The womenfolk step into the spotlight this August, with shows written by them, about them, starring them or just plain wouldn’t have happened without them. But we’d be a lonely bunch without the fellows, so fortunately men are around to join in the fun, participate in the creativity or simply stand by their gals. We think these five shows, listed in order of closing date, will be worth your theatergoing time and money this month.
Sister Act from the Torrance Theatre Company at James Armstrong Theatre, Aug 5–19
Disco music and inept nuns sounds like an irreverent—let alone horrible—combination, right? But that’s the crux of this stage musical (borrowing from the Whoopi Goldberg movie), about a lounge singer who unwittingly witnesses a mob crime and is forced to hide out at a nearby convent. With its lessons about finding our true voices and our true callings, this story turns out to be heaven-sent. Miraculously, the disco music sounds surprisingly wonderful, too. Jim Hormel directs a lively cast.
3330 Civic Center Dr, Torrance. Sat 8pm, Sun 2pm, additional performance Fri 8pm, Aug 18. $35. 424-243-6882.
Honky Tonk Laundry at the Hudson Mainstage Theatre, Aug 11–Sept 17
Lana Mae Hopkins, proprietress of the Wishy Washy Washateria, hires Katie Lane Murphy to help out. What might they talk about besides soap and fabrics? You guessed it: cheatin’ hearts. Two of the Southland’s—nay, the nation’s—best musical theater performers, Bets Malone (as Lana Mae) and Misty Cotton (as Katie) star in this jukebox musical by Roger Bean, the creator of The Marvelous Wonderettes. The show promises “good clean fun,” as it, ahem, cycles through such hits as “These Boots Were Made for Walkin’” and “Stand by Your Man.”
6539 Santa Monica Blvd, Hollywood. Fri–Sat 8pm, Sun 3pm and 7pm. $35–$44. 323-960-7773.
Silent Sky at the International City Theatre, Aug 23–Sept 10
You’ve heard of Galileo and Halley, but probably not about Henrietta Swan Leavitt. Lauren Gunderson’s new play explores Leavitt’s life and struggle to be a female astronomer in the early 19th century despite being barred from using telescopes to watch the sky. Hired as a “computer” by Harvard College Observatory, she discovered the “luminosity-period relation,” which science eventually relied on to show that the universe is expanding. The sky may be somewhat silent, but her voice will at long last be heard. Todd Nielsen directs.
330 East Seaside Way, Long Beach. Thu–Sat 8pm, Sun 2pm. $35–$49. 562-436-4610.
Trouble in Mind at Will Geer’s Theatricum Botanicum, July 29–Sept 30
At a Broadway theater in 1950s New York City, a recently racially integrated theater company gathers for its first day of rehearsal of an anti-lynching play, under the direction of a supposedly liberal white man. African-American playwright Alice Childress undoubtedly drew from her experiences as an actor, as the backstage “types” are spot-on. Ellen Geer sensitively but humorously helms this rarely produced satirical 1955 play in the gorgeous outdoor theater her father established.
1419 N Topanga Canyon Blvd, Topanga. The theater is outdoors, cushions available for rent. Repertory schedule. $10–$38.50. 310-455-3723.
Hamilton at Pantages Theatre, Aug 11–Dec 30
“How does a ragtag volunteer army, in need of a shower, somehow defeat a global superpower?” Or, more particularly, how can a man with intellect, street smarts, drive and luck, after making it to the top of the world, somehow plummet so far? One of America’s unsung founding fathers gets rapped about in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s megahit. What about the women? As you’ll learn, we might not have even heard of Hamilton without them. Tickets can be pricey—they’re going fast—but this show won’t disappoint.
6233 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood. Tue–Fri 8pm, Sat 2pm & 8pm, Sun 1pm & 6:30pm. $85–$750. 800-982-2787.
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