Costa Mesa Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 5

BWW Review: BREATHE Takes Philicia Saunders on a Life-Changing Journey
by Ellen Dostal - December 20, 2020

Like most solo productions, Philicia Saunders’ BREATHE comes from her own experiences. Unique to her telling however is the method by which she relates that story. Necessitated by a global pandemic that has forced audiences to view theatrical productions from behind a computer screen, Saunders has e...

BWW Review: THE FUTURE at Geffen Playhouse Weaves Illusion and Storytelling into a Virtual Crowd-Pleaser
by Ellen Dostal - December 13, 2020

THE FUTURE at The Geffen is a smart new production, once again written by Helder Guimarães and directed by Frank Marshall, that highlights Guimarães’ ability to weave illusion and storytelling into a satisfying theatrical crowd-pleaser. With the indisputable skill of a master illusionist and the und...

BWW Review: 3-D Theatricals Gets Glam with its Fun, Fierce, and Fabulous KINKY BOOTS
by Michael Quintos - February 21, 2020

There are certainly plenty of movie-to-stage adaptations that have appeared (and continue to pop up) on Broadway, but few can boast being one of the most jubilant and unabashedly open-minded as the gloriously glam 2012 hit KINKY BOOTS, the Tony Award-winning stage musical adaptation of Geoff Deane a...

BWW Review: Deeply Moving FUN HOME Gets Intimate Staging at OC's Chance Theater
by Michael Quintos - February 19, 2020

A deeply complex father-daughter dynamic is the central narrative that drives the searingly poignant and emotionally absorbing musical FUN HOME, the Tony Award-winning stage adaptation of Alison Bechdel's 2006 autobiographical graphic memoir now appearing in an admirable new intimate theater product...

BWW Review: Musical Theatre West Revisits the Epic RAGTIME in Grand Splendor
by Michael Quintos - February 14, 2020

Fifteen years after its first production of the musical, Musical Theatre West revisits the Tony Award-winning musical RAGTIME for only its second time---smartly reviving the musical in a similarly lavish production that beautifully converges the show's classic staging and vibe with wonderfully integ...

BWW Review: Old School Musical Comedy SHE LOVES ME Mostly Charms at OC's South Coast Repertory
by Michael Quintos - February 11, 2020

Though SCR's admirable new production of the 1963 Broadway musical SHE LOVES ME, for the most part, still has many charming, beautifully-staged, and well-sung moments, it also somehow feels like it is slightly reigned in, as if there was a purposeful attempt to downscale some of its built-in whimsy ...

BWW Feature: Seven Date Night Recommendations for a Sensational Valentine's Day
by Ellen Dostal - February 02, 2020

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, it's time to get your date night plans in order. BroadwayWorld is ready to help with our top recommendations for a theatre night out on the town. It doesn't matter if you're looking to impress your sweetie, meet up with friends, or escape the daily grind...

BWW Review: Tony Award Winner Lillias White Makes Divalicious Return to OC's Segerstrom Center
by Michael Quintos - January 26, 2020

During the opening night performance of her fun return engagement at Segerstrom Center for the Arts' Cabaret Series at the Samueli Theatre, Tony Award winner Lillias White felt strongly about putting on a a?oehappy show,a?? as a way to combat all the sadness and fear that have overtaken our world. J...

BWW Review: Stirring Drama FIREFLIES Explodes at OC's South Coast Repertory
by Michael Quintos - January 21, 2020

In their continued and laudable feat of presenting diverse voices in theater, Orange County's South Coast Repertory is currently staging another stirring new drama, this time from playwright Donja R. Love entitled FIREFLIES, which continues performances through January 26, 2020 in Costa Mesa under t...

BWW Review: PETER PAN & TINKER BELL Panto Flies Into Laguna Playhouse
by Michael Quintos - December 14, 2019

The family-friendly fun of Lythgoe Family Productions' annual holiday British Panto returns to the Laguna Playhouse, this time with the reimagined Yuletide re-telling of PETER PAN & TINKER BELL: A PIRATE'S CHRISTMAS, which continues through December 29, 2019 in the city of Laguna Beach. Overall, the...

BWW Review: Megan Hilty Brings Fun, Delightful Cabaret Set to OC's Segerstrom Center
by Michael Quintos - November 16, 2019

Here's my understatement of the year so far: Broadway star Megan Hilty is one of the most delightful creatures that has ever graced a stage. This was wonderfully confirmed all throughout the Tony Award nominee's Segerstrom Center for the Arts Cabaret series solo debut, which recently opened to an en...

BWW Review: South Coast Repertory Serves Slow Burning Food Drama AUBERGINE
by Michael Quintos - November 14, 2019

Food has many uses, one of which is communicating an emotion. It can even hold a memory. These themes surrounding the emotional resonance of food is the overarching raison d'être for playwright Julia Cho's 2016 play AUBERGINE, which continues performances at Orange County's South Coast Repertory in ...

