See it if If you want good singing and a show that ties out in the end. Small set.
Don't see it if Could have been cut down. A little to long. Story goes from good at times to long winded.
See it if You’d like a simple yet clever and moving story, told in gorgeous vignettes that ultimately come together. Great talent. Simply marvelous!
Don't see it if You can’t enjoy a simple story, told in parts by just two characters. Very simple set and costumes in my opinion just adds to the charm. Read more
See it if you'd enjoy superb singing that tells an interesting story with varied music by a good band with little staging in an intimate venue.
Don't see it if you want an extravagant musical with a lot of action by a large cast.
See it if you enjoy small musicals with live musicians. The plot has surprising twists & the performers are charming.
Don't see it if you have hearing problems. The voices don't always carry over the instruments and the story is mostly told in solo songs.
See it if you enjoy new musicals and LaChiusa's music specifically, two-handers that keep you guessing about the relationship, great acting & voices
Don't see it if You expect more from a musical than just two people seldom on stage at same time, have no interest in immigration, "found" family, addiction
See it if you like an original musical with two very good singers and actors who tell their stories mostly separately over 70 years.
Don't see it if you like a straightford story that doesn't go back and forth in time and sometimes gets confusing or you like hummable music. Read more
See it if Story told thru singing with two characters, and how their story contect. Lovely ending.
Don't see it if Don't see if you want a big show with a large cast. Simple staging.
See it if You love LaChiusa and enjoy small, intimate musicals and song cycles.
Don't see it if You dislike musicals that are short story vignettes strung together.
"The intimate 'Los Otros,' is more an art-song cycle than a musical. It simmers so gently it never reaches a satisfying boil."
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"What 'Los Otros' largely lacks is the engagement between characters that most plays and musicals naturally rely on for their dramatic pulse; having the characters take turns at center stage gives the show a certain metronomic structure."
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"As usual, LaChiusa gives us a sweeping score, with styles that seamlessly vary even between musical phrases. Fitzhugh's lyrics paint the vivid pictures that come to life in our mind's eye. But their final product is simultaneously too much and not enough: too much Lillian, not enough Carlos, and severely lacking in the development needed to intertwine their two stories in a dramatically satisfying way."
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For much of its running time, Los Otros appears to be the story of two perfect strangers; that they are linked by one degree of separation doesn't become clear until near the end. Instead, librettist Ellen Fitzhugh and composer Michael John La Chiusa gamble that we will be beguiled by the oddly similar experiences, unfolding across several decades, of a Californian woman and a Mexican immigrant. In less experienced hands, this format, consisting of intertwined monologues, could be tedious; thanks to Fitzhugh and La Chiusa, it has the quality of fine fiction, leading to an emotionally binding finale.
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"The show is presented with effective and minimalist design, which captures the shifting eras, moods and settings. The result is a sharp and incisive examination of people who are generally "othered" and often forgotten."
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A fresh antidote to the usual brassy, loud rock musicals of today, Los Otros slows down the tempo and the sound level with a story of the experiences of two people who learn to love, cope and risk over the course of many decades. Luba Mason and Caesar Samayoa are quite endearing as the two California residents whose lives overlap. They give remarkable performances mainly appearing alone on stage telling and singing their stories. Cudos to librettist Ellen Fitzhugh and composer Michael John LaChiusa for bucking the trend and giving us a deeply felt but small-scale musical revealing two people through variously well-chosen experiences which add up to lives well lived.
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"A warm, moving, and arresting piece."
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"Everything about this uniquely conceived and moving memory show, seen through the lens of two seemingly disparate lives, is naturally captivating and evocatively performed."
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