Bob Verini – Arts In LA Productions of this difficult but essential classic are rare enough that any chance to see it performed is a reason for celebration, even a version that’s as spotty and problematic as the one currently at the Garage Theater “in collision with” Alive Theater.’ Two things they get very right. … Read more
Terry Morgan – Stage Raw There have always been political takes of Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard. Some have described it as a condemnation of the idle aristocracy, a precursor to the Russian Revolution. Others saw it as a kind farewell to a vanishing class that is being supplanted by rapacious businessmen who only find beauty … Read more
Bob Verini – Arts In LA For committed theatergoers, there’s no happier occasion than stumbling upon a mature, polished work of dramatic art where you never expected to find one. In the little hole-in-the-wall Lounge on Santa Monica Boulevard, 6140 Productions is putting up the world premiere of Marja-Lewis Ryan’s One in the Chamber, and you will … Read more
Myron Meisel – The Hollywood Reporter The last of Neil Simon’s trilogy of quasi-autobiographical accounts of his coming-of-age years in the Brighton Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn, Broadway Bound stands among his plays as perhaps the most free from easy nostalgia, and therefore the most honest. In this sturdy 1986 drama, the requisite comedy arrives more or less … Read more
Bob Verini – Arts In LA The pleasures of solid musical comedy craftsmanship are amply on display in 3D Theatricals’s fine production of Damn Yankees. Alan Souza’s staging has its excesses and blind spots, but they result from good intentions rather than bad taste. Everything that matters, this show gets right. Read more… Now playing through August … Read more
Bob Verini – Stage Raw A rip-roaring Othello is being offered under the stars at San Diego’s Old Globe, in a fast-paced production full of suspense and action. Of course, many will not approve of the price paid for all this excitement, which includes a decided dearth of poetry and romance; some really hammy acting and barbarous verse-speaking; … Read more
Bob Verini – Arts In LA The good graces of the Geffen Playhouse are responsible for Los Angeles’ introduction to one Dixie Longate: Alabama native, single mom, social critic, and, above all, housewares entrepreneuse in the unveiling of Dixie’s Tupperware Party. Read more… Margaret Gray – LA Times You might assume that a one-woman show called “Dixie’s … Read more
Dany Margolies – Arts In LA Most Westerners of a certain age, certainly most Catholics, recall the startling day in 1978 when we learned that Pope John Paul I had died 33 days after the puff of white smoke announced his election to the papacy. Very few people, if anyone, knew the exact cause of … Read more
Bob Verini – Arts In LA “So that’s where American Idol contestants go to die: non-Equity tours and Indian casinos.” So sniffed my companion as we approached the Pantages Theatre and its proud marquee announcement of Ace Young (seventh place, Season V) and Diana DeGarmo (second place, Season III) in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. The skepticism … Read more
Bob Verini – Arts In LA Steven Drukman’s Death of the Author is, hands down, one of the very best plays of the year. A mystery wrapped within a psychological portrait gallery within a stinging critique of academic politics, it satisfies on every level during its completely gripping 90 minutes. Angelenos lucky enough to catch it at … Read more