Our western tradition of theater began with the Greeks, and for them, theater was community theater. When Sophocles, Euripides, or Aeschylus saw their plays, it was a community effort. To this day, Greek philosophy, politics, religion, ethics, medicine, and, of course, community theater, are an integral part of who we are. This week Theater Talk notes several community offerings including "The Boys Next Door" presented by both the Lancaster Regional Players at the Lancaster Opera House and The Western Door Playhouse at the Woodbox Theatre in Niagara Falls, "The Odd Couple" presented by the Aurora Players at the Roycroft Pavilion, and "My Favorite Year" presented by The Niagara Regional Theatre Guild at the Ellicott Creek Playhouse.
Alan Ayckbourn's clever "Arrivals and Departures" continues at the Kavinoky Theatre through March 29th and presents the same action in both Act I and Act II, but seen through different characters' eyes. "Angels Fall" is a seldom mounted play by Lanford Wilson in which the character's hard life decisions are examined after a nuclear event. It's at The New Pheonix Theatre through April 4th.
Andrew Lloyd Webber's "The Phantom of the Opera" continues at Shea's Performing Arts Center tonight and with two shows each on Saturday and Sunday. And tonight is the last night for Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest" at the Warren Enters Theatre in Upton Hall on the Buff State campus, with a number of very accomplished undergrads in the lead roles and Theater Talk's own Anthony Chase as "Lady Bracknell," a force of nature with which one does not trifle.
