Steven Leigh Morris – Stage Raw, Notes From Arden At the northern edge of LA County, in Santa Clarita, The Sandman (played by adult actor Jackson Caruso) is the title character in Dane Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytale, “Ole Lukøje,” (“The Sandman”), presented by Eclipse Theatre and the Santa Clarita Shakespeare Festival. Phil Lantis’s play for … Read more
Harker Jones – BroadwayWorld A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, originating in the 1500s and one of William Shakespeare’s most beloved and produced plays, has been adapted in countless ways over the past few centuries, including as films, musicals, ballets, operas, an animated Disney short, and even a disco-oriented off-Broadway takeoff called The Donkey Show, while having an … Read more
Myron Meisel – The Hollywood Reporter Like many of the best things in life, overindulgence, even with the classics, can lead to irritability. One could well be sated for life with A Midsummer Night’s Dream (probably the most frequently mounted of all Shakespeare comedies) after landmark productions by Max Reinhardt, Peter Brook and Peter Hall, the Benjamin Britten opera, the George Balanchine ballet, not … Read more
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly As Bottom, performer Katherine Griffith may be the best reason to see this amusing but somewhat quotidian presentation of Shakespeare’s seasonal classic. Cast across gender by directors Melora Marshall and Willow Geer, Griffith’s likable blowhard garners a plurality of the laughs, along with his proletarian colleagues, whose presentation of Pyramus … Read more
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly Developed through workshops under Tim Robbins’ direction, this inspired production of Shakespeare’s fantasia snaps and crackles with the comedic shenanigans of a dynamic ensemble. Visual spectacle, so often integral when this piece is produced, here takes a back seat; instead, the performers merrily cavort across a setless stage, relying on … Read more
Dany Margolies – Arts In LA Why is this Night different from all other Nights? To start with, it’s smart, it’s imaginative, it’s beautiful, it makes sense of the peculiar world Shakespeare created. It takes the titular dream to heart, as characters shape-shift and locales subtly morph. Still, the text is clear. Under the direction … Read more
Mayank Keshaviak – LA Weekly Bottom is the tops in New American Theatre’s take on the classic tale of love and mischief, here set in 1930s Greece. Director and company founder Jack Stehlin brings energy and cheeky wit to the character of Nick Bottom by fully exploring the hills and valleys of Shakespeare’s linguistic landscape.Read … Read more