Los Angeles

POSITIVELY PEERLESS PERICLES There’s a certain respect lost among most national leaders today, especially here in America, due to the excessive regard for individuals graduated from northeast institutions, and an improper recognition for those who serve in the military’” especially those who fight overseas. The last three Presidents of this country have avoided harm’s way…

THERE IS NOTHING EITHER GOOD OR BAD, BUT CASTING MAKES IT SO Can it really be twenty years now that I have admired Lisa Wolpe’s work? Time and again, the actress has impressed me with her ability to seamlessly inhabit male Shakespearean roles while bringing fresh significance to characters as disparate as Romeo, Iago and…

WOMEN WITH HEARTS OF IRON Before going to see Rogue Machine Theatre’s latest production, Lost Girls, I turned to my companion and asked, “Why is everything that Rogue does so good?” Then a horrible sinking feeling hit. I bet I just jinxed it. It’s a very Jewish idea’”that in praising something out loud, you incite…

THE KEY OF IMAGINATION Many an actor, writer, and director settles for professionalism.   To get it up there and know your lines, to raise a question or resolve a story, to light the performers and make them audible: this seems enough.   And for some kinds of theater, journeyman work is completely adequate. But watching Impro…

MID-LIFE MYSTERIES  AND MISUNDERSTANDINGS A long-married couple says good-bye to the final guests who leave their house after a party. They are known for their parties; for their happy marriage; for their easy charm with one another. Except that tonight, the husband asks his wife for a divorce, shocking himself as well as her. Then, with…

AH, GOOD THEATER! Ah, Wilderness! is Pulitzer and Nobel Prize-winning O’Neill’s only comedy, and he describes it as, “a wistful recollection:the kind of childhood I wished I had growing up.” One can certainly see the parallels between what must’ve been a young O’Neill and the character of Richard Miller as Wilderness also provides a rose-colored…

A STUNNING TRIFONOV MAKES HIS HOLLYWOOD BOWL DEBUT It was both fascinating and distracting to watch 22-year-old Daniil Trifonov, the current Big Thing of the piano world, perform Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 (1897) at the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday. Hunched over the keys and stroking them with a fierce tenderness, he consistently appeared to…

THE  BARE TRUTH There’s a kind of desperate seriousness about the “rock” musical Bare ’” more pop than rock ’” first produced in 2000, now back with updated music and a telegenic and talented cast. The original production preceded Spring Awakening and Glee, but it feels like it cashes in on both genres of teen musical:…

BLUE MAN GROUP GETS BOWLED OVER International phenomenon Blue Man Group (BMG)  made their Hollywood Bowl debut on Friday in a wildly uneven yet ultimately entertaining evening ranging from moments of true wonderment to “what were they thinking?” befuddlement. The theme of the night was  FUN and Principal Guest Conductor Thomas Wilkins and members of LA Phil’s…

MAGNIFIQUE Sometimes, dance performances are entertaining, but only for the spectator who understands the storyline behind the dancing. Other times, the performances are less about dance and more about the esoteric, self-righteous fulfillment of the dancer being able to perform. Where is the line drawn between these forms and how does the viewer know when…

TOO MUCH OF TOO LITTLE FOR TOO LONG An aged widow and an even more aged married man have a shared, passionate history with each other that ended after World War II. Now, nearly seventy years later, they find themselves with an opportunity to reunite, make up for lost time, and take one last shot…

THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER:OR IS IT? Smart, funny and thought-provoking, Rapture, Blister Burn has arrived at the Geffen Playhouse in Westwood with the original New York cast in tow. Written by Gina Gionfriddo (Pulitzer Prize finalist for Becky Shaw) the show puts a new spin on the often beaten to death themes of gender…

DOUBLE YOUR PLEASURE As promised, the Los Angeles Philharmonic program last Tuesday offered stylishness and sophistication, but guest artists Katia and Marielle Labéque added an element of fierce emotion. It was evident in the centerpiece, Mendelssohn’s Concerto in E major for Two Pianos (and Orchestra), how well the sisters complement each other.  Marielle, wearing black, had…

A ZESTY SUMMER COCKTAIL In their seventeen years as a fourteen member full “little orchestra,” Pink Martini has established a reputation  for  clever, daring, sophisticated and  delightful music. The unusually overcast sky  at the Hollywood Bowl Sunday evening provided an excellent opportunity for LA Phil and Pink Martini to perk up the environment with some much needed color and…

THE X FACTOR How many times have we mused that we would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when ___________? That’s exactly what playwright Kemp Powers has done in his One Night in Miami…, the world premiere of which is currently on at Rogue Machine. Taking a real gathering of four…

RUPTURED RAPTURE Attending the opening night of a comedy at one of the smaller 99 seat theaters in Los Angeles can be problematic. In addition to a minute smattering of critics and avid theatergoers, the audience is primarily made up of friends of the cast and members of the theater company.   Therein lies the rub.  …