Entertainment Today reviews ALBERT HALL

[Valerie]

Entertainment Today reviews Amber Benson's ALBERT HALL

HOLLYWOOD, CA ­ April 27, 2003 - This week's issue of "Entertainment Today" features Jose Ruiz's excellent review of Amber Benson's World Premiere play, ALBERT HALL. The review is included below. ALBERT HALL
runs Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00 pm and Sundays at 7:00 pm, April 17 - May 11 at The Complex's Dorie Theater, 6476 Santa Monica Blvd. (at Wilcox) in Hollywood. Tickets are $12 for Thursday, Saturday and
Sunday performances; and $20 for Friday performances (including Q&A reception and refreshments). For reservations call 310-410-1850.

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from ENTERTAINMENT TODAY:

Albert Hall
The Complex-Dorie Theater
reviewed by Jose Ruiz

The premise of this quirky in your face production could be summed up as: main character Albert Hall has a mental breakdown and ends up regaining his sanity. Far fetched as that may seem, the Lone Star Ensemble's
latest is a darkly comic, compelling and often gripping story that forces the audience into participating far beyond the customary "sit and watch"passive mode.

Author Amber Benson presents us with a 30-year-old man whose life has been screwed up by a "mother from hell." Draw a horizontal "Z" and you get the flow of this play. First, it's set in the present, as Albert returns from the mental hospital only to find worse insanity at home;
then it slides back 18 years to his father's funeral, a rambling unconnected scene that is totally confusing, until you see the last act: a short backward leap to his stay at the psychiatric hospital where his alter-ego, a clown called Mr. Sadface is verbally sparring with the
shrink. Suddenly it all connects.

Even if it seems pretty conventional, Albert breaks the fourth wall throughout the play, sharing his thoughts with the audience... until a totally unexpected turn in act three. If Director James Kerwin is striving to make theater an experience where the audience participates
as much as the actors, this is it! The gutsy move redefines the interaction
between theater and society. While Albert Hall does not carry an earth-shattering message, it does propose that most of what people consider normal is heavily dowsed in lunacy and those who profess sanity should be carefully watched. As an aside, Fox News plays on TV in the background in act one, and for those aware of Fox's agenda, it is indeed an inspired choice of programming.

Also inspired is the huge cast, led by Brian Stanton as Albert; Johanna McKay as his mother; and Brian Carpenter as the shrink. Others include Kathryn Gordon, Jamie Burns, April Adams, Shelley Isaacs, Sebastian DeVicente, Natalie Zea, Chandler Smith, Angelique Mermet and Travis Schuldt. If you go on a Friday, you can join the Q&A session after the show, which is almost like seeing a totally different show. Albert Hall runs through May 11. For information and reservations call [phone].

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Lone Star Ensemble

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