Odyssey Theatre, Los Angeles
(310) 477-2055
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Those suffering from claustrophobia may not make it through Theatre in the Dark, said Paul Birchall in LAWeekly.com. But it would be a shame to miss this show, which unfolds across 90 minutes in an “inky darkness” that’s “only occasionally alleviated by a momentary flash or murky ghost light.” Director Ron Sossi and his actors use the opportunity to artfully manipulate virtually all senses but sight as they stage a collection of vignettes, ranging from traditional ghost stories to newly commissioned one-acts to experiments invented by the ensemble. In each playlet, the darkness becomes “almost a character.”
The idea of staging theater in the dark is hardly unique, but this production “takes what could have been a mere gimmick to new heights,” said F. Kathleen Foley in the Los Angeles Times. That’s not to say that Theatre in the Dark is flawless. The sketches waver in quality: Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s tale about a man on a train to oblivion is a classic short story that works brilliantly, while the original works “tend to veer into the reiterative.” However, the production is a fantastic sensory experience. “This is a sound designer’s dream assignment, and veteran designer John Zalewski doesn’t disappoint.” The actors, meanwhile, respond surprisingly well to being asked to work in near anonymity. They make each performance “very much a labor of love.”
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If/Thenfeature Tony-winning Idina Menzel “looks and sounds sensational” in a role tailored to her talents.
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Rocky
feature It’s a wonder that this Rocky ever reaches the top of the steps.
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Love and Information
feature Leave it to Caryl Churchill to create a play that “so ingeniously mirrors our age of the splintered attention span.”
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The Bridges of Madison County
feature Jason Robert Brown’s “richly melodic” score is “one of Broadway’s best in the last decade.”
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Outside Mullingar
feature John Patrick Shanley’s “charmer of a play” isn’t for cynics.
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The Night Alive
feature Conor McPherson “has a singular gift for making the ordinary glow with an extra dimension.”
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No Man’s Land
feature The futility of all conversation has been, paradoxically, the subject of “some of the best dialogue ever written.”
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The Commons of Pensacola
feature Stage and screen actress Amanda Peet's playwriting debut is a “witty and affecting” domestic drama.