Canterbury Tales

The Canterbury Tales at the Shakespeare Tavern was entertaining, but I got caught up in the length. After a while the show started to drag on. I felt that the beginning, in which everyone was singing on the bus, was indulgent and unnecessary, and the fact that the play did not end this way (with the bus) created confusion. Most of the pieces were enjoyable, but the best should have been chosen, cutting perhaps two out. I would suggest keeping the rooster, my favorite.

I was disappointed in the lighting as there were several instances in which the actors were in the dark next to their lights. I'm not sure if this was due to people missing their marks, but it happened so often that I am assuming that the lights needed to be adjusted.

The set and costume changes were well planned and creative, something I enjoy at The Tavern. The fact that the actors address the audience always makes for good fun. All in all, I felt like a good time was had by all (but please excuse me for spilling my water on the table!).

The Second City Show

My husband and I went to see the Second City show by ourselves since I was teaching a class at GPC when the rest of the group was scheduled to see the performance. Because we have a baby, we don't get out much, so actually getting out to do anything was a big treat! Since I hadn't seen a play in eons, I was particularly happy to fulfill my assigned task of visiting the Hertz Stage at the Alliance.

As I was thumbing through the program, I noticed some familiar faces from my past life as an actor. Anthony Irons and I acted in an educational tour for Kaiser Permanente (not the most stellar gig on the planet, but a steady paycheck for an actor is always a good thing). We actually had a scene in which we kissed! Steve Westdahl was in a holiday show, my first performance in Atlanta in fact, for Push Push Theater. I was really glad to see that these guys were part of Chicago's Second City Theater, no shoddy accomplishment.

By curtain, I was excited to see my old friends work their magic, and I wasn't disappointed. The show was well-cast, and the script was well written. The writers certainly did their homework in nailing Atlanta's quirks. The audience was rolling with laughter from start to finish. In Second City style, we were all left wanting more, and my husband and I felt that this experience was worth much more than the price of a babysitter! Bravo Second City!