LA Weekly

Opening This Week

BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON Broad comedy and painful irony bring to life the tale of the larger-than-life Andrew Jackson. Kirk Douglas Theatre, 9820 Washington Blvd., Culver City. Opens Jan. 20; perfs Tues.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2 p.m.; Sun., 1 & 6:30 p.m.; thru Feb. 17. No perfs Feb. 5-8. (213) 628-2772, www.­centertheatregroup.org.

THE $4 MILLION GIVEAWAY Art Shulman's seven-character murder mystery. Lonny Chapman Group Repertory Theatre, 10900 Burbank Blvd., N. Hlywd. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m.; thru March 8. (818) 700-GURU, www.lcgrt.com.

FRANKIE & JOHNNY IN THE CLAIR DE LUNE Diner waitress Frankie and short-order cook Johnny, both middle-aged, question the limits of love. Hudson Mainstage Theatre, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., Hlywd. Opens Jan. 19; perfs Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 7 p.m. thru March 1. (323) 960-7863, www.plays411.com/frankie.

HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH The hit rock musical tells the story of the botched sex change of Hedwig Schmidt. MET Theatre, 1089 N. Oxford Ave., Hlywd. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 8 & 11 p.m.; Sun., 7 p.m.; thru Feb. 24. (323) 960-1055, www.­plays411.com/hedwig.

THE LAST DAYS OF DESMOND NANI REESE: A STRIPPER'S HISTORY OF THE WORLD A young feminist academic conducts a series of interviews in 2014 in a post-quake, post-drought L.A. with a legendary 108-year-old stripper. BANG, 457 N. Fairfax Ave., L.A. Opens Jan. 19; perfs Sat., 8 p.m.; thru Feb. 23. (323) 653-6886.

THE LAST DAYS OF JUDITH ISCARIOT A dark and comedic tale examining the limbo between heaven and hell. Theatre 68, 5419 Sunset Blvd., L.A. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 6 p.m.; thru Feb. 24. (323) 960-7827, www.­plays411.com/lastdays.

MARAT/SADE The persecution and assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as performed by the inmates of the Asylum of Charenton. Knightsbridge Theater, 1944 Riverside Dr., L.A. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru Feb. 16. (323) 667-0955, www.­knightsbridgetheatre.com.

PROVE IT ON ME New Orleans voodoo and Harlem blues come together with a romance of a white socialite and black blues singer. Stella Adler Theatre, 6773 Hollywood Blvd., Hlywd. Opens Jan. 19; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru March 2. (323) 960-7721, www.­plays411.com/proveit.

RAY BRADBURY'S INVISIBLE BOY An evening of three short plays based on Bradbury's stories. Fremont Centre Theatre, 1000 Fremont Ave., South Pasadena. Opens Jan. 19; perfs Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru Feb. 9. (323) 960-4451, www.­plays411.com/raybradbury.

R. BUCKMINSTER FULLER: THE HISTORY (AND MYSTERY) OF THE UNIVERSE A portrayal of the groundbreaking inventor, engineer and inventor drawn from his writings and life. Rubicon Theater, 1006 E. Main St., Ventura. Opens Jan. 19; perfs Sun., 2 p.m.; Wed., 2 & 7 p.m.; Thurs.-Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2 & 8 p.m.; thru Feb. 10. (805) 667-2900, www.­rubicontheatre.org.

THE ROAD TO RMI The tale of an alcoholic doctor and his troubled teenage son. LIZARD THEATER, 230 W. Main St., Alhambra. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; thru Feb. 9. (626) 403-1177, www.­lizardtheater.com.

ROMEO'S GHOST A romantic mystery with an eerie appearance by a supernatural force. Complex Theater, 6470 Santa Monica Blvd., Hlywd. Opens Jan. 19; perfs Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru March 9. (818) 786-1045, www.­romeosghost.com.

SAY YOU LOVE SATAN A gay occult comedy about the affable Andrew and his boyfriend of the damned. The Attic Theatre and Film Center, 5429 W. Washington Blvd., L.A. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m.; thru Feb. 24. (323) 525-0600 ext.2, www.­plays441.com/satan.

