With a new year come new shows. Sandwiched between the holidays and Carnival, New Orleans theater companies will mount a diverse catalogue of productions that are as interesting as the city itself.
An evening on ‘Paar’ with the best
Long before Jimmy Fallon, Jay Leno or even Johnny Carson, Jack Paar was the reigning ruler of late-night television as the host of “The Tonight Show.”
And the show was as cutting-edge then as it was in its heydey during the Carson era.
Le Petit Théâtre du Vieux Carré sets the clock back to 1958 for a mashup of reality and fantasy in “Good Night, Oscar,” the Tony-winning show about Oscar Levant, the gifted pianist and bon vivant who struggled with mental illness and often spoke of his stints under psychiatric care. A frequent guest on the television program, the play is a fictionalized view of one such evening from the Burbank, California, studios.
A.J. Allegra
PROVIDED PHOTO/Brocato Photography
Directed by A.J. Allegra, the show looks at what he said was “a ticking time bomb of a human being, blessed with immense musical talents and cursed with mental illness worsened by his addictions. He is someone you cannot take your eyes off of.”
Taking the role, which earned Sean Hayes (“Will and Grace”) a Tony Award in 2023, is Michael Paternostro, with Kevin Wheatley as Paar. Leslie Castay is June Levant and Reid Williams is George Gershwin. Also taking roles are K.C. Simms, Nick Strauss and Zane Syjansky.
The show will run at the French Quarter playhouse, 616 St. Peter St., Jan. 10-25, with a preview Jan. 9. Curtain is 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays, 2 p.m. Jan. 25 and a student matinee at 10 a.m. Jan. 16.
Tickets start at $35. For information, visit lepetittheatre.com.
One flew over the pelican’s nest?
The state of mental health in the Bayou State and the nation as a whole gets the dark comedy treatment Thursday to Sunday as Streetcar Collective for the Arts stages “Human Troubles” at the New Marigny Theater.
Mariana Santiago, playwright and director, sets the action in Orleans Parish and follows a group of characters winding their way through the confusion and laughable health care system that often creates more havoc than help.
The show resonates with the cast as well.
“This is quite possibly the funniest show I’ve ever worked on,” noted cast member Brooke Volkert, who plays Jack. “It’s dark, sure, but it’s absolutely hilarious — and the fact that it’s based on situations that real people go through gives the play that much extra punch.”
The cast also includes Miles Hendler, who plays the entire staff at a psychiatric ward, Liz Johnston-Dupre, Claude Whitscell and Samantha Hubbs.
Tickets for the show start at $30. The theater is located at 2301 Marais St. Performances start at 8 p.m. For information, visit humantroubles.com.
On stage this week Jan. 2-8
“POTTED POTTER”: 2 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, 8 p.m. Thursday and 5 p.m. Saturday; Jefferson Performing Arts Center, 6400 Airline Drive, Metairie. “The Unauthorized Harry Experience — A Parody by Dan and Jeff” mashes all seven books of the Harry Potter series into one production by BBC actors Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner, providing a laugh-out-loud experience that includes 360 favorite characters, key props and even a quidditch match. Tickets start at $49. jeffersonpac.com.
“WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF”: Opening 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Jan. 14, except Jan. 13, and 2:30 p.m. January 11; Big Couch, 1045 Desire St. The Fire Weeds present Edward Albee’s ’60s-era play about two couples gathered after college faculty party for drinks and emotional terrorism that explores alcoholism, martial infidelity, academic prowess and delusional behavior. Tickets start at $35. thefireweeds.org.