Theatre

Phantom

Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse

Wednesday, January 15, through Saturday, March 5

He was born and raised in the catacombs beneath the Paris Opera House. His horribly disfigured face is hidden behind a mask. He meets a beautiful singer named Christine and becomes her music tutor. He falls in love with the girl and shows her his face, at which point she recoils in horror. He goes on a crazed rampage. He becomes the scourge of Parisian society. And his name is well known to you all. He is, of course ... Erik.

DADDY’S HOME

I wasn’t terribly happy to sit through Daddy’s Home, given that director Sean Anders’ slapstick starring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg as über-competitive caretakers is a major comedown from the duo’s inspired pairing in 2010’s The Other Guys. But I was, at least, happy to have seen the movie during a well-populated screening with loads of grade-schoolers in attendance, as their frequent cackling clarified that the film was a family comedy, and therefore not designed to be as funny as, you know, a real comedy. I guess I was confused by the many jokes about Ferrell having to produce a sperm sample, and Bobby Cannavale manhandling Wahlberg’s prodigious package, and Ferrell’s stepdaughter (who appears to be about six) castigating him for “crying like a little bitch.” But what do I know? Bring the kids!

"Happy Holidays, Jeff!"

"And to you, as well, Mike. I presume you have the What's Happenin's for me?"

"Au contraire, boss and friend - I have the What's Happenin' on New Year's Eve for you!"

"Of course."

"Once again, we'll be publishing a center-spread account of all the information we have, as of press time, regarding the area's music scene on December 31 - what bands are playing, where you can find open-mic or karaoke nights, and all that jazz!"

SISTERS

Sisters is about two 40-something siblings (Tina Fey and Amy Poehler) who, on the eve of its selling, decide to throw one last, big, balls-out get-together in the Orlando home of their youth. And the movie feels like some debaucherous parties that you might've thrown: It's awesome at the start, intermittently enjoyable while it's happening, and the people who showed up don't seem to understand when it's time for them to just leave already. As with such parties, you're not all that upset that they decided to stick around - you're happy they came. But less of them, and their being less wasted, would've definitely been more, just as director Jason Moore's two-hour comedy would've likely been a stronger, more satisfying entertainment if it clocked in at 90 minutes, and had given us fewer scenes with Fey and Poehler in hostess mode.