Posts by Martin Jones Westlin
‘Motown’ Has the Horses, But Story Is Sitting in the Barn
‘Motown the Musical,’ Berry Gordy’s look at the rise of his colossal music empire, makes for a fairly decent concert. The Broadway San Diego entry, however, is far from the monument to history it requires.
Read MoreHistory Gets Short Shrift, But ‘Black Pearl Sings!’ Radiates Great Chemistry
Authentic history is sustained by its wealth of anecdotes. Copies of authentic history are sustained by nothing. That said, some very nice production values sustain San Diego Repertory Theatre’s ‘Black Pearl Sings!’ regardless.
Read MoreSexual Harassment And Local Theater: 3 Fingers Writ Large
Stories on workplace sexual abuse will fill newsholes for weeks to come — and as San Diego theater practitioners disconcertedly look upon them, they might want to reflect on the fact that their own house is far from in order.
Read MoreFine ‘Carnage’ Assails AI And the Beginning of the End
The death knell on humanity’s future has sounded, and ironically, it’s originated in man’s own creation. Robotics are an explicit threat to this species’ legacy and way of life — and in fruitlessmoon theatreworks’ fine « American Carnage: A Love Story, » the results are nigh unthinkable.
Read MoreTypecasting Is King in SDAT’S Withering ‘The Zoo Story’
Modernity has caught up with humanity, in all its virulent forms. San Diego Actors Theatre’s ‘The Zoo Story’ is a sound testament to that effect — besides, if Playwright Edward Albee likes his script that much, how bad can it be?
Read MoreNothing’s Sacred in Rep’s Despicable ‘Hand to God’
Just as human beings make mistakes, they ideally take advantage of the reprieves that life magically hands them. San Diego Repertory Theatre’s terrible ‘Hand to God’ resorts to puppetry as an extension of human behavior — and it doesn’t work any better onstage than in real life.
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