by Terrance McArthur

Here are more of our Rogue Festival show reviews! We also have several Rogue Performer Preview articles that have been going up over the last few weeks. You will be able to find all of them, along with a preview article about the Festival itself, in our Rogue Festival category and you can find more info on our Rogue Festival event page over on KRL News and Reviews. Tickets for the Rogue Festival can be purchased on their website and you can find this year’s schedule.

Who Is Janice Noga?
Review by Terrance McArthur

Who Is Janice Noga? is a tour through the life of a performer who has gone far, a tour divided between descriptions and songs.

Janice Noga is—

• A twin. She performed with her sister, Joyce in her childhood.
• A singer/actress—Discovered by actor Bruce Yarnell, who urged her to go to New York.
• Almost the leading lady of the Broadway musical Zorba.
• Golde in Fiddler on the Roof at Fresno’s Theatre 3 for 100 performances with Cantor Michael Loring.
• Married to Oscar Speace (Cantor Loring performed the ceremony).
• Possibly the only person ever to sing “God Bless America” in the Oval Office of the White House.
• A brain surgery survivor—There were fears she would lose her voice, but after years of work she sings again.
• The star of 176 performances of Janka. Created by Oscar Speace from a 60-page letter written by his mother, Janka, it is a play telling of Janka’s survival in the Auschwitz and Dachau concentration camps, performed from Fresno to Off-Broadway, England, and Romania, and turned into a film.

Noga not only tells these stories of her life, but she sings (Oh! How she sings!)—show tunes, pop tunes, any tunes that enhance her journey—with the talented aid of Terry Lewis on piano and extra vocals (The audience gets their chance to sing, too.). It’s a grand time with a grand lady.

Who Is Janice Noga? Plays three more shows at the Vista Theater, 1296 N. Wishon Ave., Fresno, Thursday, March 9, 5:30 pm, Friday, March 10, 8:30 pm, and Saturday, March 11, 2:00 pm. Tickets are $12.

The Magic of Kyle Elder
Review by Terrance McArthur

Kyle Elder is smooth.

Kyle Elder is cool.

Kyle Elder is…magical.

The Magic of Kyle Elder is back in the Rogue Festival for the first time since 2020 (a long Covidcation) with his feats of legerdemain (magic).

Drawings become real objects. What you call something becomes what it is. Things vanish, and appear where they can’t possibly be. Minds are read. Rubik’s Cubes solve themselves. Furniture takes flight, and audiences are entertained.

Elder is genial, more Harry Blackstone, Jr. than Penn Jillette. Funny things are done and said, but comedy is not the focus. Entertainment is.

The Magic of Kyle Elder plays two more shows at the ViSTA Theater, 1296 N. Wishon Ave., Fresno, Friday, March 10, 7:00 pm, and Saturday, March 11, 3:30 pm. Tickets are $12.

Terrance V. Mc Arthur worked for the Fresno County Public Library for three decades. He is retired, but not retiring. A storyteller, puppeteer, writer, actor, magician, basketmaker, and all-around interesting person, his goal is to make life more unusual for everyone he meets.

Check other local arts & entertainment articles in our Arts & Entertainment section. You can also find more theatre coming up on KRL’s Local Theatre event page.