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Theatre Eddys

Theatre Eddys

San Francisco Bay Area Theater Reviews

world premiere

A Distinct Society

April 12, 2023 by Eddie Reynolds

A Distinct Society Kareem Fahmy TheatreWorks Silicon Valley An executive order on January 27, 2017, by a president barely one week in office barred citizens from seven countries – all majority Muslim – from entering the United States.  Protests, legal challenges, and suits followed; but in the meantime, border agencies began reacting and enacting, often changing … [Read more...] about A Distinct Society

Justice: A New Musical

February 24, 2023 by Eddie Reynolds

Justice: A New Musical Lauren M. Gunderson (Book); Bree Lowdermilk (Music); Kait Kerrigan (Lyrics) Marin Theatre Company “Equal Justice for All.” For 191 years, half of the U.S. population could justifiably question if that welcoming sign above the U.S. Supreme Court entrance really applied to them because from its founding in 1789 until September 21, 1981, no woman … [Read more...] about Justice: A New Musical

The Travelers

February 19, 2023 by Eddie Reynolds

The Travelers Luis Alfaro Magic Theatre, in Co-Production with Campo Santo A parable.  An allegory.   A dream.  A mind-bending, fascinating fable. Any and all of these descriptors are possibilities to describe Luis Alfaro’s newest, stage creation, The Travelers, now in a gripping world premiere by Magic Theatre and Campo Santo – a co-production both ethereal and … [Read more...] about The Travelers

Cashed Out

February 2, 2023 by Eddie Reynolds

Cashed Out Claude Jackson, Jr. San Francisco Playhouse Walking into the theatre and seeing the impressive scenic design of Tanya Orellana, my expectations for San Francisco Playhouse’s world premiere of Cashed Out only increased.  Already I was excited that this commissioned work coming from the Playhouse’s pandemic Zoomlet series of ten-minute plays is written by a … [Read more...] about Cashed Out

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

Dreaming in Cuban

June 26, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Dreaming in Cuban Cristina Garcia Central Works Breaking boundaries of time, distance, and reality, a swirl of memories, dreams, and harsh realities both clash in conflict and dance in harmony in Cristina Garcia’s beautifully and imaginatively conceived Dreaming in Cuban, now in world premiere at Berkeley’s Central Works.  Adapting to the stage her 1992, National Book … [Read more...] about Dreaming in Cuban

Waiting for Next

May 27, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

Waiting for Next Jeffrey Lo City Lights Theater Company Jeffrey Lo’s Waiting for Next is nothing short of being a heart-warming love story about friendship – a story full of charm and fun while also quite capable of drawing an occasional tear through the smiles.  Much of the inherent goodness of this world premiere at City Lights Theater Company comes from the fact … [Read more...] about Waiting for Next

Monument, or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play)

May 20, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Monument, or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play) Sam Chase Magic Theatre What possibly can a missing sister, a jobless actor, an unhappy TV writer, an impending break-up, sea coral, and sloths have in common with monuments and legacies?  In Sam Chase’s Monument, or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play), the answer is actually quite a lot.  Now in a rapid-paced, video-rich, completely … [Read more...] about Monument, or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play)

The Incrementalist

May 2, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

The Incrementalist Cleavon Smith Aurora Theatre Company Following the police-afflicted, brutal murder of George Floyd in May 2020, protests erupted world-wide, including in Berkeley, California where shocked, angry UC students joined local residents in the streets, facing off against aggressive police in riot gear.  Oakland resident, Berkeley City College professor, … [Read more...] about The Incrementalist

Hotter than Egypt

April 6, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

Hotter than Egypt Yussef El Guindi Marin Theatre Company, in Co-Production with A Contemporary Theatre Wisconsinites Jean and Paul are in exotic Egypt to bask in the winter sun, sail on the Nile on feluccas, and relish the history of the museums – all as part of their twenty-fourth wedding anniversary celebration.  Engaged and soon to be married, Cairenes Maha and … [Read more...] about Hotter than Egypt

Escape from the Asylum

March 20, 2022 by Eddie Reynolds

Escape from the Asylum Patricia Milton Central Works When in June 2019 I reviewed Central Works’ world premiere of Patricia Milton’s The Victorian Ladies’ Detective Collective, I ended my glowing review of the gripping, yet humorous murder mystery with a hope “the playwright decides that – just like Holmes and Watson – Fortescue, Hunter, and Smalls might deserve … [Read more...] about Escape from the Asylum

“The Lady Scribblers”

March 9, 2020 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

When Charles II was restored to the English throne in 1660, not only did he restore live theatre that had been banned during the Cromwell/Puritan reign, he declared the roles of women could and should in fact be played by women.  During the same period and throughout the reign of William and Mary, women also began to write plays and see them produced, with two even being … [Read more...] about “The Lady Scribblers”

Don’t Eat the Mangos

March 7, 2020 by Eddie Reynolds Leave a Comment

While entering the theatre and being tempted to do a few salsa steps to the hip-swiveling Latinx music playing all around us, it is impossible not to notice there are mangos – many rotting – piled on the floor of the tropical house’s kitchen.  There is also a tree laden with ripening mangos that is intertwined into the decorative, iron-gate entrance to the house – a tree that … [Read more...] about Don’t Eat the Mangos

Retablos: Stories from a Life Lived Along the Border

March 6, 2020 by Eddie Reynolds

In his book Retablos, Octavio Solis reminds us that as we grow older, memories from our growing up become vignettes that replay over and again – sometimes as poignant reminders of who we are and why are we, sometimes as teachers of what we can still become, and often just as precious gems to be take in silently, reflectively.  And while his stories have many universal themes … [Read more...] about Retablos: Stories from a Life Lived Along the Border

You’ll Catch Flies

January 26, 2020 by Eddie Reynolds

The phrase “you’ll catch flies” begs for a few more words.  One common saying is “Close your mouth, or you’ll catch flies.”  Another one some of us may have also heard from the likes of a grandmother or an aunt, “You’ll catch flies more with honey than with vinegar.”  In either case, there is a warning implied – the first to keep your mouth shut a bit more (or something bad may … [Read more...] about You’ll Catch Flies

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

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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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