​Consider the clown. Though part of an illustrious history of performing that reaches back some 4,500 years, lots of people revile, fear and downright hate the creatures. Kind of sucks for such a fun-loving tropeMore >>

​UPDATE, Sept. 16 2:40 P.M.: After a successful opening weekend with packed audiences, Slip of the Tongue has added a show and a performer to close out Breath of Fire's theater space in Santa Ana.

As doors open tonight and tomorrow at 8 p.m., another one-woman play joins the fray. Cristina Nava, a Los Angeles based member of the 'Slip of the Tongue' Latina artistic collective, will be coming down to OC to stage Rocks in My Salsa, described as "somewhere between Chicana and Mexican" where "self discovery happens at the bottom of a dirty martini glass."

The three solo performances originally helped to launch the Breath of Fire Latina Theater Ensemble five years ago in 2006 so it's only fitting that they help bring the space on the corner of Fifth and Broadway to a close this weekend.

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At first thought, the notion of a one-woman show in which the entire musical West Side Story is re-enacted would seem suspect at best. After all, two of the most annoyingly overwrought theatrical genres are one-person shows and musical theater. Combining them would seem a recipe of disaster.

But West Side Terri, currently playing at Fullerton's Monkey Wrench Collective is anything but an exercise in bombastic overemoting. Conceived by and starring Terri Mowrey, one of OC's brightest theatrical talents, it's a 75-minute show that is frequently hilarious, occasionally poignant and eminently entertaining.

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Scr.org

Martin Benson and David Emmes

​It's not exactly a seismic shift, but whenever two main forces behind a major artistic institution decide to step down, it's a very big deal.More >>

Not this Slappy White...

​It's been some time since the illustrious Reverend Slappy White (not Red Foxx's old pal), the brazenly Fascist impresario behind Slappy White & his Calvacade of Comic All-Stars, has graced the county with his presence.

The driving force behind the sort-of-annual A Dolt's Only Xma$ Pageant, a no-holds-barred, wildly irreverent take on Christmas in downtown Fullerton that began some 15 years ago, White and his motley crew haven't re-assembled in at least three years.

Until now.

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​While it's an obvious nod to the fact that February is Black History Month, George Wolfe's The Colored Museum, which opens this weekend at UC Irvine, is also right in time for those who blanch at the thought of the Hallmark holiday of Feb. 14. It's all about hate.

Okay, maybe it has absolutely nothing to do with Valentine's Day, but I couldn't resist.

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​More words have been written about William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet than probably any piece of literature in history other than the Bible. It's been the subject of countless dramatic treatments, at least nine film versions and Lord knows how many pop-culture references.

But a Hamlet produced with all puppets? That might be a first. And it's happening at the Maverick Theater: Hamlet Has No Legs is a 75-minute production that was first staged last year at the Empire Theatre in Santa Ana by the All Puppet Players. We caught up with head puppetmaster Shaun McNamara to pick his brain about the project.More >>

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Will Blakely

Brad Fraser's True Love Lies

​Back in the days when water was clean, love was worth it and nothing but unlimited promise beckoned on the horizon, OC Weekly used to host an annual OC Weekly Theater Awards. Launched in 1997 in order to celebrate the best theatrical accomplishments of the previous year, the affair evolved from a modest group of people celebrating at a Laguna Beach restaurant into a huge party (free food! free booze!) that drew some 200 thespians (and thespian-lovers) to South Coast Repertory's Mainstage Theater in 2006.

But that was then--this is now. And the best we can do for the Year In Theater 2010 is a cyber-post that applauds those souls and productions that were able for even an instant to draw the blue from the most cynical of a theater critic's eyes (thanks to Ellis Paul for that line).

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​ This week's edition of Orange Curtains has nothing to do with Orange County theater. Which is why it has everything to do with Orange County theater...

It will be several years before Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark AKA "steaming pile of actor crippling shit," will debut on an Orange County stage.

Before that, the $65 million musical extravaganza, directed by Julie Taymor who brought The Lion King to the stage, and with music by two guys named Bono and the Edge, will have to open on Broadway.

No easy feat, considering soaring costs for the technologically saturated show, as well as technical glitches and cast injuries, have forced numerous delays.

Originally scheduled to open last February, it's now tentatively supposed to open February 2011.

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