Non-Registered Critics: Taylor Kass
The Last Days of Don Juan
Nick Dear’s adaptation of the original text is fresh and fast-paced while retaining a sprinkling of beautiful, lyrical textual images...
This production is clear, accessible and entertaining enough to speak for itself.
Share this:
Dinner With Friends
Dishearteningly, the only takeaway from Dinner with Friends is that marriage is a fundamentally flawed social institution, doomed to end in a fiery explosion of toxicity and resentment or, alternatively, lovelessly putter along on autopilot for eternity.
Share this:
URBAN DEATH for kidz
So, should you bring your kids? Yes — if they’re keen on scary movies, haunted houses, and the like. If they’re easily spooked (like this reviewer), it might be best to wait a few years. But does Urban Death for Kidz also pack a punch for the over-18 crowd? It might not be as intense as Urban Death, but there are enough chills and thrills for audience members of any age. - RECOMMENDED
Share this:
EXIT THE KING
City Garage impressively pulls off a metaphysical play without any special effects other than Michel’s staging. Her direction is simple yet stylized, with a sprinkling of heightened movement and gesture. And while Exit the King’s technical design is minimal throughout the show, its final image is arresting and haunting thanks to Duncombe’s lighting.
...Exit the King is thoroughly disturbing and absurd, all too real but oddly comforting...
Share this:
Aristophanes' THE BIRDS
The Birds kills two birds with one stone: It contains an astute political critique about the dangers of unchecked power and it’s a ridiculous story about birds who threaten to poop on the audience. This production understands the heart of this comedy and, quite rightly, doesn’t take itself too seriously. But it also feels unfinished and haphazard, with cluttered staging and offbeat comedic timing. For all of its best intentions, The Birds can’t quite take flight.
Share this:
Start Swimming
Nonetheless, this cast of LACC students is crisp and well-rehearsed, tackling synchronized movement and overlapping text with ease. As the characters wake up to the injustice they face, the ensemble transforms from a judgmental Greek chorus to a band of revolutionaries.
Share this:
Happy Days
The 2016 Yale Rep production of the simultaneously hilarious and depressing Happy Days is now at the Mark Taper Forum under the direction of James Bundy. This well-executed rendering is one you won’t be able to forget. - RECOMMENDED
Share this:
At The Table
The Road Theatre Company has done political theatre right: At the Table is nuanced, character-driven and devoid of self-righteousness...
Rather than a smattering of disconnected political speeches, At the Table is watchable and engaging because of the company’s commitment to searching for a way to love and understand each other.- RECOMMENDED
Share this:
