Non-Registered Critics: Christine Deitner
Matthew Bourne’s ‘Cinderella’
Currently performing at the Ahmanson Theatre in downtown Los Angeles, this exquisitely designed and athletically executed night of dance is nothing short of magical and, even more importantly, it is a deeply and surprisingly moving experience.
Paradise
Odyssey Theatre presents us with another thought-provoking play in Paradise by Laura Maria Censabella, directed by Vicangelo Bulluck and produced by Viola Davis and Julius Tennon…
Props are plentiful in this very realistic grungy classroom of a set and often they cement the sense of the character and their reality but the rifling through piles of notebooks on Dr. Royston’s desk pull focus and the scene change time required to reset props in a messenger bag and backpack, change the date on the board and generally handle everything that is used sinks the momentum a bit, making us wondering what might have happened if all of those changes had been ignored in favor of letting the actors play and the audience’s imagination do the rest.
The Cripple of Inishmaan
COMPLEXITY ABOUNDS… characters that challenge our concept of what it means to be considered likable, what we might define as a hero, and what the cost of a dream might be. And they are funny to watch–the things they say will make you wince and chuckle in spite of yourself… The moment you lay eyes on the set, you can almost smell the sea air and feel the damp stones against your skin.
The Dance of Death
There is a deeper war to fight against anything that confines a human spirit no matter how comforting it might seem on the surface. As The Captain puts it “You forget, and you keep going.” That is how we have survived so many things, and yet that is exactly what torments us deep down. Hats off to The Odyssey for reminding us.
