Theater and Dance

Katselas Theatre’s INKubator Hatches Success

February 15, 2012 | By Penny Orloff | Category: Theater and Dance

For more than a quarter of a century, the Katselas Theatre (recently re-named for late founder/artistic director Milton Katselas) has been on the cutting edge of new theatrical work in Los Angeles. In just the last two years, under new artistic director Gary Grossman, KTC has produced 11 world premiere productions including the critically acclaimed [...]



‘The Fall to Earth’ at the Odyssey Theatre

February 14, 2012 | By Gil Kaan | Category: Theater and Dance

JoBeth Williams rivets the audience and commands the stage as the grieving mother in playwright Joel Drake Johnson’s latest, “The Fall to Earth,” currently receiving its West Coast premiere at the Odyssey Theatre.
As Fay, a long-suffering wife (as she continuously, not-so-subtly harps on) and the estranged mother of Rachel and the recently dead Kenny, Williams [...]



‘Red Hot Patriot’ Update

February 13, 2012 | By Julie Riggott | Category: Theater and Dance

“Red Hot Patriot” has been extended through Feb. 19. The show has been so popular, it has broken the Geffen Playhouse box office record. A few tickets are available at a discount on Goldstar for this last week, beginning with the performance on Feb. 14.
Read Culture Spot’s interview with playwright Allison Engel to learn more [...]



‘Art’ at The Pasadena Playhouse

February 1, 2012 | By Gil Kaan | Category: Featured Articles, Theater and Dance

“Art,” the 1998 Tony Award winner for Best Drama, gets a smooth polish from nine-time Emmy Award-winning director David Lee in The Pasadena Playhouse’s current re-mount.
Playwright Yasmina Reza’s (who also wrote the 2009 Tony Award-winning “God of Carnage”) fast and witty repartee flows with ease from the mouths of the talented trio on stage — [...]



‘Fairy Tale Theatre – 18 & Over’ at the Matrix Theatre

January 26, 2012 | By Gil Kaan | Category: Theater and Dance

Ree-dic-u-lousss!!! So over the top, “Fairy Tale Theatre – 18 & Over” really works at keeping the audience entertained — alternately howling, enchanted, and grossed out for 85 intermission-less minutes! Never heard fairy tales like these as a kid! The show, presented by the Inkwell Theater, is onstage at the Matrix Theatre through Feb. 11.
“Fairy [...]



‘Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins’ at the Geffen Playhouse

January 23, 2012 | By Julie Riggott | Category: Theater and Dance

Kathleen Turner is currently onstage at the Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles for the West Coast premiere of “Red Hot Patriot: The Kick-Ass Wit of Molly Ivins.” David Esbjornson directs the one-woman show about the famous columnist and political commentator from Texas, which continues through Feb. 19.

“Red Hot Patriot” is a roaring salute to Ivins’ [...]



‘O(h)’ at the Actors Company Theatre

January 19, 2012 | By Gil Kaan | Category: Theater and Dance

For a compelling hour, performance duo Liz Casebolt and Joel Smith entertain and inform as they deconstruct their creative choreography process in “O(h),” currently onstage at the Actors Company Theatre. Cleverly written by this pair, the show simultaneously pays homage to and skewers the art form of dance.
Casebolt and Smith deftly demonstrate various modern dance moves [...]



‘Forever Flamenco!’ at Barnsdall Gallery Theatre

January 11, 2012 | By Jessica Koslow | Category: Theater and Dance

Sitting a few rows back from the stage at Barnsdall Gallery Theatre watching the Fountain Theatre’s monthly showcase of “Forever Flamenco!” this past Sunday, I was reminded of krump dancing. Let me explain. Since September I have been attending a krump session — a circle of dancers who congregate every Wednesday at midnight in a [...]



‘Fruit Fly’ at the Celebration Theatre

January 10, 2012 | By Gil Kaan | Category: Theater and Dance

Leslie Jordan’s latest autobiographical piece, “Fruit Fly,” currently onstage at the Celebration Theatre, provides 80 minutes of what he does best — storytelling. Those familiar with Jordan’s previous solo pieces (including “Like a Dog on Linoleum” and “My Trip Down the Pink Carpet”) will not be disappointed.  Those new to the Emmy winner (for “Will [...]



Review: ‘Fela!’ at the Ahmanson Theatre

December 18, 2011 | By Jessica Koslow | Category: Featured Articles, Theater and Dance

About three-quarters of the way in, the musical “Fela!” delivers the emotional impact of a bellyflop. It’s the all-too-familiar horror story heard around the world: Big guys take advantage of little ones. Woman raped, man beaten, man killed, woman harassed and intimidated. It could be Laos, Lagos or Los Angeles. The rich and powerful bully [...]