New York Critic

Determined - An Intimate Evening of Influence and Prophecy written, produced and performed by Kent Axell At the LATEA Theater Kent Axell bills himself as a mentalist, a mind-reader and a liar. His show Determined is a remarkable collection of sleights-of-hand, a series of superb tricks couched in theatricality. Much of the material shows his powers of clairvoyance. The evening I attended, at the top of the show, Axell instructed a fellow in the audience yell to yell “Stop!” during the show at whatever time he chose. Then Axell set a clock and placed it in a large envelope. Our audience member yelled “Stop!” at 8:42. Nothing extraordinary so far. But at the end of the show Axell took the clock out of envelope and showed us that he had set it at 8:42. Great! Much of the show, in fact, was reviewed at the end. At the beginning of the show he showed us a scroll that he placed in a box that was lifted up to the flies. At the end of the show he unrolled it and we could see that...

An Intolerant Vaudeville Presented by The Secret Theatre as part of the Unfringed Festival Written by Wendy Biller, Chris Hawthorne and Sam Viverito Original music by Ronnie Lawson Lyrics by Ronnie Lawson, Wendy Biller and Chris Hawthorne Conceived and directed by Sam Viverito An Intolerant Vaudeville is a variety show exploring stereotypes and prejudices. It has jugglers and singers and a one-act play, among other acts. They all make for an interesting show. It begins with one of its best acts, The Juggling Act – “The Fat Lady don’t Sing”. It presents, along with the jugglers and The Fat Lady, The Dwarf and The Transvestite. It has the show’s best song, in which our friends are given predictions at birth: “You’re going to be fat”, or “short”, or “strange”, as the case demands. Fortunately, The Fat Lady does sing, and we’re treated to Robin Lounsbury’s extraordinary voice. The next act is a parody a job interview. The Interviewee is smart enough to give all the answers...