Writer Lee Blessing Loads the Bases at the Lonny Chapman Theatre with COBB

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COBB Daniel Sykes, Kent Butler, Bert Emmett_photo, SherryNetherland

BY TOM WALDMAN Through history, baseball has been regarded as both the most egalitarian and the most racist of the three major American sports. On the one hand, it's hospitable to players of normal size and weight, as opposed to football … [Read more...]

Autobiographical and Racy "Who's Your Daddy?" Shines at The Victory Theatre

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Johnny

BY TOM WALDMAN In this age of creative families, the desire of a single male Irish bisexual with a history of strange liaisons to adopt a Ugandan toddler should not come as a great surprise. Nor should it surprise residents of hip urban … [Read more...]

Rockin' Laughs with Fleetwood Macbeth at the Falcon Theatre

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‘Banquo’ (Matt Walker), ‘Macbeth’ (Morgan Rusler) and the Witches in Troubadour Theater Company’s Fleetwood Macbeth playing at the Falcon Theatre.  Photo by Chelsea Sutton.

BY TOM WALDMAN Near the end of the Troubadour Theater Company's "Fleetwood Macbeth", at the Falcon Theatre through August 14th, an uncharacteristically subdued Morgan Rusler (Macbeth) walks to the side of the stage and informs an audience that has … [Read more...]

Firehouse strongly delivers at the Whitefire Theatre

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Bryan Rasmussen, Kamar de los Reyes, Jon Southwell, Ed Morrone. Photos Jason Bonzon.

BY TOM WALDMAN Going back to at least the 1965 Watts riots, it's typically the actions of police officers that trigger demonstrations or widespread violence in minority communities. But in Pedro Antonio Garcia's solid new play,  Firehouse, … [Read more...]

A Catholic Girl's Guide to Losing Your Virginity is a worthy romp at The Falcon Theatre

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BY TOM WALDMAN These are some of the given reasons women are spurred to lose their virginity— love, lust, revenge, anger, curiosity, boredom, impaired judgment, peer pressure. In The Catholic Girl's Guide to Losing Your Virginity, currently … [Read more...]

Another hilarious Troubie holiday show at The Falcon Theatre with The Last Jo-el

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BY TOM WALDMAN Hearing Piano Man recently, it occurred to me that there were times when Billy Joel could have used his own Bernie Taupin. The songs banal lyrics, as well as those of Joel standards like We Didn't Start the Fire and It's Still Rock … [Read more...]

Rhino Records four CD set highlights L.A. music and influences of the 60s, including The Doors, Bob Dylan, The Monkees and more

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tomwaldman90

BY TOM WALDMAN Los Angeles took several years to emerge as a prime center for rock and roll. During the 1950s and early 1960s, the city featured some performers of note, including Ricky Nelson and Eddie Cochran, as well as the Penguins, the black … [Read more...]

West Hills author on the roots of L.A. Music and the Rise of Chicano Rock

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(L-R) Co-authors David Reyes and Tom Waldman

BY ATINA HARTUNIAN Tom Waldman is an Angeleno, Chief of Staff for LAUSD School Board Member Tamar Galatzan, and an established author with four books under his belt — who just happens to have a deep love for rock music, including Chicano … [Read more...]