So Cal Arts & Entertainment

The butler did it, that much is certain in Jeff Lowe’s hilarious new show, “The Butler Monologues” (presented by Alchemy Theatre Co. at Fullerton’s STAGEStheatre through Sept. 22). But whodunnit in this outlandish murder mystery comedy? Alfred from “Batman”? Kato from...

“Damn Yankees” is one of those old-school musicals they’ve forgotten how to make. When the Douglass Wallopp-George Abbott show (with music and lyrics by Jerry Ross & Richard Adler, based on a novel by Wallopp) first opened on Broadway in 1955 it scored a solid home...

To apply the proverbial lemons from lemonade to Shakespeare Orange County would be something of an understatement. Clearly the company has landed on its feet after being ignominiously booted from Garden Grove Amphitheater, falling into the welcoming embrace of Santa...

Best new play I’ve seen in a long time? That would be “Strong Arm” by Wyn Moreno (continuing in its world premiere at Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana through Jul. 28). This riveting drama centers on the world of professional sports, and one promising young...

Audience expectations may be deservedly high for “Ragtime: The Musical” at Chance Theater in Anaheim (through July 28). After all, the Terrence McNally-Stephen Flaherty-Lynn Ahrens adaptation of E. L. Doctorow’s popular novel was nominated for 13 Tony Awards. It’s a...

The long shadow of Abel Gance’s monumental “Napoléon” hangs over everything else the pioneer French filmmaker ever touched, much as it did during his career. The hi-def restoration of his 1919 World War I epic, “J’Accuse” (available in a Blu-ray MOD edition from...

Lauren Yee’s “The Hatmaker's Wife” (through July 6 at Long Beach Playhouse) is that problematic play that wins you over in the end. You want to like a play by a happening young Asian American playwright, inspired by the folktales of Sholem Aleichem—especially after...

They punch holes in walls, set desks on fire, toss shoes out windows, trade insults and joke incessantly when they’re not stuffing themselves with bagels. They’re the anything-for-a-laugh gang of comedy writers who turned out one of the top television shows of the...

Samuel Beckett’s “Happy Days” has to be one of the toughest roles for a woman in modern theatre—it’s not only a virtual monologue (with a handful of interruptions) but the actor in question is limited to her voice, face and upper body in Act I, losing the use of her...

You’ve seen the movie, why bother with the play? In the case of David Henry Hwang’s “M. Butterfly” (through June 8 at South Coast Repertory), you’ll want to make the time to catch this revival—especially if you missed it on Broadway. The play exemplifies what live...