Neal Weaver – Stage Raw John Cariani’s play is, in fact, a collection of nine short sketches, mostly duologues, and mostly comic with some serious overtones. Much of Cariani’s comedy is rooted in the notion of taking figures of speech literally. In “Her Heart,” a woman (Natalie Avital) had her heart broken by her recently … Read more
Margaret Gray – LA Times Henry Jaglom’s “Train to Zakopané,” premiering at the Edgemar Center for the Arts, is based on an incident in the life of his father: a rich, complex, heartbreaking story of doomed lovers in Poland between the wars.The script could stand a vigorous pruning, several performances are still wobbly and the … Read more
Bob Verini – Stage Raw Jerome Kern, no mean tunesmith, had a famous retort when asked about Irving Berlin’s place in American music. He has none, the Show Boat composer replied; “he is American music.” In a similar vein, one might say that Hershey Felder has no place among performers of musical biographical monologues. Read more… David C. Nichols – … Read more
David C. Nichols – LA Times A high degree of skill and individuality accompanies “Takarazuka!!!” at East West Players. In its elegant West Coast premiere, Susan Soon He Stanton’s very promising albeit still-forming play with music uses the famed all-female troupe in the titular Japanese city as a backdrop to an intriguing study of gender … Read more
Neal Weaver – Stage Raw Apparently playwright Tom Yewell wanted to provide a male variation on The Vagina Monologues. The title might suggest that the show is a bit of pornography or an exercise in sensationalism, but the play is neither, despite a brief interlude of male nudity. It is, rather, a series of eight engaging … Read more
Margaret Gray – LA Times Would you believe that in the Broadway juggernaut “Kinky Boots,” which has just arrived at the Pantages Theatre, nobody even wears boots? Of course you wouldn’t. I’m kidding. The show, which won six Tonys last year, including awards for musical, choreography and score, fulfills half of the promise of its … Read more
Margaret Gray – LA Times If you weren’t already worried about the future, “Uploaded,” L.R. Gordon’s new play premiering at Rogue Machine, will give you specific reasons to fear the rise of the millennial generation. Read more… Now running through November 22.
Margaret Gray – LA Times Nothing in “Bronies: The Musical,” at the Third Street Theater, is as hard to credit as the existence of bronies: adult, primarily male fans of “My Little Pony.” Read more… Now running through November 2.
Margaret Gray – LA Times The Los Angeles Theatre Center is buzzing with “Encuentro 2014,” a month-long national theater festival organized by the Latino Theater Company, with a repertory of more than 15 productions from across the country. Among them is “Enrique’s Journey,” based on Sonia Nazario’s Pulitzer Prize-winning series, published in the Los Angeles … Read more
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly “Things aren’t always what they seem” is the main theme of John Biguenet’s play about a strange old woman with magical powers. It’s a piece you want to praise, given how much and how cruelly old women with (or without) magical powers have been maligned over the centuries. Read more… Neal … Read more