When In Rome

A very light romantic comedy.

Beth is a career driven young woman with neither faith nor courage for love. In Rome for her younger sister’s wedding she’ll defy reason and challenge divinity to bring her true and lasting love. Alas such defiance will always bring challenges unexpected and unwanted... Beth now has five impossibly smitten, determined and devoted love interests. True love may be among the five, if only she can find the courage to see it.

Simply written and directed with easy performances throughout, this film might best be viewed at home.

C / PG

Starring: Kristen Bell; Josh Duhamel; Will Arnett; Jon Heder; and, Dax Shepard.
Featuring: Angelica Huston; Danny DeVito; Alexis Dziena; and, Kate Micucci.
With: Peggy Lipton; Luca Calvani; Keir O’Donnell; and, Bobby Moynihan.
Plus: Don Johnson
Writers: David Diamond and David Weissman
Director: Mark Steven Johnson

Reel Review by Josef

West Side Story

 A surprising treat from this very talented troupe of amateurs and professionals.

 In the summer of 1957, the streets of New York City are alive with bigotry and violence. The Jets (a gang of white teenagers) and The Sharks (a gang of Puerto Rican teenagers) fight for dominance in the neighborhood they’ve been forced to cohabit. Compelled by their love for one another, Tony and Maria strive to bring peace to their neighborhood. Can love survive under the shroud of hatred and death?

 This live-stage production is very well choreographed. The dancing and stunts achieved with a quality defying expectation. The orchestration too is outstanding! However, the direction and portrayals in this show are often uneven. And, the use of microphones did little to enhance the experience. Still, I would recommend attending this show and I look forward to seeing more of this troupe’s work.

C / PG2

Starring: Michael Hall; Samantha Lasch; Jim Maxwell; and, Kelly Ann Murray.
Featuring: Chip Attwood; Brian Maxwell; Katie Murphy; and, J. Simmons.
With: Brittany Cerra; Kapil Dass; Crystal Diaz; and, Chris Eklund.
Also: Aaron Grippo; Aimee Grymin; Emily Kuschner; and, Sadie Mueller.
Plus: Liz Miranda
Writer: Arthur Laurents
(with music by Leonard Bernstein)
(and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim)
Directors: John Murphy; Ron Bowks; Jillian Miller; Derek Baird; and, Michael Johnston
[from a concept by Jerome Robbins]

Reel Review by Josef

Almost Maine

Funny, sweet, romantic and a bit unusual.

One winter night in the ‘not-quite’ township of Almost Maine, several pairs of people, some strangers, most not, find themselves with new perspective, new hope and new love.

There’s nothing too dramatic about this play, just an unusual bit of humor and romance defying description. Four performers for twenty roles in eleven scenes. Wonderfully set {even the stage hands get into the act!}, brilliantly directed and beautifully performed, attending this show is a terrific way to spend a winter’s evening!

A+ / PG2

Starring: David Mason; Alexis McGuinness; Patrick Noonan; and, Regan Thompson.
Writer: John Cariani
Director: Skip Greer

Reel Reviews by Josef