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GAY SAN DIEGO Jan. 28-Feb. 10, 2011


THEATRE


A tale that not all can rise to the top of the musical pantheon


THEATRESCENE CUAUHTÉMOC KISH


‘2 PIANOS 4


HANDS’ Through February 13


North Coast Repertory Theatre northcoastrep.org (858) 481-1055


Thursdays and Fridays, 8 p.m. Saturdays, 2 & 8 p.m. Sundays, 2 & 7 p.m.


In the early sixties, my sister


and I bravely approached my parents to announce our exodus from the world of music; she had tinkered on the piano while I had squeezed the life out of an accordion. Alas, we had both come to the realization that our musical talent was very limited, and a waste of further family investment. The current North Coast


Rep’s production of “2 Pianos 4 Hands” tells a similar story. It’s a musical tale of two musical prodigies who realize that not everyone can rise to the top, and that many talented pianists have


Carl Danielsen and Mark Anders. (Courtesy of Denver Center Theatre Company)


to settle for just being capable musicians.


Canadian pianists/play-


wrights Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt debuted “2 Pianos” in 1996 to unqualified rave re- views, so it’s a bit late to quibble about the quality of the show. Although I might argue it needs a dramatic tune-up, I can’t argue with the fact that it’s played over 5,000 performances in different theatres to more than 2 million people worldwide. Director Bruce Sevy sets up two pianos back to back, and al- lows Carl Danielsen (Greenblatt) and Mark Anders (Dykstra) who


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sit at these respective well-pol- ished instruments, titillating the audience with music and sketch work that moves this overly light piece to a predictable conclusion. Still, the audience is enter- tained, not only with classical snippets such as Bach’s Concer- to in D Minor, but a wide variety of music that includes Hoagy Carmichael’s “Heart and Soul,” Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s “Bennie and the Jets,” and Rodgers and Hart’s “My Funny Valentine,” just to name of few of the twenty-plus featured songs in “2 Pianos.” This intermission-less key-


board songfest is threaded with on-stage hijinks and pratfalls. Although many of the sopho- moric skits are fairly predictable, they accommodate the music interludes and elicit comfortable laughter. This likeable pair of would be


piano prodigies do quite well on their assigned compositions, and well enough on their non-stop thespian exploits. Both Dykstra and Greenblatt take on multiple roles—some in overly large silhouette—playing characters that include an impervious piano teacher, a manipulative father, and an eager conservatory stu- dent, among many others. It’s all about practice, practice, practice and then about agonizing exams and musical trails. And although it’s about the fears of a classical pianist, the tears are not dra- matized, only the chuckles are shared and remembered. And another wonderful


thing about this production is that the audience gets to sit back comfortably and relax as there are no demands placed upon them.


In the end, Greenblatt and Dykstra, much like my sister and I, realized that not everyone can rise to the top of the musical pantheon. And while it may have been painful to admit our inad- equacies, we are able to laugh about it now, even out loud, remi- niscing about a career that never was and never would be.•


gay-sd.com


‘Waving Goodbye’ reaches


remarkable hieghts


By Cuauhtémoc Kish | Theatre critic Jamie Pachino’s “Waving


Goodbye” takes on the heady issue of abandonment. The fe- male protagonist in this drama, Lily Blue (Rachael VanWormer), is intentionally abandoned and pretty much ignored by her mother, and unintentionally abandoned by her father. And much like the Polaroid


photos taken on the stage of this production, it takes the audience awhile to await the development of the drama and focus upon the other underlying issues of loss, trust, rage, change and terror. Director Dana Case does a


exemplary job of moving her five actors on an expansive set that’s well designed by Tim Wallace, and filled with the Blue family detritus. Playwright Pachino did not make Case’s job an easy one, since the actions move from


see Goodbye, pg 17 FROM PAGE 12 GAYETY


money woes if it had. All these folks honored with


stamps stood out in science, the arts, politics and so forth. They weren’t honored for being bisexual, lesbian or gay—more likely in spite of it. But word is that’s going to


change, and once again Harvey Milk will lead the way. According to a recent Bay Area Reporter fil- ing, the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC), which evalu- ates possible subjects for U.S. stamps, contacted Milk’s family and the Harvey Milk National Stamp Campaign. It appears a Harvey Milk stamp will be issued in the next few years. Milk meets one requirement: He’s dead. Mr. Twinkies-For- Brains saw to that. Last year, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged the CSAC to back the Milk stamp, writing, “The United States Postal Service has yet to honor an LGBT American hero with a stamp.” And what a boon it would be


to a certain lesbian’s topical stamp collection, she might have added. If the CSAC is at last think-


ing more broadly, I also have a suggestion for the panel: Put me on it. Who better than a lesbian philatelist to help choose future LGBT commemorative stamps? Even my grandfather would


agree with that. Emphatically. In German.


—Leslie Robinson swaps stamps, not partners. E-mail her at lesarobinson@gmail.com, and visit her blog at generalgayety.com.


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