 27. (310) 838-4264. (SM)

GO THE HASTY HEART In John Patrick’s sentimental play, produced on Broadway in 1945, director Michael Rothhaar offers such a restrained yet detailed staging, the three acts move swiftly. In a British army hospital in Burma during World War II, Yank (Keith Stevenson), Digger (Nathan Mobley), Kiwi (Michael Balsley) and Tommy (Ron E. Dickinson) cheerfully endure tropical heat and slow recoveries until the arrival of Lachy (the excellent Scott Jackson), a laconic, grumpy Scot. Only hard hearts will be able to resist the playwright’s belief in the redemptive power of friendship. PACIFIC RESIDENT THEATER, 703 Venice Blvd., Venice; Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru Oct. 14. (310) 822-8392. (David Mermelstein)

PRIVATE LIVES Noel Coward's comedy about exes honeymooning in the same hotel. LONG BEACH PLAYHOUSE, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; thru Sept. 29 (added perf Sept. 23, 2 p.m.). (562) 494-1014.

GO QUARTET German Heiner Müller’s adaptation of Choderlos de Laclos’ 18th-century novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses is a dense and poetical sequence of arias and dialogues spoken by two characters (Troy Dunn and Sharon Gardner), terrified of aging and playing out a jealousy duet. Set against the sky-blue backdrop of Charles A. Duncombe’s elegant production design, director Frederique Michel’s spectacle is as beautiful to watch as it is to hear. Michel’s overlay of Kabuki formalization helps elevate the lusty melodrama from a poem about the meaning of sex to one about the meaning of life. CITY GARAGE, 1340½ (alley) Fourth St., Santa Monica; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 5:30 p.m.; thru Sept. 23. (310) 319-9939. (SLM)

SYLVIE See New Reviews.

WATERMELON: Git It While It’s Hot! CeCe Antionette’s semiautobiographical one-woman show. FOUND THEATER, 599 Long Beach Blvd., Long Beach; Fri.-Sat., Sept. 21-22, 8 p.m. (562) 433-3363.

Special Events

DANCING QUEEN Cabaret dinner theater history of the Queen Mary cruise liner. Aboard the QUEEN MARY, 1126 Queens Hwy., Long Beach; Fri., 7:30 p.m.; Sat., 7 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m.; thru Nov. 18. (562) 435-3511 or www.tibbiescabaret.com.

MUSICAL REVUE Same-day-created play incorporating songs from three different musicals. CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LDS, 3400 Sawtelle Ave., L.A.; Sat., Sept. 22, 9 p.m.; free. (310) 397-3876.

NO SHAME THEATRE Fifteen scripts go from page to stage an hour before showtime. POWERHOUSE THEATRE, 3116 Second St., Santa Monica; Fri., Sept. 21, 11 p.m. (310) 396-3680.

ONE NIGHT STANDS UPRIGHT! Cabaret presents David Burnham. MARK’S RESTAURANT, 861 N. La Cienega Blvd., W. Hlywd.; Sat., Sept. 22, 9 p.m. (310) 652-5252 or www.marksrestaurant.com.

SPONTANEOUS FANTASIA J. Walt Adamczyk’s musical-visual-theatrical extravaganza. GLENDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE PLANETARIUM, 1500 N. Verdugo Rd., Glendale; Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 6:30 & 8 p.m.; thru Nov. 10. (626) 688-0778 or www.spontaneousfantasia.com.

WHEN DIVAS WERE DIVAS: Remembering . . . Their Lives, Their Way Tribute to Lena Horne, Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Josephine Baker and Sarah Vaughan. PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY, SMOTHERS THEATRE, 24255 Pacific Coast Hwy., Malibu; Sat., Sept. 22, 8 p.m. (310) 506-4522 or www.pepperdine.edu/arts.

—Compiled by Derek Thomas

Theater listings are also online at www.laweekly.com/stage.