KPFA - Bay Area Theater

KPFA theatre critic Richard Wolinsky reviews “Rhinoceros” by Eugene Ionesco, directed by Frank Galati, at ACT Geary Theatre through June 23, 2019.

ACT website

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Giovanna Sardelli, director of “Archduke” by Rajiv Joseph, at Theatreworks Silicon Valley Mountain View Center for the Arts through June 30, 2019, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky.

“Archduke” tells the story of the recruitment of young men who were to commit the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir presumptive of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1914, an assassination that led directly to what become known as The Great War, and later World War I.

Giovanna Sardelli, director of the production, is also the director of New Works at Silicon Valley, and her career is closely intertwined with that of playwright Rajiv Joseph, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his earlier play, “Bengal Tiger in the Baghdad Zoo.” A graduate of NYU, Giovanna Sardelli spent five years on the soap opera “Another World” before choosing her current career path. She worked closely with Rajiv Joseph on the creation of “Archduke,” which was originally a commission from the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles. This new production features revisions which strengthen the work.

Theatreworks website

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Frank Galati, director of “Rhinoceros” by Eugene Ionesco, at ACT’s Geary Theatre through June 23, 2019, in conversation with host Richard Wolinsky.

Frank Galati is a long-time member of the legendary Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago, and has taught at Northwestern University. The winner of Tony Awards for the adaptation and direction of The Grapes of Wrath in 1990, was nominated for an Oscar for co-adapting The Accidental Tourist for the screen, and was the director of Ragtime and The Pirate Queen on Broadway Frank Galati is also known for adapting several other works for stage and screen.

“Rhinoceros” is considered to be one of the greatest works of political theatre of the absurd. Originally produced in the late 1950s, the play hearkens back to the origins of fascism and how propaganda infects the minds of citizens.

The post Interview: Frank Galati: Ionesco’s “Rhinoceros” at ACT Geary appeared first on KPFA.

Joanie McBrien, in conversation with KPFA associate theater critic C.S. Soong.

Joanie McBrien directs “Kings,” a play by Sarah Burgess presented by Shotgun Players at the Ashby Stage in Berkeley through June 16. In “Kings,” two lobbyists and an entrenched U.S. senator react to an upstart lawmaker critical of money’s role in politics.

The Ashby Stage is located at 1901 Ashby Avenue in Berkeley.

Shotgun Players’ website

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KPFA theatre critic Richard Wolinsky reviews “The Good Book” by Denis O’Hare and Lisa Peterson, directed by Lisa Peterson, at Berkeley Rep’s Peets Theatre through June 9, 2019.

Berkeley Rep website

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