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San Diego
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Theater Review: MORRIS MICKLEWHITE AND THE TANGERINE DRESS (Mosaic Theatricals at Patio Playhouse in Escondido)
A DRESS FOR SUCCESS A polished TYA production that treats identity and imagination with care. Mosaic Theatricals’ production of Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress at Patio Playhouse does not just aim to charm young audiences—it makes its point clearly. This is a heartfelt lesson for children of all ages about belonging, delivered with a…
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Theater Review: BEAU JEST (North Coast Rep)
A NICE JEWISH BOY— OR IS HE? Plenty of laughs and genuine feeling power this crowd-pleasing production Sarah Goldman is a young Jewish Chicago teacher in the late 1900s. Her boyfriend is a lawyer named Chris Cringle and they are thinking about getting married. But there is a problem. Chris is not Jewish and Sarah’s…
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Theater Review: FENCES (The Old Globe, San Diego)
FENCED IN AND LASHING OUT A powerful touring revival of August Wilson’s enduring drama The Old Globe Theatre is presenting August Wilson’s 1987 drama Fences, part of his cycle of plays about African American life in the industrial United States during the 20th century. Each play explores Black life in a different decade, in an…
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Theater Review: THE DROWSY CHAPERONE (Coronado Playhouse)
NO SNOOZE BUTTON HERE Coronado’s Drowsy Chaperone keeps the laughs coming The Coronado Playhouse is reviving the musical comedy The Drowsy Chaperone, hoping to repeat the popularity of the show’s success in 2011. Judging by the enthusiasm of my Sunday matinee, no problem. It’s too bad the production only runs for 16 performances. The Drowsy…
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Theater Review: THE NOTEBOOK (North American Tour at San Diego Civic Theatre)
LOVE, LOSS, AND LYRICS An earnest musical adaptation that leans into memory, even when it leans too hard The touring production of The Notebook arrives at the Civic Theatre with a built-in audience and a well-worn story to tell. Based on Nicholas Sparks’ bestselling novel and the beloved 2004 film, the musical adaptation leans into…
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Theater Review: AN ACT OF GOD (Roustabouts Theatre Company at Scripps Ranch Theatre)
LORD HAVE MERCY! Roustabouts Theatre’s irreverent comedy lets Samantha Ginn unleash a hilariously blunt deity Samantha Ginn Playwright David Javerbaum pulls no punches in this hysterical, irreverent look at the heavenly father (now a mother) and her two angel sidekicks. The play borders on blasphemous, and if this would bother you, move right along because…
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Theater Review: HEDDA GABLER (The Old Globe)
BEAUTIFUL, BORED, AND BENT ON DESTRUCTION A brisk new adaptation of Ibsen’s classic showcases Katie Holmes’s ferocious Hedda—while questioning the modern impulse to excuse her behavior The Old Globe is staging Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler in a streamlined adaptation by Erin Cressida Wilson. First performed in 1891, the play has seen countless English-language productions, usually…
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Theater Review: THE MALTESE FALCON (World Premiere at North Coast Rep)
THREE FELLAS, TWO DAMES, ONE BIRD, AND A LOT OF DOUBLE-CROSSING North Coast Rep’s five-actor adaptation of The Maltese Falcon mixes mystery with nimble theatrical trickery The North Coast Repertory Theatre is presenting the world premiere stage adaptation of the classic detective story The Maltese Falcon. Rather than turning the material into a patronizing spoof,…
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Theater Review: BARTLEBY (Fiasco Theater at The Old Globe)
A SCRIVENER WHO PREFERS NOT TO A minimalist Melville adaptation turns quiet resistance into compelling theater Andy Grotelueschen as The Lawyer and Michael Crane as Bartleby Fiasco Theater is presenting the world premiere of Bartleby at The Old Globe in Balboa Park. The play is a stage adaptation of Herman Melville’s 1853 short story, “Bartleby…
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Theater Review: SOMEWHERE OVER THE BORDER (Cygnet Theatre Company)
A LATINO MUSICAL ODYSSEY INSPIRED BY IMMIGRATION AND THE WIZARD OF OZ A heartfelt journey centered on resilience, with fantasy touches along the way The Cygnet Theatre is presenting the local premiere of Somewhere Over the Border, a Latino musical by playwright Brian Quijada. He based his story on his mother’s real-life struggles in the…
