Karen ZacarÃas Updates Shakespeare with Colonial California Clashes by Barry David Horwitz and Jordan Freed We're immediately enraptured by the chemistry between Romeo and Juliet. Revelat…
Sarah Ruhl Turns Doldrums to Delight by Lynne Stevens We take our seats opposite the minuscule, stark, black stage. The only set pieces are five black stools and two window frames hanging fr…
Millennial Notes Jane Anderson Bravely Explores Rebirth After Burnout by Tyler Jeffreys The stage is set ablaze"with energy, not fire. We get couple vs. couple, Liberal vs. Conservative, and…
Millennial Notes Ava Roy Navigates a Rocky Voyage, Skillfully by Tyler Jeffreys This feel-good one-woman show is an epic, visual nursery rhyme built on a charming metaphor. Playwrights Ava R…
Jeffrey Lo Highlights Struggles of Filipino Immigrants in America  by Patricia L. Morin Playwright Jeffrey Lo takes us on the touching journey of a young couple who clash over traditional…
Millennial Notes Andrew Lloyd Webber Creates a Thrilling & Distinct World by Ian Waters  The lights dim. The stage seems darker than before the show started. From the shadows, amb…
Adam Bock Provokes Us with a Proud Woman's Fate by Edward Boyda With "A Small Fire," playwright Adam Bock challenges us"characters, actors, and audience alike"to face the possibility of sudd…
Lucas Hnath Explores What We Owe to Ourselves & What We Owe to Others by Patricia L. Morin In 1879, Ibsen's Nora Helmer escaped the suffocating "doll's house" with all its restrictions, …
Dominique Morisseau Rips the Polite Mask from Racism by Barry David Horwitz I loved "Blood at the Root." The six young actors emerge as fully developed, believable teens. There's enough tale…
Michael Wayne Turner III Designs Dynamic Black Mad Hatter by Barry David Horwitz The handsome young man, with elegant curled mustache, welcomes us to his dressing room with an irresistible s…
Sam Chanse Illuminates Need for Perseverance & Preservation by Patricia L. Morin On a small stage with four ottomans, used as seats and storage, Playwright Sam Chanse reminds us of our n…
Jessica Huang's Poetic Play Exposes Asian Immigrant Abuse by Barry David Horwitz Jomar Tagatac plays Harry Chin with subtle and moving emotion, turning simple moments into stage gems. Harry …
Don Reed's Wit & Brilliance Charm Hometown Crowd by Jennifer Ann Charron Don Reed truly does it all. Star of TV and film, he writes, acts, produces, directs, and does standup comedy"all …
Gogol's Satire Highlights How Self-Deception Fuels Greed by Patricia L. Morin Jeffrey Hatcher's adaptation of Nikolai Gogol's 1836 comedy delights us with satire of small-town tyranny. In a …
Millennial Notes Thornton Wilder Summons Ghosts of 1900s America by Alex Stimmel As a Los Angeles native, I'm a stranger to the small-town dynamic. Yet Center REP's version of "Our Town" imm…
Dave Malloy Melds Music, Madness in Brilliant Chorus by Barry David Horwitz Dave Malloy has gathered us at Berkeley Rep with his musical show from Signature Theatre in New York. We find ours…
Yilong Liu's Queer-Sci-Fi Whisks Us Back to the Future by Barry David Horwitz Lots of people are taking the anti-HIV pill to protect themselves from getting the virus. Taking the little blue…
Jay Kuo's Spirited Lyrics Illuminate Japanese American Story by Lynne Stevens From the opening scenes, I was almost moved to tears by this drama inspired by the true-life experiences of TV/f…
Regina Taylor's Songs Unveil the Glory of Hats by Patricia L. Morin "Crowns" illuminates the resilience of the African American spirit though the magic of hats. Devon LaBelle creates a spiri…
Adam Ashraf Elsayigh Spotlights Three Gay Egyptians in Peril by Barry David Horwitz "Drowning in Cairo" dramatically reenacts an actual event in 2001, when Egyptian police stormed a gay part…
Cleavon Smith Debates the Ways and Means of Racial Progress by Jennifer Ann Charron Students rally frequently at UC Berkeley's Sproul Plaza. During protests, University Police are often call…
Naomi Wallace Laughs through Apocalypse, Then and Now by Tom Glynn In the 17th Century, humankind found a way to capture, bottle, and sell goat and human flatulence to ward off the plague. I…
Millennial Notes Celine Song Animates Ancient Korea & Modern Manhattan   by Evelyn Arevalo "Endlings" seduces us with alluring images, but its short run time of 70 minutes leav…
August Wilson's Masterpiece Blesses African Ancestors by Barry David Horwitz In "Gem of the Ocean," Aunt Ester (superb Greta Oglesby), a 285-year-old seer and healer, connects us to our hist…
Karen ZacarÃas Fights Border Walls with Sitcom Laughs by Tom Glynn "Native Gardens" offers a 90 minute romp through the culture war battlefield, featuring some of the best local actor…