posts about shows at Harlequin Productions
By KAREN LUNDE What’s the difference between data and emotion? That’s the question Aaron Lamb plans to explore as director of Harlequin’s upcoming production of Love and Information, a fast-moving, experimental play by British writer Caryl Churchill. Its over-100 characters are usually portrayed by an ensemble of 20 or more actors. Harlequin will stage its …
THEATER REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Neil Simon, Jason Haws, Harlequin Productions. That alone should be enough to convince theater lovers to buy tickets to I Ought to be in Pictures. A typical Simon comedy/drama, this lovely little show elicits laughter, and it is human drama as true as true can be — …
By Noah Shachar Theater lives and thrives in Olympia, thanks partly to the talent at Harlequin Productions. After a strong 2018 season, I Ought to Be in Pictures will open in mid-January 2019 to further the company’s high, artistic precedent. Written by acclaimed playwright Neil Simon, the play follows Hollywood screenwriter Herb after he re-encounters …
By Billy Thomas This holiday season, Harlequin Productions goes back in time to present the return of The 1940s Radio Hour. First gracing the Harlequin stage 22 years ago, Radio Hour inspired the launch of the iconic and successful Stardust series. The show replaces Stardust in Harlequin’s 2018-2019 lineup. Aaron Lamb, acting artistic director for …
THEATER REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Dry Powder is billed as a comedy, and yes there is a lot of humor in this tale of high-finance shenanigans. But there’s a lot of searing drama as well, as Jenny (the versatile Helen Harvester), Jeff (the comedic Ryan Holmberg), Seth (film actor Brian S. Lewis) …
By Christian Carvajal In a surprise August move, Harlequin Productions cancelled its original play choice for October, the Chicago crime drama A Steady Rain. In an interview with Molly Gilmore for The Olympian, Harlequin’s associate artistic director, Aaron Lamb, characterized Rain as “not the story we wanted to be telling at this moment.” Instead, actor-director …
THEATER REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS The subtitle “the stage mother of all musicals” only begins to hint at what this campy musical is all about. It is a parody on just about everything, from Gypsy and Mame to The Bad Seed and all About Eve, and most of the female actors belt …
by Tom Simpson On August 16, Harlequin Productions opens the musical Ruthless! – The Stage Mother of all Musicals. Ruthless! is a unique all female musical. The story spoofs the genre of classic Broadway musicals that feature an ambitious young female lead, embodied by well-known shows like Annie, Gypsy and Mame, as well as movies that embody this genre, like All About …
Theater Review by NED HAYES Harlequin’s summer revue — The Magical Mystery Midsummer Musical — has more depth to it than may first appear. The overarching thread is that of magic, and audiences might do well to think of themselves as being backstage at Queen Titania’s Royal Court of Fey, experiencing a midsummer amusement designed for the faerie. …
By ALEC CLAYTON This summer Harlequin Productions celebrates 30 years of music by Bruce Whitney, who started as a rock musician and has arranged, conducted and performed music for the company since its beginning. “As of August this year,” says Harlequin cofounder and Bruce’s sister-in-law, Linda Whitney, “Bruce will have been composing music for theater …