Okay, that's twice now in about one week — here and here. Iin both of these theater reviews — from local papers — the phrase "does justice" appears in the headline (or sub-headline).
As in:
Cast does justice to long-running Broadway show
and
Triad Stage's Oleanna does justice to Mamet's vision
Does justice? I don't know what that phrase means. Is theater-going a trial now?
It's one of those flat, dishwatery phrases that bad newspaper editors use when they can't think of anything better. (I actually don't fault the reviewers here — they don't necessarily choose their headline titles). Seriously, it's high school newspaper style.
It really means nothing more than "So-and-so put on a play that is like the original version". Well, yes, Einstein. That's usually the case. After all, they're using the same script and all.
That phrase comes off as a backhanded insult, i.e., "Well, at least they didn't fuck up Moliere by wearing tu-tus and sporting afros." But if you look at the reviews above, they are positive, so why can't the headline contain something a little less namby-pamby?