Category: Performance Type

Love, Chaos, & Dinner – Dinner Theatre – Teatro Zinzanni

Attended Teatro ZinZanni: Love, Chaos & Dinner with coworkers. Very entertaining carnival/circus dinner theatre with some camp. Much better than Cirque du Soleil. So glad we didn't get called on stage though.
Attended Teatro ZinZanni: Love, Chaos & Dinner with coworkers. Very entertaining carnival/circus dinner theatre with some camp. Much better than Cirque du Soleil. So glad we didn’t get called on stage though.

Type: Dinner Theatre Show

Recommendation: So entertaining. See it! Much better than Cirque de Soleil.

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 4.75 stars

Negatives: They pick audience members to “haze.” Among other things, some people in the audience got put in a cage and others were forced to dance. This may be a positive for you if that’s the experience you’re looking for. I usually just like to sit and watch without interaction (except sing-a-longs which I LOVE!).

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  Simple story about the campy shenanigans behind the scenes when a food critic visits a restaurant. The story, script, and lyrics were nothing to write home about but the talent performing them was top notch.

Cast and Theater Company: Impressive how the performers wittily improvise and don’t break character even when mingling with the audience members during intermissions. Most actors had some sort of circus/carnival-type talent (like trapezee) that they showcased.

Venue and Set: Circular immersive theatre. The good thing about this is that there’s no bad view. The bad thing about this is that there is no “great” view. Every seat will miss something unless your eyes see 360 degrees. This theatre company performed across from the Seattle Opera’s McCaw Hall but they got kicked out and are now performing in a circus tent at Marymoor Park.

Music and Audio: Adequate sound engineering.

Food: Okay. Your typical pretentious, small-portioned American fare.

Price: $$-$$$ (Mid to high-priced at $99+). Keep in mind that this already includes dinner so you can technically classify as mid-priced. Check Goldstar for occasional discount or search Google for codes.

Dates: October 19, 2017 to April 29, 2018

Seating: Assigned at the facility. Be aware, you may be sitting with strangers.

Link: https://zinzanni.com/seattle/lovechaosdinner/

Ain’t Misbehavin’ – Musical Revue – Seattle Musical Theatre

Opening night to "Ain't Misbehaving - The Fats Waller Musical Show." Didn't realize this was a musical revue ... not a musical. That's what I get for not reading up about what I attend! ?It's a shame the bad sound system setup distracted from the amazing voices.
09Opening night to “Ain’t Misbehaving – The Fats Waller Musical Show.” Didn’t realize this was a musical revue … not a musical. That’s what I get for not reading up about what I attend! ?It’s a shame the bad sound system setup distracted from the amazing voices.

Hamilton – Musical – Paramount Theatre

Watched Hamilton: An American Musical w/ Paul. Golden voices & tight harmonies. Dual-rotating stage & lighting were a nice touch. Not a fan of the history lesson or the rapping. I'll concede to Paul though: yes, it's probably one of the most important artistic works of our time esp in this political climate. It was a great musical but I don't understand the hype.
Watched Hamilton: An American Musical w/ Paul. Golden voices & tight harmonies. Dual-rotating stage & lighting were a nice touch. Not a fan of the history lesson or the rapping. I’ll concede to Paul though: yes, it’s probably one of the most important artistic works of our time esp in this political climate. It was a great musical but I don’t understand the hype.

Type: Musical

Recommendation: Does not live up to the hype but it’s still worth seeing.  It’s probably one of the most important artistic works of our time especially in this political climate.

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 4.5 stars

Negatives: Hard to understand what was going on. Also, not a fan of rap or history lessons.

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  The life and times of Alexander Hamilton during the birth of the USA. Since a lot of the lyrics were fast rap, it was hard to follow the story. Re-listening to the soundtrack cleared things up and I later realized that a lot of script/lyrics were quite clever.

Cast and Theater Company: Typical high-quality national tour production.

Venue and Set: Elaborate set with a dual rotating stage and clever light show.

Music and Audio: I was happy to discover that they didn’t turn the volume way up like they do most Paramount Theatre performances.  Not much of a rap fan but I loved the golden voices and tight harmonies of the girls’ songs especially “Helpless,” “Satisfied”, and “Schuyler Sisters.”

Price: $$$ (High-priced at $300+) – Sold out

Dates: February 6 – March 18, 2018

Seating: Assigned

Link: https://www.stgpresents.org/tickets/eventdetail/3492/-/hamilton

Ibsen in Chicago – Play – Seattle Repertory Theatre

Watched the play-in-a-play "Ibsen in Chicago." European working class immigrants with secrets try to make it in America and put on the play "Ghosts." Prima Donna character was pretty funny.
Watched the play-in-a-play “Ibsen in Chicago.” European working class immigrants with secrets try to make it in America and put on the play “Ghosts.” Prima Donna character was pretty funny.

Type: Musical

Recommendation: Worth seeing!

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 4 stars

Negatives: Not many setting changes. Everything occured in a fictional theatre hall.

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  Play-in-a-play where European working-class immigrants with secrets try to make it in America and put on the play Ghosts.

Cast and Theater Company: Typical Seattle Repertory Theatre production. Loved the prima donna character Helga (played by Kirsten Potter).

Venue and Set: Single setting in a run down fictional theatre hall.

Music and Audio: True to Seattle Repertory Theatre, no microphones were used but the performers projected well.

Price: $$ (Medium-priced at $54-$71)

Dates: February 2, 2018 – March 4, 2018

Seating: Assigned

Link: https://www.seattlerep.org/Plays/1718/IC/Synopsis

Jane Eyre – Musical – Seattle Pacific Theatre

Watched the musical stage adaptation of Jane Eyre. Very dry, dense, and lukewarm ... like most English literature. Would it kill them to lighten up (and do a tap dance routine lol)? Glad to have Paul with me to explain things and make jokes.
Watched the musical stage adaptation of Jane Eyre. Very dry, dense, and lukewarm … like most English literature. Would it kill them to lighten up (and do a tap dance routine lol)? Glad to have Paul with me to explain things and make jokes.

Type: Musical

Recommendation: See this if there’s nothing else playing in the city or if you like dry, dense, lukewarm theatre.

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 3 stars

Negatives: The script and music was boring. Would it kill them to lighten up … and possibly do a tap dance routine? Ha!

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  Life deals a bad hand to an Englishwoman but she still manages to stay positive and to persevere.

Cast and Theater Company:  University production. Female lead (Jane Eyre) was pretty decent. Unfortunately, it was hard to gauge the performers’ talent because the musical was so dull. Furthermore, cast was critically low on male performers. I suspect it’s because Seattle Pacific University is a Christian (Methodist) university and therefore cannot attract enough gay students to enroll. In the words of The Producers, “Keep it gay, keep it gay, keep it gay” … in theatre.

Venue and Set: Simple. Interesting angular stage.

Music and Audio: Microphones used (thank you!). Unfortunately, piano was the only accompaniment … so it basically sounded like rehearsal. As a piano player myself, props to the pianist for pressing on (no pun intended) throughout the entire score! His or her hands must have been bleeding. It’s a shame the cast didn’t acknowledge the pianist in the ovations.

Price: $ (Low-priced at $15)

Dates: February 1–10, 2018

Seating: Assigned

Link: http://spu.edu/academics/college-of-arts-sciences/theatre/current-season/current-productions/jane-eyre-the-musical