When I was offered the chance to review Fountain Theatre’s streaming revival of The Ballad of Emmett Till, written by Ifa Bayeza and directed by Shirley Jo Finney, I jumped at the chance, stirred myself from pandemic lethargy, and set up to view the show on my Macintosh computer. Soon the cast, led by the … Continue reading “The Ballad of Emmett Till” at the Fountain Theatre
Over its thirty-year existence Open Fist Theatre Company has produced a lot of bold theatre in Los Angeles, new plays and revivals. Its annual Christmas delight, Both, a musical retelling of the Christmas story set to the tunes of the Beatles, is simply brilliant. Other recent hits are Under Milk Wood, Dancing at Lunasa, and … Continue reading “Rorschach Fest—Inkblot C” at Open Fist Theatre
Odyssey Theatre’s revival of Jean-Claude van Itallie’s ensemble play, The Serpent, brings back vivid memories of my college days in the Sixties, the decade when everything changed for the worst. The bright, shining hope that John Fitzgerald Kennedy gave this teenager was shattered with his assassination. I was in my high school drama class with … Continue reading “The Serpent” at Odyssey Theatre Ensemble
John O’Keefe’s short play, Ghosts, shares a title with the searing domestic drama that caused an uproar in certain circles back in the late 19th Century. Ibsen’s play had the unsavory elements of incest, venereal disease, philandering, and more. O’Keefe’s play concerns the dead. And a lively bunch of dead they are. They are confused … Continue reading “Rorschach Fest—Inkblot A: Ghosts” at Open Fist Theatre
The valuable and venerable Open Fist Theatre Company opens its 30th Anniversary season with Rorschach Fest, a series of unique plays by playwrights known and little known. The performances are cataloged as Inkblot A, Inkblot B, and Inkblot C, and require the committed theatre-goer to return to the Atwater Village Theatre three times to experience … Continue reading “Rorschach Fest—Inkblot B” at Open Fist Theatre
Doug Haverty’s play, In My Mind’s Eye, takes place in San Jose, California between 1968 and 1981. I lived in San Jose as a boy part of that time. I have vivid memories of those years. In My Mind’s Eye is the true tale of a young woman, legally blind, who becomes a school teacher, … Continue reading “In My Mind’s Eye” at The Group Rep
Lee Blessing is a prolific, award winning and award nominated playwright. In my relatively short time as a Southern California theatre critic, I have seen and commented on three of his plays and am now adding a fourth. I have found his works to be stimulating, thought provoking and entertaining, about as much as anyone … Continue reading “A Body of Water” at Actors Co-op
Pieces of paper? Pieces of paper found and picked up or gathered off the streets, or gleaned from under the windshield wipers of vehicles, or pried off laundry room bulletin boards, or wherever they were posted or tacked or stapled on whatever? This proletarian treasure became a gold mine for Davy Rothbart, creator and founder … Continue reading “Found: A New Musical” at IAMA Theatre Company
International City Theatre had a hit last year with Roger Bean jukebox musical, Life Could Be a Dream, so why not have another go, this time with The Andrews Brothers, that showcases the tight harmonies of The Andrews Sisters—Patty, Laverne and Maxine—their snappy, close harmonies still bringing joy to the listener. This music is iconic, … Continue reading “The Andrews Brothers” at International City Theatre
It is impossible to get away from the grim state of the world, its politics, its ever-simmering wars, its ever-widening gap between the haves and the have-nots, and the ecological disaster that is hurtling us into extinction. As a person of emotion, I feel it physically every day, not to the point of contemplating suicide, … Continue reading “Human Interest Story” at The Fountain Theatre
