‘Broadsword’— Did the devil win this musical duel?
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — It’s all about music, but nobody plays any. It’s called Broadsword, but there appears to be some sort of taboo about mentioning the name and nobody on stage ever utters...
View ArticleTheater presents two other ‘make believe’ tales by Peter Pan creator
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES–Playwright James M. Barrie is most famous for his familiar and much-loved fantasy Peter Pan. However, he also produced a large body of other literary works that include...
View Article‘A Death in Columbia’ is much alive on stage
By Cynthia Citron Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — “I’ve told you everything and now you know too much, so I’m going to have to kill you.” This, in a nutshell, is the plot of Shem Bitterman’s new play, A...
View ArticleSarah Treem: A Talent Supreme
By Cynthia Citron HOLLYWOOD — If you were to guess Sarah Treem’s age by her looks alone, you’d probably say, “Not a day over 21.” If you were to guess her age by the quantity and quality of her...
View Article‘Chasing Madoff’ is film about one man’s inspired demand for justice
By Cynthia Citron Cynthia Citron ENCINO, California– A decade before the thousands of people who had invested their money with Bernie Madoff realized that they had lost it all, a Boston-based...
View ArticleMurderer persuades himself he is Cary Grant in new play. But will he persuade...
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES –A convicted murderer sits on Death Row convinced that he is Cary Grant. He is warm, charming, and black. Is he delusional or merely pretending in order to amuse...
View Article‘Vivien’ script assumes too much knowledge on part of the audience
By Cynthia Citron Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — There’s no denying that the role of Vivien Leigh is an acting tour de force for Judith Chapman. She looks like Leigh. She sounds like Leigh. And she...
View ArticleNew ‘Rabbit Hole’ production eases pain of previous one
By Cynthia Citron Cynthia Citron PACIFIC PALISADES, California — In March 2009 a theater company in Malibu mounted a run of David Lindsay-Abaire’s play Rabbit Hole, which chronicles the effects of the...
View Article‘Falsettos,’ directed by Richard Israel, inaugurates Third Street Theatre
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — When Jerry Seinfeld said “Yada yada yada” you could interpret it to mean “and so on and so forth” or “blah blah blah” or even “stuff that’s too insignificant to talk...
View ArticleMay-December friendship blossoms on a park bench
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES–There is just one word for Jean Baker and Jean-Loup Dabadie’s new film My Afternoons with Margueritte, and that’s DELICIOUS! In this one Gerard Depardieu is a big soft...
View ArticleToo much of a good thing in ‘Falsettos?’
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — I’ve never heard more enthusiastic responses to a song than the ones that greeted each fabulous number in the new musical Falsettos. And I was right there, clapping and...
View ArticleOh mammy, Burstyn does Jolson to a turn!
By Cynthia Citron NORTH HOLLYWOOD — His exuberance could suck all the air out of a venue as large as New York’s Winter Garden. His massive ego was on display as he referred to himself in the third...
View ArticleFormer hippie lovers meet a quarter century later
By Cynthia Citron BURBANK, California –“A woman needs to marry before she gets too interesting,” Elena says ruefully. And Elena, as played by Michelle Duffy, is one of the most interesting characters...
View ArticleWhat little girls playing ‘dress up’ can lead to
By Cynthia Citron PASADENA, California –“I started out in college in pre-med, but I couldn’t hack the chemistry. Then I switched to pre-law, but I found it boring. Then I went to see a production of...
View ArticleMeet them at ‘South Street’; Hurry on Down
By Cynthia Citron PASADENA, California — Like In the Heights, the recent happy musical set in New York’s Washington Heights, South Street, the new musical that had its world premiere this week at the...
View ArticleLove and Death in Russia
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — Aleksei Fedorchenko’s latest film, Silent Souls, is both silent and soulful. And incredibly Russian. The story revolves around the ritual burial of Tanya (Yuliya Aug),...
View Article‘Poor Behavior’ outcome of poor marriages, good comedy
By Cynthia Citron Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — Watching a marriage implode can be painful. Watching two marriages implode can be hilarious. In playwright Theresa Rebeck’s play Poor Behavior, now...
View Article“The Skin I Live In’ probably won’t get under yours
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — Pedro Almodovar’s imaginative new film, The Skin I Live In, is a bizarre amalgam of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Pygmalion. Shot in the glowing sunshine of an idyllic...
View ArticleWas the Bard really Edward de Vere?
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — Of all the things we think we know about William Shakespeare, most of them are guesses, or assumptions, or just plain made up. In actual fact, even though the writings...
View ArticleIntentionally annoying play questions Judaism’s precepts
By Cynthia Citron LOS ANGELES — The God of Isaac is an irritatingly unconvincing play, despite the earnest charm of its leading man, Adam Korson. Korson plays Isaac Adams, a Jewish journalist in...
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