HIGH TIMES TODAY! CARYL CHURCHILL'S 'TOP GIRLS'

SHE'S A TOUGH ONE
Photo by Jay Yamada

TOP GIRLS BY 
Caryl Churchill 

'HIGH TIMES' TODAY - DIRECTED BY LAURA LUNDY-PAINE

By Lee Hartgrave (short take) 

Oh my Gosh. I should have known better. I have to admit that I never liked Churchill's stories. For one thing she has the actors talking over each other. Yep, she's a feminist all right, and I could say that her plays were dramatically boring. And I will say it. 

A friend that sat next to me whispered to me: "This is God Awful". Well there was no escape. We were trapped. It was all about women getting jobs. The babble was enough to hypnotize anyone. Talk, talk, talk over and over again. I think Caryl thinks that she was Margaret Thatcher. You know (Butch)! 

Maybe the play might be better as a book. Some people will somehow fall in love with lots and lots of words. A play you set aside and pick up later might be interesting - but to have to sit and listen for three hours or more is way too much. 

O.K - lets get to the best part. Thank God for the Great acting. Even though the talking over each other is annoying - the talent was fantastic. And I will tell you who they are below. 

NOW PLAYING AT THE CUSTOM MADE THEATRE....

THE FANTASTIC ACTORS ARE: Cary Cronholm Rose, Cat Luedtke, Mimu Tsujimura, Katie Robbins, Monica Capuccini, Carina Lastimosa Salazar and Megan Putnam. Supreme Actors for the Ages. How they managed I'll never know. If it wasn't for the talent on the stage I would have left. 

RATING FOR THE PLAY: ** (Two Stars) 

RATING FOR THE ACTORS****(Four Stars) 

(((Lee Hartgrave has contributed many articles to the San Francisco Chronicle Datebook - and he also produced a long-running Arts Segment on PBS KQED -7 years)))