Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw Church & State, Jason Odell Williams’ timely and aptly titled political drama, tells the story of a fictional Republican Senator from North Carolina, Charles Whitmore (Rob Nagle, at his splendid best) who suddenly begins to question much that he’s always believed in — namely, God and the Second Amendment. Read more… … Read more
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly Religious ideology and its impact on young minds serves as the theme for playwright Jesse Mu-En Shao’s The End Times, a lean narrative enriched with well-grounded performances and a modest but handsome production design. The play, developed jointly by Playwrights’ Arena and the Skylight Theatre, is cogently directed by Jon Lawrence … Read more
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly Tony Abatemarco’s play Forever House, about a gay couple who purchase a home and then struggle to make a go of their partnership, is something of a hybrid. In some places it’s an airy situation comedy that drifts into horror-lite…… Read more… Lovell Estell III – Stage Raw For Jack and Ben (Michael Rubenstone, … Read more
David C. Nichols – LA Times Meet voluble Pepe, patriarch of the world’s most dubious clan of Mexican entertainers, who has retained his unwarranted confidence over the decades since his brood began touring the bottom-rung nightclub circuit. Read more… Now running through August 23.
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw One way to tackle your demons is to write a book about them. Another way is to condense your recollections into a solo performance piece that resembles a standup comedy routine. Annabelle Gurwitch has done both. Read more… Now running through June 7.
David C. Nichols – LA Times A mesmerizing blend of magical realism and poetic social comment courses through “Dontrell, Who Kissed the Sea,” Nathan Alan Davis’ meta-theatrical parable about an idealistic African American teen in search of his heritage. Read more… Now playing through March 29.
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw Eisa Davis’s drama about an 18-year-old motherless clairvoyant exhibits an element of magic that manifests most richly in this production’s opening moments. Read more… Myron Meisel – The Hollywood Reporter 1955 was the summer of tortured teen James Dean in East of Eden and the real-life tortured and murdered youth Emmett Till in Money, Mississippi. Back then, … Read more
David C. Nichols – LA Times Highly promising talent bounces through “Pray to Ball” at the Skylight Theatre. Amir Abdullah’s tersely entertaining examination of Islam, college basketball and friendship has some new-play issues, but it’s undeniably heartfelt and thought-provoking. Played out on the wood-paneled span of designer Jeff McLaughlin’s marvelous set, “Ball” follows two lifelong … Read more
Steven Leigh Morris – LA Weekly Los Feliz’s Skylight Theatre has become the home for L.A. scribe Shem Bitterman, who’s had his plays staged in this city for decades. His latest, a real estate mystery named Open House, premiered last week. Before getting to Open House, it’s worth perusing Bitterman’s past writings, which reveal patterns … Read more