By F. Kathleen Foley

September 25, 2013, 10:47 a.m.

It has been proven time and again that the schoolroom is a ripe milieu for drama. There’s plenty of dramaturgical gold to be mined from memorable characters from the ideologically grandiose Jean Brodie in “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie,” to the sexually repressed Hector in “The History Boys,” to the disastrously remote Andrew Crocker-Harris in “The Browning Version,” to name just a few.

David West Read honors those predecessors in “The Dream of ...

It’s to scenic designer Erin Walley’s credit that she festoons the guidance counselor’s office at the high school where David West Read’s play is set with a poster that reads, “Face Your Problems, Don’t Facebook Them!!” In the wake of the sudden death of popular student Dane (Matthias Chrans), the decoration’s tone perfectly captures not only the characters’ reaction to Dane’s passing-slightly flip with an underlying sincerity-but also what each of them must ultimately do. This starts with Dane’s English ...

In David West Read’s 2011 play, The Dream of the Burning Boy, coming of age in the face of love, loss, and grief offers a poignant lesson for characters and audiences of various ages and stages of development. Initially produced by the Roundabout Theatre, in New York, Burning Boy has been produced across the country. Now, in its west coast premiere, The Dream of the Burning Boy ...

Malibu Playhouse: Worth the Trip

by Cynthia Citron

It’s a long drive up the Pacific Coast Highway to the Malibu Playhouse, but it’s worth it.

A new off-Broadway play is making its West Coast premiere there now and it’s beautifully written by David West Read, beautifully acted by an outstanding ensemble, and well directed by Edward Edwards.

The play is called The Dream of the Burning Boy -— a compelling title, but it isn’t exactly what the play is about. It’s a metaphor, from ...

by Tracey Paleo, Gia On The Move

The Malibu Playhouse opened its 2013-2014 season with a tour de force performance of The Dream of the Burning Boy, a West Coast premiere.

A previous 2011 Off-Broadway Roundabout Theatre Underground production, nominated for a Drama League Award and an Outer Critics Circle for John Gassner Award for a New American Play, “The Dream” written by David West Read, is brilliantly directed by ...