VINCENT Leonard Nimoy's play delves into the close relationship of Vincent van Gogh and his brother Theo. Miles Memorial Playhouse, 1130 Lincoln Blvd., Santa Monica. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; thru Feb. 10. (310) 393-3018, tickets@­theatreforasmallspace.com.

WHITE TRASH CATHOLIC CIRCUS Amy-Louise Sebelius' one-woman show (with six other actors) about Jesus, road trips, grad school and '80s music, naturally. Lyric-Hyperion Theater, 2106 Hyperion Ave., Silver Lake. Opens Jan. 18; perfs Fri.-Sat., 10 p.m.; thru Feb. 16. (562) 852-6821, www.­tix.com.

Larger Theaters

A CHARLIE JAMES BROWN CHRISTMAS This new holiday effort by the Troubadour Theater Company is a loving poke at Charles Schulz's TV cartoon classic featuring characters from his "Peanuts" strip. Schroeder (Matthew Morgan) tinkles out Vince Guaraldi noodlings on a tiny piano, and soon, the program swings into gear, powered by hits from soul godfather James Brown. The show is funny, but even at under an hour and a half seems 20 minutes too long. Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside Dr., Burbank; Wed.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sat.-Sun., 4 p.m.; Sun., 7 p.m.; thru Jan. 20. (818) 955-8101. (SM)

CINDERELLA New take on the classic tale, music and lyrics by Lloyd J. Schwartz. Theatre West, 3333 Cahuenga Blvd. West, L.A., Sat., 1 p.m.; thru March 29. (323) 851-7977.

THE COLOR PURPLE Book writer Marsha Norman and composer-lyricists Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray's stage adaptation of Alice Walker's 1982 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is a surprisingly faithful and melodic compression of Walker's epistolary narrative about a Southern black woman (Jeannette Bayardelle) beaten down almost from birth, but whose resilience allows her to survive. Although Act 2 suffers from an inevitable sugar rush, director Gary Griffin gets great efforts from a huge ensemble. A Center Theatre production. Ahmanson Theatre, 135 N. Grand Ave., dwntwn.; Tues.-Fri., 8 p.m.; Sat., 2 & 8 p.m.; Sun., 1 & 6:30 p.m.; Sat., 6:30 p.m.; Thurs., March 6, 2 p.m.; thru March 9, no eve perfs Feb. 3 & March 9. (213) 628-2772, www.centertheatregroup.org. (SM)

THE DEADLY GAME James Yaffe's mystery-thriller reflects the bleak view of its source material, Friedrich Dürenmatt's novel Trapps. In a chalet in the Swiss Alps, a group of retirees acts out trials of their own devising — assuming that everyone is guilty of something. Unfortunately the thrills are few, and director Autumn Browne's production often fizzles. Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m.; thru Feb. 3. (562) 494-1014. (NW)

A FEMININE ENDING Plays about music are notoriously disappointing, and Sarah Treem's wry meditation on the challenges facing a young "classical" composer about to marry a pop star proves no exception. Treem aims for profundity, but only truisms emerge from her intermittently engaging discourse on talent and compromise. The shortcomings are elemental, for we never learn why Amanda (a perky Brooke Bloom) wants to write symphonies and concertos, or what she hopes to express through music — only that she wants to be famous. And why is Amanda an oboist? Most composers play the piano or a string instrument. Amanda's scrumptious fiancé, Jack (the hunky Peter Katona), exists mostly as eye candy, parading around in black briefs for one, um, arresting scene. His rival, Billy (Jedadiah Schultz in Dennis Miller mode), is little more than a plot device, albeit a welcome funny one. Only the radiant Amy Aquino — as Amanda's mother, Kim — truly enlivens things. Overbearing but loving, Kim tries to get Amanda to chart her own course and not make the same mistakes she did. Director Timothy Douglas moves both actors and props easily about SCR's typically well-appointed stage, but he never makes us believe a thing. SOUTH COAST REPERTORY, 655 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa; Tues.-Sun., 7:45 p.m.; Sat. & Sun., 2 p.m.; thru Jan. 27. (714) 708-5555. (David Mermelstein).