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Theater Review: THE GRÖNHOLM METHOD (Falcon Theatre)
CORPORATE FOUR-PLAY As the audience files into the Falcon Theater for The Grönholm Method, the sleek, stark and sterile meeting room of Fortune 500 company Burnham + Burnham is in full view, courtesy of Brian Webb’s beautifully realized set design. You’re not sure why, but its crisp corporate cleanliness—complete with designer water bottles, sparkling crystal…
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Theater Review: MARY POPPINS (National Tour at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles)
PRACTICAL PERFECTION There is a good-natured pragmatism at work in the stage musical version of the film classic Mary Poppins, now back in Los Angeles at the Ahmanson through September 2. It knows what we want it to be, and in almost every case, it gives it to us happily; with meticulous care and affection’”and…
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Theater Review: STEPHEN SONDHEIM: IN CONVERSATION (Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall in Costa Mesa)
IT COULD HAVE BEEN WONDERFUL Attendees who had never seen Stephen Sondheim being interviewed in person must have been licking their chops with every juicy morsel that the legend said about himself to the packed house at Segerstrom Concert Hall–especially those who have been listening to Sondheim’s musicals for years. The great Broadway composer sat…
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Theater Review: LA SOIRÉE (Riverfront Theater)
CAMPY BUT ARTISTIC Take a handful of world class circus acts, add a bit of cabaret and burlesque, and you have La Soirée, the entirely enjoyable show in town for two weeks at the Riverfront Theatre. The entertainment originated at the 2004 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, drew positive reviews, and took its show on the road…
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Theater Review: THE EXORCIST (Geffen Playhouse)
NO EVIL. NO GOOD. There are few who do not know the story. The devil possesses Regan, the innocent 12-year-old daughter of movie star Chris MacNeil, who is working on a film in Georgetown. A bevy of fascinating characters, most of whom are experiencing a crisis of faith (religious or otherwise), become tested to their…
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Theater Review: THREE SISTERS (Steppenwolf Theatre)
TRACY LETTS ADAPTS THREE SISTERS FOR STEPPENWOLF Tracy Letts calls his version of Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters an adaptation, but other than some changes in language it’s still the great Russian dramatist’s play, a human and humane account of characters mired in boredom, disappointment, failure, loneliness, and frustration. The Steppenwolf is premiering Letts’ revision in…
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Theater Review: DEATH AND HARRY HOUDINI (House Theatre of Chicago)
MAGIC ALL AROUND Death and Harry Houdini was the House Theatre’s first production back in 2001 and it’s been something of a meal ticket for the company over the years. The production played in Chicago earlier this year, transferred to Miami for a successful run, and is now back at the Chopin Theatre, selling out…
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Theater Review: BLOOD AND GIFTS (Mandell Weiss Forum Theatre; La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego)
GRIPPING PLAY EXPLORES THE TANGLED WEB BORN OF AN IDEALISTIC WAR Set primarily in Pakistan along the Afghan border, J.T. Rogers’ Blood and Gifts begins in 1981, a critical point in the Cold War. Brezhnev’s Russian invasion of Afghanistan has Reagan in a quagmire: how does the U.S. attempt to stop the spread of communism…
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Theater Review: MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET (National Tour)
ROCK ‘N’ ROLL (HIS)TORY People all over the world never seem to tire of Elvis Presley, even if that means watching mediocre impersonators like the “Thai Elvis” at Palm’s Thai restaurant in Hollywood. For an incredibly convincing impression of Elvis, including a one-of-a-kind ensemble performance, simply walk down Hollywood Boulevard to the Pantages Theatre and…
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Theater Review: NOBODY LOVES YOU (World Premiere Musical Comedy at the Old Globe)
MUSICAL TAKES ON REALITY TV What better place than the stage to examine the phenomenon of Reality TV? One would hope that by now, Americans would be wise to the fact that these shows, whether romantic or adventurous, are not reality at all. In the new musical Nobody Loves You, the protagonist Jeff says that…
