![\"Alison](\"http:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/photo_7.jpg\")
<\/a>Alison Luff and Matt Magnusson. Photo by Jim Cox.<\/p><\/div>\n
The story is like a rock version of TV’s Nashville<\/em>, condensed into just a few hours.\u00a0 There’s the talented, young, naive girl singer; the formerly successful background singer drug-addict mother who has disappeared and therefore, is never seen in the show (although I can see a sequel about her<\/em> trials and tribulations); the evil head of the label; the nice guy new beau, who, of course, gets left behind; and a same-sex side-bar relationship, (though that one makes no sense in the scheme of the story, and seemed to be there just because lesbian action is almost de rigueur nowadays.)\u00a0 If Breaking Through<\/em> is even half as successful as that television show, it will be a huge hit!<\/p>\n Kacee Clanton. Photo by Jim Cox.<\/p><\/div>\n Even though the narrative is a bit pat, it’s done well.\u00a0 And the musical performances are all excellent.\u00a0 Everyone in it can really sing, which is quite refreshing. The highlights for me were the two numbers by Kacee Clanton, (who played Janis on some nights in the recent A Night With Janis Joplin<\/em> right here at the Playhouse, and plays Karina, an aging rock star, in this one.) And I loved the voice of Will Collyer, as the almost-boyfriend. (He’s a dead ringer for the young Tony Dow! At the party, I had to hold myself back from asking him, \u201cHey, Wally–where’s the Beaver?\u201d)<\/p>\n The opening night crowd was also appreciative of the talents of Nita Whitaker, (who’s very popular among musical theatre buffs in Los Angeles,) who’s still the hottest, most gorgeous woman in the room. Adam Lambert introduced me to her after one of their performances around town almost a decade ago, and I swear\u2014she hasn’t aged a day since then!<\/p>\n Alison Luff. Photo by Jim Cox.<\/p><\/div>\n And the star, Alison Luff, closed the show with a stellar vocal on Let It Rain<\/em>.\u00a0 She also had to play guitar, act, and look good! That’s a lot of boxes to check. And, (most importantly to us,) as major-hair-rocking chicks ourselves, my friend who was with me that night and I were happy to welcome Alison into our Hair Club For Woman. (Ones with good<\/em> tresses, of course, not ones who need<\/em> it!)<\/p>\n I must also commend Matt Magnusson who replaced Constantine Maroulis (as the male rock star,) just a few weeks before the opening.\u00a0 No one could tell that he just got the gig.\u00a0 He played it all with aplomb. (And his hair is way cleaner than Constantine’s always is, so that’s a bonus right there! He’s cute, too, especially with his shirt open.)<\/p>\n As I walked through the after-party, (more on that later,) everyone was using the same adjectives that I had written down to describe the show: young, hip, and modern. Some added \u201csexy.\u201d (I thought they were all talking about me<\/em>!)\u00a0 This is not your grandparents’ musical.<\/p>\n Nita Whitaker and Alison Luff (although I don’t remember that red shirt in the show.) Photo by Jim Cox.<\/p><\/div>\n I usually don’t mention the sound<\/em> of a show, but on this one, I have to give props to Peter Fitzgerald, the Sound Designer, because it was mixed perfectly.\u00a0 We could understand every word, and, although most of it was rock, the music didn’t overwhelm<\/em> the singing, but, rather, enhanced<\/em> it. It was perfect. Every time the band kicked-in, the experience was elevated. (Speaking of elevated, that’s what they were on-stage! That positioning not only allowed the audience to see them when appropriate to the story, but gave them extra-good sound.)<\/p>\n While we’re on the subject of the tech personnel, let me also laud the simple-yet-very-creative set, which is, as usual, designed by John Iacovelli, with beautiful-yet-unobtrusive projections by Kaitlyn Pietras. Tyce Diorio (of So You Think You Can Dance<\/em> fame,) choreographed the musical, but I was a bit disappointed that we didn’t get to see more<\/em> of it, because the plot didn’t call for much dancing; I’d love to see a whole show of just his<\/em> creations sometime!<\/p>\n Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Of course, a good production deserves a great party, and this one was that!\u00a0 It was packed, for even longer than usual, and all the revelers were upbeat.\u00a0 No one wanted to leave; they may all still<\/em> be there for all I know!\u00a0 (I had to leave to write this.)<\/p>\n It was held out on the courtyard patio, which was perfect for what, despite it being November already, still felt like a dog day of summer.\u00a0 (Aren’t we Angelenos just the luckiest people?!)<\/p>\n Alice Farinas and Karen Salkin in the photo booth. (The hat and red boa are props, too.)<\/p><\/div>\n Perched high above the action, (as the band was in the show,) DJ William Reed kept the beats going all night with a fabu set that reminded me of what I had all my DJs play when I ran hip-hop clubs.\u00a0 Everyone loved him!<\/p>\n In the room off to side of the courtyard, (where there’s always something interesting on exhibit in there, to go along with the theme of the show,) there was a party photo booth.\u00a0 We enjoyed that there were realistic-looking mikes to use as props.\u00a0 (Several people saw my pix of it in the ensuing twenty-four hours, and they all assumed I was doing karaoke!)<\/p>\n Part of the display in the room next door. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n Speaking of that room, please remember to check it out when you see the show. (This is a very short run, so make sure to check the dates so you don’t miss out.) The walls contain personal stories of a few famous music biz peeps \u201cbreaking though.\u201d They’re really worth reading.<\/p>\n As always, the highlight of the party was the food, which was gorgeous.\u00a0 Angela Bassett and her pal even coveted my crispy chicken skewer, and stopped me to ask where to find it!\u00a0 It was all catered by the adjacent redwhite+bluezz, and there was every fun dish imaginable (and even one that wasn’t!) In addition to the gorgeous chicken, there was pepperoni pizza, crab cakes, potstickers, mozzarella and tomato sticks, and the tidbits that actually made me cry just looking at them–bacon-wrapped hot dogs!!!\u00a0 OMG!\u00a0 I had never seen those anywhere in my entire life! The bite-sized brownies and blondies were the perfect sweet send-off to a wonderful evening.<\/p>\n Breaking Through<\/em> running through November 22, 2015<\/strong> BREAKING THROUGH The World Premiere of the musical, Breaking Though, at The Pasadena Playhouse\u00a0is a win all-around. As the name says right there, it’s about a girl trying to break into the music biz. The story is like a rock version of TV’s Nashville, condensed into just a few hours.\u00a0 There’s the talented, young, naive<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>
\n Pasadena Playhouse 39 South El Molino Ave. Pasadena 626-356-7529 www.PasadenaPlayhouse.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"