Bat Boy, The Musical opened at the Altarena last weekend to sold-out crowds and standing ovations. So we had a pretty good idea that there’s a lot of love for for our pointy-eared hero, but it’s always nice to see that the local critics agree.
Ken Bullock of the Berkeley Daily Planet writes:
“It’s a raucous, goofy, off-kilter dysfunctional family entertainment, staged with elan by Alameda’s Altarena Playhouse”
and
“From Bat Boy’s first melodic ululations, swinging in his cage, to production numbers featuring the batty boy in top hat, with cane, accompanied by the entire cast of 14 (and the stalwart quartet in the flies, guitar, bass and drums led by Sierra Dee on keyboards), the songs wash over the fast-moving, brilliantly paced show.”
In her review titled “Love At First Bite” for the Alameda Sun, Sharon Edler Reid agrees, adding:
“There is a strong underlying theme of acceptance that flows throughout the show but because the show is so funny and layered, it never feels heavy-handed. And in the capable hands of co-directors Angelo Benedetto and Paul Plain, the cast delivers that message with high energy and big laughs. The bat boy himself is played with rabid abandon by Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez is in his element as the misunderstood monster of the abandoned mines, an iconic role in the vein of Frankenstein’s monster.”
Bat Boy, The Musical runs through November 1 and tickets are selling fast (which seems to be the rule around the Altarena this year). Don’t miss out; get your tickets through our online box office today. It’s quick, secure, and there’s never an additional handling or processing fee.
Embrace your inner Bat Boy this Halloween season!
October 03 2008 | Reviews and Shows | No Comments »
The reviews are in for our production of Noel Coward’s “Hay Fever,” and everyone seems to agree… it’s a hit!
Alice Chalip, writing for the Alameda Journal, opens this way:
“Politely sexy, magnificently costumed and produced, and downright hilarious are apt descriptions of “Hay Fever,” the wild show currently gracing the 70-year-old stage of Altarena Playhouse.”
Ken Bullock, in the Berkeley Daily Planet, writes:
“Hay Fever, an ensemble show if ever there was one, is put on with panache at Altarena Playhouse, with a cast of nine—four ravenous and infighting family members and four increasingly gun-shy weekenders, plus the redoubtable Clara—directed by artistic director Frederick Chacon, all of them working together to make the pieces fit in a hilarious jigsaw puzzle of a pristine day in the country reflected in a sideshow mirror.”
And Gabriella Centurion’s review for the Alameda Sun can be summed up by its headline:
“Howls of Laughter for Hay Fever”
“Hay Fever” runs through August 9th, but shows are selling out quickly. Get your tickets before they’re all gone.
July 25 2008 | Reviews and Shows | No Comments »
Tom Billings, writing for today’s Alameda Journal, weighs in with his review of the Altarena’s Urinetown, The Musical. One quote sums it up:
“So far, this is the most must-see show of the Alameda theatrical season. Don’t miss it.”
What can we say? We agree with Tom completely. 
Read the full review | Buy tickets
September 14 2007 | Reviews and Shows | No Comments »
The Oakland Tribune published a glowing review of Urinetown in today’s paper. Alice Chalip writes:
“URINETOWN, THE MUSICAL, now at Altarena Playhouse in Alameda, is like nothing you’ve ever seen and like everything you’ve ever seen.
It is a strange, but fascinating, and superbly done show.
This is possibly one of the most successful musicals Frederick L. Chacon has directed.”
Chalip’s review goes on to give a great overview of the story, characters, and music, and closes with another quote for our scrapbook:
“Urinetown, The Musical is a thoroughly enjoyable show — like an old friend in some ways, but remarkably different in others.”
Read the full review here.
September 13 2007 | Reviews and Shows | Comments Off
