Steven Morris

1 week ago | stageraw.com | Steven Morris

Matt Keim and Elif Savas(Photo by Denise Devin)Reviewed by Asa FrisZombie Joe’s Underground TheaterThough June 14RECOMMENDEDIt’s the 20th anniversary of Urban Death, a show that explores grotesque, carnal, and off-putting subject matter. Creators Zombie Joe and Denise Devin of Zombie Joe’s Underground Theater imbue Urban Death with a series of kinetic scenes, many of which overindulge in obscenities, but ultimately prove entertaining because the cast and crew execute them with precision.

2 weeks ago | stageraw.com | Steven Morris |Steven Morris

Kasey Mahaffey and ensemble (Photo by Craig Schwartz)Reviewed by Steven Leigh MorrisA Noise WithinThrough June 1RECOMMENDEDIn dark cape, wide-rimmed homburg hat, and brandishing a walking stick, Oscar Wilde (David Nevell) haunts both the stage and the imagination of Alfie Byrne (Kasey Mahaffy), a city of Dublin bus conductor and the protagonist in A Man of No Importance, the current production at A Noise Within.

2 weeks ago | stageraw.com | Steven Morris

Ann Sonneville (Photo by Cooper Bates)Reviewed by Madison MellonOdyssey TheatreThrough June 15RECOMMENDEDIn Love’s End, now playing at the Odyssey Theatre, the end of a relationship is explored through two towering monologues. Written by Pascal Rambert, the piece lays bare all of the rawness, hurt, and failure to communicate that often comes as a relationship dissolves.

2 weeks ago | stageraw.com | Steven Morris

Soren Royer-McHugh (Photo courtesy of Highways Performance Space)Reviewed by Steven VargasHighways Performance SpaceThrough June 22RECOMMENDED“I have to take a piss,” Tommy (Soren Royer-McHugh) says as he rummages through Blockbuster VHS tapes, pornographic magazines and Funko Pops. At first, the crude first line to Royer-McHugh and Derek Spencer’s Loser seems like an off-putting aside, but as the play progresses, it becomes clear that everything is intentional.

3 weeks ago | stageraw.com | Steven Morris

Marin Ireland and Jon Bernthal (Photo by Jeff Lorch)Reviewed by Philip BrandesOjai Theatre FestivalThrough May 18. RECOMMENDED“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free” beckons the iconic bronze plaque beneath the Statue of Liberty. But for desperate immigrants in pursuit of the American Dream, the invitation comes with strings attached — yearning is no guarantee of fulfillment.