After seeing her estranged daughter’s “veiled suicide threat” on her “anonymous” blog, Beatriz (the irrepressible Daphne Rubin-Vega) drives her truck “like a bat out of hell” from California to Philadelphia to take her daughter Olivia (the deeply reflective Gizel Jiménez) on a seven-day road trip. After some mild mid-adolescent protestations, Olivia – sixteen – agrees to the trip hoping, perhaps, for reconciliation with her mother and an end to her deep and debilitating angst and depression.

I must admit that I knew nothing about Fun Home, so I had to do some online research, scan the Mirvish press release, and read the programme. Based on the graphic memoir by Alison Bechdel, Fun Home is the recipient of several awards including 5 New York Tony Awards (Best Musical in 2015). In 2006, The New York Times named Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic as one of the best books of the year. It was created from memories of Ms. Bechdel’s childhood and the detailed journals she kept since age 10 growing up in rural Pennsylvania before and after her father’s suicide.

We see Alison at three distinct stages in her life throughout this production. In the present she is 43 years of age, a lesbian cartoonist, and struggles to understand the complex relationship she had with her deceased father. Alison grew up in a funeral home while trying to deal with her sexual awakening, and with the secrets her father faced before his death.

When a speaker raises alternate views of a significant problem and seems at one point to take “one side” and then “the other side,” and then advocates for the purity of moral ambiguity – presenting profound rhetorical arguments for each of those points of view – the audience is left bombarded by what seemslike conflicting ethos, pathos, and logos and also is left with their heads spinning, alternately laughing and then feeling guilty for laughing and not laughing and puzzled why they didn’t laugh. And in the end, confused about what kind of catharsis has just released their repressed emotions unawares.

The new Broadway musical “Mean Girls,” based on the 2004 hit movie, is sure to secure a home on the Great White Way for some time to come, as it tickles the fancy of a new generation of young woman who might be liberated by the recent movements of empowerment and anti-bullying. It is certainly a crowd pleaser and whether you are a fan of the movie, you will enjoy the flashy, energetic production which aims to please form start to finish. The book by Tina Fey remains close to the screenplay, repeating some of the same popular quips and smart wit while also adding new material to update and take full advantage of current social and political events.

Playwright Joshua Harmon explores how the dynamics of friendship changes when a significant other is introduced into the clique. It begins with the four lead characters getting liquored up at Kiki’s (Keilly McQuail, a gifted comedian) bachelorette party. McQuail’s lovable vapid, Valley Girl delivery is spot on. We learn Kiki was never looking for love, she just wanted someone to validate her. Kiki’s key in finding a husband was falling in love with herself, as she declares “I treat myself better than any man could treat me.” Splurging one evening at Jean-Georges restaurant, wah-lah she meets her husband-to-be Conrad (John Garet Stoker) and is the first of these college “besties” to get married.

Yes, you read that correctly. The title of the show that I’m reviewed this past weekend is “Gay. Porn. Mafia.” It’s the first of a number of one-night only theatrical events over the next two weeks (in addition to a few short films) that I’ve been invited to review at the Downtown Urban Arts Festival. Immediately after receiving my review invite, I wondered what I would be in for at this show, and exactly what connection the plot itself would have to its amusing and provocative title.

Outside of your local theatre’s seasonal programme, there’s always a plethora of local companies mounting productions that can provide you with a highly varied theatre season. One such company that has been making a real name for itself in this sector is Futurist Theatre Productions, who bring musicals and local talent together to create memorable evenings of entertainment. On that note, I was very much looking forward to reviewing their latest production of the smash Broadway hit Avenue Q at Yeadon Town Hall.

Once in a while, you come across a stage show that, on paper, may not have had the buzz that other high-profile shows may have had initially, but then you see it … and it just completely surprises you in the best possible way.

That pretty much sums up my recent experience with the oh-so delightful “NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT,” Musical Theatre West's buoyant and sublime new regional production of the 10-time Tony Award-nominated 2012 musical comedy now on stage at the Richard and Karen Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts in Long Beach, CA through April 22. An irresistibly silly and infectiously tuneful stage show that will have you smiling from start to finish, this roaring 20's throwback with modern sensibilities provides lots of zany antics, lots of witty one-liners, and lots of spectacular song-and-dance showstoppers that will have you wondering—where has this show been all my life?

‘True West’ was written by Sam Shepard in 1980, and yet his understanding of family dynamics and the volatility of stage and screen producers, allows this play to burst from the page decades later when his characters are portrayed with boundless energy and charisma. What makes them all the more believable is when passionate, seasoned actors are partnered with a visionary director to present a realistic look at a tumultuous relationship. That is what I have found with Hub Theatre Company of Boston’s production of ‘True West’.

