Ellen Dostal - Page 4

Ellen Dostal

Ellen Dostal, currently on hiatus, is a lontime Senior Editor for BroadwayWorld/Los Angeles and a former member of the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle. She has covered the performing arts community, jazz, and classical music for KJazz 88.1 FM and K-Mozart 1260 AM and has a Bachelor of Music in Performance from the University of Northern Iowa. Her theatre blog, Musicals in LA, is a popular resource for those seeking information about the Southern California musical theatre scene and her archived site Shakespeare in LA, was the go-to destination for actors, creatives and audience members with a love of Shakespeare. Ellen is also a theatre contributor for TheThreeTomatoes.com (The Insider’s Guide for women who aren’t kids). Her best advice is always, "Go see a show!", and when she's not at the theatre, you're likely to find her outdoors listening to the music of nature.






BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
May 30, 2018

What made the Hot List? Check out these productions for a look at the vast creativity of theatre makers in action in Los Angeles: FOREVER BOUND at Atwater Village Theatre, PLUNGE: Part 1 of The Ballad of Bimini Baths Trilogy at Son of Semele, SOFT POWER downtown at the Ahmanson, VIOLET at Actors Co-op, THE GIANT VOID IN MY SOUL from Ammunition Theatre Company,  WOOD BOY DOG FISH at Garry Marshall Theatre, and Antaeus Theatre Company's NATIVE SON in Glendale. Reviews by BWW Sr. Editor Ellen Dostal, LADCC.

BWW Review: WOOD BOY DOG FISH, a Rogue Retelling of a Fairy Tale Gone Wrong
BWW Review: WOOD BOY DOG FISH, a Rogue Retelling of a Fairy Tale Gone Wrong
May 22, 2018

Puppets and monsters and freaks, oh my. Shoreside has an abundance of them in WOOD BOY DOG FISH and they don't play well together at all. This fictional seaside town, home to the terrifying Dogfish Adventure Ride, is a miserable place. Populated with morally repugnant characters and a darkness that seeps into your very soul, it sets the stage for a somber night out at the usually sunny Garry Marshall Theatre.

BWW Review: The Porters Take Flight with a TEMPEST On The Fly
BWW Review: The Porters Take Flight with a TEMPEST On The Fly
May 15, 2018

A gaunt Leon Russom conjures up more pathos than normal as the aged Prospero in the Porters of Hellsgate's production of THE TEMPEST. Whether it is due to the fact that the actor has been battling pneumonia, which took him out of the show opening weekend mid-performance, or that his interpretation of the role centers on the last actions of a dying man, this is a Prospero we haven't seen before.

BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
May 7, 2018

What made the Hot List? BLUES IN THE NIGHT at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, ICE at 24th STreet Theatre, LOST IN THE LIGHT by CRE Outrach at The Blue Door in Culver City, SCHOOL OF ROCK at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre, THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE at The Road Theatre Company on Lankershim, and SOUTH PACIFIC at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts. Check out the latest buzz below and go see a show! Reviews by BWW Sr. Editor Ellen Dostal (LADCC).

BWW Review: Three Cheers for the Talented Kids in SCHOOL OF ROCK
BWW Review: Three Cheers for the Talented Kids in SCHOOL OF ROCK
May 5, 2018

As kid musicals go, SCHOOL OF ROCK isn't half bad. It falls somewhere between ANNIE and MATILDA on the Richter scale of stories about downtrodden kids overcoming obstacles to win in the end. It's got enough emotional oomph to tug on your heartstrings and it gives you plenty of reasons to happily cheer the underdogs on. It's also making stars out of its young cast members, right and left.

