Theater review: ‘Don’t Blame the Car’ at The Classic Theatre

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Jaston Williams’ ‘Don’t Blame the Car’ runs until Sunday June 30 at The Classic Theatre. Photo: Sandra Cruz

On Thursday June 27, The Classic Theatre opened their Second Series production of Greater Tuna’s Jaston Williams’ ‘Don’t Blame the Car!’ Texan favorite Jaston Williams returns to the Classic Theatre with more amusing anecdotes from his childhood and personal experiences and there are still a few chances to catch the show. It runs until Sunday June 30 with showtimes at 8p.m. Saturday and 2p.m. and 7p.m. on Sunday. General admission tickets are $25 and available online. There will be no late seating at any performance. Written and Performed by Jaston Williams.

As is customary, Jaston Williams did a small introductory scene and introduced himself and the material he is about to cover. This is not his first visit to the Classic Theatre and most of his loyal fans are those who are familiar with his work with Joe Sears in the Greater Tuna franchise, the much-loved series of satires set in Texas. He builds up the anticipation by carefully setting up his props before he begins the storytelling and does it with a subtle smile. The show’s title comes from when his mother tried to teach him how to drive a standard and basically assured him it was permitted to pass on the right, even on a two-lane road. His father’s advice: he told him to “write down everything she had told me about driving a standard, take it out in the backyard and burn it.” Spoiler alert: his life-time hatred of potatoes comes from being overexposed to them because his family farmed potatoes. True story. The guy was traumatized by the experience.

The set has funny graffiti on the wall and a couple of paintings. Scattered throughout the stage are several props, including a statue of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals and the environment. In ‘Don’t Blame the Car!’ Jaston Williams shares his lifetime of experiences and, being a humorist, manages to make them hilarious. One audience favorite was when he went trick or treating as an adolescent and an elderly female neighbor questioned whether he was too old for the Halloween tradition and threw in a single Tootsie Roll into his candy bag. He did not make a scene but rather returned later that night and toilet papered her house and “made it rain” with a water gun. The one that goes with the St. Francis of Assisi statue on stage? Earlier he placed several stuffed dogs around it and later explained that they represented the dogs his mother had accidentally ran over on the driveway with her car. That one is more sad than funny. But overall, he recounts his stories with a certain gusto that makes them enjoyable. Overall, it is also a tribute to his brother Corky, who taught him to see beyond a person’s outer shell. It is a must see production and fans of his work are in for a treat. The show runs approximately 90 minutes long without an intermission.

Greater Tuna’s Jaston Williams in ‘Don’t Blame the Car!’ at The Classic Theatre

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Jaston Williams’ ‘Don’t Blame the Car!’ opens on Thursday June 27 at The Classic Theatre. Photo: The Classic Theatre, used with permission. 

On Thursday June 27, The Classic Theatre is opening their Second Series production of Greater Tuna’s Jaston Williams’ ‘Don’t Blame the Car!’ It will run until Sunday June 30 with only six performances: June 27 at 8p.m., June 28 at 8p.m., June 29 at 2p.m. and 8p.m. and June 30 at 2p.m. and 7p.m. General admission tickets are $25 and available online. There will be no late seating at any performance. Written and Performed by Jaston Williams. The theatre is handicapped accessible. (The Classic Theatre, 2019)

Jaston Williams’ first driver’s license read 4 feet 11 and 85 pounds. He learned to drive from his mother who assured him that passing on the right was permitted even on a two-lane road. The day his father tried to teach him to drive a standard shift, the man had to cut the lesson short and return home for bed rest. Hear this along with other stories including the one about the twirler who repeatedly injured herself with her own baton and the true account of why Jaston holds a lifelong grudge against potatoes.

The Classic Theatre of San Antonio
1924 Fredericksburg Rd
San Antonio, TX 78201
(210) 589-8450

Theater review: ‘Clear to Partly Crazy’ at The Classic Theatre

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Jaston Williams returns to The Classic Theatre of San Antonio with ‘Clear to Partly Crazy’ until Sunday July 30, 2017.  Photo: Kirk Tuck, used with permission.

‘Clear to Partly Crazy’ opened at The Classic Theatre of San Antonio last night as Jaston Williams brings his one-man show to San Antonio audiences. Picking up where he left off after ‘A Wolverine Walks Into a Bar,’ he muses on subjects from cheerleaders to tornadoes and certifiably insane blood relatives. It is written and performed by Jaston Williams and no late seating is allowed at any performance. Next show times are Friday at 8p.m. Saturday at 3p.m. and 8p.m. and Sunday at 3p.m. Tickets are $20 for general admission and are available online and at the box office.

Before the show, he takes the time to welcome everyone and say how happy he is to be back in San Antonio despite the hot weather. The stories contained in this show are: An Empty Space, The Whistle and A Window Seat to Never, Neverland. Dressed casually in a robe, pajamas and slippers he begins with a rant about how silly television is nowadays with reality shows and other nonsensical forms of ‘entertainment’ including televised cheerleading competitions. Being from West Texas, he can relate to football culture and the one thing that comes with it: cheerleaders. This is the topic of An Empty Space where he recalls how important they were to high school society. Tornadoes and storm shelters take center stage on The Whistle while a family member’s unfortunate bout with mental illness and institutions make it into A Window Seat to Never, Neverland.

Fans of Jaston Williams and his brand of comedy are in for a treat with ‘Clear to Partly Crazy.’ He always manages to find the humor in even the bleakest of situations. His animated storytelling pulls the audience in as they hang on to his every word. After the laughter dies down every story has its serious side; an especially poignant moment is his quiet ode to his cousin as he ended A Window Seat to Never, Neverland. Some of the references may be aged but that should not be a deterrent. Laughter and humor, after all, are ageless. It is a must see show that explores the themes of politics, television, natural disasters and family but most of all, it is a reminder not to take life so seriously.

‘Clear to Partly Crazy’ at The Classic Theatre

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Jaston Williams returns to The Classic Theatre with ‘Clear to Partly Cloudy’ from Thursday July 27 to Sunday July 30, 2017.  Photo: Kirk Tuck, used with permission.

Jaston Williams returns to The Classic Theatre for the San Antonio premiere of his one man show ‘Clear to Partly Crazy’ from Thursday July 27 to Sunday July 30, 2017. Previously seen on ‘A Wolverine Walks Into a Bar,’ he muses on subjects all Texans understand; from cheerleaders to tornadoes and certifiably insane blood relatives. Travel with him from grandstands to storm cellars to the occasional mental institution, laughing all the way. Written and performed by Jaston Williams. No late seating will be allowed at any performance. Show times are Thursday and Friday at 8p.m. Saturday at 3p.m. and 8p.m. and Sunday at 3p.m. Tickets are $20 for general admission and are available online. (The Classic Theatre of San Antonio, 2017)

Jaston Williams is best known as one of the trio of writers of the Greater Tuna series. Along with Joe Sears and Ed Howard, they wrote ‘Greater Tuna,’ ‘A Tuna Christmas’ and ‘Red, White and Tuna.’ The shows are comedic plays each set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas and are an affectionate view and satire of small-town, Southern life and attitudes. Williams and Sears play the entire cast of over twenty characters of both genders and various ages.

The Classic Theatre of San Antonio
1924 Fredericksburg Rd
San Antonio, TX 78201
(210) 589-8450