REVIEW: AMÉLIE BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Pulling from cinema stockpile from abroad, American producers have deemed the 2001 film Amélie as a story worth taking to the musical stage, and not just any stage—Broadway is imminent. After the tryout at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, the show is slotted for an opening on April […]

REVIEW: MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The show everyone’s talking about right now is Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s 1981 Broadway flop Merrily We Roll Along. Within weeks of this production opening at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, the documentary Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened by […]

REVIEW: A CHRISTMAS CAROL BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO It’s that wonderful time of year once again: A Noise Within Theatre Company’s A Christmas Carol returns in a production that’s as glorious as ever. This classic Charles Dickens tale from 1843 is expertly adapted for the stage by co-director Geoff Elliot, who also plays the title […]

REVIEW: LETTERS TO EVE BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The new musical Letters To Eve by Daniel Sugimoto makes is world premiere at the The Miles Memorial Playhouse in Santa Monica. Although the musical is still in its development stage, the stories are powerful and the potential is eminent. This WWII musical follows a Japanese American […]

REVIEW: THE IMAGINARY INVALID BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Make it a Molière kind of night at A Noise Within Theatre Company as they bring audiences The Imaginary Invalid this fall. Have you ever had a friend, coworker, or family member who always claims to be ill? —or maybe that person is you. Whatever the case […]

REVIEW: SCORSESE AMERICAN CRIME REQUIEM BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO As one of the fastest growing new theatres in Los Angeles, The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts continues to amaze and engage all audiences. With their most recent production Scorsese American Crime Requiem created by Anderson Davis, Shane Scheel and Jesse Vargas, The Wallis […]

REVIEW: ARCADIA BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO As part of A Noise Within’s 25th Anniversary Season themed “Beyond Our Wildest Dreams” comes their presentation of Tom Stoppard’s brilliantly crafted play Arcadia. Although, meticulous, captivating and masterful Stoppard’s Arcadia is not for those in search of get to the point drama and storytelling. It’s a play that, […]

REVIEW: THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Hunchback has arrived—La Mirada Theatre provides L.A. audiences with the unique opportunity to see an exquisite production of the highly anticipated new Disney musical The Hunchback of Notre Dame. This recent musical opened at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, on October 26, 2014 and […]

REVEW: THE FANTASTICKS BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The Fantasticks, music by Harvey Schmidt and lyrics by Tom Jones, as endured the test of time as the world’s longest-running musical; however the musical itself has not necessarily kept up with the times . . .until now. Under the direction of Seema Sueko and with the collaboration […]

REVIEW: MUTUAL PHILANTHROPY BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO It’s a shame that people don’t attend more plays than they do movies or sporting events because Karen Rizzo’s new play Mutual Philanthropy is a work that everyone should experience. The premise of her play is simple: two couples from different socioeconomic backgrounds have dinner together—that’s it. However, […]