Los Angeles

A ROCK-SOLID ACT OF HUMANITY Julia Rodriguez-Elliott directs a stirring, beautifully performed celebration of compassion in the darkest of times Irene Sankoff and David Hein’s historical musical, Come From Away, chronicles a day when 38 airliners, mainly international carriers, were abruptly denied permission to land in New York or remain in American airspace. Celebrating its…

WHAT’S BOT TO LOVE? A virtual companion becomes all too real in Matt Schatz’s intimate, thought-provoking play about AI, loneliness, and the dangers of digital devotion What begins as an amusing technological flirtation gradually raises some uncomfortable questions about just how much of ourselves we’re willing to surrender in Bobby Robotowitz by Matt Schatz. Produced…

A HOUSE NOT QUITE WORTH LOSING Antaeus assembles a superb cast for Shaw’s comedy of a doomed society, but the production lacks the grandeur and dread to make its downfall devastating In 1920 the Theatre Guild asked George Bernard Shaw for the rights to revive The Devil’s Disciple. He offered them the premiere of Heartbreak…

INKBLOTS AND FLAT LINES Strong performances and striking visuals cannot disguise the shortcomings of Kelly Younger’s predictable new play What do you see when you look into an inkblot? In the world premiere of Rorschach at the Skylight Theatre, playwright Kelly Younger and director Cameron Watson hope you see a funny, tender exploration of love…

A POLITICAL CONVENTION IN SEARCH OF DIRECTION An ambitious recreation of the 1944 Democratic National Convention gets the atmosphere right but leaves even a knowledgeable observer bewildered Convention, now lodging at The Industry Loft, is billed as a “groundbreaking, immersive political play.” Walking into a superbly executed conventional convention hall set—part gymnasium, part hell’s waiting…

THREE VOICES, A LIFETIME OF SHOW BUSINESS Broadway, Hollywood, and LA theater come together for a two-night concert Soap operas, Broadway musicals, Shakespeare, and This Is Spinal Tap don’t often turn up in the same concert announcement. But those are just some of the credits behind 2 Dudes & Their Teach: Singing, which brings Kevin…

NEEDS A STRONGER DOSE There’s heart and humor in this solo show, but not enough theatrical vitality The Best Medicine, now at Odyssey Theatre Ensemble, is a well-meaning, sympathetic tale of love, commitment, and finding the courage to press on with life, not merely facing but embracing new adventures. This one-woman show by Robin Gerber,…

MONSTERING THE ARTS Giant monsters and theatrical pretensions collide in Dan Caffrey’s gleefully unhinged new play Has the spark seemed to have left the LA theater scene? Does a night at the theater mean a choice between commercial dreck or heavy messaging? Are you weary of your thoughts being provoked yet again? Well, consider adding…

ALL’S WELL THAT BEDS WELL Keiko Green’s provocative comedy finds plenty of laughs in the tangled relationships of college life, but its questions about consent are harder to resolve Marianne is named after the girl her father meant to sleep with. Back in their small, religious farm town, teenage Benny had his eye on Anna’s…

GRIEF IN MOTION Christina Harris keeps Deborah Brevoort’s meditation on loss moving with remarkable theatrical urgency There is very little stillness in The Women of Lockerbie, and that turns out to be one of the great strengths of Christina Harris’s superbly directed production at The Actors’ Gang. Deborah Brevoort’s play takes place seven years after…

WISHING FOR MORE Beautiful voices aren’t enough to cast the spell this Sondheim classic demands It seems like there’s always a production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into the Woods running nearby. Last weekend, South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa opened its production, just a week before Morgan-Wixson in Santa Monica opens theirs, so…

A LANDMARK CASE GETS THE SITCOM TREATMENT A pivotal civil-rights case deserves sharper comedy and deeper drama than Howard Skora’s overstuffed retelling provides On September 17, 1998, a 911 caller claiming there was a weapons disturbance sent police into John Lawrence’s Houston apartment. Officers arrested Lawrence and Tyrone Garner under a Texas law criminalizing sex…

GUILT IS SOMEONE ELSE’S BUSINESS Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy makes murder a profession, morality a technicality, and laughter increasingly uncomfortable Martin McDonagh’s Hangmen opens with a man about to be hanged and everyone fussing over procedure. It is 1963. James Hennessy insists the police have the wrong man. His executioner, Harry Wade, is unmoved. Harry…