The Empire Strips BackReviewed by Martίn HernándezMontalbán Theatre Through Jan. 8RECOMMENDEDRanging from the hypnotic to the hilarious, the sublime to the silly, director Russell S. Beattie’s loving burlesque lampoon of the Star Wars movie canon offers up a bevy of ecdysiasts displaying a different way of The Force. Depicting various classic characters, the show highlights […]

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InvincibleReviewed by Taylor KassThe Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing ArtsThrough Dec. 18 RECOMMENDEDIn its world premiere production at The Wallis Annenberg directed by Tiffany Nichole Greene, Romeo and Juliet is told through the lens of another legendary duo: 80’s rock legend Pat Benatar and her husband and guitarist Neil Giraldo. The Rock and Roll Hall […]

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Winter WishesReviewed by Steven Leigh MorrisTheatre WestThrough Dec. 11RECOMMENDEDA dozen skilled performers romp through some 30 holiday-themed and mostly traditional ditties in this seasonal cabaret, thoughtfully staged by Victoria Lavan Liberty. I have to admit to a certain squeamishness at hearing Richard Berent’s “A Kids Forever” and “Wihla Hutson and Alfred Burt’s “Some Children See […]

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A Patsy Cline Holiday ConcertReviewed by Dana MartinSierra Madre PlayhouseThrough December 23RECOMMENDEDCori Cable Kidder is channeling the star power of country music icon Patsy Cline at the Sierra Madre Playhouse this holiday season. A Patsy Cline Holiday Concert promises the most wholesome two hours of country music crooning this side of anywhere.Music director San Paxton […]

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All Is True, or Henry VIIIReviewed by Steven Leigh MorrisPorters of HellsgateThrough Dec. 5RECOMMENDEDConfession: In all my years of reviewing theater, this is the first production I’ve ever seen of Shakespeare’s Henry VIII originally titled All is True, co-written (somebody thinks, who knows?) with Shakespeare’s peer, John Fletcher. It’s the last history play penned or […]

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Guess Who’s Coming to DinnerReviewed by Julyza CommodoreTheatre 40 at Greystone MansionThrough January 22 RECOMMENDEDWhen two parents (who also happen to be White progressives) are blindsided when their daughter brings home her Black fiancé, they are put to the ultimate test. The story itself is familiar for a few reasons. One being that it is adapted […]

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The Brothers ParanormalReviewed by Terry MorganEast West PlayersThrough December 11RECOMMENDEDEveryone knows that a good ghost story needs to be scary, but to be a great ghost story, it needs to move its audience as well. Where would The Sixth Sense be without the Bruce Willis character slowly realizing his fate or The Haunting of Hill […]

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Broken StoryReviewed by Martίn HernándezThe Sherry TheaterThrough Nov. 27RECOMMENDEDIn the summer of 1971, the wife of wealthy Manhattan real estate developer Johnny Klein mysteriously disappeared. Jane Hartman (Lynn Adrianna Freedman), a potboiler novelist and daughter of a Mob boss, was Johnny’s best friend and a stalwart defender of him during the fiasco, which went far […]

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PODCAST: Stages of Our City: Episode 23: “The Inheritance,” at the Geffen; “2:22 – A Ghost Story” at the Ahmanson; and a pair of immersive showsProduced by Julia StierIn Issue 23, Dana Martin and Socks Whitmore talk about “The Inheritance” at the Geffen; 2:22 – A Ghost Story” at the Ahmanson and two immersive shows, […]

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The PenelopiadReviewed by Amanda L. AndreiCity Garage TheatreThrough Dec. 18RECOMMENDEDWhat is the duty of a queen to protect her realm? What are the consequences of sacrificing others to protect yourself?The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood, adapted from her 2005 novella of the same name, provides the perspective of Penelope, queen of Ithaca and wife of Odysseus, […]

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