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Theater Review: CHICAGO (National Tour)
WHERE IS MRS. O’LEARY’S COW WHEN YOU NEED HER? Had the inexhaustible 57-year-old Christie Brinkley performed “Roxie” on America’s Got Talent, I would have demanded that she make it to the next round. The leggy supermodel is in such great shape that it would inspire America to get its collective butt out of its seat…
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Theater Review: RENT (American Theater Company)
RENT GETS A NEW LEASE ON LIFE, EVEN AS THE INTRINSIC PROBLEMS REMAIN As soon as David Cromer was announced as the director, the revival of Rent became one of the buzz productions of the season, Cromer being one of the hottest directors in the country. His reputation soared with a revelatory revival of Our…
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Theater Review: TIGERS BE STILL (Theater Wit)
MAKE A FELINE FOR THEATER WIT At the beginning of Tigers Be Still at Theater Wit, 24-year old Sherry takes a microphone and announces to the audience, karaoke style, “This is the story of how I stopped being a total disaster and got my life on track and did not let overwhelming feelings of anxiousness…
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Theater Review: THE MERCHANT OF VENICE (Theatre Banshee in Burbank)
MUCH ADO TO KNOW ITSELF Sean Branney has been as lauded as a Los Angeles theater director can be, and Theatre Banshee has done some great work recently, so it’s disappointing to report that their new Merchant of Venice is, like Portia’s dowry boxes, a hash of gold, silver and lead. In this story, the…
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Theater Review: CASCABEL (Lookingglass Theatre in Chicago)
IF FOOD BE THE MUSIC OF LOVE, EAT ON The Lookingglass production of Cascabel is the toughest ticket in Chicago this side of The Book of Mormon. The hook of the show is the menu prepared by celebrity chef Rick Bayless, who operates the renowned Frontera Grill among other high end eating establishments in Chicago….
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Theater Review: FELA! (National Tour at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago)
ONE EXCLAMATION POINT IN THE TITLE IS NOT ENOUGH Audience enjoyment of Fela! at the Oriental Theatre will be in direct proportion to the viewer’s capacity to absorb more than two hours of non-stop high-energy music and dance. For some (probably most) patrons, the musical will be a continuous high of propulsive music and dancing….
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Theater Review: GHOSTS (Edgemar Center for the Arts in Santa Monica)
GHOST WRITTEN Henrik Ibsen wrote at a watershed moment in theater history, at the decline of melodrama and the rise of naturalism; some of his best plays reflect a tension between these poles. Doug Kaback’s new adaptation of Ghosts shines a harsh light on the play’s least synthesized moments, since the director has cut much…
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Theater Review: ROCK OF AGES (National Tour reviewed at the Hollywood Pantages)
ROCK & ROLL CAMP The cast of Rock of Ages is riotously hell bent on making you have a good time. They beat you into submission with energy, wide smiles, and hair’”lots and lots of great big 80s hair. It’s a jukebox musical, with a slender thread of a boy-meets-girl story piecing together some of…
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Theater Review: JULIUS CAESAR (African-American Shakespeare Company in San Francisco)
JULIUS CAESAR IN AFRICA Modern theater companies traditionally place Shakespeare into all kinds of settings, eras and cultures in search of new or updated relevance. While the choices for many endeavors feel largely arbitrary, the African-American Shakespeare Company sets Julius Caesar amongst the surreal violence of Africa. This inspired pairing brilliantly elucidates political maneuvering, brutal…
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Theater Review: NEW JERUSALEM, THE INTERROGATION OF BARUCH DE SPINOZA AT TALMUD TORAH CONGREGATION: AMSTERDAM, JULY 27, 1656 (West Coast Jewish Theatre, L.A.)
A LACK OF PHILOSOPHY Elina de Santos’ production of David Ives’ 2008 New Jerusalem, The Interrogation of Baruch De Spinoza at Talmud Torah Congregation: Amsterdam, July 27, 1656 is the play’s west coast premiere, although L.A. Theatre Works presented the show last year.* This incarnation, however, is almost certainly the first to contain no moments…
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