REVIEW: THE STORY OF ALICE BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Lewis Carroll’s 1865 story Alice in Wonderland remains his most popular tale, and has received many film, television and stage adaptations, so many that the basic story itself is now worn-out and pedestrian. It was first presented as a musical at the West End in 1886 […]

REVIEW: TURTLES BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO There are two fundamental types of theatrical works: first, the ones whose magic lasts only until the final curtain, and second, the ones whose magic comes home with you well after the final curtain has fallen. The West Coast Premiere of John Greiner-Ferris’ Turtles, produced by Red Cup Theatre […]

REVIEW: THE BOY FROM OZ, CELEBRATION THEATRE BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO In 2004 The Boy From Oz starring Hugh Jackman ran on Broadway for 365 performances before it closed at the end of Jackman’s contract, and after he won Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor […]

REVIEW: THE FULL MONTY, 3D THEATRICALS BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Bare asses and flabby bellies hit the big screen in 1997 when the British film, The Full Monty, directed by Peter Cattaneo, starring Robert Carlyle, was released and hailed a critical success with an unexpected international commercial success, grossing over $250 million from a budget […]

REVIEW: NEXT THING YOU KNOW BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Intimate theater is thriving all over Los Angeles and the Chromolume Theatre at the Attic is one of the quintessential hot spots to take in a show with a mere fifty strangers. Currently running at the Chromolume is the West Coast premiere of Joshua Saltzman and […]

REVIEW: CHILDREN OF EDEN BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Before Wicked, Stephen Schwartz created Children of Eden, a contemporary retelling of the Biblical stories of Adam and Eve; Cain and Abel; and Noah and the flood. Cabrillo Music Theatre brings the community this epic show with a fresh and inspiring production that is sure to amuse. […]

REVIEW: LA OLLA BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO What would you do if you found a pot of gold? How would you be changed? These are the questions answered in the Latino Theatre Company’s world premiere of La Olla by Evelina Fernandez based on the Latin play by the early Roman playwright Titus Maccius Plautus. What […]

REVIEW: THE REVISIONIST BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Most know actor Jesse Eisenberg for his memorable roles in The Village, Zombieland, and The Social Network, but what most are not aware of is his second career as an American playwright. The Wallis Annenberg’s West Coast premiere of Eisenberg’s third play The Revisionist, which premiered in February 2013 […]

REVIEW: DREAMGIRLS BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The Dreamgirls phenomenon continues at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts this spring. Opening in 1981 at the Imperial Theatre, and winning six Tony Awards, this showbiz musical follows the story of a young female singing trio from Chicago called “The Dreams” as they navigate the murky waters […]

REVIEW: CASA VALENTINA BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO A group of men go into the woods and transform themselves into the beautiful dolled-up women they are inside—the West Coast premiere of Harvey Fierstein’s Casa Valentina could not be more timely. Although this play is set in the 1960s the issues addressed are evermore present in our […]