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: 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: NEXT TO NORMAL BY RYAN M. LUEVANO In 2008 the concept of the musical Next To Normal about a mother who struggles with inflaming bipolar disorder and the effects that her illness has on her family was experimental to say the least. Yet after years of workshops the Next To Normal found its way to […]

REVIEW: LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS  BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The 80s musical Little Shop of Horrors, which these days is widely performed in high school, community theatres and colleges across the country, has been given a fresh reimaging by The B Productions at the NoHo Arts Center. Director Brianna McDonnell sets this show in the […]

REVIEW: HELLO DOLLY BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO 3D Theatricals proves that the musical Hello Dolly is still going strong long after the original Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre over fifty years ago. Here the musical is reinvigorated with fresh and imaginative contemporary productions values and a stellar cast that bring this Jerry […]

REVIEW: RECORDED IN HOLLYWOOD BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The name John Dolphin is far from a household name and what he did is just as obscure, yet when this mere blip of history is brought to the stage as in Recorded in Hollywood, the dots of past and present ultimately connect—if only for the show’s duration. The musical, […]

INTERVIEW: JAMELLE DOLPHIN AND LOU SPISTO BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO The new musical Recorded in Hollywood returns for L.A. audiences and receives an all-new production since its first incarnation as a 99-seat production in 2015. Broadway veteran Stu James (Benny in RENT, national tour of The Color Purple) will reprise the role of black entrepreneur […]

REVIEW: LIBERTY A MONUMENTAL NEW MUSICAL BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Liberty A Monumental New Musical tells a delightful story of this iconic monument that’s a symbol of American freedom with a reverence for history, but doesn’t quite reach the top in terms of dramatic artistry and compelling storytelling. However, the musical does give Americans and […]

REVIEW: DREAMLAND BY RYAN M. LUÉVANO Another L.A. born musical has recently surfaced at the NoHo Arts Center for a brief weekend run. The musical, Dreamland by John Francis Smith (Emmy Award winner as head writer and co-executive producer of Young and the Restless) and his daughter Asia Ray Smith, tells the story of an […]