Review: MID CENTURY MODERNS at Oscar's CabaretJanuary 3, 2023What did our critic think of MID CENTURY MODERNS at Oscar’s Cabaret? This is the second time I have seen Mid-Century Moderns, the first time I loved it so much I went on Facebook to tell people about it. That is a big deal for me, I stopped going to Facebook in 2018, but I really wanted to tell people about this play. It was produced this past summer at Desert Rose Playhouse, and it was terrific. It was recently remounted at Oscar's.
Review: FUN HOME at CV RepDecember 9, 2022This play is a very personal, journey that’s ironically relatable. It is disquieting, to its core it's more than disturbing, yet it is often hilarious, and while much of the information we learn is not light-hearted - the musical is joyous and full of laughs until it splits you in two.
Review: THE HUMANS at CV RepNovember 11, 2022Like love, fear is specific to each human. Monsters under the bed; the Bogeyman; things that go bump in the night; losing your mind; losing it all - Stephen Karam's The Humans collects all of our fears and deposits them all into one play, The Humans. A 2016 review in The New York Times called it 'The finest new play of the Broadway season so far - by a long shot.' What they don't say is, 'this play is dysfunctional and weirdly different.'
Coachella Valley Repertory Announces 2022/2023 SeasonJuly 5, 2022 CVRep is thrilled to announce a five play, Tony Award winning Season. Two musicals and three plays are scheduled to take the stage from November 2022 through April 2023. Taking the reins from Founding Artistic Director Ron Celona, CVRep's new Executive Artistic Director, Adam Karsten, sought works that will excite and inspire audiences.
BWW Review: A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM at Desert Theatricals At Rancho Mirage AmphitheaterApril 19, 2022Ah, the old musicals, when PC didn't exist and, as the Cole Porter song says, Anything Goes. And so it went with the final production (with presenting partner The City of Rancho Mirage) of Desert Theatrical's 2021/2022 season A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, a tale about a slave named Pseudolus (Gilmore Rizzo) trying to win his freedom by helping his young master Hero (Matthew Tucker) be with the young woman he loves, Philia (Emily Unnasch), who he has only seen through the window of the brothel next door. Yes, she is a courtesan, but she's a virgin (of course she is).
BWW Review: NATIVE GARDENS at CVRepApril 18, 2022The last play of CVRep's 2021/2022 season, Native Gardens by playwright Karen Zacarias begins with all of the best intentions, but with change comes a perceived as well as a real cost. It is a slow grower, but the penultimate moment is well worth the burn.
BWW Review: EVERY BRILLIANT THING at Dezart PerformsApril 3, 2022Every Brilliant Thing was a short story written by Duncan MacMillan. Actor and comedian Jonny Donahoe work-shopped it into a play with MacMillan before they took it off-Broadway. It is about suicide, and, surprisingly, it is not dark nor morose. It is, in fact, funny, touching and, in the broadest sense of the word, joyful.
BWW Review: ANNIE GET YOUR GUN at Desert Theatricals At Rancho Mirage AmphitheaterMarch 20, 2022I've mentioned before that I don't generally care for musicals. Never have. I did fall in love with West Side Story as a kid, but when other movies like Oklahoma!, Carousel, Paint Your Wagon, and yes, even Annie Get Your Gun came on tv, I was outta there. This is how it has been for most of my life (although I did get to see Wicked on Broadway, and wowzer!)
BWW Review: CLOSER THAN EVER at CVRepMarch 17, 2022I was fortune to be able to see the last production Ron Celona will direct in his role as artistic director at CVRep. He's once again delivered top-notch entertainment in the form of Closer Than Ever.
BWW Review: THE MOUNTAINTOP at Dezart PerformsMarch 13, 2022On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a march on Washington and gave a speech: 'I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.'
BWW Review: MAMMA MIA at Desert TheatricalsFebruary 24, 2022Winners of the 1974 Eurovision with their song Waterloo, ABBA had a flurry of catchy tunes that dominated the pop charts for 12 years. In 1992, Abba released their album Gold, which has sold over 30 million copies and is one of the best-selling albums worldwide.
BWW Previews: CLOSER THAN EVER at CVRepFebruary 15, 2022Following a successful run of CVRep's second play of the season, Life X 3, the playhouse continues its season of Hopes, Dreams, and Expectations 2021-2022 with Closer Than Ever, a musical revue directed by Ron Celona, with music by David Shire, lyrics by Richard Maltby, Jr., and musical direction by Scott Storr. The cast includes four actors with impeccable musical theater credentials: Michael Bullard, Jeffrey Landman, Janna Cardia, and Julie Garnyé. Tickets and subscriptions are on sale now at www.cvrep.org or call the box-office at (760)-296-2996 ext. 115.