The New Vic – Ted Mills

A second slice: Ensemble Theatre takes on Sondheim and ‘Sweeney Todd’

October 2, 2015December 29, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

David Studwell and Heather Ayers are two of the actors performing in Ensemble Theatre Company's "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street." David Bazemore photo — David Studwell and Heather Ayers are two of the actors performing in Ensemble Theatre Company’s “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.”
David Bazemore photo

Last week Santa Barbara audiences sat transfixed by the odd blend of dance and theater that was Adam Barruch’s “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” at the Lobero Theatre. In the audience watching the performance was Ensemble Theatre’s Jonathan Fox, who just that day was rehearsing his own version of Stephen Sondheim’s bloody and dark musical, set to open this coming Thursday. It was one of those weird coincidences in Santa Barbara theater than happens now and then – like two productions of “Other Desert Cities” in 2015, one at the Rubicon, one at PCPA – despite every company trying for a unique season.

“It’s kind of a funny story,” says Mr. Fox, just before rolling into a story of schedules, contracts, dropping a previous plan, and thinking of returning to the world of Stephen Sondheim. “A Little Night Music” was the first performance at The New Vic. Rick Mokler, some 20 years ago, had put on a production of “Sweeney Todd” at SBCC, but it had never returned to our city.

In perfect harmony: Pacific Sound brings barbershop, vocal jazz and big band to the New Vic

August 21, 2015August 26, 2015 tedmills 1 Comment

The Pacific Sound Chorus performed October 2014 at the Western US Chorus Championship. Courtesy photo — The Pacific Sound Chorus performed October 2014 at the Western US Chorus Championship.
Courtesy photo

When Brent Anderson was at UCSB he sang in the ensemble known as Schubertians, singing classical lieder. And while his career path took him into insurance and finance, he still yearned for the power of song, something at the same time more challenging than 18th century classical vocal works and less rarified.

His answer would be barbershop quartet.

“To be a solo singer is one thing, but to blend and harmonize with three other people is another, very complex, thing,” he says. “When I first discovered barbershop I thought it was fun. But then I discovered it was as challenging as anything I’d ever sung.” He quotes rock musician Ben Folds, who called barbershop the “black belt of vocal jazz.”

Ensemble closes season with ‘Venus in Fur’

June 5, 2015July 16, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

Bruce Turk, new to Ensemble Theatre, plays writer-director Thomas and Annie Abrams plays Vanda in the two-character play "Venus in Fur." Bruce Burr photo — Bruce Turk, new to Ensemble Theatre, plays writer-director Thomas and Annie Abrams plays Vanda in the two-character play “Venus in Fur.”
Bruce Burr photo

Ensemble Theatre finishes this season with “Venus in Fur,” the David Ives-penned hothouse of a play that joyously blurs the line between actor and role playing, befitting a story that takes as its inspiration the 1870 novel of the same name (minus the plural letter s) by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch. (Yes, that’s where we get the word Masochism.)

After the large cast and inventive sets of “Woyzeck,” Ensemble is seeing out the season with that most modern of set-ups: two people in a room, and a relationship that changes completely over the course of its runtime.

American Dance & Music returns after five years, bringing a classic

May 22, 2015July 17, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

American Dance & Music performance group dancers Melody Collins and Darion Smith perform "Pastorale" to Beethoven's Pastorale Sonata, with live accompaniment by AD&M music director Eric Valinsky during this weekend's "Turkish by Matisse & Other Delights" at The New Vic. David Bazemore — American Dance & Music performance group dancers Melody Collins and Darion Smith perform “Pastorale” to Beethoven’s Pastorale Sonata, with live accompaniment by AD&M music director Eric Valinsky during this weekend’s “Turkish by Matisse & Other Delights” at The New Vic.
David Bazemore

Dancers grow and leave the stage. They become choreographers, some of them, and those who do often pass down their history and heritage to their star pupils. When the American Dance & Music company hits the stage today (and tomorrow) at the New Vic, they are bringing a piece that has been handed down twice, and that gives its name to this collection of four works.

“Turkish by Matisse” was originally created by Mari Sandoval in 1976, then passed down to AD&M founder Carrie Diamond, who was at that time Ms. Sandoval’s student at Santa Monica High School. Now Ms. Diamond is passing it on herself to AD&M’s Nikki Pfeiffer, who dances it this evening.

Ensemble Theatre stages Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan’s daring musical ‘Woyzeck’

April 17, 2015July 24, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

The "Woyzeck" cast includes Matt Gottlieb (Doctor), Stephen Van Dorn (Woyzeck) and Matthew Henerson (Captain). David Bazemore — The “Woyzeck” cast includes Matt Gottlieb (Doctor), Stephen Van Dorn (Woyzeck) and Matthew Henerson (Captain).
David Bazemore

When writer Georg Büchner died at 23 in 1837, he left behind the fragments of a play that had no ending and no official structure. Yet out of all his works, the “working-class tragedy” of “Woyzeck,” about a soldier gone murderously mad with jealousy, is the most read, most performed, and most interpreted. There have been operas, movies, a ballet and many stage adaptations. It is extremely open to interpretation.

