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Theatre Eddys

Theatre Eddys

San Francisco Bay Area Theater Reviews

3.5 E

Getting There

January 28, 2023 by Eddie Reynolds

Getting There Dipika Guha New Conservatory Theatre Center As a young woman sits on a bench alone, each of four other women of varied generations approach her with highly dramatic outreach motions, lip-singing Edith Piaf’s “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien,” or in English translation, “No, I Don’t Feel Sorry about Nothing.”  As they continue to bombard her with their … [Read more...] about Getting There

Wives

June 30, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Wives Jaclyn Backhaus Aurora Theatre Company “He wrote our history not for us, for himself,” eulogizes the first wife of Ernest Hemingway as Wife 2 and Wife 3 nod in agreement.  In Wives – Jacklyn Backhaus’ time-traveling, boundary-breaking script packed with playful yet powerful punches aimed at patriarchally told history – women once married to the rich and famous … [Read more...] about Wives

Man of La Mancha

June 12, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Man of La Mancha Mitch Leigh (Music); Joe Darion (Lyrics); Dale Wasserman (Book) San Jose Playhouse Before even a word is spoken, Scott Evan Guggenheim directs one of the most gripping, disturbing, and memorable scenes of the evening’s production of Man of La Mancha by San Jose Playhouse.  Before us is Julie Engelbrecht’s jarring set design that is too similar to … [Read more...] about Man of La Mancha

Romeo y Juliet

June 6, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

Romeo y Juliet Karen Zacarías Adapted by KJ Sanchez & Karen Zacarías Based on Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare California Shakespeare Theater Upfront we are advised, “What you may not comprehend with your ears, you will understand with your heart.”  What audience members at California Shakespeare Theater’s Romeo y Juliet may or may not be prepared for in … [Read more...] about Romeo y Juliet

Pique Dame

May 21, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Pique Dame (The Queen of Spades) Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky West Bay Opera Woodwinds and strings sing in gentle, back-and-forth conversation before other instruments begin to join, building into rolling climaxes of commanding brass and timpani and all leading to a sense of foreboding as projected on the walls before us are splashed, red blotches mingled in a flurried mix … [Read more...] about Pique Dame

I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change

April 24, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change Joe DiPietro (Book & Lyrics); Jimmy Roberts (Music); Doug Katsaros (Orchestrations) Hillbarn Theatre & Conservatory For someone who has seen well over 150 live theatre shows every, pre-COVID year for at least the past twenty years, how is it I have missed seeing the 1996-premiering, second-longest-running Off-Broadway … [Read more...] about I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change

Talk to Your People

March 8, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Talk to Your People Dan Hoyle The Marsh     Celebrated creator and performer of solo shows about such topics as Nigerian oil scandals (Tings Dey Happen), Red States folks telling their side of the story (The Real Americans), and heart-wrenching yet funny portrayals of men and women from minority races and cultures (The Border People), Oakland … [Read more...] about Talk to Your People

Princess Ida

February 3, 2020 by Eddie Reynolds

An operetta from the conservative Victorian Age that satirizes feminism and women’s education and sets up a battle between the sexes that the men are destined to win is not exactly a winning formula for most 2020 audiences.  But the operetta is by the perennially loved W.S. Gilbert (libretto) and Albert Sullivan (music); and there are many, modern aficionados of the famed pair … [Read more...] about Princess Ida

Taking Steps

January 19, 2020 by Eddie Reynolds

A three-story, crumbling mansion that was once a notorious, London brothel and is said still to be haunted by its former mistress, “Scarlet Lucy,” is the setting of Alan Ayckbourn’s 1979 farce, Taking Steps.  The house that is described as “drafty, leaky, and it smells” by its current mistress, Elizabeth Crabbe, is up for sale, becoming a major character and source of much … [Read more...] about Taking Steps

Cloud Nine

November 22, 2019 by Eddie Reynolds

1880, South Africa:  The Queen’s flag flies high and proudly; Victorian roles of men and women are clearly defined; classes are correctly divided; whites rule and those of color serve; social norms are clear, and proper manners are strictly followed.  Well, that is at least true until Caryl Churchill paints a bit different picture of what that supposedly blissful life is … [Read more...] about Cloud Nine

“Gandhi”

September 24, 2019 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

Gandhi Sujit Saraf Naatak Natraj Kumar & Dancers October 2, 2019 is the 150th birth anniversary of the man born with the first name Mohandas but whom the world now remembers as Mahatma (“venerable”) Gandhi.  To honor this occasion, the nation’s largest Indian theatre company, Naatak, is producing a world-premiere play, Gandhi, written and directed by the company’s … [Read more...] about “Gandhi”

“Rhinoceros”

June 6, 2019 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

RhinocerosEugène IonescoTranslated by Derek ProuseAmerican Conservatory TheaterMatt Decaro & David BreitbarthAs a middle-aged, single man who works in a French village’s newspaper office, Berenger “just can’t get used to life,” has “barely got the strength to go on living,” and tells his friend Gene as he readies himself for a mid-day cognac, “I feel out of place in life, … [Read more...] about “Rhinoceros”

“The View Upstairs”

May 19, 2019 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

The View UpstairsMax VernonNew Conservatory Theatre CenterNick Rodrigues & Ensemble MembersAs the fiftieth anniversary of Stonewall fast approaches and as we in San Francisco also recall in honor the drag and transgender heroes of the Compton Cafeteria riots of 1966, what better time for us to take every chance to remember those who came before us, to celebrate how far we … [Read more...] about “The View Upstairs”

Roald Dahl’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”

April 18, 2019 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate FactoryDavid Grieg (Book); Marc Shaiman (Music); Scott Wittiman & Marc Shaiman (Lyrics)SHNHenry Boshart & Noah WeisbergCurrently at SHN’s Golden Gate Theatre, there are two one-act musicals appearing, both under the same title as Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – or at least it feels that way sitting through … [Read more...] about Roald Dahl’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”

“American Hero”

March 11, 2019 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

American HeroBess WohlThe Custom Made Theatre Co.Paul Stout, Devon deGroot & Laura EspinoDay-by-day, the slices of turkey, pastrami, and cheddar dwindle away. Already there are no more chips and no more Dr. Pepper.  But at Toasty Subs that just recently celebrated its grand opening, the three “sandwich artists” continue to spread what mustard is left on the few … [Read more...] about “American Hero”

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Eddie is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association and the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle.

Theatre Eddys Ratings Legend

5 E's - Loved It
A classic, would see it a second time.
4 E's - Really Liked It
Excellent, strong production.
3 E's - Liked It
Good production but something is lacking or not clicking.
2 E's - Just OK
Below average but had at least one interesting component.
1 E - Did Not Like It
Waste of time.

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Theatre Eddys reviews performances throughout the greater San Francisco Bay Area.

About Eddie

Theatre Critic for the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, writing 150+ reviews annually for Theatre Eddys and Talkin' Broadway (San Jose/Silicon Valley). Read More

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