You-review-it Monday

It was heartening to see near-capacity crowds this weekend both at the Phoenix Theatre–where Neil LaBute's "Reasons to be Pretty" is having its regional premiere–and at the Cabaret at the Columbia Club–which was hosting singer Darius de Haas. (More on both later, either here or in the print IBJ.)

There was also a very strong turnout at the Famous Monsters Convention, where I had the pleasure of hosting a panel on producer Irwin Allen. The panel included rare screenings of two recent TV pilots that attempted to revise Allen's best-known shows. As such, we saw what  "Lost in Space" would look like, on the WB, directed by John Woo ("Mission Impossible II." And to hear from one of its producers some great inside stories on the hows and whys of TV pilot production.

While some of the promoted stars didn't make it to the con (including Thomas Jane, from "The Mist" and "The Punisher," who cancelled at the last minute), those who did show up for autographing sessions included lots of scream queens, most of the casts of "The Lost Boys" and George Romero's Living Dead movies, and the actors who played Violet Beauregarde and Mike Teevee in the original "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."  

It was a site to behold and, I'm told, is likely to return next year. Even though I'm not a fan of slice-and-dice movies, you can count me in.

Your thoughts? What did you see, hear or otherwise experience this weekend?