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logoVC On Stage is an online dynamic community for theater lovers, which brings over sixty Ventura County theater arts venues together in one common platform. Elements include:
- Feature Stories
- Interviews & Profiles
- Performer Bios
- Our Comprehensive Calendar Of Events (The largest of any Ventura County Publication), including location, dates, and show times for ALL Ventura County Plays and Musicals.
Cary Ginell has been reviewing Ventura County plays and musicals since 1996. In addition to serving as publisher for VC On Stage, he is the editor of "Broadway Musicals: Show By Show," published by Applause Books. As a flutist, he has played in various pit orchestras for Ventura County musicals.

 

Monday, 08 December 2014 14:13

Review: The Gift of Magi

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Getting the public to accept a new Christmas play or musical is a difficult task, given that the holiday itself is based on long-standing traditions that are hard to crack. But the creators of The Gift of the Magi, which made its world premiere at the Hillcrest Center for the Arts last night, hope to do just that, and have come a long way since hatching their brainchild a decade ago.

Saturday, 13 September 2014 00:08

Review: Conviction

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Review
Rubicon's "Conviction" is Riveting Drama
"My faith in him is all he has left," says Leigh Hodges of her husband Tom, an upstanding, respected high school English and drama teacher who has been accused of having an illicit affair with a 15-year-old female drama student. This is the crux of Carey Crim's riveting play, Conviction, which shows how a comfortable life and a happy marriage can be easily destroyed.
Saturday, 30 August 2014 07:00

Review: The Diary of Anne Frank

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Review
The stage play The Diary of Anne Frank, which made its debut at the Conejo Players Theatre last night, is not just a living testament of the horrors of the Holocaust, but a moving celebration of the human spirit. With all the barbaric and monstrous acts against humanity that took place during this period, Anne Frank's diary, on which the play is based, was one of many works of art that transcended the devastating events during World War II. The original play was written by two screenwriters, Francis Goodrich and Albert Hackett in 1955, three years after the publication of the diary. Although it was warmly received, Goodrich and Hackett's play was later criticized for sanitizing Anne's work, removing passages dealing with Anne's sexuality and her pride in her Jewishness. In 1997, Wendy Kesselman restored these elements in a revised edition that elevated it from an impassioned, but flawed "feel-good" story about survival to a highly textured, emotionally rich portrayal of a remarkable young woman and seven other refugees at the most perilous time in human history.
Sunday, 27 July 2014 08:51

Review: Title and Deed

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"What was THAT all about?" Those were the words that went through my head upon leaving the Rubicon Theatre Company, after witnessing esteemed Irish actor Conor Lovett's performance of Will Eno's one-man play, Title and Deed last night. I wasn't totally shocked and confused by what I had just seen. I had done my homework on this show, as I do with all shows I see, and discovered that Eno is a Brooklyn-based playwright who is more popular in Europe than he is in the U.S. and has created a variety of controversial plays.