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Theater Review: THE RECIPE (La Jolla Playhouse)
A WORLD PREMIERE CHARTING JULIA CHILD’S RISE FROM RESTLESSNESS TO CULINARY ICON A biographical play that finds its flavor in a stronger, more compelling second act The La Jolla Playhouse is presenting the world premiere of The Recipe, Claudia Shear’s biographical play about the early life and culinary career of American chef and author Julia…
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Theater Review: HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING (San Diego Musical Theatre)
HOW TO SUCCEED IN PRODUCING A MUSICAL Offices tend not to be much fun, which is why they are ripe for exploring undertones of emotion and comedy in scripts like Office Space, Working Girl, 9 to 5, and NBC’s The Office. Throw in some music (okay, a LOT of music) and dynamic choreography and you’ve got a…
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Theater Review: OF MICE AND MEN (Lamplighters)
HOPE WITH CALLOUSED HANDS: A QUIET MASTERPIECE REVISITED John Steinbeck’s play Of Mice and Men came quickly after the success of his novella by the same name. In fact, the play opened on Broadway in 1937 while the book was still on best sellers lists. In each telling, Steinbeck draws upon his own teenage experiences…
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Theater Review: LOUISA GILLIS (North Coast Rep)
WHEN THE DEAD STILL RUN THE ROOM Grief, memory, and the long shadow of unfinished business In this play of four characters, a fifth looms large, though never seen: the titular Louisa, late wife to Steven (James Sutorius), mother to Celia (Faline England), and grandmother to Lucy (Caroline Renee). She’s been dead for nearly forty…
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Theater Review: DONNA ORBITS THE MOON (Scripps Ranch Theatre)
A NEIGHBORLY NICE LADY— WITH BUZZ ALDRIN IN HER HEAD Susan Clausen shines in Ian August’s funny, surreal one-woman ride Reading the press blurb about Donna Orbits the Moon left me scratching my head, wondering what it was actually about. Having seen it now, I get why. Some shows are hard to describe well. That…
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Theater Review: THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL (Lamb’s Players Theatre)
TENDERNESS IS BOUNTIFUL IN LAMB’S PRODUCTION A Horton Foote gem, staged with patience, grace, and heart The Trip to Bountiful began as a staged-for-TV play in early 1953 and then had a very brief Broadway run later that year, a limited one-month production that yielded critical accolades for Horton Foote’s touching script (Lillian Gish played…
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Theater Review: LOUISA GILLIS (North Coast Rep)
A FAMILY POISONED BY THE PAST Joanna McClelland Glass’s intimate drama lands like overhearing a quarrel— and keeps paying off thanks to a first-rate cast. Modern American theater does not lack for theatrical, intense plays. These works typically explore family secrets, betrayal, revenge, trust and mistrust, plot twists and turns, and psychological (and sometimes physical)…
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Theater Review: SIX (2025 National Tour, Boleyn Cast)
SIX QUEENS BEAT A FULL HOUSE A Clever, Electrifying Concert That Sometimes Overwhelms Its Own Story History serves us well in stories for musicals. From 1776 to Evita to Hamilton, all the plot is ready and waiting to be served up and put to music. So when you marry six women in thirty-four years, you’re…
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Theater Review: CYGNET’S A MAGICAL HOLIDAY (Cygnet Theatre)
A VINTAGE-STYLE HOLIDAY CONCERT A warmly nostalgic night of classic music, crooning, and dance Imagine that it’s 1962. You and your spouse decide to get a sitter and go down to the “club” because they’re featuring an upbeat Christmas music show with dancers and a small live band. If the club did the show really…
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Theater Review: 89 CARSON JUNCTION ROAD (Compulsion Dance & Theater at Diversionary Theatre)
THE SOUP OF THE DAY IS A DARK BROTH INDEED There’s a game some couples play when they’re out and about: they make up lives about the strangers they see in places like diners. Part of what makes it work is that they’re never actually going to know a thing about those people. Until playwright/director…
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