Sound Performance

Perhaps for the first time in Ventura County theatrical history, three professional productions are running simultaneously: two at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza, the third marking the debut of a new company in the city of Ventura.

Strong Acting by New Group: An old man is taking inventory in his Brooklyn candy store relatively late one evening, when into the shop bursts a young man, excited and evidently in some sort of trouble.

That’s the setup of William Hanley’s 1964 drama “Slow Dance on the Killing Ground,” initiating Theatre on Main. It’s the second professional theater company (i.e., employing actors under Actors’ Equity contracts) to open in the city of Ventura in the past six weeks. Seven weeks ago, there was none.

Located in an upstairs space in the local Odd Fellows Temple, the theater is modestly comfortable, with the audience surrounding the floor-level action on three sides. “Slow Dance,” a showcase for three actors, is immediate and confrontational. The three-act play is also a tour de force for Kyle Jones, in a role created by Clarence Williams III before he graduated (if that’s the word) to TV’s “Mod Squad.”

Randal (Jones) claims an IQ well into the stratosphere. He claims a lot of things, but this one may be true. He’s smart enough to quickly spot store owner Glas (Jim Hatch) as a Holocaust survivor, but again, so is most of the audience. Randal wants something from Glas, it seems, but neither of them appears to be able to figure out what. Just as the first act ends, a young woman, Rosie (Stefanie Ann Kahn) literally stumbles into the store, changing the dynamic.

All three actors are strong enough under the direction of Theatre on Main co-founder Jack Heller (his partner is co-star Hatch) to make the rather self-conscious story and cliched characters work, with Jones truly electrifying as the chameleonic Randal.

As a side note, every theatrical sound person in town should show up just to hear how sound designer Ross Care handles the cues and effects.

“Slow Dance on the Killing Ground” continues through May 23 at Theatre on Main, 516 E. Main St. (in the Odd Fellows Hall) in Ventura. Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets to all shows are $20 general or $15 students and seniors and may be purchased at the door or at Blue’s Bakery (518 E. Main St.) from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Wheelchair access is available through the rear door. For reservations or further information, call 648-1936.

Long-Dead Art Form Revived: Take four youngish guys; have them sing for 90 minutes such songs as “Moments to Remember” and “Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing” that haven’t been hits for about half a century, in a white-bread harmony style that’s been unfashionable for just as long; and you’ve got--what?--a lounge act in downtown Milwaukee? Punch it all up with hammy showmanship, a nonsensical story line and references meaningless to anyone under (to be charitable) 40, and you’ve got “Forever Plaid.”

The show, created by Stuart Ross and James Raitt nearly a decade ago, has been playing ever since, often by several professional companies in different cities simultaneously. There’s a version now running at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza’s Forum. And for what it is (Sha Na Na for the Metamucil set, if that isn’t redundant), it’s quite enjoyable.

The plot--let’s dismiss it quickly--finds an unsuccessful but enthusiastic vocal quartet killed in an accident just before its big break. Many years later--now, to be specific--the four are back on Earth to perform that big show.

If you’re a fan of the Four Aces, Four Lads, Four Coins and so on, this show’s for you, if you don’t mind the patronizing attitude. The songs are as good as songs from that era got, and no matter how much the guys are mugging and clowning it up, the singing is excellent. Most of the vocal arrangements, accurate to their era, lack the imagination that does pop up in bits like the “songs for any occasion” medley and a set of selections from the Plaids’ imaginary record albums.

Each of the Plaids, portrayed here by Leo Daignault, Steve Gunderson, George Miserlis and Rodney Peck, is fine; all have worked in earlier companies of the show, as have director Larry Raben, musical director / pianist Neil Ginsberg and even bassist John Smith. Daignault got the first strong response at Saturday’s matinee with his version of the old Johnnie Ray hit, “Cry.”

Other successful sequences include their tributes to Ed Sullivan’s and Perry Como’s ‘50s television variety programs. If you don’t know who (or what) Topo Gigio is or don’t recognize “Sing to Me, Mister C,” you’ll be missing a lot of the fun.

Ask your grandparents. Better still, take them.

“Forever Plaid” continues through May 23 at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza Forum, 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday; 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets, $22-$28, can be purchased at the Civic Arts Center box office or through TicketMaster at 583-8700. For group rates, call 497-8616.

Alternate “Phantom” Haunts Civic Arts Plaza: Of the two recent musical versions of the classic “Phantom of the Opera,” the one with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber is the better known. But it’s the second, written by Arthur Kopit with music by Maury Yeston, that’s at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza through this weekend. And although the Kopit-Yeston show--”Phantom” is its complete title--lacks the familiar Lloyd Webber music, it has its own charms.

Based on the novel by Gaston Leroux, “Phantom” tells of a mysterious masked man (Robert Patteri) who lives in the bowels of the opera house, drawn to the voice of the lovely amateur, Christine (Karen Culliver). He trains Christine so that her talents will be worthy of the Opera, where she’s thwarted by Carlotta (Karon Kearney), the wife of the opera’s new manager (Hal Robinson). Carlotta wants to star herself, her lack of vocal talent notwithstanding, and discourages competition. Creepy “beauty and the beast”-style romance and a few murders ensue.

The current touring production, by the Theater League and directed by Glenn Casale, has something of a threadbare look, with less-than-luxurious sets and a smallish--though quite capable--ensemble. Still, the leads are worthy (Culliver has also played Christine in the Lloyd Webber show), and the story is told clearly enough to make it a good bet for older children.

And if the songs aren’t quite as hummable as you might have hoped, you might follow the lead of one Sunday matinee patron and hum “The Music of the Night” from the other version on your way out of the theater.

“Phantom” continues through Sunday at the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza auditorium, 2100 Thousand Oaks Blvd. Performances are at 8 p.m. tonight-Saturday; 7 p.m. Sunday; matinees at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Tickets, $29.50-$38.50, can be purchased at the Civic Arts Center box office or through TicketMaster at 583-8700. For group rates, call 497-8616 or (818) 986-2908.