Frances Baum Nicholson –The Stage Struck Review In the wake of mass shootings, one cannot help but wonder what particular disconnect made someone feel such an act was a good idea. Now running through May 4
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw Writer/performer Monique DeBose grew up in California in the ‘80s, the daughter of an African-American father from North Carolina and an Irish-American mother from New York State. Being the progeny of a biracial couple created an identity crisis that she resolved only after becoming an adult. Mulatto Math – Summing Up the Race … Read more
Ellen Dostal – BroadwayWorld In Bill Berry’s solo show THE BRICK: A ONE MAN MUSICAL, Berry isn’t addressing the audience in a theater. He’s on a beach having a two-way conversation with his dead mother and we are the accidental eavesdroppers who witness their complicated relationship unfold piecemeal. The convention is more akin to a play … Read more
Neal Weaver – Stage Raw Modern dancer and choreographer Martha Graham has become an almost mythical figure. She was remarkably prolific, creating 181 dances over the course of her career and dancing into her 70s (though sometimes she lurched a bit during her later years). Read more… Now running through May 28
Katie Buenneke – Stage Raw Nice Iranian Girl, Layla Rumi (a.k.a. Layla Kaleigh)’s one-woman show at the Whitefire Theatre, feels half-baked. The 50-minute monologue, which plays weekly in Sherman Oaks as part of Whitefire’s Solofest, follows Rumi from her early years growing up in Tehran to 2009, when her daughter was born in Los Angeles. Read … Read more
Neal Weaver – Stage Raw The creators of Santasia, Shaun and Brandon Loeser, have been serving up their particular brand of zany, snarky holiday cheer for 16 years —this year makes 17 — but time hasn’t mellowed them and they haven’t lost their edge. Read more… Now running through December 25
Pauline Adamek – Stage Raw It’s a little difficult to get a fix on writer-performer John Posey’s solo show Father, Son & Holy Coach, which first premiered in 1993 at The Santa Monica Playhouse. Is it a true story? Is it about a real person? No and yes (I think). Although voicing numerous characters throughout the … Read more
Les Spindle – Frontiers L.A. Howard Skora’s zany dark comedy, directed by Jim Fall, stars veteran actress Patty McCormack (who is well-remembered as an 11-year-old Oscar nominee, playing a murderous moppet in the classic 1956 thriller The Bad Seed). Read more… Neal Weaver – Stage Raw Howard Skora’s black farce is constructed like a TV sitcom, but … Read more
Deborah Klugman – Stage Raw Lisa David is so likable, and her autobiographical show so ingenuous and inspiring, that you can readily forgive its extended length and lack of polish. Read more… Now running through Nov. 5.
Deborah Klugman – LA Weekly Daniel Keyes’ now classic sci-fi story about a mentally challenged man whose IQ skyrockets after a surgical procedure tackles not only how we treat disabled individuals but how ephemeral are those intangible values — love, life, respect — that we cherish. Read more… Sharon Perlmutter – Talkin’ Broadway There are … Read more