All articles by Terry Morgan
The world seems to be suffering an empathy shortage lately, or at the very least the lack of that quality in our current leaders. Worse, there is an impression in some parts of society that …
One never knows where inspiration will strike. Eboni Booth’s play, Primary Trust, is partly set in a tiki bar that is its protagonist’s favorite place on Earth. Although the story is …
“Why was I born if it wasn’t forever?” In case anyone is ever in need of a reminder of their mortality, Eugène Ionesco’s 1962 play, Exit the King, has helpfully been provided to …
The phrase “for want of a horse” is most commonly attributed to Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack from 1758, describing the cascading effect of how the absence of one small…
I am a longtime fan of Tom Jacobson’s theatrical work. I think he’s one of Los Angeles’ best playwrights, and he has been for decades. He’s equally at home with structurally and them…
These days, when I read that a particular play has won the Pulitzer Prize, I unfairly become a bit more dubious of that work's quality. The same applies to the Tony awards " I've just seen s…
Some parts of the world seem to provide more fertile soil in which plays can grow. Ireland and New York have been especially fruitful, providing O'Neill, Miller, McPherson and McDonagh with …
It seems puzzling to me why the Taper is currently housing a musical (Here Lies Love), while the much bigger Ahmanson is showcasing Kim's Convenience, which is essentially a small comedy/dra…
Theater encompasses every type of theme, from dealing with any number of adversities to how to sell more meat pies, but here's one you don't encounter very often " how does the brain create …
 Arthur Miller is often described as one of the moral arbiters of twentieth-century American theater, a writer whose works frequently wrestled with how capitalism, corruption and self-de…
An ill-shaped wretch no sane person would want to gain power. A habitual liar who will say absolutely anything to get ahead. A monster who uses people to get what he wants and then immediate…
Writing, at the best of times, is a tricky proposition. Some authors claim that they can't stop writing, that it's a function like breathing to them, whereas other scribes do everything in t…
Sweeney Todd is my favorite musical. I've seen it onstage several times, watched the film, enjoyed a cast recording (Cerveris/LuPone), and loved the Angela Lansbury/George Hearn version bles…
When I first read about the subject of Robert Axelrod's Lifeline, I thought it was going to be about the stress of working at a suicide hotline center and was expecting it to be a very depre…
 Terry Morgan gives a wrap up of the best theatre productions of the past year. There was a nice mix of shows in 2025, from a huge play that ran for months to tiny productions that rewar…
When a play rolls into town promoting itself as the most Tony Award-nominated play in history, and the winner of Best Play and other awards, it creates high expectations. Which is fine, espe…
It's a truism that, as one gets older, time seems to move more quickly. One is more aware of the sound of the ticking clock of mortality, and the myriad of possible futures one idly contempl…
Here's something I never thought while watching the film Paranormal Activity in 2009: One day I will be writing a review of the theater version of this found-footage movie. I vividly recall …
When one is feeling confused or scared, it's human nature to try to find somebody who knows more and be guided by their knowledge. This is great when A) said person actually does know more a…
I'm combining two reviews in one article this week, one unique solo show at the Pasadena Playhouse and a sequel to a popular play at East West Players. These productions are not connected in…
What is real? Perhaps more than any time in human history, there is more of an ability to realistically fake anything. Worse, there are any number of people actively trying to use those tech…
"Only connect," wrote E. M. Forster in his 1910 novel, Howards End, an epigraph encouraging the merging of the mind and the heart so as to live a fuller life. That doesn't mean it's easy to …
When one reads the title The Night of the Iguana, one hopes that it will be one of those Fifties flicks about radiation creating a giant iguana terrorizing hapless humans. But, alas, it is n…
 As I trust you all know, back in 1743 an Italian playwright named Carlo Goldoni wrote a play in the commedia dell'arte style called The Servant of Two Masters. It probably swept the Ita…
Gone are the days of yore when sex farces frolicked across the theatrical landscape like so many smarmy bunnies, slamming doors and likely featuring partial nudity, if one lived in a part of…
