A New Brain Reviews
Stage and Cinema- Recommended
"...The show is great, yes, but it is the vocals that truly soar under Nabours' musical direction, especially those harmonies. The best is when the entire cast is engaged in the MRI procedure ("Sitting Becalmed in the Lee of Cuttyhunk") and Gordon's remembrance of his dad ("And They're Off"). And within the show's frantic framework, Foster - who keeps the show moving with stunning blocking - still allowed the 95-minute one-act to breathe. Truly glorious direction."
Stage Scene LA- Highly Recommended
"...Gender-expansive casting revitalizes William Finn's New Brain, now being given the most gloriously imaginative of intimate revivals by Celebration Theatre at the Los Angeles LGBT Center."
Stage Raw- Highly Recommended
"...When your brain is in trouble, what happens to everything that makes you, you? Composer William Finn wrote the semi-autobiographical musical A New Brain after an arteriovenous malformation in his brain landed him in the hospital and threatened to end his life before he could complete his life's work. In an exuberant production directed by Khanisha Foster, Celebration Theatre (in association with the Los Angeles LGBT Center) delivers a polished and downright fun version of this truly singular piece."
Ticket Holders LA- Recommended
"...This particular musical is a daring choice for Celebration's return, especially with a spirited cast of 10 crowded onto the Center's charming but teenyweeny Davidson/Valentini stage where director Khanisha Foster and choreographer Alli Miller-Fisher have done yeoman's duty keeping their cast from banging into one another in about an 18-by-30-foot playing space."