From Ionesco to Sharkey in the spring

Tom Titus

The late Jack Sharkey, who called El Toro home, would have

appreciated his position on Orange Coast College’s spring theater

schedule -- sharing the same lineup with two plays by Eugene Ionesco

and a powerful new drama about a real-life hate crime.

Sharkey’s off-the-wall opus -- “Sherlock Holmes and the Giant Rat

of Sumatra” -- will arrive May 8 for a two-weekend run in OCC’s Drama

Lab Theater. The prolific Sharkey, who wrote dozens of plays under

his own name and several pseudonyms, just contributed the music and

lyrics for “Giant Rat,” with playwright Tim Kelly supplying the book.

The absurdist playwright is up to bat first as OCC’s Repertory

Theater Company presents “An Evening of Ionesco” Feb. 15 to 16 and 22

to 23 in the Studio Theater. The plays will be directed by OCC

students.

An even shorter run is scheduled for “Solo Voices,” a festival of

monologues and one-person plays, also in the Studio Theater under the

Rep Company’s auspices. These will also be directed by students.

“The Laramie Project,” a fact-based drama by Moises Kaufman, is

scheduled March 19 to 23 in the Drama Lab under the direction of John

Ferzacca. This play tells the story of a 21-year-old University of

Wyoming student Mathew Shephard, who was kidnapped and beaten to

death in 1998 because he was gay.

Each spring, OCC’s drama department chooses a full-length play

selected by an advanced directing student for production. Previous

entries in this category have been David Mamet’s “Oleanna” and the

fantasy drama “References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot.” This year’s

entry in this category, as yet unannounced, will be staged April 19

to 20 and 26 to 27 in the Studio Theater.

After all this serious business, director Alex Golson will take on

“Sherlock Holmes and the Giant Rat of Sumatra.” The musical satire

includes all of A. Conan Doyle’s famous characters -- Holmes, Dr.

Watson, Inspector Lestrade, Professor Moriarty and Mrs. Hudson -- and

adds a few other notables, such as Queen Victoria and Jack the

Ripper, to the mix.

“Sherlock” will be performed May 8 to 11 and 15 to 18 in the Drama

Lab. It’s a pity that Sharkey couldn’t have lived to see his epic

mystery-musical-comedy produced. He was known for attending local

productions of his plays.

Closing out the spring schedule will be OCC’s annual one-act

festival. These plays will be presented May 21 to 25 in the Studio

Theater and include more than a dozen different student-directed

short plays, ranging from the classics to student-written original

pieces. Theatergoers can garner more information about the college’s

spring theater season by calling (714) 432-5640.

DANCE CONCERT

Costa Mesa’s Vanguard University will present a dance concert next

weekend titled “Six Measures,” based on the biblical Book of Ruth.

The college’s 2003 dance concert, an original work developed by

alumni directors Lehua Coley and Mandie Carroll, will be staged by

four Vanguard student choreographers. “Six Measures,” set in the

1920s, traces the story of four women who leave the comfort and

security of their small town to move to the big city.

“Six Measures” -- which includes big band music and period

costumes -- will be staged Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m. and Saturday

at 2 and 8 in the university’s Lyceum Theater. Tickets, are $8 and

$5, and may be reserved by calling the box office at (714) 668-6145.

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His

reviews appear Thursdays and Saturdays.