Dreamgirls Is Flashy Fun
By Patrick Hurley
The big, splashy Broadway musical Dreamgirls is playing now at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts. Set in the early days of Motown, Dreamgirls follows a trio of female African-American singers who work their way from back-up singers to all-out superstars. When we first meet the Dreamettes, they’re a young and hungry group fronted by the slightly solipsistic vocal powerhouse Effie White (Moya Angela) Then there’s Deana Jones (Jasmin Richardson), the sugary sweet pretty one, and Lorrell (Brittney Johnson), the wide-eyed young, naïve one. Read more
Gentleman’s Guide is Wondrously Entertaining
By Patrick Hurley
Devilishly funny, wickedly irreverent, and yet somehow agreeably nostalgic, the Tony-Winning Musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, playing now at the Ahmanson Theatre, is a big sugary confection laced with arsenic. Read more