CABARET
Friday, June 19th, 2009
When Cabaret debuted on Broadway in 1966, its tale of star-crossed lovers in pre-WWII Berlin was dark stuff for New York audiences accustomed to considerably brighter shows like Hello Dolly, She Loves Me, and Mame. Still, that first incarnation of Cabaret was positively sunny compared to the 1998 revival which has set the tone for just about every Cabaret since then. Imagine a Cabaret without “Mein Herr,” “Maybe This Time,” or “I Don’t Care Much,” without Kit Kat Boys, without any suggestion of homosexuality, one with upbeat love songs like “Why Should I Wake Up?” or the Yiddish ditty “Meeskite.” That was Cabaret pre-1998 and one which might be a bit of a yawn by contemporary standards.
THE SOMETHING-NOTHING
Wednesday, June 10th, 2009
Fielding Edlow’s The Something-Nothing is a hilarious, biting, highly original look at a 20something love triangle in pre-9/11 New York City.
ECSTASY: THE MUSICAL
Sunday, June 7th, 2009RECOMMENDED
“There was a girl who went to college. She was plain and shy. She was a stranger to love’s passion. She had a secret admiration for a certain guy, and she was ready for some action. One day she stumbled on a groovy place I’d like to share, where you can do whatever pleases. Ecstasy’s the name and I can take you there. It’s gonna bring you to your knees-es.”
(read more)
SETUP & PUNCH
Thursday, May 21st, 2009
Nine years following her acrimonious split from Brian, Vanya (nee Yvonne Patricia) takes pen to paper to write (yes, write, not email) her onetime creative partner with a request. “Dear Brian,” she writes. “I know I can’t make up with you but I hope we can be friends.”
(read more)
TRAFFICKING IN BROKEN HEARTS
Saturday, May 16th, 2009
Papo is a Puerto Rican hustler who’s been selling his body on the mean streets of early 1990s New York City since the age of fifteen. Brian is a 26-year-old gay virgin who frequents phone sex lines and adult bookstores, alternately craving and fearing his first sexual experience. Bobby is a 16-year-old runaway whose older brothers have been raping him daily since he was twelve.
(read more)
BIG THE MUSICAL
Friday, May 8th, 2009
Following its award-winning productions of Zanna, Don’t and Assassins, West Coast Ensemble continues its winning streak of musical hits with a sensational intimate staging of Big The Musical.
(read more)
THE CRUCIBLE
Sunday, May 3rd, 2009NOT RECOMMENDED
Arthur Miller’s The Crucible holds a special place in my heart. It gave me my very first experience as a stage actor at the age of 16, and though I later watched the 1996 film on video, it wasn’t until December 2007 that I saw The Crucible staged for the very first time, decades after high school, in a production that left me devastated, as the playwright certainly intended.
(read more)
VOICE LESSONS
Sunday, April 19th, 2009
No one writes comedy quite like Justin Tanner; his writing style and comic sensibility are, quite frankly, almost impossible to describe. Wacky? Demented? Bizarre? Over the top? Maybe even brilliant? The answer is all of the above, and never has this been clearer than in the hour of inspired lunacy that is Voice Lessons.
(read more)
Since 2007, Steven Stanley's StageSceneLA.com has spotlighted the best in Southern California theater via reviews, interviews, and its annual StageSceneLA Scenies.
COPYRIGHT 2026 STEVEN STANLEY :: DESIGN BY