Behold my list of the best half dozen plays I reviewed in 2023. Usually this list is longer, but honestly I've been going through a lot this year. Lost my twin brother. Had a series of teeth removed. Had to help a friend move to Las Vegas. And directed a ten minute play for Fierce Backbone's Think and Imagine Festival. Plus...well, a lot of things. Good and bad. Horrific and glorious. Yeah, I watch the news.
Twelfth Night (Burlesque) is honestly the single best version of my favorite Shakespeare comedy I've seen. Joins my favorites from the Bard here in LA such as Measure for Measure, Othello, Romeo and Juliet, and The Tempest as well as Macbeth.
Things to Avoid at a Eulogy was written by a friend of mine, and is that rather rare beast of a perfect two hander, i.e. there are only two characters for the entire play (unless you count the dead cat, which I reluctantly do not). A trip through a brief, loving friendship.
The Lifespan of a Fact proves one of the most compelling plays I've seen in a long while. Have very rarely been disappointed at the Fountain. In this case, we confront the issue of TRUTH with it many tricky facets but also the difference between truth and facts.
Everything Starts Like a Knock on the Door was a one of a series of immersive telephone calls from my friend Stepy Kamei, this one about yet another of her great obsessions--people remembered for their deaths, rather than celebrated for their lives.
Turn of the Screw is rightfully a gothic classic, and when nailed is amazing amid its ambiguities and harsh realities. One of the amazing things about live theatre is to see this entire story done with only two actors!
Ghost Land was written by a Ukrainian playwright and City Garage put it on with a thunderclap to the soul. When the revelation comes of what we've been watching it shook me. Absolutely glorious.
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