FAIRY TALE THEATRE: 18 AND OVER: 100% – SWEET

The Inkewell Theatre Company presents Pauroso and J. Michael Feldman in "Fairtytale Theatre 18 and Over" at the Matrix Theatre. Credit: Lew Abramson.

SWEET
No doubt that Feldman has a genius for seeing the absurdities of life and his choice of depicting them through animals and other non-human entities is inspired. No matter how many layers he uses to cover reality, one can suspect the intended target and half the fun is connecting what one sees on stage to real life experiences one may have had. The SRO crown on opening weekend gave the troupe a standing ovation. You should go see what all the shouting is about!
Jose Ruiz – Reviewplays

SWEET
What follows is a raucous, madcap eighty-minute evening of very naughty allegories and rather psychotic parables, like “The Squirrel and the Squirrel”, “The Bi-Polar Bear and the Co-Dependent Eskimo”, “The Bee Who Didn’t Want to Hurt Anybody”, “Kurt the Spider”, “The Centipede Who Had to Make it There in One Day”, “The Monkeys and their Pets”, concluding with a squalling sockdolager of a finale in “The Cloud who was into Weird Shit”.
Earnest Kearney – Working Author

SWEET
J. Michael Feldman defines a whole new type of “triple threat” by writing, puppeteering and acting in Fairy Tale Theatre: 18 & Over, this 90-minute barrel of monkey-filled laughs.
Mayank Keshaviah – LA Weekly

SWEET
Under Annie McVey’s direction, the proceedings aren’t groundbreaking or consistently original — the Groundlings do similar things on a regular basis. For all of Feldman’s talent, a whiff of personal showcase lingers between the guffaws. Yet he’s extremely talented, as are his fellow lunatics, and very funny. The moral of this “Fairy Tale”: Make reservations and leave the kids at home with “South Park.”
David C. Nichols – LA Times

SWEET
Ree-dic-u-lousss!!! So over the top, “Fairy Tale Theatre – 18 & Over” really works at keeping the audience entertained — alternately howling, enchanted, and grossed out for 85 intermission-less minutes!
Gil Kaan – Culture Spot LA

SWEET
Two viewings maybe needed since large parts of the show will be missed due to the long bouts of laughter.
Erica White – Socal

SWEET
Fairy Tale Theatre: 18 and Over is an anomaly, a joy, a riddle, a fable, a foible, and a big surprise; it’s wickedly delightful and the closest thing to perfection you can find on the stage, big or small. It is brilliantly conceived, well written and well played in a world where we’re lucky to get even one of those three.
Ceebs Bailey – LASplash

SWEET
Feldman doesn’t really need to assume an phony-sounding English accent and moniker as the emcee, but once you get past that slight roadblock, the show becomes funnier and funnier, with impeccable caricatures by Feldman, three puppeteers/actors and four women who come and go, depending on the sketch.
Don Shirley – LA Stage Watch

SWEET
I’m going to open my review with some sage advice: Don’t drink anything before this show as there’s no intermission and you’ll likely wet your pants from all the gut-wrenching laughter. Also, (and this is for the ladies), plan to schedule a Botox injection to rid yourself of those new laugh lines you’ll have after this show. Other than that, all the advice you’ll need about how to circumvent the tricky waters of adulthood is in this clever mash-up of moralizing tales UNsuitable for younger audiences but a crack-up for everyone else who could benefit from absurdly wise guidance.
M.R. Hunter – EyeSpyLA

FAIRY TALE THEATRE: 18 AND OVER
Inkwell Theater
At the Matrix Theatre
7657 Melrose Ave., Hlywd.
Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; thru Feb. 11, 2012
Tickets: $12-$25; (323) 852-1445