Santa Cruz Sentinel - Dec. 29, 2006

The Year on Stage
By ANN BENNETT
SENTINEL THEATER REVIEWER

I’ve always thought that theater on the Central Coast is pretty much a microcosm of theater everywhere — even all that bigcity kind — with a lot of variety and all the degrees of success and foundering that are part of every season. The year 2006 was a typical year for our area: some surprises, some disappointments, a little innovation, and a lot of satisfying shows to remind us of why live theater is always such an intriguing experience.

Shakespeare Santa Cruz was, as it almost always is, the big highlight of the year. The three plays of the summer season this year were a particularly nice assortment — the whimsical, lighthearted “As You Like It” was the perfect summer comedy, while “King Lear” provided a bleak and tragic counterpoint and “Pygmalion” was a masterpiece of wit and classical elegance. The festival season ended with the company’s annual holiday treat, this year a new take on “Sleeping Beauty” that sparkled with all the familiar wonderland fun.

But Shakespeare wasn’t limited to the Festival this year. In the spring, Ghostlight Theater presented a splendid version of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” with minimal sets and an outstanding cast, and in the fall, the Cabrillo College drama department’s imaginative offering of “Much Ado About Nothing” was a rich and exciting interpretation of the popular romantic comedy.

And if that wasn’t enough of the Bard to satisfy you, there was always the hilarious and silly “Shakespeare in Hollywood,” at the Western Stage, to complement (or perhaps counterbalance) what turned out to be a heavily Shakespearean year.

The year also included a surprise return to our area by Sam Lovett, who brought his successful “Vincent” to town following critically acclaimed performances in Los Angeles, and new work from the innovative and iconoclastic Manuel Montez (“In God’s Image”) at the Broadway Playhouse after a long absence.

The (fortunately) rare opportunity to see the same play twice in one year was an interesting experience. The Cabrillo Drama Department produced “Inherit the Wind” with emphasis on heavily symbolic sets and background busy-ness that threatened to overpower the central issue; later The Western Stage presented the same play in a stark, spare version that highlighted the intensity of the intellectual drama and had a much more powerful impact.

It’s amazing how different two visions can be.

As always, there were many noteworthy performances and contributions — so here I go with my choices:

BEST PRODUCTION: “Pygmalion” (Shakespeare Santa Cruz).

BEST MUSICAL: “Guys and Dolls” (Cabrillo Stage).

BEST COMEDY: “Shakespeare in Hollywood” (The Western Stage).

BEST DRAMA: “Inherit the Wind” (The Western Stage).

BEST DIRECTOR: Sarah Albertson (“Much Ado About Nothing,” Cabrillo College Drama Department).

BEST SET DESIGN: Dipu Gupta (“As You Like It,” Shakespeare Santa Cruz).

BEST COSTUMES: Lydia Tanji (“Pygmalion,” SSC); B. Modern (“As You Like It,” SSC).

BEST ACTORS: Paul Whitworth (“Pygmalion,” SSC); David Parker (“The Time of Your Life,” Western Stage).

BEST ACTRESS: Julia Coffey (“Pygmalion,” SSC).

BEST COMEDY PERFORMANCE: Jonathan Ingbretson (“Shakespeare in Hollywood,” Western Stage).

MOST PROVOCATIVE PRODUCTION: “The Last Days of Judas Iscariot” (Pisces Moon).

MOST IMPRESSIVE PRODUCTION: “Equus” (UCSC Theater Arts Department), with a stellar performance by Max Baumgarten.

MOST FUN OF ALL FOR EVERYBODY: “Sleeping Beauty” (Shakespeare Santa Cruz).

The 2007 season is shaping up to be a very interesting one, with a wide range of both familiar and unusual work already on the calendar. As always, the kickoff show is the immensely popular “Eight Tens @ Eight” at the Actors Theater, opening Jan. 12 and featuring its annual assortment of short pieces.

After that, it’s another year of drama and comedy, and a chance to enjoy the unexpected at local theaters.