ethancoen Ethan Coen’s Almost an Evening opens at the Garage Theatre on Friday, which of course is almost the evening—two nights before the Academy Awards—which of course is where Coen and brother, Joel, will be awaiting the outcome of the 10 nominations for their latest picture, True Grit, which of course makes the show the perfect kickoff for Oscar Weekend, which of course is the way the folks at the Garage Theatre planned it … didn’t they?

Of course!

Icy-calm, big-picture strategizing like this is how The Garage has survived for 10 years in its cozy Seventh Street storefront in downtown Long Beach. Oh, yeah—Happy Birthday!

Almost an Evening kicks off the 11th season at The Garage, which was founded by a bunch of alums of the Theater Department at Long Beach State who were dedicated to the proposition that they should still have a place to act.

It’s the West Coast premier of the 2008 play, a series of three one-act plays—“Waiting,” “Four Benches” and “Debate”—that are all singed by a philosophy which posits that hell lies just beneath the surface of everyday life.

At about 90 minutes, the show keeps a fast pace, but it nonetheless works the neck and shoulders of our modern fears and neuroses, occasionally relieving some of the tension with light or ironic comedy.

Sounds like a good approach to Oscar night for Coen, and a great way to begin Oscar weekend for us.

ALMOST AN EVENING THE GARAGE THEATRE • 251 E SEVENTH STREET • LONG BEACH 90813 • 562.433.8337 • THEGARAGETHEATRE.ORG • FEB 25-MAR 26 (THU-FRI-SAT) • 8 PM • $15-$18