Ensemble Theatre’s Jonathan Fox has taken on one of the most popular recent adaptations of the play — a musical by Tom Waits and his wife/collaborator Kathleen Brennan — and brought it to the New Vic, opening tonight. And even that is an interpretation: Mr. Fox has ditched the other third of that 2002 production: Robert Wilson’s direction and production design.

A new Jane Austen work is created every show with the Impro Theatre

March 27, 2015July 28, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

Jane Austen wrote six major novels in her life, but created such a particular world that the Impro Theatre can work within it and figure out some new stories to tell. Like Impro’s co-founder Dan O’Connor did to the world of Shakespeare, Chekhov and Sondheim, “Jane Austen Unscripted” takes improv theater to a new level. Those who come to the New Vic tonight or Saturday night will leave having seen hilarious Austen romantic comedy made up on the spot, with no two shows or characters the same. These are parodies of existing novels, or slash fiction with Mr. Darcy returning as a zombie. “This is something the author would recognize,” Mr. O’Connor says.

Impro Theater started as Los Angeles Theatersports in 1988, and some members of the company have been there from the beginning. It’s a specialized set of skills that extends beyond the skits and jokes of usual improv events.

Arete Productions brings Tony-nominated ‘Swing!’ to the New Vic

March 5, 2015July 29, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

The "Swing!" cast mixes students from SBCC and UCSB. — The “Swing!” cast mixes students from SBCC and UCSB.

As Duke Ellington once opined some eight decades ago, “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing.” And that holds true with this evening of jumping jive coming to The New Vic. Produced by Dauri Kennedy and directed by Miriam Dance-Leavy, “Swing!” — the 1999 Tony-nominated musical — features singing, dancing and live music straight from the music era that couldn’t keep still.

The 90-minute show features the music of the Duke as well as Count Basie, Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller, played by a full swing band led by SBCC’s Chuck “Dr. Jazz” Wood, who was director of bands and jazz studies at the college for 15 years and Music Chair for three.

Letters home: Ensemble Theatre’s Lloyd Webber musical is a one-woman show

July 17, 2014August 20, 2015 tedmills Leave a comment

Misty Cotton is alone on stage in the one-woman, Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "Tell Me On A Sunday." The Ensemble Theatre Company production runs through Aug. 2 at The New Vic. Courtesy photo — Misty Cotton is alone on stage in the one-woman, Andrew Lloyd Webber musical “Tell Me On A Sunday.” The Ensemble Theatre Company production runs through Aug. 2 at The New Vic.
Courtesy photo

Ensemble Theatre Company’s season may be over for now, but it has one more surprise up its sleeve. “Tell Me On a Sunday,” which opens Thursday, is a light summer aperitif of music and song from Misty Cotton. She is performing a lesser known musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, best known for Broadway juggernauts like “Cats” and “Phantom of the Opera.”

It’s a tale of a young English woman who comes to New York City to try to make it big.

The red and the black: Ensemble’s Mark Rothko bio-play has weighty questions on its mind

May 21, 2014September 28, 2014 tedmills Leave a comment

Matt Gottlieb play abstract-expressionist painter Mark Rothko and Shaun Anthony his put-upon young assistant in the dramatic new play at The New Vic, "Red." John Logan's play won six Tony Awards in 2010 — Matt Gottlieb play abstract-expressionist painter Mark Rothko and Shaun Anthony his put-upon young assistant in the dramatic new play at The New Vic, “Red.” John Logan’s play won six Tony Awards in 2010

“What do you see?”

That’s the first line of John Logan’s intense two-person play “Red” that just opened at The New Vic as part of Ensemble Theatre’s current season. The man asking the question is abstract painter Mark Rothko, and although he’s asking it of the man who has turned up to be his new assistant as they stand in front of one of his paintings, he’s asking it of himself. And, no surprise, he’s asking us, too, in a play that dives energetically into questions of art, history, integrity, money, and creativity. In real life, Rothko was very secretive, with very little footage or interviews available. This biographical play brings the prickly painter to life.

Layers Upon Layers: ENSEMBLE THEATRE’S ‘RED’ BRINGS ABSTRACT PAINTER MARK ROTHKO TO PRICKLY LIFE

May 16, 2014September 28, 2014 tedmills Leave a comment

Matt Gottlieb, left, as Rothko and Shaun Anthony as his assistant. Ken, in "Red" — Matt Gottlieb, left, as Rothko and Shaun Anthony as his assistant. Ken, in “Red”

Director Brian Schnipper is telling us about abstract artist Mark Rothko, the subject of his upcoming play at Ensemble Theatre, “Red.”

“With Rothko’s murals, there’s so many layers and he used very thin paint. You can see the top layer and the second layer and maybe the third, but beyond that— and Rothko said he sometime painted 26 layers. Even art historians say you can’t tell where certain paints start. They can’t understand his techniques. Sometimes he’d burn the canvas with turpentine, they know that, but as to the layers, they don’t know how.”