F. Kathleen Foley – Stage Raw A Doll’s House, Part 2, Lucas Hnath’s brilliant 2017 play, picks up the fortunes of Nora and Torvald Helmer, the embattled married couple from Henrik Ibsen’s famous drama, A Doll’s House, some 15 years after Nora famously exits her marriage. Directed by Allen Barton, the second installment in The … Read more
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw Ethan tells us that he disdains liberal bleeding hearts (whom he perceives as self-serving hypocrites) — but otherwise he never articulates – and the play never explores — exactly why he and his wife (Cameron Meyer) have thrown their support to Donald Trump. As Ethan, the watchable O’Connor projects an … Read more
Socks Whitmore – Stage Raw It’s December in Los Angeles and ‘tis the season for LA’s self-proclaimed longest-running “holiday hit,” Bob’s Holiday Office Party. Written by Joe Keyes and Rob Elk, this outrageous comedy began as an “improvised romp” in 1995, and since then has made an appearance each year everywhere from the late Tamarind Theatre on … Read more
Frances Baum Nicholson – The Daily Breeze When Rachel Dolezal was forced to step down from the presidency of the local branch of the NAACP in Spokane, Wash., in 2015 because she was not (as she had claimed) African-American, it spurred a debate on the nature of race and cultural appropriation which was long past … Read more
Neal Weaver – Stage Raw The church referred to by playwright Allen Barton in his play is never identified, but the details of his story evoke the horror stories told by disillusioned former Scientologists: accounts of demands for total conformity, hefty financial contributions, total commitment, and a willingness to declare all-out war on any member … Read more
Pauline Adamek – Stage Raw Writer-director (and classical pianist) Allen Barton gained critical acclaim last year with his play Years To The Day, presented by Skylight Theatre Company. It was a futuristic satire of our self-important discussions of movies and tech gadgets via the reunion of two long-time friends at a coffee shop. During their meeting, … Read more
AN APOLOGY FROM BOB VERINI, PRODUCER OF THE LADCC AWARDS SHOW 3/19/13 Dear Friends of the LADCC: Thank you so much for your support of our efforts at last night’s awards show. We are so pleased at the reactions to the event and the delighted reactions so many of the nominees, recipients, presenters, sponsors, and audience … Read more