Non-Registered Critics: Anthony Byrnes
Postponed - Found
But the real charm is seeing a musical brought to life with this much gusto in a space this small. Yes, you get ahead of the love story and, yes, it feels a little thrown together but there's such joy to it that you'll find yourself forgiving those faults.
This is a good one to see with friends and maybe a drink or two, after all, it's set in a bar.
Share this:
Frankenstein
The seven-piece orchestra is an integral part of the acting of the piece. The lines between musician, actor, and dancer are blurred, if not erased entirely. And even more importantly, Four Larks have found the darkness in their work. Where there earlier pieces lacked a gravitas, “Frankenstein” will punch you in the gut.
It's exciting to see a company break through and grow.
The most frightening thing? You don't want to be haunted by missing this show.
Share this:
Revenge Song
It's all sort of dazzling ... but it's also a lot.
If you're expecting same old, same old - you'll be disappointed. Even if you're up for the ride, there are moments when you'll lose patience but right before you give up, I bet, like that geeky friend, you'll recognize this is a sweet show. It's a show that's having fun and laughs at itself and let's face it: when's the last time you saw a show about a 17th century queer badass?
Share this:
UNTIL THE FLOOD
I know we need Ms. Orlandersmith's performance but in the 4 years since she first brought this show to life, I wonder if we've seen enough to do without the distraction. I wonder if as an audience, as a country, we can hear what Ms. Orlandersmith's characters are trying to tell us?
You need to - we all do.
Share this:
WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS TO ME
What Ms. Schrek's play brilliantly does is make the constitution personal. She reminds us of its profound limitations and its greatest strengths. She takes the distant language of amendments and places them, metaphorically and insightfully, on her own life, on her own body. Abstract ideas and distant histories become tangible and present...
You need to go see this show. You need to take your daughters (and your sons) to see this show. You'll walk out with a more personal relationship to our constitution and that's something we could all use right now.
Share this:
Infinitely Yours
I’d love to tell you to rush out and see this show but like so much of the work that’s done at REDCAT and our other presenting houses - it was only performed this past weekend.
Share this:
Between Riverside and Crazy
What makes "Between Riverside and Crazy" a fun play is that you can't quite pin down if it's a gritty drama or a dark comedy or morality play - when in fact, it's all three.
So even though the five boroughs are on the other side of the continent, go see "Between Riverside and Crazy" and enjoy great acting in a space that’s probably smaller than that rent-controlled apartment on Riverside Drive.
Share this:
THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME
For all the magic of the Greenway Court's production, these little details don't pack the punch they need to and don't ground the second half of the story.
But if you missed "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time," this is a great chance to see a big play in an intimate space.
Share this:
MATTHEW BOURNE'S SWAN LAKE
So if you’re that wonderfully wholesome and naive family looking for a little high culture with your curious teens, what better way to have a conversation about gender and sex and evil spells than gazing at a stage full of half naked men?
And if you’re looking for a work of art that’s as poignant and beautiful as it was a quarter of a century ago, this “Swan Lake” fits the bill.
Share this:
punkplay
If you grew up in 80's - go. If you had a thing for punk then or now - go. If you want to see a really gifted cast bring surprising depth to what feels like it could descend into poser hell - go.
Share this:
AUGUST WILSON'S JITNEY
I know a gypsy cab play set in the 1970’s doesn’t sound like the perfect holiday outing - but if you love a good story, if you want to think and feel and consider the weight of the truth and what honor really means - it’s great theatre.
Don’t miss this one - we don’t get productions this good of plays this complex often enough.
Share this:
The Thanksgiving Play
As good as the Geffen’s production is, and it’s very good, you’ll get ahead of the comedy and the characters will begin to feel like foils for an argument … but no more so than anyone playing an Indian in a school pageant in thousands of schools across the country in the next few weeks.
Share this:
THE NEW ONE
While the show is funny, it's never transcendently so. While it has sweet moments, it's not deeply emotional. And that final redemptive turn? You might find yourself questioning it later - just like that pint of ice cream at 3am.
Share this:
Gem of the Ocean by August Wilson
This production is not just part of Wilson's larger canon, it's also the latest chapter in a remarkable series of productions from director Greg T. Daniel that, like Wilson, have been chronicling the African American experience one play at a time...
Go see this play. Set against this journey - driving to Pasadena is easy.
Share this:
ON BECKETT
In the mouth, and mind, of a gifted actor - Beckett’s words open up the varied terrain of the mind. There are switchbacks and gulleys and momentary vistas - and doubt, so much doubt.
Mr. Irwin captures all of this and more. And then, with a generous spirit, he returns to his world, our world, and tells us how and more importantly ...why Beckett matters...
While the evening is called “On Beckett,” you’ll walk out of theater feeling like you know Bill Irwin. You’ll see, in snippets, Samuel Beckett through Irwin’s eyes and you’ll marvel at how this clown reveals entire worlds so quickly with such generous precision.
Share this:
Handjob
The plays had the vitality of a rebellious teenager proudly proclaiming their own voice. “Handjob” is different. You can feel the writer maturing. He cares what we think and he’s going to complicate it.
If you know Mr. Patterson’s work, that’s exciting. If you don’t “Handjob” is a great way to start.
Share this:
How the Light Gets In
“How the light gets in” is a play that fits within the Boston Court aesthetic but it’s not a play that’s going to win you over. If you love what they do, go. If cancer is a story that’s part of your life - this may resonate with you … but don’t expect too much drama.
Share this:
LATIN HISTORY FOR MORONS
... remember this is John Leguziamo. In service of this noble cause, he employs a comedian’s grab-bag of stereotypes, homophobia, and more than a little misplaced machismo. He’ll offend you even as he enlightens you...
It’s powerful stuff, even when Mr. Leguziamo undercuts it with a joke.
Share this:
THE HEAL
If that sounds like too much or too heavy - don’t worry. You are in good hands and not only is the journey rewarding - it’s funny.
...You don’t want to miss this one so get tickets right now and make a glorious evening of it. Go early, have dinner on the terrace and then enjoy a quick, irreverent and moving ancient drama that has more than a few things to teach us today.
Share this:
Andy Warhol’s Tomato
If you have even a passing familiarity with the artist, you’ll get the inside jokes: there’s the soup can, a coke bottle, 15 minutes of fame. But more than a little familiarity, like more than a little expectation will probably trip you up.
I’ll leave it to the art historians but the play’s artistic origin story for Warhol - a kind of blue collar ‘keep it simple’ ‘a tomato is beautiful because it’s a simple tomato’ message doesn’t really bear itself out in Warhol’s actual aesthetic vision. But there is something tantalizing about the origins of genius. Even though “Tomato” is a more of a sketch than a full canvas, if you can let go of expectations it’s a simple, sweet story.
Share this:
