News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

Shari Barrett - Page 4

Shari Barrett

Shari Barrett, a Los Angeles native, has been active in the theater world since the age of six - acting, singing, and dancing her way across the boards all over town. After teaching in secondary schools, working in marketing for several studios, writing, directing, producing, and performing in productions for several non-profit theaters, Shari now dedicates her time and focuses her skills as a theater reviewer, entertainment columnist, and publicist to "get the word out" about theaters of all sizes throughout the Los Angeles area.

As a 20-year member of the Board of Directors for Kentwood Players at the Westchester Playhouse, one of the thriving community theater groups in Los Angeles, as well as writing for Broadway World LA, Stage and Cineme, and as the Stage Page columnist with Lan Newspapers, Shari is dedicated to promoting theaters of all sizes in the city. Shari has received recognition from the City of Los Angeles for her dedication of heart and hand to the needs of friends, neighbors and fellow members of society for her devotion of service to the people of Los Angeles, and is honored to serve the theater world in her hometown.




LEARN MORE ABOUT Shari Barrett

First Show:

South Pacific

Favorite Show:

Man of La Mancha

Favorite Stories:



Interview: Peter Knell and Stephanie Fleischmann on Their New Opera ARKHIPOV at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
Interview: Peter Knell and Stephanie Fleischmann on Their New Opera ARKHIPOV at the Kirk Douglas Theatre
October 18, 2022

Even though I was very young, I still remember the tension in the air at school and at home during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. And just today, news of the current Cold War going on between Russia and the rest of the world regarding Ukraine, with even Elon Musk warning the world about possible nuclear war breaking out. So it seems very fortuitous that Peter Knell and Stephanie Fleischmann have created a heart-stopping experience set in a submarine during the crisis of 1962. Their new opera ARKHIPOV is based on the true story of the man who saved humanity from nuclear annihilation during a tipping point between Russia and the United States in the Cuban Missile Crisis. But what motivated them to create an opera about such a terrifying moment in world history? I decide to speak with them and find out.

Interview: Writer/Director Catherine Butterfield on the World Premiere of TO THE BONE Presented by Open Fist Theatre Company
Interview: Writer/Director Catherine Butterfield on the World Premiere of TO THE BONE Presented by Open Fist Theatre Company
September 26, 2022

Open Fist Theatre Company is presenting the world premiere of To the Bone, a darkly funny comedy about family, baseball, and genetics, written and directed by Catherine Butterfield. The play centers on sisters Kelly Moran and Maureen Dugan from the 'Irish Riviera' south of Boston, where they were known as 'hard girls' back in high school. And since the adage says that it's better to write about the things you know, I decided to ask Catherine Butterfield about how much of her own personal life is reflected in the play and what it's like to write and direct it herself.

Interview: Carla Ching on the World Premiere of her Play REVENGE PORN OR THE STORY OF A BODY
Interview: Carla Ching on the World Premiere of her Play REVENGE PORN OR THE STORY OF A BODY
September 23, 2022

Carla Ching is among the first three recipients to win the Los Angeles New Play Project Award, which supports playwriting and producing in smaller Los Angeles theaters. Her new play, Revenge Porn or the Story of a Body, opening September 23 at The Pico, directed by Bernardo Cubría for Ammunition Theatre Company, was originally developed as part of the 2021 Ammo Writers' Lab. It takes a very public look into the private lives of people who hurt the ones they love most, and how or if revenge should be taken to offset the pain. I decided to speak with Carla Ching about the play and how it was developed for its world premiere.

Interview: Bart DeLorenzo on Directing Richard Eyre's Adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's GHOSTS
Interview: Bart DeLorenzo on Directing Richard Eyre's Adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's GHOSTS
September 7, 2022

Odyssey Theatre Ensemble is presenting the Los Angeles premiere of what may be Henrik Ibsen's most controversial play, Ghosts, adapted by acclaimed British director Richard Eyre and directed by Bart DeLorenzo, a Los Angeles-based theater director and producer who is the founding artistic director of the Evidence Room theater, a 17-year-old company renowned in Los Angeles for contemporary theater productions. I decided to speak with Bart about what led him to direct this new adaptation at the Odyssey Theatre Ensemble.

Interview: Katelyn Schiller and Nick Rheinwald-Jones on Their Immersive Interactive DRAGON SHOW: THE EXTENDED TAIL
Interview: Katelyn Schiller and Nick Rheinwald-Jones on Their Immersive Interactive DRAGON SHOW: THE EXTENDED TAIL
September 7, 2022

Dragons... fairies... knights... enchanted meadows... spooky caves... all part of an immersive experience into your favorite childhood fantasies in Spy Brunch's site-specific adventure, Dragon Show: The Extended Tail. Filled with original songs and a memorable cast of characters, just 12 audience members will be admitted into each performance to enjoy the kind of intimate and memorable experience that immersive theatre delivers best. As a true fan of the genre, how could I resist a production such as this? So, I decided to speak with Katelyn Schiller and Nick Rheinwald-Jones, writers/producers/directors from Spy Brunch to find about more about them and the creation of their immersive fantasy world.

Interview: Michael A. Shepperd on Taking on a Dual-Race Double Role in VALLEY SONG
Interview: Michael A. Shepperd on Taking on a Dual-Race Double Role in VALLEY SONG
August 25, 2022

VALLEY SONG by South African master playwright Athol Fugard is two-actor, three-character play in which Michael A. Shepperd takes on the roles of Abraam Jonkers, a mixed- race old man who has been a pumpkin farmer his entire life, and The Author, a White man who wants to buy the land where Abraam lives and works, potentially leaving him homeless. And since these roles were originally doubled by Fugard himself, I decided to speak with Michael A. Shepperd about preparing for such a challenging artistic endeavor.

Interview: Getting to Know Barry Pearl on his Third Time Directing 13 THE MUSICAL
Interview: Getting to Know Barry Pearl on his Third Time Directing 13 THE MUSICAL
August 11, 2022

Panic! Productions, along with Born To Perform Studios and BarCinBoo Productions, Inc. have announced that Barry Pearl will once again direct their late summer teen musical 13, this time at the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center. This will be Pearl's third time working with Panic! Productions and also his third time directing the musical on the West Coast. I decided to speak with Barry about his connection to the teen musical and what inspired him to direct it for the third time, as well as how it may differ from his previous incarnations.

Interview: Meg Lin on Developing Her Solo Show WHAT AM I, CHOP SUEY?
Interview: Meg Lin on Developing Her Solo Show WHAT AM I, CHOP SUEY?
June 29, 2022

Prior to pursuing her childhood dream of becoming an actor, Meg Lin was a former K-12 teacher, school principal, college professor, and non-profit CEO. But along the way, she struggled finding her true identity as a Chinese American as the first in her family born in the U.S. In her original solo play What am I, Chopped Suey? Meg shares how she struggled to defy cultural norms to 'save face' while coping with challenges she went through to overcome stereotypes and redefine what it means to be Asian in America. I decided to speak with Meg about how universal her first-generation American tale will resonate with so many, as well as her plans to continue presenting it as an Encore selection from this year's Hollywood Fringe Festival.

