We Need To Talk About Cosby
We Need to Talk About Cosby is a four-part docuseries directed by W. Kamau Bell (who also proves to be a probing and effective interviewer); it’s currently streaming on Showtime. Early […]
Damante, Eisenerg, David. Photo by Eric Kettle.
: Theatre 40 launches a brave Death with Benefits
If you loved Arsenic and Old Lace, you’ll recognize the similarities to John Strysik’s new play, Death, With Benefits. One can see the bare bones of an hilarious romp in Strysik’s comedy, but, […]
Reframed: Marilyn Monroe
It’s too easy to characterize women performers as sex objects rather than talented, charismatic people. Handsome men — such as Clark Gable, Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Tom Selleck, Brad Pitt, etc. — […]
Courtesy HBO
Reopening Night
Reopening Night, a documentary movie by filmmaker Rudy Valdez, gives an up close examination of the Public Theater’s 2021 summer reopening in New York City’s Central Park, subsequent to being shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic and […]
Solomon, Blanchard, Van Kampen (center). Photo by Eric Keitel.
Theatre 40 Strikes Again with Lindsay-Abaire’s Good People
It never ceases to amaze me that writers can be so adept at delving into a human psyche to reveal the complicated self-preservation mechanisms that come into play. They “hold a […]
Huffman, Knight, Bottita. Photo by Jenny Graham.
The Fountain’s Production of The Children is Impeccable…and Frustrating
With customary professionalism, Simon Levy directs a flawless production of Lucy Kirkwood’s play, The Children. First presented in England in 2016, current events seemed to have surpassed the original message with which […]
Houdyshell
The Humans
As with so many monster movies, The Humans, like The Blob, The Shining, and The Bad Seed is a simple title but with horrific implications. Out of an ordinary occasion we encounter troubling, mysterious circumstances. The difference between “The Humans” […]
Hull, Cartwright, De Cardenas. Photo by Cooper Bates.
Poor Clare is Rich and Funny….and Topical
In Poor Clare, Playwright Chiara Atik weaves the story of a thirteenth-century saint affiliated with St. Francis into a sharply clever expose of our own times. Despite an opening delay, the […]
Gloria Ines. Photo by Tessa Slovis.
Ascension Weaves Online and Live Performance into an Intricate Web
Remember the old phrase, “Is it live or is it memorex”? Now onstage at the Echo in Atwater Village, playwright D.G. Watson has crafted an interactive performance piece that puts differences […]
The Civil War (Or, Who Do We Think We ARe)
Documentarian Rachel Boynton has crafted an informational film titled Civil War (Or, Who Do WeThink We Are). A starting point for this probing documentary (now airing on cable television’s MSNBC) is that the American […]