BWW Review: Gorgeous but Flawed Stage Adaptation of ANASTASIA Substitutes Whimsy for Stilted Drama
by Michael Quintos - November 13, 2019

At first glance, the musical stage adaptation of ANASTASIA looks and feels like an appropriately grand, luxe affaira?"from its gorgeous costumes designed to the lush soundscapes created by the orchestra and the vocal talents that have been assembled for this tour. But the undeniable wow factor of th...

BWW Review: 3-D Theatricals' Deeply Heartfelt ONCE Spreads the Love All Around
by Michael Quintos - October 24, 2019

The experience of seeing the Grammy and Tony Award-winning stage adaptation of ONCE - THE MUSICAL begins the minute you enter the theatre as you make your way to your assigned seat. It starts with a welcoming, celebratory environment where music is communally enjoyed by both the talented artists on ...

BWW Review: Betty Buckley Returns with Jazzy New Cabaret Set at OC's Segerstrom Center
by Michael Quintos - October 19, 2019

It's amazing to think that it has only been just six weeks since Tony Award winning stage and screen actress Betty Buckley ended her much-lauded 13-month-long engagement starring as the title role in the recent Broadway national tour production of HELLO DOLLY. During that brief stretch of time post-...

BWW Review: Endearing Gay Rom-Com THE CANADIANS Sails Into OC's South Coast Repertory
by Michael Quintos - October 16, 2019

For playwright Adam Bock's endearing new gay romantic comedy THE CANADIANS---now having its infectiously giddy World Premiere production at South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa through October 20, 2019---the typical blueprint for the usual girl-meets-boy trope gets a fresh, heady spin and an inspired...

BWW Review: Stunning MISS SAIGON Revival at Segerstrom Center Can't Wipe Away Its Outdated Problematic Motifs
by Michael Quintos - October 12, 2019

30 years after its stage debut, experiencing MISS SAIGON nowadays exposes just how outdated and out-of-touch it is with our increasingly diverse world view. The musical's original production---which first debuted in the West End in 1989 before transferring to Broadway in 1991---became a global hit d...

BWW Review: Gloriously Reimagined LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS Kills at Pasadena Playhouse
by Michael Quintos - October 07, 2019

At its core, the original production of LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS (and the movie adaptation it spawned) unabashedly celebrated its campy outlandishness. But unlike the original source material which was filled to the brim with sassy sight gags, cartoonish mannerisms, and pulp thrills, this new, gloriou...

BWW Review: Musical Ladies Triumph in the Delightful AMERICAN MARIACHI at South Coast Repertory
by Michael Quintos - September 27, 2019

Serving as the gloriously buoyant 56th season-opening production at Orange County's South Coast Repertory in Costa Mesa, AMERICAN MARIACHI---which continues performances through October 5, 2019---is a wonderful play about the love of family and the love for achieving personal dreams. Playwright José...

BWW Review: Pasadena Pops Shine Under the Stars 
by Aimee Curameng - September 18, 2019

Michael Feinstein, once again, brought MGM Movie Classics to life last Saturday with his rare finds and classic orchestrations. The popular Pasadena Pops offering is the last show of the summer season and it ended well, the sound of the symphony invoking the same feeling Judy Garland has when she wa...

BWW Review: 3-D Theatricals' Revisit with SHREK Offers Colorful Cheeky Fun
by Michael Quintos - August 16, 2019

As the final show of its 10th Anniversary Season, 3-D Theatricals is revisiting the hilarious SHREK - THE MUSICAL, the stage musical adaptation of the hit 2001 Dreamworks animated film, itself an adaptation of William Steig's 1990 novel. Witty, silly, and, at times, surprisingly full of heart, SHREK...

BWW Review: Broadway Vets Shine in Delightful, Star-Studded INTO THE WOODS at the Hollywood Bowl
by Michael Quintos - July 27, 2019

An inspired choice of a show, the Hollywood Bowl has decided to present an effervescently buoyant new production of the Tony Award-winning 1986 musical INTO THE WOODS, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's much beloved twisted take on traditional fairy tale stories mashed together with witty charm, to...

BWW Review: THE LITTLE MERMAID Enchants at Musical Theatre West
by Michael Quintos - July 22, 2019

Currently docked at the Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts in Long Beach through July 28 is Musical Theater West's wonderfully vibrant new regional production of THE LITTLE MERMAID, Disney's Broadway stage adaptation of their hit 1989 animated classic, which itself was adapted from the Hans Ch...

BWW Review: Chance Theater Offers Ambitious 'Intimate' Production of Still Timely Epic RAGTIME
by Michael Quintos - July 19, 2019

A sweeping, grandiose, and emotionally-searing stage musical adaptation of E.L. Doctorow's expansive 1975 novel, RAGTIME is a gripping, multi-character, and multi-story theatrical experience that uses era-authentic specificity to depict America's past during a time when its increasingly diverse popu...

BWW Review: Postmodern Jukebox Brings the Riffs Back to OC's Segerstrom Center
by Michael Quintos - July 09, 2019

It is no surprise that Scott Bradlee's inspired and wonderfully genre-crossing creation, Postmodern Jukebox---which recently just finished up its third wildly-received appearance at Orange County's Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa---still garners near sold-out concerts attended by rabid,...