Theater

Tom Titus

The Theater District may be down, but it’s far from out.

After five years producing some often-exceptional shows at the Lab

Anti-Mall on Bristol Street in Costa Mesa (a venue now occupied by the

Trilogy Playhouse), the troupe vacated that location at the end of last

year due to rising expenses.

But founders Mario and Joan Lescot, operators of a Costa Mesa beauty

salon, haven’t given up on their plans to relocate the company elsewhere.

And to that end, they’re staging their annual spring fund-raiser tonight.

The event, dubbed “Casino Night at the Car Wash,” will be staged from 7

to 11 p.m. at the Beacon Bay Auto Wash, 4200 Birch St., Newport Beach.

Funds raised will go toward both the new home search ad the Theater

District’s first out-of-town production.

That show will be a reprise of “Five Women Wearing the Same Dress,” which

the Theater District staged during its last season at the Lab, opening

July 14 at the Cast Theater in Los Angeles as a co-production between the

two companies.

Tonight’s affair will feature a 1970s-style ambience with catering by

In-N-Out Burgers. Activities will include a silent auction, raffles,

gaming tables (including roulette and blackjack), cash and casino prizes,

cocktails, desserts and disco music.

In addition, artist David Adams will display an original work, “Untitled

Static Piece,” which he created for and donated to the event.

Tickets to “Casino Night at the Car Wash” are $30 each and include a

hamburger with cheese, soft drink and dessert and $100 in gambling money.

Dressing in ‘70s attire is optional. A portion of the ticket is

tax-deductible.

If you miss the Theater District and would like to help the group

reactivate, call (714) 435-4043 for further information.

*

South Coast Repertory seldom produces musicals, but when the company does

(“Mother Earth,” “Godspell,” “Sunday in the Park With George”), they tend

to be exceptional.

The Costa Mesa company will close out its current season with the world

premiere of an original musical, “The Education of Randy Newman,” opening

June 2.

The show is a musical theater piece recreating the life of a songwriter

who bears some resemblance to the actual Newman. Set in New Orleans and

Los Angeles, it’s modeled on the autobiography “The Education of Henry

Adams.”

Creators Newman, Michael Roth and SCR’s Jerry Patch (who’s also

responsible for adapting Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” into the

stage production SCR has been offering for the past 20 years) surveyed

hundreds of Newman’s songs to find those which, taken together, depict

the life of an American artist in the last half of the 20th century.

The story is told through many of Newman’s greatest songs, revisions of

others and songs never before heard in concert or on record. Directing is

Myron Johnson, artistic director of the Ballet of the Dolls dance theater

company in Minneapolis, Minn.

The cast includes Jordan Bennet, Gregg Henry, Sherry Hursey, John Lathan,

Allison Smith, Scott Waara and Jennifer Leigh Warren.

For all but Henry, it will be their first time on the SCR stage.

“The Education of Randy Newman” will play through July 2, and ticket

information is available at (714) 708-5555.

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His reviews appear

Thursdays and Saturdays.