JAGGED LITTLE PILL


A double album’s worth of Alanis Morissette’s Greatest Hits provide the plot-propelling dramatic soundtrack to Jagged Little Pill, the thrillingly of-the-moment Tony winner that redefines the oft-derided “jukebox musical” to stunning effect.
(read more)

13 THE MUSICAL


Ventura county teens reveal budding triple-threat talents in Panic! Productions’ exhilarating live staging of Jason Robert Brown’s 13 The Musical at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center.
(read more)

THE PROM

A gaggle of liberal-minded Broadway narcissists descend on conservative Middle America to aid an Indiana teen who just wants to dance in public with the girl she loves in The Prom, the multiple-Tony-nominated musical that now ranks sky-high on my list of 21st-century favorites.
(read more)

THE ADDAMS FAMILY


Torrance Theatre Company’s finger-snappingly fabulous The Addams Family redefines what a community theater can accomplish with a crackerjack volunteer-actor cast and just as much talent behind the scenes.
(read more)

AMERICAN IDIOT


Disaffected 20somethings let out their anti-establishment rage to a punk-pop soundtrack in Chance Theater’s electrifying summer staging of Green Day’s American Idiot.
(read more)

GREASE


Contemporary casting choices bring Musical Theatre West’s 2022 Grease revival into the 21st century to crowd-delighting effect without sacrificing an iota of the show’s 1950s nostalgia.
(read more)

MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL


Sumptuous and spectacular and filled with as many instantly recognizable pop hits as in four or five jukebox musicals put together, Moulin Rouge! The Musical is all this and more.
(read more)

ARENA: A House MUSIC-al

A young gay Latino exits the closet to a ‘90s dance club beat in Abel Alvarado’s ARENA: A House MUSIC-al, a heartfelt but overpopulated coming-of-age story that works best when the spotlight is on Alvarado stand-in Lucio, particularly as brought to engaging, charismatic life by newcomer Preston Gonzalez Valle.
(read more)

« Older Entries Newer Entries » « Older Entries Newer Entries »