Terry Morgan – Arts Beat LA One never knows where inspiration will strike. Eboni Booth’s play, Primary Trust, is partly set in a tiki bar that is its protagonist’s favorite place on Earth. Although the story is set in New York, Booth mentioned in an interview that her inspiration for that bar was Damon’s, an … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA While some might find this a tail as old as time, this exceptional reinvention of breathes fresh oxygen into the story. If you’re looking for a night of theatre that’s deep in heart and high on spectacle, this is a wave of pure theatrical joy, proving once again that some … Read more
Ed Rampell – Hollywood Progressive If cinéma vérité filmmakers such as D.A. Pennebaker, Richard Leacock, Jean Rouch or the Maysles Brothers had cameras inside of the Trump White House (that is, what’s left of it), their fly on the wall footage would likely reveal lunacy akin to that of “Exit the King’s” court. I’m sure … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA This freshly conceived production, which swerves from the usual formula of all the previous successful Hershey Felder one-person explorations over nearly 30 years, examining the lives and music of the most famous composers in the history of music, uniquely captures the essence of how one of our time’s most prolific … Read more
Edward Hong – The Nerds Of Color Despite this new revival of Flower Drum Song having a second revision from David Henry Hwang, no amount of rewrites cannot shake the core that this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, now playing at East West Players, is still very much outdated as a orientalist and voyeuristic crowd pleaser … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA While Jacques Heim’s internationally renowned company is famous for its gravity-defying feats, since it’s being performed in this eclectic private former warehouse studio, this production brings the audience literally within five feet of the action. With only 90 seats in the house, the massive yet somehow intimate black box setting … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA Although people say the long-running 2023 Pulitzer-winning play, just opening for a too brief run at the Wallis, is being presented at a bad time, it’s something with which I could not disagree more strongly. This stunning masterwork lifts us from the discouragement and ugliness of the moment as it … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA Although I have to admit Julie Shavers’ rather predictable tale of a Fourth of July family reunion in the rural Tennessee backyard of the miserable Moon family womenfolk covers absolutely no new ground, she breaths glorious life into the familiar convoluted goings-on with her unique knack for creating lovable—though suitably … Read more
Travis Michael Holder – TicketHoldersLA Dietrich Smith’s adaptation of Franz Kafka’s first novel finds all the sly complexities and colors that, as in the source material, are camouflaged by the narrative: the eternal battle between the haves and the have-nots, the shabby treatment of individuals deemed lesser than others, and the search for a reason … Read more
Jonas Schwartz – Theatermania The national tour of the 2023 Broadway revival of Monty Python’s Spamalot has galloped into Los Angeles at the Hollywood Pantages, and the musical numbers remain as boisterous, energetic, and gleefully goofy as ever. Unfortunately, the book scenes, largely lifted from the famous dialogue of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, have lost much … Read more