osf | Dangerous Common Sense

“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Galen|2020-05-31T12:50:10-07:00May 31, 2020|osf, plays|

A Midsummer Night's Dream written by William Shakespearedirected by Joseph Haj Ashland, ORat the Oregon Shakespeare Festival A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2020): Jeremy Gallardo (Snug), K. T. Vogt (Robin Starveling), Cristofer Jean (Francis Flute), Ensemble. Photo by Jenny Graham, Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Oh dear! I really didn't want my last comments on this COVID-19 affected season to be anything but positive. I had hoped that I would see more plays later in the year that I could sincerely applaud. Unfortunately the virus shut down all but two weeks of the season, and what I saw opening weekend is all that [...]

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“Copper Children”

By Galen|2020-04-05T11:23:50-07:00April 5, 2020|osf, plays|

written by Karen Zacariasdirected by Shariffa Ali Ashland, ORat the Oregon Shakespeare Festival The Copper Children (2020): Ensemble. Photo by Jenny Graham, Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Copper Children has much going for it: an under-told, important story, a talented playwright who entertained and educated us with Destiny of Desire, and an experienced and immensely talented cast. Unfortunately, this world premiere wasted its assets and delivers an evening that is a moralistic plod which fails to create drama or feelings. The play tells the story is of white Catholic orphans from New York who get sent out west for adoption by good [...]

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“Bring Down the House, Part II”

By Galen|2020-03-22T15:35:08-07:00March 21, 2020|osf, plays|

by William Shakespeareadapted by Rosa Joshi and Kate Wisniewskidirected by Rosa Joshi Ashland, ORat the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Bring Down the House, Part One (no photos yet posted for Part Two)Ensemble. Photo by Jenny Graham, Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Through a scheduling snafu I missed the opening of Bring Down the House, Part I and took up the Henry VI story halfway through. Because co-adapters Rosa Joshi and Kate Wisniewski have done such a good job of curating scenes and speeches, I fell right into the story, despite the potentially confusing rush of characters and battles. I had a fun time [...]

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“Between Two Knees”

By Galen|2019-06-08T06:50:23-07:00May 18, 2019|osf, plays|

After trying for a month to moderate my initial reaction to the show, I admit failure. So, I reluctantly tell you, "Run! Turn your tickets back!! Seeing Between Two Knees is a waste." The "play" is a two-act, juvenile, mental-masturbation orgy of insult humor written without wit and performed without inspiration. It feels unedited, unworkshopped, and unrehearsed, OSF protestations to the contrary notwithstanding. About the cleverest thing about Knees is how it inoculated itself against criticism by suggesting that any complaints directed toward it are based on white fragility, insensitivity, or worse. Aside from this self-vaccination against disapproval, there is [...]

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“Mother Road” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Galen|2019-04-14T15:47:57-07:00April 14, 2019|osf, plays|

World Premiere by Octavio Solis directed by Bill Rauch Mark Murphey (William Joad), Tony Sancho (Martín Jodes)Photo by Jenny Graham, Oregon Shakespeare Festival. My subconscious has delayed my writing comments about Ashland's Mother Road. I saw it opening night in early March, but I haven't felt like it was time to write about the play. Not when I first saw it. Not when I got back home and had a chance to think about it. Not ever. The problem is that I want to construct an enthusiastic collection of comments that matches the applause the audience -- including me -- [...]

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“Hairspray” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Galen|2019-03-29T14:40:40-07:00March 29, 2019|osf, plays|

Hairspray created and written by John Watersbook by Thomas Meehan and Mark O'Donnellmusic by Marc Shaimandirected by Christopher Liam Moore Prepare to smile, laugh, feel good, applaud, and appreciate an uplifting story sung and danced into your heart by a strong, beautiful, coordinated cast. Get ready for a perfect production of a archetypal feel-good big musical. Beyond the summary above, everything else is just dreary supporting detail. The story has a socially marginalized fat girl scoring a position on a TV dance show that is a bastion of white privilege and teenage snottiness. She and her black friends break barriers [...]

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“Cambodian Rock Band” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Galen|2019-12-29T11:03:39-08:00March 22, 2019|osf, plays|

Cambodian Rock Band by Lauren Yeedirected by Chay Yew Photo by Jenny Graham. Understanding your parents and their motivations is a difficult and uncomfortable act for most of us humans. In Cambodian Rock Band it's an impossible task for first-generation American Neary (played by Brooke Ishibashi) whose Cambodian-born parents don't talk much about the pre-USA times. Neary, a thoroughly American young adult, has decided to go to Phnom Penh and work with NGOs to bring to justice people who helped the Khmer Rouge. She's gathering evidence against the superintendent of S21, a notorious killing prison, when her father (Chum, played [...]

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The 2018 Oregon Shakespeare Festival Season Rankings

By Galen|2018-10-21T12:07:33-07:00October 21, 2018|osf, plays|

The Ranking of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival 2018 Season by Ozdachs the Elder Three-Way Tie for Best Show of 2018, in alphabetical order: Destiny of Desire Oklahoma Snow in Midsummer Manahatta Othello Henry V The Book of Will Love’s Labor’s Lost The Way the Mountain Moved Sense and Sensibility Not seen, due to smoke cancelation, Romeo and Juliet. The first four shows are five-star, must-see events. Almost everyone in our group agreed. #5, Othello, was universally loved by those of us who saw it early in the season. The reviews from mid-season on were mixed. I worry that the cast [...]

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Love’s Labor’s Lost at Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Galen|2018-10-21T10:43:40-07:00October 21, 2018|osf, plays|

Ashland, Oregon at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Love's Labor's Lost by William Shakespeare directed by Amanda Dehnert After I wrote my delayed review of Manahatta last month I was ready to post my season ratings for the excellent 2018 OSF season. I lined up all my reviews, added in the Romeo and Juliet we didn't see because of smoke, and set about to rank the plays. I got to 10. But, there were 11 productions this year. I initially thought I mistagged a review in the blog, so I searched though my posts. Nope. Only 9 plays plus R&J. I went to the OSF [...]

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“Manahatta” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival

By Galen|2018-09-29T16:49:34-07:00September 29, 2018|osf, plays|

Ashland, Oregon at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Manahatta by Mary Kathryn Nagle directed by Laurie Woolery Steven Flores, Rainbow Dickerson, Sheila Tousey, Tanis Parenteau. ,br />Photo by Jenny Graham. This world-premiere production tells the story of the poor treatment of Native American people by Imperialistic white "settlers", brillianty weaves together narratives four centuries apart, and gives us a satisfying understanding of how the actions taken in 1626 reverberate in today's America. Manahatta deals with themes similar to the also-world-premiere The Way the Mountain Moved , but Manahatta did it right, engaging the audience instead of giving a sermon to it. Manahatta is about [...]

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