Jonas Schwartz-Owen

LAVENDER MEN at Skylight Theatre

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – Theatermania Roger Q. Mason burns the history books with Lavender Men, a world premiere fantasia that re-envisions the passions of our 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. The play, produced by Playwrights’ Arena & Skylight Theatre Company at the Skylight, is a revolutionary response to a country focused on keeping its constituents disenfranchised and invisible. … Read more

MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET at South Coast Repertory

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – BroadwayWorld South Coast Repertory presents the Broadway musical Million Dollar Quartet at the Mission San Juan Capistrano under the stars as part of its new Outside SCR program, and the quality production recalls the good, old days of Summer Stock. SCR has collected a talented cast and put on an enchanting evening. Read more… Now … Read more

MIKE BIRBIGLIA: THE OLD MAN AND THE POOL at The Taper

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – Theatermania Mike Birbiglia makes a triumphant return to the stage at the Mark Taper Forum with another intimate discussion in his disarming, everyman fashion. Riffing on family, health, exercise, and grammar, Center Theatre Group’s production of Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool has the audience in stitches, laughing hysterically at the frailty … Read more

KINKY BOOTS at the Hollywood Bowl

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – Theatermania Last weekend, Wayne Brady sashayed onto the runway at the Hollywood Bowl as the iconic drag queen Lola in the Tony-winning musical Kinky Boots. His vibrant performance prevented a miscast Jake Shears from dragging the evening down. With a score by Cyndi Lauper and a book by Harvey Fierstein, the 2013 … Read more

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre

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Terry Morgan – Stage Raw The dumbing down of American musical theater continues apace with Moulin Rouge! The Musical, which throws the past 50 years of popular music into a moronic Mixmaster and performs the stitched-together “songs” with the regrettable aesthetic of a cut-rate Vegas revue or a taste-free ‘70s TV variety show. It’s doubly unfortunate, because … Read more

HADESTOWN at the Ahmanson Theatre

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – Theatermania There’s a gargantuan myth surrounding the opening of Hadestown at the Ahmanson Theatre. Not the Greek tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice, which this musical does borrow, but the legend of the juggernaut Broadway production that opened in April 2019. Arriving with 14 Tony nominations and eight awards in tow, the production almost dares … Read more

DANCIN’ at the Old Globe in San Diego

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – Theatermania In 1978, Bob Fosse created an evening spotlighting the artistry of dance called Dancin‘, utilizing songs from the ’70s, previous decades, and classical music. Currently at the Old Globe in San Diego, the revival of Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ is having its pre-Broadway run, under the direction of Wayne Cilento, one of the original cast … Read more

YOU’RE A GOOD MAN, CHARLIE BROWN at South Coast Repertory

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Jonas Schwartz-Owen – Broadway World When I told friends I was seeing You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown as my first live Performance in 18 months, I had to remind them this wasn’t a middle school production, but part of the award-winning South Coast Repertory‘s season.  Read more…