Harker Jones - Page 5

Tom Jacobson’s script is a razor-sharp warning of how easy it is for history to repeat itself with long, dark shadows stretching across our country again.

A little more nuance to both the characters and the script would have given the show more weight. As it is, it’s quite broad, which, yes, is part of the point, but that point would be sharper if it were toned down a bit.

DIDO OF IDAHO is a dark comedy by Abby Rosebrock that tackles intense themes of grief, trauma, and obsession. Deftly directed by Abigail Deser, the show is powerful, pointed, and poignant with solid performances and clever staging. Another in a long-running series of knockouts from the Echo Theater Company.

MURDER AFTER HOURS is exquisitely well done and will keep you guessing up until the affecting and surprising end. It’s well worth spending an evening in the British countryside among the snipes and snubs of the upper class at the Lonny Chapman.

Filled with puns and pratfalls, mugging and mannerisms, the energy never flags in this delightful screwball comedy

While WENDY’S PETER PAN would be better served by trimming the fat, focusing on more sharpened performances, and allowing its performers room to breathe, children, despite its evening start time, will likely appreciate the show more than adults who will take notice of its distracting bumps and peculiarities.

Everyone is phenomenal, from the performers to the musicians to the set director. It’s manically goofy, laugh-out-loud funny, and sexy in its degradation.

The problem is not that it’s bad — it’s certainly serviceable — so much as it’s unmemorable. Something that should never be said about a character as dynamic as Mrs. Doubtfire.

Every immigrant experience is unique and Guimarães’ story is a deeply engaging rumination on the power of faith and the capacity of hope to see one through.

The problem with NORA is that in the longer, three-act running time of “A Doll’s House,” Nora’s world and its inhabitants would be fleshed out so that they had depth that is not evident in this adaptation.

Ritt raises questions about the ethical and moral quandaries of employing AI to replace humans in a distinctly human space — art — but they aren’t pointed enough to really spark conversation or suggest insights, settling instead for an amusing if slight glimpse into the near future.

FUNNY GIRL is a gold standard that has endured through the ages and the production that just hit downtown Los Angeles is a rollicking and heartfelt success.

Writer Becky Wahlstrom imbues A FROGGY BECOMES with an absurdism that is only complemented by the absurdism of the ’80s with the neons and the poofy hair and the synthesized music.

Braun’s script is never stagnant, the characters always in action, whether in a delightful literal dance party or a metaphorical pas de deux, always getting close to connecting before pulling away — or being pulled away by outside forces.

FATHERLAND is an unsettling reminder of how an average person can tip from sane to insane all in the name of good ol’ American patriotism, crossing ethical, moral, and legal lines with nary a hesitation.

POTUS: OR, BEHIND EVERY GREAT DUMBASS ARE SEVEN WOMEN TRYING TO KEEP HIM ALIVE is a a laugh-out-loud riot that would benefit from a few moments of introspection and nuance.

Overall, the show is wickedly funny and a trenchant meditation on entitlement, revenge and justice, even if that justice is one-sided. Another bull’s-eye for the Road Theatre.

Hit the Montalbán in Hollywood for a night out with family and/or friends. Just because this is appropriate for the kids doesn’t mean it’s not fun for the rest of us. Jingle your balls all the way to the North Pole!

SHE is a moving, lyrical story with deft characterizations, luminous performances, and a poetic quality that reflects our heroine’s dreams

Dominique Morisseau’s BLOOD AT THE ROOT is a blistering look at race, prejudice, and the complexity of human relationships, and is provocative without being preachy.