Dixie's Tupperware Party

Before seeing this show I was told a few things...

1. Yes, it's an actual Tupperware party where you can purchase the products.

2. Dixie is indeed a male dressed as a woman.

3. Get ready for a naughty night!

So after being "warned" I was very excited to see what this southern bell had up her sleeve.

As we walked in the door, Dixie was there with a candy bowl greeting the audience and sharing candy with everyone. She is a very bubbly and friendly and seemed excited about the party. The stage was set up kind of like a simplistic living room two couches, two coffee tables one large table in the back with a bunch of Tupperware products, a television screen and a large black and white photo of a woman off to the side. Once the show started Dixie poured herself a glass of Jack Daniels into one of her plastic tumblers with a lid and straw, took a sip and jumped right in. Throughout the show she kept calling the products "crap" and encouraged audience members to have a drink so that they would buy more. She told us her life story and demonstrated many different products. It was a very interactive show that included a "rimming" contest with audience members.

Overall the show was fun from start to finish. Definitely not something to bring your children to or your grandmother, unless she has a raunchy sense of humor. Dixie kept me on my feet and had me laughing more than I have in a long time. It's a great unique show, and a cool way to update your food storage inventory too!

The Lion King

I've always heard amazing things about The Lion King on Broadway and never could really get my head around the thought of people as animals and everything like the classic Disney movie. The movie takes place in the jungle with herds of animals and many different settings and I was kind of skeptical of how that would work on a Broadway stage. Let's just say... I was pleasantly surprised.

I loved the opening of the show when various characters and animals came out of what seemed like no where on the sides of the civic center. All of the sudden there were antelopes coming in the doors and birds flying in the air. It was great. I loved the woman who played Rafiki. Her voice was incredible and she really seemed to love what she was doing. I also thoroughly enjoyed young Simba and Nala. I always have enjoyed watching kids perform on stage and these two young actors had so much energy and talent it was a delight to see. The set changes, costumes, props and percussion made things work really well where I actually felt like I could be on an African safari. My only wish is that I had not been up since 3am the day I saw the show, I think I would have been able to enjoy it more if I were not so exhausted.

Anyway, if you ever have the chance to see this show I recommend it. Zachary and I talked about how fun it would be to see it with his nieces and nephew too. A great show for all ages!

Sister's Christmas Catechism

My future sister in-law Vanessa and I had our first visit to the Civic Center's Temple Theater tonight for Sister's Christmas Catechism. We were both excited for the show and even more so when we ended up getting a prime parking space right in front of the theater on this cold winter night. The theater itself is neat, situated on the top floor of a pretty building downtown it's a quaint little space that works well for an audience involved, intimate show such as this.

Originally, I thought this production would be like your "normal" piece of theater... a cast of actors performing their craft to an audience. But the second Sister walked into the theater I knew we were in for something quite different. Instead, the show was very interactive with the audience members acting as students in Sister's classroom. I personally grew up Catholic but never attended a Catholic school. Though I've heard several stories from my father and uncles about what exactly it was like to have nuns as school teachers. From what I've heard and saw in the show, Sister in this production pretty much fits the stereotypical mold of what I had expected. We all learned quickly that Sister ran a strict classroom where gum, candy and lutherans were frowned upon and if you did/were any of these things you would end up as the butt of one of her jokes.

After discussing various current events in a comedic manner that somehow ended up relating to Catholicism and God in one way or another... the production goes on to cast audience members to various roles in the nativity story. Once the cast was chosen, complete with ridiculous yet thrifty costumes, Sister directs the story of the birth of baby Jesus. However, unlike the traditional story we've all heard before this one does not end the same way... Sister is determined to uncover the mystery of what happened to the magi's gold. And thanks to the skills she acquired by watching several episodes of Forensic files she was able to find the culprit.

Overall the show was a great way to spend a Thursday evening. Though Vanessa and I were much younger than the average age of tonight's audience we were able to laugh along just as much as the older, and sometimes wiser, audience members around us. It's a fun production that again, appeals to all types of people and because it depends so much on the audience members no two performances would be the same. For this reason, I agree that it could easily become one of my "holiday traditions" and something I definitely would not mind seeing again.