BWW Interview: Multi-Talented Actor Ron Bottitta on his roles in WAKINGS! at the Odyssey Theatre Ensemble
BWW Interview: Multi-Talented Actor Ron Bottitta on his roles in WAKINGS! at the Odyssey Theatre Ensemble
April 21, 2022

The ability to totally transform yourself into the physical, emotional and intellectual persona of another person so believably that audience members will see the character and not the actor is one of the most fascinating elements of live theatre to me. This is especially true for actors I follow, seeing them in several productions and always being surprised at the new person presented in front of me, often having nothing in common with the real personality of the actor. One such actor is Ron Bottitta, an English-born actor who has called the USA his home since 1980, who I spoke with about his characters in WAKINGS! at the Odyssey Theatre,

BWW Interview: Director Elisabeth Tsubota on the World Premiere of LIVE AT THE PURPLE LOUNGE
BWW Interview: Director Elisabeth Tsubota on the World Premiere of LIVE AT THE PURPLE LOUNGE
April 20, 2022

Crimson Square Theatre Company is presenting the world premiere of Live at the Purple Lounge, a drama by five talented female playwrights featuring a cast of five women (plus a few men) involved at a stand-up comedy club. I decided to speak with playwright/director Elisabeth Tsubota about her experience working with the all-female writing team and almost exclusively female cast to bring the production to the stage.

BWW Interview: Sona Tatoyan on her Multimedia Theatrical Experience AZAD at the Pico Playhouse
BWW Interview: Sona Tatoyan on her Multimedia Theatrical Experience AZAD at the Pico Playhouse
April 15, 2022

During the darkest of times, surprise discoveries of childhood joy can allow the sunshine in on even the bleakest of situations. And with Ukrainian refugees in the news daily, when I heard about Sona Tatoyan's Multimedia Theatrical Experience AZAD ('free' in Armenian) which offers 'one woman's magical, multi-generational, healing journey from the Armenian Genocide to the Syrian war,' I decided to speak with her about her creative journey to, as she shares, 'find the brightest light from the deepest shadows, while living in an upside-down world.' And we can all understand living in that type of situation given the past two years. Performances April 21-22-23 at the Pico Playhouse.

BWW Interview: GMCLA Executive Director & Producer Lou Spisto on QUEEN OF THE NIGHT at UCLA Royce Hall
BWW Interview: GMCLA Executive Director & Producer Lou Spisto on QUEEN OF THE NIGHT at UCLA Royce Hall
March 30, 2022

GMCLA's next long-anticipated event, QUEEN of the night, featuring the greatest hits from the critically acclaimed legendary rock band Queen, mixed with opera and high-energy dance numbers performed by the Chorus, live, in-person at UCLA Royce Hall on Saturday, April 2 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, April 3 at 2:00 p.m. To find out more about the production, I spoke with GMCLA Executive Director & Producer Lou Spisto about the creation of this special event concert

BWW Interview: Director Bob Turton on Bringing CAN'T PAY? DON'T PAY! Back to The Actors' Gang After Two Years
BWW Interview: Director Bob Turton on Bringing CAN'T PAY? DON'T PAY! Back to The Actors' Gang After Two Years
March 12, 2022

After two years of most people living in at least semi-isolation, with many unemployed through no fault of their own, the Actors' Gang is returning to the stage with a re-mounting of Can't Pay? Don't Pay! written by Nobel Laureate Dario Fo and Franca Rame on March 19, 2022, with previews beginning March 12, exactly two years from the day the theater was shuttered and had to suspend this hilarious production. Fo's high-energy, satirical farce is again directed by Bob Turton, and I decided to speak with him about the journey he has taken with the production, especially what it's been like waiting for two years to bring the play back to its original location.

BWW Interview: Playwright France-Luce Benson on the World Premiere of DETAINED at the Fountain Theatre
BWW Interview: Playwright France-Luce Benson on the World Premiere of DETAINED at the Fountain Theatre
February 18, 2022

Certainly, almost every American can talk about how we are descendants of immigrants who dreamed of living in a free country and did whatever was necessary to arrive on our shores. As a direct descendant of four grandparents and one parent who escaped from Eastern Europe in the early 20th Century, when I read about the Fountain Theatre presenting the world premiere of DETAINED, written by The Lily's 2021 Lorraine Hansberry Award-winning playwright France-Luce Benson, 'a gripping new docudrama composed of a compilation of true stories that explores the rippling impact of mass deportations on families,' I knew I wanted to speak with her about her inspiration and vision for the play.

