Posts by Martin Jones Westlin
North Coast’s ‘Romance/Romance’ Is Fair, No Thanks to the Second Show
The title contains two identical words that mean two different things – love, after all, is a many-faceted phenomenon, and it shows in North Coast Repertory Theatre’s Romance/Romance, in which the decent first piece softens you up for the dismal second act to come.
Read MorePsyPhi’s ‘Geeks’ Very Entertaining Despite the Miscues
Geeks are the woolly mammoths of society, but there’s nothing un-cool about woolly mammoths (or, for that matter, staying true to yourself). It has its miscues, but PsyPhi Productions’ ‘Geeks! The Musical!’ conveys the moral very well.
Read MoreArt Equates Life in Intrepid’s Rambunctious ‘I Hate Hamlet’
Andrew Rally has no idea what he’s doing as a Shakespearean actor, but he does know something about artistic integrity, whether he realizes it or not. An acting lesson or two from the iconic John Barrymore (rather, his ghost) help define that lofty concept in Intrepid Shakespeare Company’s rambunctious “I Hate Hamlet.”
Read MoreGood ‘Journey’ Lifts Magica from Its Temporary Bout with Obscurity
Depending on your point of view, the Day of the Dead is a pretty cool holiday amid its spooky history. The middle of June doesn’t fuel the mood, but you’ll like Teatro Mascara Magica’s “Journey of the Skeletons” nonetheless.
Read More‘Happy Days’: The ‘Bad Boys’ Are Up to Their Old Tricks
“We have met the enemy,” cartoonist Walt Kelly’s Pogo said, “and he is us.” Playwright Samuel Beckett declared the same thing in his play “Happy Days,” current entry from the reborn Sledgehammer_. No doubt about it: Sam’s play is a lot funnier than a platitudinous opossum any day.
Read MoreMOXIE Theatre’s ‘Mud Blue Sky’ Is Pretty Funny, But…
Three aging, frustrated flight attendants are alone in a hotel room with a 17-year-old drug dealer. That conjures up all sorts of images, and ‘Mud Blue Sky’ author Marisa Wegrzyn gets kudos for not stating the obvious (i.e., going there). Her play, the current MOXIE Theatre entry, is really funny, too — the problem is that you might wonder what it’s all for.
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