Sister's Christmas Catechism - The Mystery of the Magi's Gold runs through December 13th at the Civic Center's Temple Theater. For more information on the show and to purchase tickets visit: http://www.civiccenter.org/events/sisters_christmas_catechism_217.php

Cirque Dreams Illumination

I've always wanted to see a Cirque production but never had the opportunity to do so until tonight. To be honest, going into the show I did not know a whole lot about what to expect. I know people that have seen various shows the company has put together and expected to see a fun show with acrobats and some music. I knew that Robert Muraine, who was on the 4th season of So You Think You Can Dance was in the show and I had watched some of his videos on youtube prior to attending the show and was impressed with his "popping" abilities but still wasn't sure how those things would fit into the production. Overall I went into tonight's performance unsure about what I would see but eager to experience the show.

Walking into the main hall of the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines the main curtain was drawn but large props and the curtain itself set up the scene in a train station. This was quite unexpected because I kind of imagined a three-ring circus type show and was not sure how those kind of things would take place inside a train station. But of course, as the show progressed everything pieced together quite nicely. The first thing that caught my eye as the show started was a quick-change artist who changed dresses at least half a dozen times in a matter of seconds while standing behind a small curtain. This sort of "magic" has always stumped me, but I continue to find it very interesting. Throughout the show there were always several things going on on stage. Something I enjoyed because it was impossible to get bored at any given moment, yet my fiance had a different opinion. He was nearly annoyed because he always felt like he was missing something, I just replied by telling him that we may need to go see the show again.

There was a wide variety of acts and talents displayed throughout the show. A wirewalker who did much more than just walk along a wire suspended in the air. Cube aerialists who blew my mind with their flexibility, strength and trust in each other. A humorous clown who brought four members of the audience on stage to participate in a silent film type act. A pair of "foot manipulators" who did flips and twists and other gymnastic tricks off of each other's feet. All of this and more happened before intermission!

The second portion of the show brought on more interesting and unique talents. Including a percussionist who plays a drum set by juggling several small balls. A man who rolled around a giant metal ring. Another balancing on several paint cans and a wooden board. A strap flyer, contortionists, a talented saxophonist, a singing reporter and much more.

Overall the show was simply delightful. There were several times where I caught myself having to pick up my jaw and wondering, sometimes out loud... oops, "how in the world do they do that". The performance kept me attention the entire time and I was surprised when it was over because time flew by so fast. I genuinely think Cirque Dreams Illumination has something kids of all ages, there were children both old and young in the audience tonight. It's fun, upbeat, entertaining and I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to see a unique show.

Cirque Dreams Illumination runs now through Sunday December 6th at the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines. Tickets can be purchased at the Civic Center Box Office or online at http://www.ticketmaster.com/venueartist/49258/1333954/

Thanks for reading!

*Sam

Show Info.

For those of you that are interested in what the shows I am going to this week are all about, I decided to post a couple links so you could get to know more about the shows. I'm very excited for both of them and think it'll be a great week :)

Cirque Dreams Illumination

http://www.civiccenter.org/events/cirque_dreams_202.php

preview in Des Moines Register: http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009911260322

Sister's Christmas Catechism

http://www.civiccenter.org/events/sisters_christmas_catechism_217.php

Thanks for reading and stay tuned!

A New Opportunity

A new opportunity has come my way that I am very excited about. I will be blogging for the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines beginning tomorrow evening. Basically I will be attending shows at the Civic Center's Main Hall and the Temple Theater and then blogging about what I thought of the productions. I have always been very interested in theater and can't wait to attend more shows in the area.

This week I will be reviewing the following shows...

Cirque Dreams: Illumination - Civic Center Main Hall - Tuesday December 1, 7:30pm

Sister's Christmas Catechism - Temple Theater - Thursday December 3, 7:30pm

I will have the blog reviews up by the day after the show at the very latest. My goal for this blog is for people to be able to read them and get a "person on the street" perspective that will hopefully help them decide to go check out the show.

Please feel free to leave feedback on my posts. Things you like, dislike or would like to see more of.

Thanks!