The Road Theatre presents “Kaiju”

One of the things I appreciate about The Road Theatre is that it’s not afraid to go big and try different stuff. Over the past couple of decades, The Road has produced shows about dragons, demons, vampires, ghosts, Lovecraftian entities and underserved literary characters taking control of their stories, along with plenty of excellent but less outré fare. I go to The Road because its quality is consistent, it puts on compelling plays, and, for lack of a better word – it’s fun. This leads me to its current show (a co-production with BroadStage), Dan Caffrey’s Kaiju, a story at least partly about giant monsters destroying Los Angeles. It’s a wildly creative piece that is sharp and funny, brilliantly directed by Ken Sawyer and skillfully performed by a terrific cast.

North Hollywood is in ruins. The Hollywood sign barely stands, the Capitol building and Hollywood Bowl are trashed – even the El Portal and Road theaters are not immune to the destruction. The culprits for all this are rampaging giant monsters, Goliath (Leandro Cano) and  Apex (Cherish Monique Duke), who stomp upon tanks, swat away fighter jets and generally crush humanity with a vengeance. Once they meet, however, they start talking about how they may be misunderstood, and they compare notes as to their similar experiences. The two creatures bond quickly, but that may not be good news for Southern California.

Cano is very good and sympathetic as the apologetic Goliath, who didn’t mean to step on people or destroy things. Duke is charmingly wicked as the more openly monstrous Apex, flirting with Goliath and teaching him how to be a better behemoth. They both commit completely in their big monster costumes, and their dance scene together is delightful. Jon Snow is hilarious as the dim and excitable Roy, and Ann Hearn is perfectly earnest as the humorless teacher, Maggie. Gabie Faulkner steals the show as Lee with her beautifully delivered rant, the subject of which is shockingly amusing.

The main achievement of Ken Sawyer’s direction is that he takes an ambitious show that could easily become chaos and manages to make everything clear and effective. His work with the large, talented ensemble is detailed and expert, and everything from big, goofy gags (Goliath uses the Hollywood Bowl in an… unexpected way) to tiny character moments succeed admirably. Lacey Anzelc’s turntable set is exquisitely apocalyptic, and the monster costume designs from Shealyn Biron and Lee Diemer are terrific.

Caffrey’s script is smart, humorous and quite clever. The subjects it discusses are unexpectedly diverse, from the true Japanese meaning of the word “kaiju” to the moral culpability of a famous film director, from the possible mating habits of gigantic monsters to some pointed jabs at theatre itself. His dialogue is often funny, as when a dramaturg is encouraged to do their thing, “Put your dramaturg hat on and start ‘turgin!”

Kaiju is an accomplished and entertaining production that proves once again how lucky we are to have The Road Theatre doing its thing in L.A. This show is a blast.

Kaiju is presented by The Road Theatre Company and BroadStage at The Road Theatre in NoHo through November 1, 2026. Tickets are available at https://roadtheatre.org/