Anita W. Harris – LA Theatrix Winner of the 2025 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, “Furlough’s Paradise” offers a fresh take on difficult topics of legacy, race and gender as inflected through these young women. Hearing them speak so forthrightly and openly on how it feels to be them and how they aspire to a freedom … Read more
Tracey Paleo – Gia On The Move Opening with smoky jazz noir that leads to an eventual closing in gospel revival, Robey Theatre Company’s latest production aims for an artistic movement of historic, political significance. It is the last rites of the, LAST NIGHT AT MIKELL’S. Read more… Edward Hong – The Nerds Of Color … Read more
Anita W. Harris – LA Theatrix Whether or not you are a fan of Charlotte Brontë’s 1847 gothic novel Jane Eyre, you will be smitten by Elizabeth Williamson’s stage adaptation as produced by A Noise Within (ANW) — a stellar rendition in every aspect. Read more… Terry Morgan – ArtsBeatLA As a Literature major in … Read more
Edward Hong – The Nerds Of Color Suzan-Lori Parks’ Topdog/Underdog is a riveting play where its words did much of the heavy lifting in the Pasadena Playhouse production now playing. Despite committed performances, the rich language may need to marinate with the actors a bit more amongst staging and casting issues that can’t be changed. … Read more
Jonas Schwartz – Theatermania The play’s real star is Jamie Harrison and his eye-deceiving illusions. Even in the condensed version, actors flip upside down, get sucked through tiny boxes, change costumes (by Katrina Lindsay) in a snap, and shoot fire from their wands. Read more… Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA The star has to be … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA I suspect what has made Lauren Yee’s truly magical play with music such a critically acclaimed production since its debut at South Coast Rep in 2018 has been what former Angeleno theatremaker Chay Yew, now recognized as one of our country’s most noteworthy directors, has brought to the production since … Read more
F. Kathleen Foley – Stage Raw It’s hard to believe that Frankie Valli, at age 90, is currently on a “farewell tour” scheduled to end this April. Perhaps he’s aging better than Jersey Boys, which despite all the flash and frills, seems timeworn — a tribute to a once stellar act now fading into obscurity. Read … Read more
Anita W. Harris – LA Theatrix Continuing for one more night at CSULB, the production is enjoyable for its cast and crew’s creative collaboration in staging Shakespeare in this novel way. With time, perhaps it can be tweaked to become more grounded in its purported L.A. setting while bringing the fluidity of the Stefano, Trinculo … Read more
Edward Hong – The Nerds Of Color Andi Chapman’s rendition of Macbeth at A Noise Within is a refreshing work of art with a stunning ensemble cast comprised mostly of Black & global majority actors. Read more… Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw It’s a compelling way to begin this story of murder and mayhem. There’s … Read more
Anita W. Harris – LA Theatrix The play thus offers many lenses through which to challenge notions of race and gender—including a hilarious science-based plot twist near the end—successfully inverting what we might think of as true and fixed. It’s a refreshingly lighthearted way of sending up those concepts, though a more substantive story … Read more