Orange County Theatre Reviews

Anaheim
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April 29, 2019 | Anaheim, Review, The Chance Theater, Theater, Uncategorized Comments Off on SKYLIGHT @ THE CHANCE THEATRE IN ANAHEIM HILLS – Review |

SKYLIGHT @ THE CHANCE THEATRE IN ANAHEIM HILLS – Review

(All photos by Doug Catiller, True Image Studio)

Written by Patrick Chavis 

“Love…” the word that has spawned countless stories throughout the generations.  The love story is its own genre in its own right. The power of love and what it means, and how it applies to different people and things seems to be a type of eternal well for good and bad drama. In Skylight playing now at the Chance Theatre in Anaheim Hills we once again explore love–the positive, the negative, and its limits in this 2 hour and 20-minute slow burn of a highly watchable theatrical performance. Continue Reading

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March 13, 2019 | Anaheim, Musical, Review, Stage Door Repertory, Theater, Uncategorized Comments Off on CABARET @ Stage Door Repertory Theatre in Anaheim – Review |

CABARET @ Stage Door Repertory Theatre in Anaheim – Review

 (Photo Credit: Amy Gettys)

Written by Alina Mae Wilson 

Cabaret is a musical about German people having orgies in clubs, or at least that is what I would have told you before Saturday night.  I had heard of Cabaret, even listened to some of the music, but it’s somewhat striking how off-base I was about the actual premise of the show.   It’s a drama about — wait.  No.  If you haven’t seen or heard in great detail about Cabaret just wait, pause for a moment, and think.  The musical takes place during the early 1930’s Germany, so I want you to close your eyes for a moment and guess what it’s about.  Ready?  What is it about?  It’s about the Nazi’s rise to power because obviously, what else could it be?  Seriously, the performance began and I thought, “How interesting, a raunchy night club running during 1930s. ”  By the end of the show, I was thinking, “Dear God, has anything good happened in Germany ever?” All snark aside, this was a musical with some interesting material, the quality of which rose quite a few notches once we made it to Act 2. Continue Reading

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February 17, 2019 | Anaheim, Musical, Review, The Chance Theater, Uncategorized Comments Off on Rockin’ Lizzie Borden : Lizzie The Musical @ Chance Theater – Review |

Rockin’ Lizzie Borden : Lizzie The Musical @ Chance Theater – Review

Written by Patrick Chavis 

(All photos by Doug Catiller, True Image Studio)

“Lizzie Borden took an axe
And gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done,
She gave her father forty-one.”  -anonymous

I had heard of Lizzie Borden before this production, and I had previously heard the folk rhyme that I posted on the top of this article.  However, that was the extent of my Lizzie Borden knowledge.  While I can definitely say I know a little bit more now after watching the show, I wouldn’t say Lizzie the Musical is the place to satisfy your itch for accurate history.  What I would say is this: unlike Rent, which was a rock musical with lots of theatricality and some rock thrown in, the Lizzie production at the Chance Theater felt like a rock concert with a small dose of theatricality thrown in — but most importantly — it does ROCK!!!

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October 3, 2018 | Anaheim, Review, The Chance Theater, Theater Comments Off on The Other Place @ Chance Theatre in Anaheim – Review |

The Other Place @ Chance Theatre in Anaheim – Review

(photos by Doug Catiller, True Image Studio)

Written by Patrick Chavis 

The human mind is a fascinating place. For all the technical advances we have made as human beings, just how exactly the mind works is still a mystery. This is why we have fields like psychology, philosophy, and other branches of study which are trying to make sense of humanity and why we do the things we do.  These mysteries and truths have been chronicled in stories, plays, and movies for decades.  The Other Place now playing at the Chance Theatre is one more of these psychological stories — delving into the complexity of the human mind and its effect on our lives in a way that is somehow simultaneously comical and tragic.  Continue Reading

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July 12, 2018 | Anaheim, Musical, Review, The Chance Theater, Theater, Uncategorized Comments Off on Big Fish @ Chance Theater in Anaheim – Review |

Big Fish @ Chance Theater in Anaheim – Review

(All photos by Doug Catiller, True Image Studio)

Written by Patrick Chavis 

Is it a tall tale or a story larger-than-life? Big Fish the Musical blends these concepts together over at the Chance Theater, in the stage vision adapted from Tim Burton’s popular movie from 2003.  Continue Reading

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May 6, 2018 | Anaheim, Review, The Chance Theater, Theater, Uncategorized Comments Off on Can Good People Ever Get Ahead? : GOOD PEOPLE @ Chance Theatre in Anaheim – Review |

Can Good People Ever Get Ahead? : GOOD PEOPLE @ Chance Theatre in Anaheim – Review

(photos by Doug Catiller, True Image Studio)

Written by Scotty Keister 

Much is made in David Lindsay-Abaire’s Good People of the notion of equality of opportunity; that is, anyone who works hard enough can get ahead in America. Then the rest of the play goes on to flatly disprove it. The average Joe requires not only hard work, but opportunity, brains, connections and even a little luck to get anywhere, especially if one hails from the Southie neighborhood of Boston. Continue Reading

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