Just Like Us Review

Like a movie’s long shot zooming in on a closeup, Just Like Us, by Karen Zacarías, makes the public personal. Part documentary, part gripping drama, the play both teaches and entertains.

The long shot is of U.S. immigration policies; the closeup is on their impact on four teen girls in Colorado: Marisela (Blanca Isabella), Yadira (Newt Arlandiz), Clara (Noelle Franco) and Elissa (Valerie Rose Vega). Two are citizens and two are undocumented, and that, to paraphrase “The Road Not Taken,” makes all the difference.

The girls are approached by journalist Helen Thorpe (Elyse Mirto), a “White lady” and the wife of Denver mayor John Hickenlooper. She understands the major issues that send the girls down separate paths, that mean terror and lack of education funding for two, freedom of movement and scholarship offers for the others. She’s aware that these differences could possibly tear their friendships apart.

Thorpe proposes writing an article on how immigration laws affect young people. Marisela and Yadira, who are undocumented, worry about whether such an article would be safe, but Thorpe assures them that she will protect her sources. From then on, she is an ever-present note-taker and narrator. She sees the impact of hurdles of all kinds, and treats the girls with respect.

Thorpe goes on to publish a book about the girls, in 2009, on which this play is based. A few years afterwards, President Obama signs DACA , giving them a measure of safety, but no guarantees. DACA was born out of the failure of the DREAM Act, still in legislative limbo since its 2001 introduction.

The life of any typical teen girl is drama-filled, the lives of the undocumented exponentially more so. And the threat to high-achieving students unable to get their legal bearings is today even higher. During these fraught times, the 2000s-2010s feels almost quaint.

Just Like Us is playing at the Latino Theater Center as part of the esteemed company’s 40^th anniversary celebration. It is beautifully acted and staged, moving and involving and sometimes enraging. One element it does not need is the character of Thorpe. Her consistent presence, redundant narration and speech at the end shift the spotlight away from the girls and put her in the savior role. The story stands on its own, and does not need to be told through the voice of a third party.

Brenda Banda, Oscar Emmanuel Fabela, Saul Rodriguez and Sari Sanchez shine in multiple roles as mothers, college staff, politicians and others who hinder or support the girls.

Superb behind-the-scenes support is led by director Fidel Gomez, who manages a span of years and storylines, with an overlay of politics. Despite needing to transmit a lot of contextual information, it rarely comes across as exposition,. A cohesive, compelling design is effectuated by Francois-Pierre Couture (scenic design), Hsuan-Kuang Hsieh (projections), Robert J. Revell (sound), Maria Catarina Copelli (costumes) and Lee (Xinyuan Li) (lighting).

Just Like Us is performed on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00pm. and Sundays at 4:00pm through May 18. At the Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring St. downtown. Tickets range from $10–$48, and are available here. Parking is available for $8 with box office validation at Los Angeles Garage Associate Parking structure, 545 S. Main St., Los Angeles, CA 90013 (between 5th and 6th Streets, just behind the theater).

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Review

The next best thing to reading a Harry Potter story is seeing one onstage. Books and even movies don’t offer the immediacy and engagement of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The production, at the Pantages, sometimes shows up film with its awesome special effects:  The Dementors! The appearances, transformations and disappearances! The flying—and swimming! The wand techniques and time-bending effects! And the dance numbers! It’s gasp-inducing, even from a jaded audience largely populated with tweens and teens, who remain riveted throughout.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is not a musical, but music and movement elevate the experience. It’s a complex story, set 19 years after Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and is known as “the eighth story.” Harry and his friends are all grown up, their children starting at Hogwarts themselves. They have built-in affinities and aversions, all of which will be tested in the course of the play.

Harry (John Skelley) and his wife Ginny (Trish Lindstrom) and Hermione Grainger (Ebony Blake) and her husband Ron Weasley (Nathan Hosner) take their children to Track 9¾ at King’s Cross Station. Albus Potter (Emmet Smith) and Rose Granger Weasley (Naiya Vanessa McCalla) get on the Hogwarts Express, where they meet Scorpius Malfoy (Aidan Close). When both Albus and Scorpius are hat-sorted into Slytherin, their friendship coalesces.

Life as the son of Harry Potter, now Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Magic, isn’t easy for Harry. Like any celebrity’s child, he is the victim of preconceived notions and jealousy, plus his own need both to fit in and to prove himself.

The second-generation story stands on its own, but is given depth through the familiar history of the first generation. Since my own memory of the Potter universe was a little rusty, I wish I had known about this resource that gives context to what’s happening onstage. The in-the-know audience gasped at the appearance of Professor Umbridge (Katherine Leask), for example; she was unknown to me.

It’s magical—including some dark magic—from start to finish, and the large cast is well-utilized to keep things moving and create a real/fantasy world. Yet at its core is a classic father-son tale. Delphi Diggory (Julia Nightingale), impressed by Harry Potter remarks, “We don’t choose who we’re related to.” And yet, shortly after her comments, Harry and Albus have a rift that takes the remainder of the drama to resolve itself.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, by Jack Thorne, comes from an original story by Thorne, J. K. Rowling and John Tiffany the show’s uber-talented director). The play premiered in 2016 as a two-part, six-hour extravaganza in London; it continues to run there in this configuration. On Broadway, it won the Tony award for Best play. Among the many who deserve applause are set designer Christine Jones, Movement director Steven Hoggett, composer and arranger Imogen Heap and sound designer Gareth Fry. Lighting designer Neil Austin kept things dark, emphasizing the gothic set and making the magic that much more magical.

Condensing the plot to just under three hours required extensive exposition, often deadly in a play. Here, it is is handled gracefully, through a series of short scenes that start to feel like pages turning in a book. The time travel provides alternate realities and a sense of danger. It’s a fully engrossing and even immersive experience. I was only occasionally taken out of it to wonder, “How did they do that?”

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child runs through June 22 at the Pantages Theatre, 6233 Hollywood Blvd. Tickets range from $55 to $160 and can be purchased here or at the box office (open daily from 10:00am until show time) to save Ticketmaster fees. Purchase two tickets for $99 using this link. A limited number of $30 day-of-show tickets will be made available (while supplies last) for all performances; check the website for availability.