As soon as I walked into the Medicine Show Theatre on Friday night at 7:30pm, I was greeted by a variety of characters from early 20th century Soviet Russia, all of whom were trying to sell me various goods, and please me and the rest of the audience during an interactive portion. I admit, this was quite a pleasant surprise to be welcomed to, and it left me feeling encouraged about the rest of the evening. Indeed, I normally wouldn’t jump right in by offering a performance overview that early on in the review, without a bit of a lead-in, but I think it’s fitting here, considering that this was basically the pace at which the performance of this company’s latest show – The Bedbug – got started, and it set the energetic pace for the rest of the evening.

Anna Treusch has created a institutionalized, claustrophobic, wire caged set design highlighted effectively by Gabriel Cropley’s stark, blinding white lighting design. I felt an immediate sense of dreaded foreboding in looking at the set from the intimate ‘theatre in the round’ audience seating. There are two uncomfortable looking cots on stage in opposite corners of the room with a bookcase centre, stool and a wheelchair in the other corner of the room. It appears there are two letter sized children’s drawings adorning the back wall.

Since seeing their hit production of The Government Inspector a while back, I’ve really been enjoying the work of the pioneering Ramps on the Moon initiative, which aims to integrate more deaf and disabled performers and theatrical conventions into mainstream theatre. This includes innovative use of captioning and the integration of British Sign Language into the performance, ultimately creating a universal, accessible production for all audience members to enjoy. On that note, I was very much looking forward to seeing their latest collaboration with Nottingham Playhouse: a new production of Timberlake Wertenbaker’s Our Country’s Good, which I managed to catch on its stop at the West Yorkshire Playhouse.

Russia, Mueller, Syria, War, The Wall, Elections, Stormy, Stock Market, Tax Cuts, Scandal, Tariffs, DACA, Immigration and Tweets, are a few current headlines monopolizing the news, infecting and affecting our everyday lives. How can we avoid the negative socio-political environment and get away from it all? The answer may be easier and closer than you think. “Escape to Margaritaville” may just be the ticket to remedy the effects of the constant cynical behavioral bombs that seem to be dropped on us every day by those lofty politicians. Arrive early to take your seat, sip on a frozen Margarita from the bar to begin your attitude adjustment, then just slip away for two and a half hours to the carefree island of laid-back music composed by Jimmy Buffett and brought to you by a cast of vocal powerhouses. If you are looking for intellectual stimulation you are in the wrong place for this is a journey filled with senseless situations, silly dialogue and storybook romance, all connected by the lyrics that serve this perpetual beach party. To put it simply, it writes a new amendment, the “Freedom of Fun.”

I have to admit that I was a bit shocked to read that William Shakespeare's comedic play The Taming of the Shrew—according to a survey conducted by the Royal Shakespeare Company in 2003—ranks as the second most popular of the Bard's entire repertoire.

“I just don't want to be one of those pathetic guys in lobbies who are always telling you about their big plans you know they're never gonna do. I'd rather just be in the lobby and just be in the lobby. To tell you the truth, sometimes I feel like I was worn out the minute I was born.” – Jeff to Dawn

Some might describe security guard Jeff (played with a disarming ambivalence by Michael Cera) as a loser. That would be somewhat inaccurate, however. Jeff is more the embodiment of the anti-hero than the typical loser unawares. To get what he wants, in this case rookie New York City cop Dawn (played with a cunning charm by Bel Powley), Jim is willing to eschew following his moral compass and disregard the qualities of the classic hero: loyalty; bravery; humility; wisdom; and virtue. How Jeff navigates the terrain of principles and values under pressure is the engaging “stuff” of Kenneth Lonergan’s “Lobby Hero” currently in revival at Second Stage’s Helen Hayes Theater.

I wanted to love the continuation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera in the sequel Love Never Dies. I was a huge fan of the musical when it premiered at the Pantages Theatre in the 1990s starring Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman. I went back to see the beloved musical again, when television actor Robert Guillaume replaced Crawford in Los Angeles. He was the first African-American actor to play Phantom, and was a sensation.

If you’re looking for a fairytale musical featuring powerful dance, emotional song, and an incredibly talented cast, “Once On This Island” at the Red Gate Revue stage is an excellent production to see!

Late last month, playwright Steve Silver – a 35 year veteran of the stages at the American Theatre of Actors – passed away suddenly at the relatively young age of 56. The mood was decidedly somber on the opening night of Waiting for the Don, Mr. Silver’s final play which premiered on schedule, just one week after his untimely death. Nonetheless, that did not stop the cast from doing all they could to honor the playwright’s legacy by putting on the strongest performance of this work that they could, as I saw with my own eyes earlier this week.

Ever wonder how Adam Smith might spin his own free market economic theory in the throes of the current global economic turmoil? Ponder no more. “The Low Road,” currently running at the Public’s Anspacher Theater, ends the need for further speculation. In the engaging and entertaining play by Bruce Norris, the iconic eighteenth-century Scottish economist and philosopher (played with unscrupulous charm by Daniel Davis) narrates a tale of two centuries and how his economic theory “worked out” in the gap between theory and praxis.