Jonas Schwartz – Theatermania While it’s not new to end the show with the Emcee in concentration camp, Rhodes uses a simple technique of lifting a scrim to show the coats of countless victims who have lost their belongings for the dehumanizing striped pajamas. Audience members noticeably cried due to this harrowing final gut punch. … Read more
Harker Jones – BroadwayWorld EVERY BRILLIANT THING is a deeply affecting meditation on grief and mental illness told with humor and a clear-eyed optimism that makes the message that much more powerful. Read more… Patrick Chavis – LA Theatre Bites Podcast 7.5 out of 10! Above Average! Read more… Jonas Schwartz – Theatermania It may … Read more
Rob Stevens – Haines His Way The reality of Bondarenko’s ghost land is vividly brought to life in Frederique Michel’s staging. It’s simple yet involving. The writing is heightened at times as is the direction and the acting. Read more… Martίn Hernández – Stage Raw Ukrainian playwright Andriy Bondarenko brings the horrors inflicted on his … Read more
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw Under Shepperd’s direction, a youthful ensemble performs with energy and commitment, and the pace never lags. Read more… Harker Jones – BroadwayWorld Dominique Morisseau’s BLOOD AT THE ROOT is a blistering look at race, prejudice, and the complexity of human relationships. Read more…
Rob Stevens – Haines His Way The creators have their hearts in the right place in wanting to tell this story, they just need to refine the result. The Right Is Ours! needs a lot of work before it earns my whole-hearted vote. Read more…
Rob Stevens – Haines His Way Cameron Watson has directed with pinpoint clarity and permits his actors to live and breathe their dialogue. Brenneman commands the stage from the opening moments to the closing. Her Bella is an enigma that will never really be solved. Keith matches her scene by scene. They truly form a … Read more
Don Shirley – Angeles Stage Graf masterfully weaves together this terrible-family-secrets narrative with, of course, a sideways glance at American gun culture. The result becomes absorbing and ultimately moving in caryn desai’s staging. Read more… Rob Stevens – Haines His Way The entertainment value is high in ICT’s production. The direction by caryn desai is … Read more
Don Shirley – Angeles Stage A Noise Within got a jump on other midsize companies by opening its fall season last Saturday — before Labor Day — with Lydia Diamond’s 2006 adaptation of Toni Morrison’s 1970 novel “The Bluest Eye”. I missed its first LA County production, in Santa Monica in 2011, so I was … Read more
Don Shirley – Angeles Stage Greater LA is currently the home of two new and complex scripts that examine hot-button life-or-death arenas, from refreshingly unexpected perspectives. Not surprisingly, the LA Times has yet to review either of them. Read more…
Martίn Hernández – Stage Raw Playwright Ashley Rose Wellman’s world premiere dramedy depicts a complex mother-daughter relationship with nuanced characters and snappy dialogue. Set in a cramped and cluttered animal shelter, Wellman’s play explores themes of euthanasia, abortion, and single motherhood. These are embodied by human as well as Bunraku-influenced puppet characters, resulting in a … Read more