Goldstar

• Rated 2.0
• Written on Nov 20 2008

IMHO, the acting in this production was uneven, but some members of the cast were delightful, especially the lead Matt Weimer, who carried off a difficult part beautifully. I'm not quite sure what to say about the script: every time I thought I didn't like it, a scene would pop up that I found very well-written. I did find it hard to watch the main character suffer for so long, as he travels from setback to setback. But there's no denying that the issues the play tackles are important: although the script had to create some tricky plot contrivances to explain the whole situation, gay parents who are involved in child-custody disputes will encounter legal problems, especially outside our little Bay Area bubble. According to "Gay Rights and the American Law", by Daniel R. Pinello, “[T]he appellate courts of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia decided lawsuits involving child custody, visitation, adoption, and foster care at rates about 50 percent less favorable to homosexual parents than the rest of the nation.” I would be interested to know if watching a play that chronicles the struggles of a gay parent would move an unsympathetic person--or would they identify with the protagonist's opponents?

• Rated 2.0
• Written on Nov 03 2008

Mostly entertaining but a bit on the amatuerish level acting-wise.

• Rated 1.0
• Written on Oct 27 2008

Earnest actors but the script was a bit dated. Hard to believe that any family in today's world would be fighting for custody rights when a couple have been in a relationship for 14 years! A stretch of credibility - this would have been topical 20 years ago.

Also, why do directors in small venues allow their actors to use such large emotions - actors needed to "pull back" a bit - too much screaming and ranting at high pitch.

Left at intermission.