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Queen Margaret’s Version of Shakespeare’s War of the RosesReviewed by G. Bruce SmithWill Geer Theatricum BotanicumThrough Oct. 1Ellen Geer, artistic director of Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum, has undertaken an ambitious project by compiling and editing not one, but four, of Shakespeare’s history plays that she says puts the focus on the women characters. Specifically, she […]
Fetch Clay, Make ManReviewed by Deborah KlugmanKirk Douglas TheatreThrough July 2RECOMMENDEDIt’s hard to imagine two public figures more dissimilar in their representation of the African American community than Stepin Fetchit, an actor whose fame rested on his clichéd portrait of a lazy shuffling Negro, and Muhammad Ali, a champion boxer and cultural icon who defied […]
Last Summer at Bluefish CoveReviewed by F. Kathleen FoleyThe Fountain TheatreThrough August 27When first produced in New York in 1980, Last Summer at Bluefish Cove represented a revolution in the American theater. Jane Chambers’ drama was one of the first times that lesbians were portrayed as well-rounded, “normal” individuals, devoid of the layers of pathology with which […]
Piping HotReviewed by Steven Leigh MorrisThe Yard TheatreClosed RECOMMENDEDComedian Madeline Hamilton’s 60-minute lecture-confessional on how to play the bagpipes, told in conjunction with her stories from her desperate, desolate love life, is an idiosyncratic, racy homage to Scotland’s national musical instrument.Hamilton is tailoring the piece for its premiere at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and this LA […]
Shagadelic: The Origins of Slang Words for Doing ItReviewed by G. Bruce SmithThe Broadwater StudioHDFF ’23 – Through June 24RECOMMENDEDDear Professor Richard Fondler (aka Michael Blaha),Well, that was . . . interesting.I’m referring, of course, to your one-hour lecture/performance with the catchy title Shagadelic: The Origins of Slang Words for Doing It. When I say […]
FourReviewed by Steven Leigh MorrisThe Broadwater, Second StageThru June 24Clé Holly’s 60-minute etude studies four musicians in a string quartet — and their callous manager — as they wrestle with the principles and financials of remaining or disbanding.On a spartan stage with four chairs and four music stands, the play opens with a gesture: Second […]
The Catastrophe ClubReviewed by Deborah KlugmanLa Fonda RestaurantThrough June 25A party in a bar on the eve of an apocalyptic event becomes the foundation for one woman’s investigation of events 500 years in her past in The Catastrophe Club, Devin Burnam’s intellectually ambitious but underdeveloped drama.Billed as an immersive event, this Los Angeles production (the […]
AccommodationReviewed by Iris Mann3Gems Productions at The Odyssey TheatreThrough July 9RECOMMENDEDTo what extent should public school teachers be required to make adjustments in their classrooms to accommodate students who don’t learn in the normal way? And to what extent should such students be required to follow at least some of the routine that the rest […]
