Jonas Schwartz – Theatermania Jon Robin Baitz’s The Substance of Fire could be a sincere one-act about two people ruled by rage who make themselves vulnerable to each other. Unfortunately in this production, the second act is shackled to a first act that feels like warmed-over Succession, which exists only to give context and ends … Read more
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw The Joy Wheel is an amiable situation comedy that deals with a crisis in the lives of an older married couple. Written by Ian McRae and directed by Jason Alexander, it’s one of those entertainment-minded vehicles that can come off as either a shallow on-stage sitcom, where garnering laughs is the … Read more
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw In his 1987 solo show, Time Flies When You’re Alive, writer/performer Paul Linke relayed the story of his first wife’s battle with breast cancer, the impact of her illness on his family, and the heartbreak of her death at age 37. The couple had three small children at the time, the … Read more
Neal Weaver – Stage Raw Lorraine Hansberry is securely enshrined as an important black playwright, but what few people remember nowadays is that she was also a lovely young woman, with gamin charm and an impish sense of humor. Read more… Dany Margolies – The Daily Breeze “What happens to a dream deferred?” asked Langston Hughes … Read more
Jenny Lower – Stage Raw In just over an hour, Scottish playwright Gary McNair’s affectionate portrait of the rise and fall of an inveterate gambler manages to span 45 years, chart a grandson’s disillusionment and recovery of faith in his hero, mull the randomness of the universe, and probe the legacy of any human life. … Read more
Margaret Gray – LA Times Ruskin Group Theatre has revived the Canadian classic “Leaving Home,” David French’s heavily autobiographical first play. It’s in some ways an odd choice for the little Los Angeles theater. Although its theme—intergenerational misunderstanding—is universal, the story is rooted in a specific and remote cultural context, the concerns of which seem … Read more
Pauline Adamek – Stage Raw In Robin Uriel Russin’s new dramedy, family members from three generations quarrel during a Passover Seder – this Seder being especially significant for the protagonist Christina (Stacey Moseley) because it’s her first since she converted from the Catholic faith to Judaism. Read more… Now running through October 11.
Pauline Adamek – ArtsBeatLA In TALHOTBLOND:, a working man falls for a hot woman he meets in an internet chatroom. His increasing obsession has a dramatic impact on his work and home lives. Playwright Kathrine Bates has developed an oeuvre taking real life crimes as the starting point for her dramas. Her most notable work is The Manor, a hugely popular and … Read more
Neal Weaver – LA Weekly This comic extravaganza, written by Ron House, Diz White, Alan Shearman and John Neville-Andrews and first produced in 1971, went on to become an international hit. Now the Ruskin Group brings it back, and to insure it retains its original comic glory, two of the original creators have returned: Shearman … Read more