Anyone who survived the deadly HIV plague time of the ’80s, when the best and brightest of the arts community was virtually wiped out by the disease, can’t help but be moved by the pathos of playwright Evelina Fernández’s AIDS melodrama. And while the urgency of the play might have diminished somewhat in the intervening years of antiretroviral successes, director José Luis Valenzuela’s re-staging of the Latino Theater Company’s acclaimed, 2002 production has lost none of its rousing panache or theatrical luster. Sal López reprises his tour de force performance as Moises, a flamboyant theater director drifting in and out of consciousness on his deathbed in 1995. He spends his lucid moments planning his final exit scene in a party to be attended by his close associates, which include his lifelong friend, the gay hairdresser, Martin (the excellent Danny de la Paz), and best straight friend/writing partner, Eddie (Geoffrey Rivas), and Eddie’s wife, Alice (Lucy Rodriguez). Moises’ less coherent spells are spent in phantasmagoric dialogues with his conscience and drag-queen alter ego, Lupe (Ralph Cole, Jr. in a show-stopping performance), who belts out disco dance hits in between haranguing Moises about coming clean with his ex-wife, Raquel (Fernández), on the circumstances surrounding their 15-year-old break-up. A first-rate production design, including François-Pierre Couture’s evocative lights, Nikki Delhomme’s Mackie-inspired gowns and Christopher Ash’s expressionist-surrealist set, underscores Fernández’s Eros-trumps-conventional-morality theme with elegance and eloquence. Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring St., downtown; Thurs.-Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat. 3 & 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru May 30. (213) 489-0994 ext. #107 or http://www.thelatc.org A Latino Theater Company Production (Bill Raden)

via LA Weekly

Photo by Adam Blumenthal

“It was an angry poop,” exclaims Pamela (Vonessa Martin) to her husband David (Ramón de Ocampo). She and their 10-year old son Michael (an adorable Quinton Lopez) wait out the barrage of f-bombs from Gary (Johnny Giacalone), Pamela’s drunk brother who is cursing out his wife Carla (Diarra Kilpatrick) because she threw him out of the house.  Pamela and David agree to take Gary in, and in the ensuing intertwined episodes over a period of months (including one unforgettable mac & cheese & marijuana scene between Gary and Michael), we are exposed to the maladies that afflict these characters — from Pamela’s hypochondria, to Gary’s intoxication, to David’s libidinous yearnings, to Carla’s cocaine cravings.  Even Michael’s secretly sexual pediatrician Dr. Brown (Brendan O’Malley) and Carla’s donut-downing, Jesus-loving 12-step buddy Jeannie (Anita Dashiell) can’t shake their dis-ease, until Michael, the anchor in this sea of sickness, gets some bad news of his own.  The two-character scenes that dominate the piece showcase Erik Patterson’s edgy and hilarious play, and Diane Rodriguez’s muscular direction energizes its episodic nature, cleverly turning even the transitions into opportunities for storytelling, such as employing an onstage waiting room for offstage characters.  Sandra Burns’ flexible, minimalist set (with its wonderful robin-egg blue floor), appropriately illuminated by Adam Blumenthal’s harsh hospital fluorescence, provides the perfect backdrop for a talented cast that is solid across the board and keeps us laughing amidst the pain.

Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring St., downtown; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru May 16. (213) 489-0994, ext. #107.  http://www.thelatc.org A Playwright’s Arena and Latino Theatre Company Production.  (Mayank Keshaviah)

[via LA Weekly]