Robert Atkinson as the screenwriter at the heart of “City of Angels” and a few of his hard-boiled creations (l to r, Deana Duncan, Tristan Steel and Savannah Randall). (Jeanne Juneau photo)
“City of Angels,” a Tony-award winning musical comedy from the creator of TV landmark “M*A*S*H,” is a fast-talkin’, toe-tappin’ mash-up of private eyes, crooners and dangerous dames.
As the cast and crew at Langley’s Whidbey Island Center for the Arts prepares for the Feb. 7-22 run, dive into our four-part series that shines a spotlight on what awaits you on opening night.
OK, just accept it — Nicolas Cage is not going to be there.
While WICA’s latest production shares a title with the 1998 weepie starring Cage as an angel who swoons over Meg Ryan, the two couldn’t be farther apart.
For one, this “City of Angels” is actually worth paying the price of admission to see.
I’m still haunted by the money I lost to the movie theater in Oak Harbor to see that film shamelessly squander every bit of goodwill that came from its source, the actually quite splendid German film “Wings of Desire.”
But, let’s cut the chatter and get to the pitch.
Why do you, potential theater goer, want to slap some moola down at the ticket booth or on-line to see this “City of Angels?”
Cause you’re not a rube.
You’re a smart guy (or gal), one who will appreciate the intricate wordplay, catchy songs and fluid footwork of a play that stormed Broadway, but has a new flair of its own thanks to the talented trio of dames running things behind the scenes — director Elizabeth Herbert, musical director Sheila Weidendorf and choreographer Chelsea Randall.
The play itself is a fast-movin,’ quick-talkin’ piece that shifts effortlessly from color-drenched reality to film noir-tinted black-and-white as it spins a funny, bouncy tale of old school Hollywood meeting down and dirty private eye films.
Set in the late ’40s, it follows a writer as he tries to keep at least a small bit of his soul intact while battling with a studio boss over his screenplay.
The deeper down the rabbit hole he goes, the more the characters he’s writing — hard-boiled detectives, slinky seductresses, rough-and-tumble goons and swing-dancin’ hobos — come to life, stepping off of his just-typed pages and taking on a life of their own.
It’s got something for everyone.
You got torch songs. You got more people being slapped any place this side of a Seahawk-49ers game. You got nods to everything from “Sunset Boulevard” to Fred and Ginger.
Do you really want to be that person? The one who missed out on all the fun? The one who can’t hum the songs the next day?
No, no you don’t. Because, as we already established, you’re not a rube. At least that’s what I’ve been telling everyone.
Don’t prove me wrong.
Next, in Part Two of our series, meet The Crooner, Jim Castaneda, as he makes the jump from juggling a successful solo singing career and work with his popular band Woodrush to making his community theater debut.
To buy tickets head over to: http://wicaonline.com/2013-2014/CITYOFANGELS.html
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