BWW Review: BLUES IN THE NIGHT, a Spectacular Showcase for Three Incredible Women
BWW Review: BLUES IN THE NIGHT, a Spectacular Showcase for Three Incredible Women
May 4, 2018

Somewhere in a cheap hotel in Chicago, circa late 1930s, three women are singing the blues. Two have been around the block and seen it all. One is woefully wise beyond her years. All have been burned by the flames of desire and lovers who have done them wrong. This is the set-up for BLUES IN THE NIGHT, the musical revue conceived and directed by Sheldon Epps, playing through May 20th in the Lovelace Studio Theater at The Wallis.

BWW Review: The American Dream is only a Taco Away in ICE at 24th STreet Theatre
BWW Review: The American Dream is only a Taco Away in ICE at 24th STreet Theatre
May 2, 2018

Seduced by the notion that, in America, winning is everything, an immigrant loses sight of what is really important in Leon Martell's world premiere play, ICE. Commissioned by 24th STreet Theatre to commemorate its 20th anniversary, the 65-minute one act highlights the plight of every hopeful soul diligently trying to attain the life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness promised by our founding fathers.

BWW Interview: THE VERDI CHORUS, A Musical Family Related by the Love of Opera
BWW Interview: THE VERDI CHORUS, A Musical Family Related by the Love of Opera
April 18, 2018

For the past 35 years, members of The Verdi Chorus have celebrated their shared love of music, and their ability to raise those goosebumps, by lifting their voices in song. This spring, they will mark their milestone anniversary with two special concerts on April 28th and 29th at the First United Methodist Church in Santa Monica. On the program: nothing less than four passion-filled scenes by Verdi from La Forza del Destino, Nabucco, and La Traviata, plus a big finish from Johann Strauss' effervescent operetta, Die Fledermaus.

BWW Review: Nothing is as it seems in Echo Theater Company's WHAT HAPPENED WHEN
BWW Review: Nothing is as it seems in Echo Theater Company's WHAT HAPPENED WHEN
April 16, 2018

The air between the words is so thick you could cut it with a knife in Daniel Talbott's shadowy play about three siblings attempting to survive their dysfunctional family. Each is broken in his or her own way and, as the hairball unravels, the audience must piece together their fragmented story over a period of six years.

BWW Review: Lois Robbins Makes Sense of Her Sexual History in L.O.V.E.R
BWW Review: Lois Robbins Makes Sense of Her Sexual History in L.O.V.E.R
April 14, 2018

Although the details of your own personal experience will be different, almost everyone can identify with Lois Robbins' humorous story of her sexual awakening. An early starter, Robbins began at the age of 3 when she realized that rubbing up against the hard edges of furniture would provide a feeling she couldn't get enough of. When she discovered the vibrating washing machine and dryer, suffice it to say, it changed her life for good.

BWW Review: MACBETH. His Story. Her Tragedy. Our Misfortune.
BWW Review: MACBETH. His Story. Her Tragedy. Our Misfortune.
April 12, 2018

This adaptation of Shakespeare's classic tragedy has been reconceptualized to connect with the modern day #MeToo movement by offering an alternative explanation for one of its leading character's actions. It is built on the notion that all of the women are victims of sexual abuse - most specifically, Lady Macbeth - who, in this version, has been raped by King Duncan while her husband is off fighting the war.

BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot This Month on L.A. Stages
BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot This Month on L.A. Stages
March 28, 2018

What made the Hot List? THE ART COUPLE from Sacred Fools Theatre Company at The Broadwater, SELL/BUY/DATE at Geffen Playhouse, and ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL at Independent Shakespeare Co.'s new studio theater. Check out the latest recommendations below and go see a show! Reviews by BWW Sr. Editor Ellen Dostal (LADCC).

BWW Review: Independent Shakespeare Co. Opens New Studio with a Crowd-Pleasing ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL
BWW Review: Independent Shakespeare Co. Opens New Studio with a Crowd-Pleasing ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL
March 27, 2018

In The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, a young hotel manager optimistically states, in the face of every disaster: 'In India we have a saying, 'Everything will be alright in the end. So if it's not alright, it is not yet the end.' ' It's the same idea Shakespeare's heroine touts in ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL and, regardless of where it originated, it requires pluck.

