Critical Acclaim
LOOK FOR WATER 1993
"…an imaginative work about the ephemeral quality of relationships and sheer existence. Judging from the performance, the seeds of the next wave of alternative theater are growing very well…"
- Chiori Santiago, Callboard
VAPOR TALES 1995
"The performances, even in song, are vivid and almost completely unselfconsicous….even in the midst of the most frenzied scenes [Mah’s] vastly talented writing voice comes across loud and clear."
- Christopher Hawthorne, East Bay Express
EARTH VERSES 1997
"…allusion-ridden parodies of everything from Star Wars to The X-Files are very funny…"
- Brad Rosenstein, San Francisco Bay Guardian
VAPOR TALES 1998
"The songs, most written by Gaby Alter, are super… Charming lyrics and groovin’ melodies stand out and create much enjoyment."
- Erika Milvy, Santa Rosa Press-Democrat"The show’s gem, ‘You Keep Me Awake,’ could hit the airwaves tomorrow and be a big hit by Friday… Probably the most thrilling aspect of this new rock musical is the appearance of Emerald Rain Productions as a fresh voice in Bay Area theater."
- Chad Jones, Oakland Tribune
BIRTHDAY CAKE 1999
"After seeing the decidedly thin depiction of tortured twentysomethings on display in "Rent," it's refreshing to encounter a vision of life and love in the young bohemian set that neither condescends nor mythologizes its subjects... What's most remarkable about Elfenbein's script is his ability to create memorable and quirky characters who exist as something other than a collection of disposable archetypes... [He] has crafted an admirable portrait of young adults in search of community and connection and his spare, inventive staging adds to the impact of this funny, wistful, intelligent production."
- Kerry Reid, East Bay Express
WOO HOO, WE WIN! OR RATHER, GABY WINS!
It was a crisp night at San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts Theater when a strapping young cadre of overdressed ERPlings bustled past the extortionary box office and took over a seating section way the hell in the back of the theater. The event? The Twenty-Second Annual Bay Area Theatre Critic's Circle Awards Gala. And boy was it a gala! The drinks cost six bucks and everything. Fortunately, Slater smuggled in a fifth of JD and soon we were hollering for every nominee. You go girl! Get that award! A third of the way through the program (right after the Do I Hear A Waltz? number) they announced what we all already knew: that our own Gaby Alter had written the BEST SCORE of 1998 with his updated songbook for perennial ERP favorite Vapor Tales. The plastic-sheathed certificate of merit will infest ERP's trophy case for months to come.
event coverage by CosPham, boy reporter
ITGIRL 2000
"Admittedly, it's weird to associate the father of literary realism in any way with Itgirl, the eleventh Emerald Rain production."
- Katy E. Shrout, East Bay Express
Read the whole review here.YOUNG ZOMBIES IN LOVE 2001
"Emerald Rain’s new rock musical Young Zombies in Love is a lot deeper than it first appears. Under the frothy songs and teenagers-in-love-fighting-the-zombie-menace pyrotechnics, there’s a lot going on – about dependency in relationships, addiction, and the willing blindness that manifests in groups... As a parable of teen angst, this play is right on the money... Young Zombies also answers a burning question that a thousand B-flicks have failed to address, namely, how do zombies kill the time they have on their cold, pale hands? ....no living force can wrest the stage from the Fodder twins as portrayed by Daniel Krechmer and Euclides Pereyra... Florida newcomer Jake Bradbury is adorable.... Composer Gaby Alter has done a bang-up job on the music... Young Zombies may not be deathless theater – it’s clearly meant for a young audience – but it’s cute, funny, and well-made. "
- Lisa Drostova, East Bay Express