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Continue reading →: Review: A painful puzzle is put together in A.C.T. San Francisco’s ‘Her Portmanteau’In the tiny living room that Abasiama occupies, there lies a puzzle. It’s not one of those 500-piece deals you buy at Target, mind you, but a homemade puzzle at 15, 20 pieces max. This moment in the phenomenal production of A.C.T. San Francisco’s “Her Portmanteau,” directed with reverence by…
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Continue reading →: Review: If you don’t know, now you know that juicy ‘Hamilton’ reigns supremeWords, words, words. When Tupac Shakur and Biggie Smalls engaged in an epic, genre-changing feud resulting in two raw-as-hell diss tracks in the ‘90s, the viciousness and furious, visceral nature of their words leapt through the speakers right into the listener’s soul, each calculated word sharp as a dagger. Lin-Manuel…
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Continue reading →: Review: Despite some issues, SHN’s ‘Hello Dolly!’ is big, old-school Broadway funThere is a charming moment in “Hello Dolly!” which is simplistic in its approach but feels like big, old-school Broadway. The show’s structure is all about its title character, the do-it-all matchmaker who charms the pants off the locals in both her hometown of Yonkers, New York and now in…
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Continue reading →: Director Maog connects deeply with Udofia’s story, vision in A.C.T.’s ‘Her Portmanteau’Victor Malana Maog has thought a lot about his own immigrant story with his latest directing projects, one opening this week and another which is connected and just getting started. Maog himself came to the United States from the Philippines when he was only six-years-old. But he spent the ages…
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Continue reading →: Review: Tennessee females rule in San Jose Stage’s ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’Brick and Maggie both take up space in the sweltering static bedroom that resides within the Mississippi Delta, satin sheets adorning the soft mattress that have gone unused by the distant couple. While Maggie moves through every hint of the bedroom, flitting across the floor attempting to find new ways…
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Continue reading →: Rouleau ready for his Bay Area return in SHN’s ‘Hello Dolly!’Something very special took place for the national touring cast of “Hello Dolly!” The show, which says hello to San Francisco as part of SHN’s current season, recently saw the passing of the most iconic performer in its history. Currently starring Betty Buckley in the title role, the show is…
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Continue reading →: Review: Cirque du Soleil’s ‘Volta’ is electricThere is something always so intoxicating about a Cirque du Soleil show, and for some reason, I was reminded of Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus as I watched. Now, not for one second are the two terribly comparable, but sitting and watching Cirque’s “Volta,” continuing its Bay Area run…
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Continue reading →: Bindlestiff Studio is ready for this year’s ‘Love Edition’ traditionWhat’s love got to do with it? San Francisco’s Filipino-American and Pilipino theatre company Bindlestiff Studio has entered that part of the year where they try to figure it out. It’s not a new question mind you, but a question they’ve been trying to answer for many years now, always…
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Continue reading →: Review: ‘King of the Yees’ lives up to its name at SF PlayhouseOne of my favorite places in the great city of San Francisco is Chinatown. There is a history and romanticism that comes with the lanterns that adorn Grant Avenue. Or the festive celebrations that take place around lunar new year, with colorful lions and piercing firecrackers that pop up at…
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Continue reading →: Review: Effective chaos in Los Altos Stage Company’s ‘American Night’Juan Jose is an ideal fella. He is giddy at the chance to adopt the United States as his country, his home after fleeing the grips of a dangerous cartel in Mexico. So, when he is sent out to learn about this great nation in order to become one of…
David John Chávez
Bay Area theater critic/reporter, Executive Chair – American Theatre Critics/Journalists Association, Two-time Pulitzer Prize for Drama jurist (’22-’23). Follow me on socials and say hi! #hellatheatre
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