Mélia Mills Teeters between Tupack and Trippin' by Robert M. Gardner Mélia Mills, a middle-class Oakland girl, time travels back to her teen years in Oakland. She gives us a humorous, sad,…
Regina Taylor Celebrates Southern Black Women's "Hatitude" by Robert M. Gardner Playwright Regina Taylor's "Crowns" explodes with talent in this larger than life musical on Black life and cu…
Wayne Harris Artfully Merges Three Angles on Prostitution  by Robert M. Gardner Writer-Director Wayne Harris has re-opened his masterpiece "Train Stories" at The Marsh, Berkeley. His thre…
James Lapine Celebrates His Longtime Friend's Genius by Robert M. Gardner At Contra Costa Civic Theatre, "Sondheim on Sondheim" emerges as a testament to the genius of composer Stephen Sondh…
S.F. Mime Troupe Spreads Joy & Jokes for Truth & Justice by Robert M. Gardner Despite the vaunted liberalism of San Francisco where we supposedly have policies to help the poor an…
Madeleine George Modernizes Myth of Dionysius by Robert M. Gardner Hilarious Stacy Ross makes an earthy, sarcastic Dionysius whose methods make us question her ethics. Is she an evil temptre…
Jay Bedwani's Brilliant Docu-Pic Unfolds San Francisco Story by Robert M. Gardner Director Jay Bedwani's new documentary, Donna, subtly follows the growing self-acceptance of Donna Personna,…
Caridad Svich Pens Fantastical Romp Amid Amazon Boxes by Robert M. Gardner Arriving at the beautiful Lesher Center, we admire the modern lines of this stately, elegant theater, looking forwa…
Adrienne Price Rocks & Shocks with No Apologies by Robert M. Gardner When will we realize that difference is not dangerous, but rather enhances and strengthens US. In "The Red Shades: A …
Cayman Ilika Channels Patsy Cline's Genius by Robert M. Gardner At Lesher Center in Walnut Creek, I enjoyed Center REP's retrospective of the short but brilliant career of country folk singe…
Katori Hall Imagines King & a Mysterious Woman by Robert M. Gardner In "The Mountaintop," playwright Katori Hall's conversational dialogue makes us eager to hear more of the spirited int…
Beth Wilmurt Revives Prophetic Musical Genius by Robert M. Gardner Song stylist and virtuoso keyboard artist Beth Wilmurt inhabits the skin of 60s folk icon Malvina Reynolds. She treats Reyn…
John Fisher Revisits Travesty of Justice in NYC by Robert M. Gardner In his latest one man play, John Fisher takes us on a bike tour in Manhattan, telling the story of a brutal rape in Centr…
John Fisher Sends Up Silly Snobs in U.S. & U.K by Robert M. Gardner & Barry David Horwitz In "National Trust," a solo show by John Fisher, we find our hero camping it up, calling int…
John Fisher's Idyllic Bike Trip to Palo Alto Turns Serious by Robert M. Gardner & Barry David Horwitz In "The Farm," Fisher's romantic bicycle trip to the sun-drenched Stanford campus re…
Rivas & Shokri Transcend Texts, Welcome East & West by Robert M. Gardner Around the Bay, the Pandemic has curtailed our favorite pastime"eating out at restaurants from Persian to Mex…
Marco Ramirez Exposes Perils of Black Sports Heroes by Robert M. Gardner & Barry David Horwitz Jay "The Sport" Jackson is a hero. He knows it, everyone knows it. Khris Davis plays the ro…
Erika Dickerson-Despenza's Poetry Brings Beauty to Disaster by Robert M. Gardner & Barry David Horwitz The New York Public Theater is offering a world premiere audio play, "Shadow/Land,"…
Lasiter & Barnaba Light the Ring of Fire  by Robert M. Gardner The first words of Johnny Cash's last recorded song, "I hurt myself today," still haunt me. Like other songs in "My Name…
L. Peter Callender Creates Explosive Exposé of Apartheid by Robert M. Gardner                            …
John Fisher Scores Another Triumph in Free Series by Robert M. Gardner "Lone Mountain" qualifies as a travelogue, even more than a play. The action begins in John Fisher's apartment in San F…
John Fisher's Gay Detective Fights for Justice by Robert M. Gardner MacPherson gazes down at the two small children in the dirt. Finding bodies usually does not bother him, but sadly these l…
Sondheim Songs Pit Painter's Life vs. Art Biz by Robert M. Gardner Stephen Sondheim's Pulitzer Prize winning musical "Sunday in the Park with George" offers insights into Georges Seurat's fa…
John Fisher Exposes Family Scandals, Then and Now by Robert M. Gardner John Fisher is a genius of storytelling. In "A Murder in Hawaii," Fisher exposes the Massie Affair, a 1931 raci…
Gary Soto Pens Play for Latinx Teens in Distress  by Robert M. Gardner In Gary Soto's "The Afterlife," two Fresno teenagers, Chuy and Crystal, die in the opening minutes. Chuy is murdered…