Review by Paul Levy

Two plays. One bar. Eight actors. The Williams Project’s “The Bar Plays” series tackles two different plays and stages them both in the same bar with the same 8 actors. It’s an ambitious project to take on two scripts for one run, but director Ryan Guzzo Purcell and the cast of adrenaline-seeking actors somehow managed to rehearse two different well-known plays at the same time. The two shows in the series are “Small Craft Warnings” and “Time of Your Life”. The night I went was the opening for the second play in the series “Time of Your Life.” You can catch both shows now through August 25th.

“Time of Your Life” is a five-act play by American playwright William Saroyan written in 1939. But don’t let the five-acts scare you. Purcell keeps the show moving at high speed, as the cast of eight actors become the 27 various characters that stumble in and out of Nick’s Waterfront Saloon. The Washington Hall venue transforms into Nick’s Saloon with bar tables and an actual bar that serves drinks throughout the show. Actors take over every nook and cranny of this space, and it’s open seating. At times some seats have you sitting very close to the actors, blurring the lines between audience an actor.

The show itself centers on a large cast of characters all holding onto the routines of their daily lives while the city around them is transforming. Much like the journey for the characters in the play, the show itself also transforms, breaking the norms of theatre by having actors randomly assigned their roles in front of the audience and not skipping a beat as they jump into the 27 different characters. A feat that requires them to keep the script close at hand to recite character lines they’ve never memorized, and likely only individually rehearsed a handful of times.

The Williams Project “Time of Your Life” is a chaotic romp that will put a smile on your face while the delightful cast performs all around you. 

The show runs until August 25th at Washington Hall in the Central District, with a range of ticket pricing including pay what you can at the door. You can find out more here.

[You can read Tony Bohn’s review of  The Williams Project “Small Craft Warnings” on our blog here.]

More about guest blogger, Paul Levy: Paul Levy is always on the hunt for stories brought to life in immersive formats. He is the Creative Director at TPN, an agency that creates small and large live-events and experiences for fortune 500 companies, including Amazon, Microsoft, and Boeing.

By Keridwyn Deller

Secret comedians, secret locations . . . and BYOB! “Don’t Tell Comedy” offers unique stand-up comedy shows in Seattle (and Tacoma). You know the date, time, and neighborhood when you buy tickets – then you get the delight of discovering the specific location at noon the day of the show! I’m intrigued! You know I’m a fan of comedy, so I’m so excited to see what unique venues this group chooses to host comedy shows in.

Also, how cool is it that the event is BYOB? No pressure to order expensive drinks (and no pressure to drink at all, if you’re not drinking)! “At Don’t Tell Comedy, we are redefining live comedy by bringing it to your backyard, sometimes quite literally! Venues range from backyards and living rooms, to local businesses, steam ships, and yoga studios. We’re removing the expensive drinks – it’s BYOB! Crack open your own beer and enjoy the best local and touring comedians – there are no transactions at a Don’t Tell Comedy show and that’s the way we want to keep it.”

This August, Seattle shows will be in Wallingford on August 17th and in South Lake Union on August 22nd!

Check out their website and sign up for their emails to hear upcoming shows. Have a cool venue? Check out their website for details on how to apply to be a host (the before and after photos are pretty cool of venues they’ve used in the past).

I’m planning on going to the August 22 show in South Lake Union (they mention it’s a “super special location”). FB event page here.

Review by Jeanne Kinley Deller

Steve Martin (yes, that gifted comedian turned bluegrass musician!) and Edie Brickell have joined forces to tell an age-old tale, this one actually based on a true story, of love lost and found. “Bright Star” segues between the early-1920s and mid-1940s with a jaunty cast of talented actors transporting us back to small-town North Carolina.

The “Bright Star” up-stage bluegrass band compliments both the time period and each of the accomplished performers as they wend their way through spirited musical numbers. MJ Jurgensen lights up the theatre with her infectious smile and every move, as Florence, in band and ensemble numbers. The rousing bar-scene “Another Round” scores big time with the audience – a shining combo of song and dance in tune with Steve Martin’s humor and musical prowess.

If you’re a fan of bluegrass, toe-tapping, and old-timey hootenanny gatherings, this is a show you don’t want to pass up. Great fun and a reminder that social mores, in ever so many ways, have advanced tremendously over the last few decades. Check it out & enjoy! Tickets on sale now through August 17, 2019, at Taproot Theatre. 

MJ Jurgensen and Miranda Antoinette Trout in Bright Star at Taproot Theatre. Photo by Erik Stuhaug.

Review by Jeanne Kinley Deller

Justin Huertas’ hot-off-the-press World Premier musical, “The Last World Octopus Wrestling Champion,” is a delight at ArtsWest in West Seattle. It’s sure to win you over with its unconventional take on family, love, and the most surprising, metamorphosing eruption right here in our very own Puget Sound.

The defining word that comes most to mind in reflecting on “The Last World Octopus Wrestling Champion” is fantastical. Fun, frenzied, and, yes, absolutely fantastical, with highly talented actors and musical numbers that wend their way into the hearts and minds of the audience.

Interestingly, Justin’s composition for this eclectic show, “Sleep Well Love,” was his first clue that he “was writing an entire musical about love.” As a reprise for the entire cast, with its beautifully elevating lyrics, this song proves to be an absolute winner. Rachel Guyer-Mafune (Lee) and Porscha Shaw ( Nia), seriously mesmerized in their wild duet, “Tentacles,” are digitally hilarious.

Congratulations to Justin Huertas (Gregory Award-winning playwright of “Lizard Boy”), and ArtsWest’s Artistic Director Mathew Wright, for bringing this fantastical show to ArtsWest’s stage  – there’s no doubt you and your cephalopods are on the forefront of another hit in the ocean of musical theatre. Thank you!

“The Last World Octopus Wrestling Champion” is currently on stage at ArtsWest in West Seattle now through July 28, 2019. Tickets available here.

Book, music, and lyrics by Justin Huertas. Musical arrangements & orchestrations by Steven Tran. Directed by Mathew Wright.