john & jen

posted on November 8th, 2014 at 9:25 AM by Steven Stanley

A pair of outstanding lead performances highlight the first local production in as far back as I can remember of Andrew Lippa and Tom Greenwald’s john & jen, costars Ann Villella and Taylor Minckley alone providing more than enough reason to celebrate the 1995 off-Broadway gem’s all-too-brief arrival at North Hollywood’s Secret Rose Theatre.
(read more)

Tags: , , ,
posted in Musical, North Hollywood, Theater Review, WOW!

MAN OF LA MANCHA

posted on November 7th, 2014 at 5:04 PM by Steven Stanley

Several outstanding performances including a best-yet star turn by Marc Ginsburg in the title role make Glendale Centre Theatre’s Man Of La Mancha revival a fine introduction (or return visit) to the Tony-winning Best Musical of 1966, though the in-the-round setting does somewhat impede the atmospheric look that has made past La Manchas such production design dazzlers.
(read more)

Tags: , , , ,
posted in Burbank/Glendale, Musical, Theater Review, WOW!

BIG FISH

posted on November 2nd, 2014 at 6:07 PM by Steven Stanley

A deeply conflicted father-son relationship, a husband and wife’s lifelong love, a spellbinding lead performance, a bunch of captivating supporting turns, some terrific dance sequences, an often quite gorgeous production design, and above all one of the most beautiful scores of recent years add up to an entertaining and often quite moving West Coast Premiere of Andrew Lippa and John August’s Big Fish at Long Beach’s Musical Theatre West.

Still, when a Broadway musical closes less than three months after its opening and fails to score a single Tony nomination or even a non-Equity tour, it is worth asking why.
(read more)

Tags: , , , ,
posted in Long Beach/San Pedro, Musical, Theater Review, WOW!

WEDDING BAND: A LOVE/HATE STORY IN BLACK AND WHITE (Sweet Potatoes)

posted on November 2nd, 2014 at 4:03 PM by Steven Stanley

If any great production is worth experiencing twice, any great Antaeus Company production (and so far just about everything Antaeus has done fits neatly into that category) is even more worth that second visit if only to experience the added excitement of seeing each and every role played by a brand new actor (courtesy of the Antaeus custom of “partner casting”).

A second visit to Alice Childress’s Wedding Band: A Love/Hate Story In Black And White (click here for my original review) proves equally as rewarding as the first—and the “Sweet Potatoes” every bit as brilliant as the “Honey Bunches”—albeit with often quite distinctive looks and equally diverse takes on the multifaceted roles Childress has written for them.
(read more)

Tags: , ,
posted in Drama, North Hollywood, Theater Review, WOW!

TRUE WEST

posted on November 1st, 2014 at 12:49 PM by Steven Stanley

A quartet of USC grads have joined forces in “Let’s put on a show” tradition (with some 21st-century Kickstarter help) to bring Los Angeles theater lovers an excitingly performed revival of True West, Sam Shepard’s 1980 contemporary-classic tale of brotherly love and hate.
(read more)

Tags: , , ,
posted in Comedy-Drama, Hollywood/West Hollywood, Theater Review, WOW!

BROOMSTICK

posted on October 31st, 2014 at 11:38 PM by Steven Stanley

Arriving just in time for Halloween and providing ample reason for Thanksgiving through the month of November, Jenny O’Hara’s star turn in Broomstick turns the West Coast Premiere of John Biguenet’s acclaimed solo play into a veritable theatrical event. Factor in scenic designer Andrew Hammer’s extraordinary witch’s lair of a set and you’ve got a performance and production design sure to set the L.A. playgoing public abuzz.
(read more)

Tags: , , ,
posted in Drama, Los Angeles, Solo Performance, Theater Review, WOW!

ZEALOT

posted on October 29th, 2014 at 9:14 PM by Steven Stanley

The phrase “ripped from today’s headlines” has rarely been more applicable than it is to Theresa Rebeck’s gripping, provocative new drama Zealot, a South Coast Repertory World Premiere sure to inspire post-performance discussion as highly-charged as the action unfolding at the temporary headquarters of the British Consul in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where Zealot is set.
(read more)

Tags: , ,
posted in Drama, Theater Review, World Premiere, WOW!

JEKYLL & HYDE

posted on October 27th, 2014 at 12:49 PM by Steven Stanley

Some of the finest voices I’ve heard at Candlelight Pavilion Dinner Theatre along with Jason James’ assured direction make for a first-rate Jekyll & Hyde out Claremont way, with Janet Renslow’s exciting recreation of the show’s original choreography adding to the pizzazz.
(read more)

Tags: , ,
posted in Musical, San Gabriel Valley, Theater Review, WOW!

Next PagePrevious Page