PAL JOEY

posted on January 25th, 2016 at 7:59 PM by Steven Stanley

Musical Theatre West’s Reiner Reading Series has once again done what it does best—treat Broadway buffs to a one-night-only almost fully-staged revival of a show unlikely to get an extended MTW run—in this case Rodgers & Hart’s Pal Joey, which despite the unsympathetic characters who populate John O’Hara’s often unengaging book proves a showcase for a couple of R&H’s best known song classics (and for the triple-threats who perform them and many more).
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posted in Concert Staged Reading, Long Beach/San Pedro, Theater Review, West Side/Beverly HIlls, WOW!

EMPIRE THE MUSICAL

posted on January 25th, 2016 at 10:58 AM by Steven Stanley

RECOMMENDED

A pair of stellar lead performances, a sensational young ensemble executing director-choreographer Marcia Milgrom Dodge’s thrilling dance moves, and the fascination already built into the story behind the construction of NYC’s most iconic landmark are the best reasons to catch Empire The Musical at La Mirada Theatre For The Performing Arts, though its producers’ exhortation to “See it before it goes to Broadway” is, at least as things stand now, wishful thinking.
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posted in Downey/La Mirada, Musical, Recommended, Theater Review

DEATHTRAP

posted on January 23rd, 2016 at 12:22 PM by Steven Stanley

Thrills and chills and gasp-worthy plot twists galore highlight the topnotch revival of Ira Levin’s Broadway suspense classic Deathtrap now exciting and delighting audiences on the proscenium stage of the historic Sierra Madre Playhouse.
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posted in Comedy-Drama, San Gabriel Valley, Theater Review, WOW!

IF/THEN

posted on January 20th, 2016 at 11:58 AM by Steven Stanley

For everyone who has ever wondered just how different things might have been had they not made that one single life-altering decision, the National Tour of Broadway’s If/Then has arrived at the Segerstrom Center For The Arts, the last stop before its Tony-nominated star and two other original cast leads exit the tour, and if that’s not already enough to send you down Costa Mesa way, rest assured, this engaging, unpredictable, emotionally potent new musical is well worth the drive.
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posted in Musical, National Tour, Orange County, Theater Review, West Side/Beverly HIlls

GUYS AND DOLLS

posted on January 20th, 2016 at 10:29 AM by Steven Stanley

Damon Runyon’s picturesque band of New York denizens have arrived in Claremont for an all-around terrific revival of Frank Loesser’s 1950 Broadway classic Guys And Dolls.
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posted in Musical, San Gabriel Valley, Theater Review, WOW!

PRIVATE EYES

posted on January 17th, 2016 at 3:22 PM by Steven Stanley

Reality and fiction. Truth and lies. Has any playwright had more fun fooling (and delighting and engaging) an audience than Steven Dietz does in Private Eyes, the best straight-play production I’ve seen at Santa Monica’s venerable community theater, the Morgan-Wixson, and one that easily holds its own against the top professional houses in town.
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posted in Comedy, Theater Review, West Side/Beverly HIlls, WOW!

DEN OF THIEVES

posted on January 16th, 2016 at 6:47 PM by Steven Stanley

Organized crime meets a quartet of disorganized would-be criminals to wild and wacky effect in Stephen Adly Guirgis’s Den Of Thieves, now getting a hilarious 20th-anniversary revival by 2Cents Theatre Group.
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posted in Comedy, Hollywood/West Hollywood, Theater Review, WOW!

THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY

posted on January 16th, 2016 at 11:16 AM by Steven Stanley

The Absolute Brightness Of Leonard Pelkey, James Lecesne’s hilarious, touching stage adaptation of his 2008 novel has arrived as a guest production at the Kirk Douglas Theatre only months after generating plenty of well-earned off-Broadway buzz for its author-performer.
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posted in Comedy-Drama, Solo Performance, Theater Review, WOW!

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