Not so Simple Simon at Hermosa Beach Playhouse. CLOSBC presents ‘Barefoot in the Park’
Victor Velasco (Ted Escobar), Mrs. Banks (Kimberly Patterson), Paul Bratter (Patric Vest), and Corie Bratter (Barbara Suiter) contemplate the hors d’oeuvres. Photo by Alysa Brennan Playwright Neil Simon once explained his personal view of creativity: “If no one ever took risks, Michaelangelo would have painted the Sistine floor.” Had the Vatican venture been thus grounded, Mike would have stained his Sketchers, but suffered not the mauve in the macula and four years on a scaffold at the behest of Pope Julius II. The Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities (CLOSBC) production of Simon’s “Barefoot in the Park” runs now through Jan. 30 at the Hermosa Beach Playhouse. Though perhaps not as artistically deep – or high – as the chapel in Rome, in theater terms it’s Simon’s “Last Supper.” I know; I’m mixing my artists here, but da Vinci and Mike must have shared an espresso or two at Starbuck’s while perorating pigments. “You’re painting WHAT?” asked Leonardo as he modeled a helicopter from the stir sticks. Simon’s four (and a half) actor observation of newlywed life in New York is his longest-running Broadway show (1,530 performances), and he’s had more than a pocketful of hits in the…
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