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“Love, Sex and the I.R.S.”

At the opening night party of "Love, Sex and the I.R.S.", director Lee Garrow said he was worried that he wouldn't be able to cast this show. Farcical comedy requires impeccable timing, as well as a knack for physical comedy and extreme characterization. Garrow found the cast, and "Love, Sex, and the I.R.S." is very funny.Like "The Odd Couple," roommates Jon (Jim Oxborrow) and Leslie (Tom Althouse) compliment each other perfectly as the suave guy and nerdish sidekick, respectively. Patty Silva as Jon's fiance, Kate, is one of the highlights of the show, superbly portraying the ...

‘ Love, sex, and the I.R.S.’

While working as extras on "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," an incredibly bored couple began to write a comedy that would showcase their talent. William Van Zandt and Jane Milmore passed the time between takes writing what eventually became "Love, Sex, and the I.R.S."They had never written a play before. Because it was the '70s, cut and paste was literal. Van Zandt did not want to retype entire pages, so the rewrites involved whiteout and the need to come up with nine-word jokes to replace nine-word jokes. For that reason, the character Jon Trachtman (Jim Oxborrow) is Jon, and not John ...

Improv group stars in “Broadway’s Next H!t Musical”

One of my favorite lines from "Family Guy" was when Quagmire called improv the "most consistently funny form of comedy." We've all seen improv comedy that falls short, but next weekend, Maui residents have the chance to see master, professional improv artists at work. Two of those performers are Deb Rabbai and Rob Schiffman from "Broadway's Next H!t Musical." The show, which is completely different for every performance, was created through exercises at New York City's famed Freestyle Repertory Theatre 12 years ago, and polished at the renowned NYC nightclub Don't Tell Mama.The premise ...

Coming to a stage near you!

With more than 50 stage shows planned on Maui this season, it was troublesome to fit them all in one column. Aside from what is listed, there are upwards of a dozen other productions on the horizon. If you attend multiple performing arts events per year, you'll want to save this Maui Scene for scheduling personal "don't miss" shows of the 2013-14 theatrical season.*****Opening in two weeks is Maui OnStage's "Love, Sex, and the I.R.S." by William Van Zandt and Jane Milmore. Two out-of-work musicians, Jon (Jim Oxborrow) and Leslie (Tom Althouse), have been cheating on their taxes by ...

Meet Ricky Jones

On Saturday, Maui OnStage will begin a new youth theater program helmed by veteran theater instructor Ricky Jones. Jones will work along side fellow educators Alexis Dascoulias, Steven Dascoulias, Erin Kowalick and Brett Wulfson in producing and directing "The Story of Orange" by Vernise Pelzel. He is also active in Maui Academy of Performing Arts youth theater, and serves as director of its current educational theater tour, "Return of the Menehune" by Derek Nakagawa.We met last week and I asked what prompted him to start the new program."I wanted to bring more opportunity for children ...

Party for the arts

This week I am compelled to honor one of the greatest stage actresses of the 20th century, Ms. Julie Harris. The five-time Tony award winner, whose career spanned seven decades, passed at the age of 87 on Saturday. When asked in the 1990s what she would do if she knew the world was going to end tomorrow, Harris replied, "I'd go to the theater."In 2000, I worked on the stage production "Winter," starring Harris, at Victory Gardens Theater of Chicago. Always approachable and happy to offer theater guidance to any and all who asked, Harris shared with the crew that the famous thespian ...