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
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
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
Sometimes when one has a craving to satisfy, it isn’t filet mignon that one hankers for, but maybe just a really good burger. Sometimes when one goes to the theatre to see a new show, you don’t know what to expect. Will it be a burger or filet mignon? How will it satisfy an inveterate … Continue reading “Law an Order: The Musical” at Broadwater Second Stage
The provenance of the musical, She Loves Me, is as impeccable as it is fascinating. The show is based on the 1936 play, Parfumerie, by Hungarian playwright, Miklós László, which morphed into the 1940 film, The Shop Around the Corner, starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan. It rose again as In the Good Old Summertime, … Continue reading “She Loves Me” at South Coast Repertory
Frida Kahlo. Just her name evokes all kinds of thoughts and emotions. That she was a creature of passion is well known. That her art work is iconic is a given. The images in her voluminous catalog of self portraits is ubiquitous. I have a Frida Kahlo nightlight in the bathroom. I see her every … Continue reading “Frida–Stroke of Passion” at Casa 0101
