1,373 stories by "Chad Jones"
If you've ever wondered what I'd look like as a pirate zombie (and I know you have), wonder no more. My dedication to the Bay Area Living section of our newspapers is such that when they nee…
The thought of a theater blog seems frivolous to me sometimes, especially on days when crazy men take hostages in a school. Or bombs fall in the Middle East. Or homicide rates ratchet up to …
Steve Kluger, a friend of Theater Dogs (FoTD), was so impressed by A Chorus Line in San Francisco (see the Aug. 25 entry) that he bought a ticket for a preview performance in New York. Well,…
I have seen the future of cabaret, and its name is Shawn Ryan. What, you may ask, does cabaret have to do with theater? And I answer: cabaret is theater with more music and a two-drink minim…
Some random thoughts from the Theater Dog Pound: " Caught up with Contra Costa Musical Theatre's hilarious and beautifully sung production of Urinetown and was delighted with some of the inn…
My dream of the dance hall girl with the heart of gold crumbled last night. I went San Jose to see the touring production of Sweet Charity based on last year's Broadway revival. I was excite…
Get out your kites, kids. Marlo Thomas is coming to San Francisco. Yes, erstwhile Ann Marie, TV's first (semi) liberated lady with the keenest fashion sense in all Manhattan is coming to the…
Rosie O'Donnell has indeed brought Broadway back to daytime. Last week on The View, she interviewed Georgia Engel and unleashed Tony-winners Bob Martin (who should win awards as the most end…
I wasn't sure I was going to write about this. I thought perhaps it was too self-aggrandizing. But this is the blogosphere, right? Anything goes. So let me tell you about the best thing that…
If you're not listening to Michael Rice's Cool As Hell Theatre Podcast, you're missing out. Rice interviews all kinds of Bay Area theater folks about their lives and work, but what's really …
Watched Rosie O'Donnell's first week on The View (thank you TiVo, you're the best spouse anyone could ask for), and I have to say this: I missed her a lot. I missed the brashness. I missed t…
Usually a theater critic has to die to get a theater named after him. Not me. Recently I was visiting friends up at their property in Mendocino " seven acres full of redwoods, oaks and pines…
The first glimpse of John Travolta as Edna Turnblad in the now-filming movie based on the hit Broadway musical Hairspray has been released, and it's….well, see for yourself. Yes, that's Tr…
Berkeley Repertory Theatre artistic director Tony Taccone, now in his 10th season with the theater, is the subject of an excellent new article in Theatre Communications Group's American Thea…
Now that California Shakespeare Theater's wild production of "The Merchant of Venice" is over, I wanted to weigh in about the experience of writing a negative review for a company I hold in …
Today (Sept. 1) is Lily Tomlin's 67th birthday, so let's all take a moment to appreciate her genius. Most recently, Tomlin was a marvel in A Prairie Home Companion, my favorite movie of the …
Who knew that right under my very nose I had a spy! My new co-worker, Dino-Ray, read my previous blog item about Dreamgirls and casually let slip that HE'D ACTUALLY SEEN THE MOVIE ALREADY! S…
Want a goosebump experience? Check out the official site for Dreamgirls, the upcoming movie version the kick-a** 1980 Broadway musical. I got all revved up about this when I first saw the te…
Received a fantastic e-mail from Steve Kluger, a novelist/playwright I've been corresponding with since I reviewed his play After Dark at the New Conservatory Theatre Center. Kluger's a wond…
Just watched an interesting DVD documentary about Stagedoor Manor, the summer camp for pre-teens and teens who just gotta sing and gotta dance. Famous alumni of the camp include Zach Braff, …
Last week, the theater Web sites ran the announcement that one of my favorite singer/songwriters, Patty Griffin, will premeire a musical next spring at the Atlantic Theater Company. The musi…
Had two amazing experiences in one on Monday. 1) They actually let me into Skywalker Ranch in Marin, George Lucas' incredible special effects compound where the biggest special effect of all…
A couple months ago, I was interviewing playwright Paul Rudnick about his play "Valhalla," which was about to open at the New Conservatory Theatre Center in San Francisco. Rudnick is an incr…
