Disturbed in the Suburbs
Lisa D’Amour’s dark comedy gnaws at the unease lurking beneath suburban life.
Read my review on KQED Arts. Read more
Hot Plays for Hot Days
Way over yonder on KQED Arts, I give a few recommendations of plays and musicals not to miss this summer. Head on over and
The Family That Hates Together Grates Together
Imagine spending time with a family full of absurdly inconsiderate people who can’t stand each other and constantly push each other’s buttons. And it’s not even your family. My review of The Lyons at Aurora Theatre Company is in the Marin Independent Journal.
That Was the Year That Was
The long wait is over! Here are my Top 10 Bay Area shows of 2014, on KQED Arts!
Yes, I’ve Paid the Price
At its heart, Gina Gionfriddo’s Rapture, Blister, Burn is a play about four women sitting around talking about feminism. As Aurora Theatre Company’s Bay Area premiere demonstrates, however, it’s a heck of a lot more entertaining than that sounds. Catherine (a marvelously self-assured Marilee Talkington) is a hotshot feminist academic writing about pop culture—torture porn, reality TV, you name it—but she’s returned to her home town to take care of her mother after a heart attack. Lillian Bogovich’s upbeat and eager-to-please Alice seems pretty spry and would much rather wait on her daughter than vice versa.
The Fall of Bay Area Theater
The sheer volume of great theater going on around the Bay Area can be daunting. I’ve picked out a
few likely standouts to get you started. Read all about ’em on KQED Arts. Read more
In Soviet Russia
Being called in for an unexpected meeting with your boss is nerve-racking, especially in the Stalin-era Soviet Union. My review of The Letters at Aurora Theatre Company is on KQED Arts.
Faust Talking
So Hamlet, Martin Luther and Doctor Faustus walk into a college, and that thing’s the play.
My review of Wittenberg at Aurora Theatre Company is on KQED Arts. Read more
Knot in Your Gut
Gidion’s Knot is a hard play to take. As seen in director Jon Tracy’s brutally effective Bay Area premiere staging at Aurora Theatre Company, Johnna Adams’s drama is 75 minutes of nonstop tension, alleviated only by moments of grim humor.
LaBrutality Beneath the Surface
Neil LaBute is known for unflinching depictions of human cruelty, so what happens when he takes on race in the American heartland? This Is How It Goes. My review is up on KQED Arts.