I've been reviewing theatre for twenty-eight years and writing criticism for thirty-five years in total. Early on I came up with what I think of as "the Critic's Prayer," which is: "Dear God…
One of the most important things that art does is to put a spotlight on or explore topics that would otherwise not get the public notice that they deserve. The primary beauty of art is the o…
Patrick Hamilton's 1938 play, Gaslight, is the only theatrical title I can think of that later became a verb, and moreover one that's still in use today. The show was a success, running as A…
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In my most recent review on this site, I discussed my general wariness about imposing new directorial takes or twists on Shakespeare works. Once in a rare while, these changes can illum…
I usually am somewhat wary of "new takes" or "twists" on classic plays, with cause. Changing the time period of a story or modernizing the text is no guarantee that the play will be any fres…
Sometimes, although not commonly, sheer visual spectacle without significant content is enough to qualify a play as a success. A lot of critics recently have been opining this about the Harr…
There's a line in Tom Jacobson's new play, Tasty Little Rabbit, which reads, "Today's blasphemy is tomorrow's orthodoxy." Five words, but they're imbued with so much historical truth. Almost…
Morgan's Rule #1 about theater reads thusly: When a play doesn't work, ninety-five percent of the time it's due to the writing. Sure, sometimes an actor doesn't quite connect with a part, or…
As a Literature major in my distant past, I have a shameful confession to make " I've never read Jane Eyre. I've read Ulysses and Absalom, Absalom, Toni Morrison and Annie Proulx, but never …
Bat Boy: The Musical premiered in 1997 here in Los Angeles at the Actors' Gang Theatre, then went on to the West End and Off-Broadway, garnering awards and making the world somewhat safer f…
Well, it took nine years, but the Harry Potter play has finally arrived in Los Angeles. I knew it would possibly be a while before it got here after premiering in London in 2016, but I didn'…
Antaeus Theatre Company has an excellent and longstanding reputation for being expert with classical theater work, from Ibsen to Pinter, with a particular affinity for Shakespeare. As best a…
Amidst the current blitzkrieg of corruption currently happening from the new presidential administration in this country, it's difficult to gather focus to write a theater review. I mean, it…
I have said before in these pages that I think Steve Yockey is one of the most original playwrights currently working. His combination of dark humor, oddball subject matter (ghosts, demons, …
It's late December, when the events of the year are summed up and judged by the media, and why should I withhold praise? Every year has amazing theater in Los Angeles " sometimes a bit more,…
Photo credit is Ashley Erikson.
Ah, it's that time of year again, when the holiday lights go up, the temperature dips to the perilous lows of seventy-five degrees and children everywhere…
One thing that sadly doesn't seem like it's about to change in America anytime soon is the country's love of guns. Whether it's the byproduct of decades of fearmongering politicians and Fox …
One of the things I most admire about the work of Stephen Sondheim is that he actively tried new things within the musical format. He certainly set himself technical challenges, such as tell…
Although new plays can be exciting and are crucial to the continuing vitality of theatre, I'm especially fond of older works, the more obscure the better. It's cheap time travel, immersing o…
Message plays are a pillar of western theater. Our entire theatrical ecosystem is unthinkable without works such as Arthur Miller's The Crucible, Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House or Larry Krame…
In my twenty-five years of theater reviewing, time and again when I find myself less enthusiastic about a show, ninety-nine percent of the time the culprit is the writing. One would think th…
Thornton Wilder's 1942 Pulitzer Prize-winning play, The Skin of Our Teeth, is an assuredly odd duck. It's eighty-two years old but still seems postmodern with its frequent fourth-wall breaki…
In my fifty-seven years of life, I've never seen this country so divided and tribalized. I think the media bears a lot of blame for this, referring to us as living in red or blue states and …
Fans of history can't help but wish they were there for private, unrecorded conversations between famed historical figures, to be the proverbial fly on the wall and gain insight into what th…
Welcome to Watching the Dark, a regular column featuring essays, articles and reviews about horror films. Written by Terry Morgan.
Longlegs in cinemas
This is the third piece of a thr…
