Falling For Make Believe at The Colony Theatre

Falling For Make Believe

The Colony Theatre
555 North Third Street Burbank

Lorenz (Larry) Hart was one of Broadway's all-time greats, the brilliant lyricist who penned "My Funny Valentine," "Blue Moon," "Manhattan," "Falling in Love With Love," "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered," "Where or When," and countless other classics. As half of the legendary team of Rodgers and Hart, he lived a life of dizzying heights and crushing lows. Now Mark Saltzman (author of The Colony's smash hit Clutter: The True Story of the Collyer Brothers Who Never Threw Anything Out) captures them all in an intimate look at the life and times of this lyrical genius, a brand new musical developed by The Colony featuring some of the most memorable songs of the 20th Century.

Thru - May 19, 2013

Thursdays: 8:00pm

Fridays: 8:00pm

Saturdays: 3:00pm & 8:00pm

Sundays: 2:00pm

Price: $20-$42

Show Type: Drama

Box Office: 818-558-7000

www.colonytheatre.org

Falling For Make Believe Reviews

Average Rating based on 12 reviews

Highly Recommended
Recommended
Somewhat Recommended
Not Recommended

Los Angeles Times - Recommended

"...To move beyond this elegant chamber staging, that and other clashes between form and content - both subject and concept may merit two-act expansion - will have to be addressed. That's best left to archivists, quibblers and future producers, because audiences should be bewitched."

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- David C. Nichols

LA Weekly - Recommended

"...The Colony Theatre's latest effort isn't quite there yet: Mark Saltzman's world-premiere musical about the wordsmith half of songwriting duo Rodgers and Hart requires polishing (and a hit would help get the faltering theater back on its feet). But for music lovers and nostalgic theater buffs, this revue directed by Jim Fall offers tender moments, two dozen of the pair's greatest hits and a sobering glimpse at the backstage paradox of Lorenz Hart - snappy wit and lyric genius but a sodden, tormented closet case."

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- Jenny Lower

Broadway World - Somewhat Recommended

"...The book is the main problem here, and the source of many of the production's inherent problems. Written by Mark Saltzman, the truncated one-act structure unfortunately isn't able to go much deeper than an expose of Hart's homosexuality and binge drinking."

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- Amber Cassell

Stage and Cinema - Recommended

"...Director Jim Fall and Musical Director Keith Harrison bring unexpected magic to the already magical-a neat trick."

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- Samuel Bernstein

Burbank Leader - Recommended

"...The Colony Theatre ends its "Season of Premieres" with a base-clearing home run. Falling For Make Believe combines terrific Broadway song-and-dance with a compelling drama of the life of Broadway lyricist Lorenz Hart."

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- Greg Simay

Stage Scene LA - Recommended

"...The brief but artistically blessed life of legendary Broadway lyricist Lorenz Hart now serves as the inspiration for Falling For Make Believe, a Colony Theatre World Premiere musical that entertains, elucidates, and ends up this spring's most unexpected treat."

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- Steven Stanley

StageHappenings.com - Recommended

"...The cast is excellent with the ever- talented Brett Ryback playing Rodgers and the handsome Ben Goldberg as Hart. "

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- Robert Machray

ArtsInLA - Recommended

"...As stage memoirs go, this one is thin but not entirely unpersuasive, and in its musicality (21 Top 40 hits pulled from the savory songbook) and entertainment value alone, should be a winner for the Colony, which can use one in its heroic battle for financial solvency."

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- Bob Verini

LA Stage Times - Recommended

"...Falling for Make Believe rejects "falling for" the usual "make believe" that has permeated such previous dramatizations of the life of lyricist Hart as the 1948 Hollywood movie Words and Music. Mark Saltzman's new musical at the Colony is much more than a revue, masterfully capturing not only the wit and melancholy of Hart's lyrics but also the angst of his closeted, alcoholic adult years."

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- Don Shirley

Frontiers - Not Recommended

"...The show offers an appealing blend of timelessly enchanting music with a startling glimpse at the perils of being gay and forging a show business career in pre-liberation decades. However, the colorful milieu of Broadway glamour during the Jazz Age, mixed with the tragic elements of Lorenz' life, occasionally makes for an awkward amalgam of tones. Saltzman and director Jim Fall should pursue ways to more smoothly integrate the dark edges with the ebullient trappings of a peppy musical. Better integration of the myriad narrative threads into a more cohesive progression would also be a plus."

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- Les Spindle

Musicals In LA - Recommended

"...This 95-minute gem of a new musical contains some of the best music ever written showcased by the surprising story of the man who wrote the lyrics. It's a compassionate tale simply wrought that doesn't over-sentimentalize its subject but offers a thoughtful look at the price of genius and one poet of Broadway's gift of words."

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- Ellen Dostal

NoHoArtsDistrict - Recommended

"...The Colony Theatre in the Burbank Town Center Mall has a winner in this production of FALLING FOR MAKE BELIEVE. It is a welcome addition to Los Angeles theatre and a MUST SEE."

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- Cathy Wayne