BWW Review: UNEMPLOYED ELEPHANTS, a Predictable Romantic Adventure
BWW Review: UNEMPLOYED ELEPHANTS, a Predictable Romantic Adventure
March 12, 2018

Playwright Wendy Graf is best known for her uniquely dramatic works such as PLEASE DON'T ASK ABOUT BECKET, ALL AMERICAN GIRL, and NO WORD IN GUYANESE FOR ME.  But, in her latest world premiere, UNEMPLOYED ELEPHANTS - A LOVE STORY, she takes a lighter - and more formulaic - approach to her subject.

BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
March 6, 2018

What made the Hot List? A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE at Theatre @ Boston Court, ALLEGIANCE by East West Players at the Aratani Theatre downtown, A WALK IN THE WOODS at Actors Co-op, and JACKIE UNVEILED at The Wallis. Check out the latest buzz below and go see a show! Reviews by BWW Sr. Editor Ellen Dostal (LADCC).

BWW Review: Saffron Burrows is Jackie Kennedy in JACKIE UNVEILED
BWW Review: Saffron Burrows is Jackie Kennedy in JACKIE UNVEILED
March 4, 2018

In Act 1 of JACKIE UNVEILED, Tom Dugan's new solo play about Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, she repeats a single phrase over and over. 'I'm no good alone.' The chain smoking, alcohol indulging former first lady has just learned that her brother-in-law (and secret lover) Bobby Kennedy has been assassinated. Now, in the wee hours of the morning, she is distraught.

BWW Review: Love Comes as a Surprise in DADDY LONG LEGS
BWW Review: Love Comes as a Surprise in DADDY LONG LEGS
February 28, 2018

It can be a wonderful adventure to watch two people falling in love, particularly when they themselves don't realize it's happening. When the adventure takes place on stage - as in John Caird and Paul Gordon's musical two-hander DADDY LONG LEGS - the audience has an advantage because they get to see the relationship develop from both points of view. The misunderstandings are more poignant, the coincidences even more delightful. By the time it becomes apparent to the couple in question, we've already fallen in love with them and are cheering them on to their eventual conclusion. Add music and the whole emotional journey becomes a romantic dream come true no fairy tale could tell better.

BWW Review: A Noise Within's HENRY V Zeroes in on the Steely Aspects of War
BWW Review: A Noise Within's HENRY V Zeroes in on the Steely Aspects of War
February 16, 2018

By the time Shakespeare gets to the last of his history plays concerning the Wars of the Roses, HENRY V, the party boy who would be king has become a man. Gone are the indiscretions of youth seen in the earlier HENRY IV plays, which follow young Prince Hal on his escapades with Falstaff and the Eastcheap gang. When HENRY V opens, it is the responsibilities of a monarch that now weigh heavily on the new king's head, amid increasing tensions with France.

BWW Review: THE BRICK: A ONE MAN MUSICAL Metamorphosis
BWW Review: THE BRICK: A ONE MAN MUSICAL Metamorphosis
February 5, 2018

In Bill Berry's solo show THE BRICK: A ONE MAN MUSICAL, Berry isn't addressing the audience in a theater. He's on a beach having a two-way conversation with his dead mother and we are the accidental eavesdroppers who witness their complicated relationship unfold piecemeal. The convention is more akin to a play than a typical solo performance, a smart decision that sidesteps many of the pitfalls solo artists often fall into. It isn't self-indulgent, doesn't require that the audience be his scene partner, and lets each person take the journey with him by not establishing a foregone conclusion.

BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
BWW Review: THE HOT LIST! What's Hot on Stage Now
January 30, 2018

So many productions are happening all over the city. Here's what made the Hot List: Bugaboo & the Silent One, The Hothouse, Cabaret, Pirates of Penzance, Shakespeare in Love, Disney's Aladdin. Go see a show!



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