Judith Malina: An appreciation of a theatrical trailblazer by Charles McNulty

Had Judith Malina never existed, the 1960s would surely have had to invent her. Yet it was Malina, a diminutive, German-born, American theater provocateur of immense boldness, recklessness, …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 7:19pm on April 12, 2015☆⚑

'Wolf Hall' a thrilling high-stakes game in Henry VIII's court by Charles McNulty

As Thomas Cromwell, the Machiavellian mastermind behind Henry VIII, Ben Miles surveys the comings and goings at court with a watchful reserve that shifts imperceptibly into murderous stealth.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:20pm on April 9, 2015☆⚑

Updated 'Gigi' still a relic of its era by Charles McNulty

How do you solve a problem like "Gigi"?

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:00pm on April 8, 2015☆⚑

'Dunsinane' at the Wallis held back trying to land big message by Charles McNulty

Of all the possible Shakespearean sequels, "Macbeth II" seems among the least likely.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 7:15am on March 31, 2015☆⚑

'The White Snake' at Old Globe is a sprightly fable of attraction by Charles McNulty

SAN DIEGO " God reputedly made the world in seven days, but that seems lazy by Mary Zimmerman's standards. She needs only a few seconds and some billowing fabric to conjure the four elements…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:10pm on March 29, 2015☆⚑

Out of Carey Perloff's 'Chaos' comes theatrical harmony by Charles McNulty

Carey Perloff talks about the challenges confronting the American theater.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 4:39pm on March 27, 2015☆⚑

Out of Carey Perloff's 'Chaos' comes theatrical harmony by Charles McNulty

Carey Perloff, now in her 23rd season as artistic director of San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater, doesn't mince words when talking about the challenges confronting the American th…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 3:00pm on March 27, 2015☆⚑

'Thieves' thick with family dysfunction by Charles McNulty

In the annals of dysfunctional-family drama, Charlotte Miller's "Thieves" isn't likely to find a lasting place, though the producers might want to consider posting the following warning in t…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 4:03pm on March 25, 2015☆⚑

'Pygmalion' falls short in uneven Pasadena Playhouse revival by Charles McNulty

It's always a delight to encounter the disputatious wit of George Bernard Shaw, a playwright who thought comedy was at its fizzy best when ideas were allowed to collide in the service of pub…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:14pm on March 23, 2015☆⚑

Enchanting 'Cinderella' brings happily-ever-after to Ahmanson by Charles McNulty

Everything changes in this world " values, culture, technology, fashion " but the power of Cinderella seems weirdly impervious to time.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 7:47pm on March 19, 2015☆⚑

Despite star Laura Linney, 'Switzerland' an unconvincing stab at noir by Charles McNulty

Images of Patricia Highsmith in her later years suggest that Linda Hunt might be a suitable choice to take on the role of the author of "The Talented Mr. Ripley" and other savage tales of ph…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 7:30am on March 16, 2015☆⚑

Barbara Cook at the Wallis: Still doing what she does best by Charles McNulty

Barbara Cook graced the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, and while the singer wasn't in tiptop form " she needed a cane to walk on stage, sang from a wheelchair an…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:35am on March 12, 2015☆⚑

'The Day Shall Declare It' has dazzling visuals, limited depth by Charles McNulty

Theatergoing can be such a yawning routine " park, sit, clap, race home like a lunatic.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:55pm on March 10, 2015☆⚑

Angelica Page's 'Turning Page' a beguiling, uncanny tribute by Charles McNulty

Before announcing the winner for lead actress at the 1986 Academy Awards, F. Murray Abraham, elated that the recipient was his stage friend Geraldine Page, exclaimed, "I consider this woman …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00pm on March 8, 2015☆⚑

Through 'Hamilton,' the Founding Fathers might once again make history by Charles McNulty

The Founding Fathers famously had a way with words, but as reincarnated in Lin-Manuel Miranda's sensational musical "Hamilton," they can now bust a rhyme with the legendary MCs.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 4:00pm on March 6, 2015☆⚑

Larry David's play 'Fish in the Dark' thinks too small-screen by Charles McNulty

It's the pesky little things that make up Larry David's infinitely expandable comic universe. All those petty grievances and minor disputes, the slights and slips, the miscues and forced apo…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:20pm on March 5, 2015☆⚑

Tragic 'Twenty-Seventh Man' brings power of the pen to bear by Charles McNulty

Nathan Englander's short story, "The Twenty-Seventh Man," from his debut collection, "For the Relief of Unbearable Urges," is so impeccably pulled off, so beautifully composed in the spirit …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:00am on February 24, 2015☆⚑

Arthur Miller's 'The Price' bursts into meaning at Mark Taper Forum by Charles McNulty

Arthur Miller's "The Price" is an old-fashioned play that takes a fair amount of time to get going, but when it does " midway through the second act " it explodes with the thunderous moral i…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 8:13pm on February 22, 2015☆⚑

Debate heats up over proposed changes to L.A. 99-seat theater plan by Charles McNulty

Seismic tremors have been rocking the Los Angeles theater community after a proposal was floated by the Actors' Equity Assn. regarding the 99-Seat Plan. A bureaucratic process is underway th…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 4:59pm on February 20, 2015☆⚑

'Cineastas' captures moviemaking endeavors in progress by Charles McNulty

It has become something of a commonplace since Hamlet first uttered the precept that the purpose of acting is "to hold, as 'twere, the mirror up to nature."

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 8:00am on February 18, 2015☆⚑

Theater pulses in Alan Mandell's veins by Charles McNulty

Seated in the living room of his newly built architectural jewel of a home in Westwood, Alan Mandell had a confession to make.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 1:00pm on February 13, 2015☆⚑

Reaching toward the light in 'The Night Alive' by Charles McNulty

The decrepit state of Tommy's room, with its piles of rubbish and mildewy towels thrown all over the place, is a mirror into his life. Estranged from his wife, he has been renting a room in …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 8:25pm on February 12, 2015☆⚑

'Darrell Hammond' traces SNL star's painful path to laughter by Charles McNulty

Darrell Hammond is dressed sharply in all black for "The Darrell Hammond Project," the world-premiere stage adaptation of his recovery memoir, "God, If You're Not Up There …" It's not exac…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:45pm on February 9, 2015☆⚑

'Chavez Ravine: An L.A. Revival' misplays the drama by Charles McNulty

It's hard to imagine Culture Clash's "Chavez Ravine: An L.A. Revival" receiving a more handsome production than the one directed by Lisa Peterson at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, a retooled vers…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 9:01pm on February 5, 2015☆⚑

Conor McPherson, known for gritty immorality plays, shows tender side by Charles McNulty

No one would accuse Conor McPherson of going soft. As Ireland's preeminent playwright, he is renowned for his bruising, binge-drinking, invective-spewing immorality tales.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 6:30pm on February 5, 2015☆⚑