BWW Interview: Playwright/Director Sharon Yablon of A GARDEN OF TERRIBLE BLOOMS
BWW Interview: Playwright/Director Sharon Yablon of A GARDEN OF TERRIBLE BLOOMS
February 2, 2022

Interview with award-winning playwright/director Sharon Yablon whose love of surrealism, noir and the darker side of Los Angeles led to the creation of A GARDEN OF TERRIBLE BLOOMS, which offers a dreamlike tour of short plays led by characters through a city that is vanishing, even as they move through it. Each play is set in a different part of L.A., or in nearby places where locals go to escape the city, but find themselves still haunted by it.

BWW Interview: A.P. De La Caridad, Travyz Santos Gatz, and Tor Brown of COLOROPOLIS at Loft Ensemble
BWW Interview: A.P. De La Caridad, Travyz Santos Gatz, and Tor Brown of COLOROPOLIS at Loft Ensemble
February 1, 2022

The world premiere of COLOROPOLIS, written by A.P. De La Caridad, directed by Travya Santos Gatz and Tor Brown, opens this Friday, February 11 at 8pm and runs through Sunday, February 27 only at Loft Ensemble, located at 11031 Camarillo Street in North Hollywood, 91602. Here is my interview with the talented trio on their vision for the production and the process of bringing it to the stage.

BWW Interview: Playwright/Director Michael Leoni on FAMOUS THE FILM
BWW Interview: Playwright/Director Michael Leoni on FAMOUS THE FILM
January 6, 2022

Michael Leoni, a writer, bi-coastal director, and founder of the production company An 11:11 Experience, has created productions both on stage and in film which have brilliantly focused attention on the pitfalls of modern society, especially in the entertainment industry and on homeless street kids. Since it's been over a year since I have spoken to him, I decided to reach out about the recent opening of his film Famous as well as what has been going on in his artistic world this past year.

BWW Interview: Brian White on Co-Hosting the 62ND ANNUAL L.A. COUNTY HOLIDAY CELEBRATION
BWW Interview: Brian White on Co-Hosting the 62ND ANNUAL L.A. COUNTY HOLIDAY CELEBRATION
December 22, 2021

Brian White is co-hosting this year's 62nd Annual L.A. County Holiday Celebration to be broadcast live from the stage at The Music Center's Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Friday, December 24 from 3 p.m. - 6 p.m. The program will air on PBS SoCal on Friday, December 24 and stream on PBSSocal.org, KCET.org and holidaycelebration.org. Out of an abundance of caution given the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases, there will be no live audience at the event. For more information, including a complete list of scheduled performers, please visit holidaycelebration.org

BWW Feature: My Magical Retro Movie Experience at the El Capitan Theatre
BWW Feature: My Magical Retro Movie Experience at the El Capitan Theatre
December 11, 2021

As a kid growing up in Los Angeles, the greatest movie town in the country (if not the world), I remember how special it was to attend Saturday movie matinees with my cousins in the late 50s and early 60s. But it was not until I attended the special Dapper Opening Night Fan Event on Thursday, December 9th just prior to the December 10th opening of WEST SIDE STORY at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood that those childhood memories were rekindled, thanks to the magical retro world created not only within the theater but the neighborhood itself.

BWW Interview: Playwright Inda Craig-Galván on A HIT DOG WILL HOLLER at Skylight Theatre
BWW Interview: Playwright Inda Craig-Galván on A HIT DOG WILL HOLLER at Skylight Theatre
November 30, 2021

In partnership, Skylight Theatre Company and Playwrights' Arena have launched the first of four World Premiere productions for the 2021/2022 Season with Inda Craig-Galván's play A HIT DOG WILL HOLLER. Read my interview with her about the process of bringing the play to life onstage at the Skylight Theatre.



        4       …    




Videos