Review: Pocket Sandwich Theatre’s "Captain Blood"
Dallas’ intimate dinner theater venue, the Pocket Sandwich Theatre, recently served up a lively dish of sea-salty swashbuckling action with “Captain Blood-The Pirate Melodrama”.
This three-act comedic spoof play, written by one of the theatre’s late founding fathers, Joe Dickinson, and directed by Michael Speck, takes the audience on an energetic high sea swashbuckling adventure with lively song and dance, sword fights, and, of course, pirate mischief and romance.
Review: "Propeller"at The Pleasance Courtyard during the Edinburgh Fringe
In this modern age, we see younger generations become disengaged with the world around them. Rather than focusing and talking about important issues, they would rather discuss who won Love Island, what the Kardashians named their latest child and boast about the latest snapchat filter. However, at the Edinburgh Fringe, the Scottish Drama Training Network’s ensemble have devised a brilliant piece of theatre with their director, Caitlin Skinner, which emphasizes that the younger generation should feel empowered to make a move if they feel dissatisfied on issues that matter to them.
Review: "The Glass Menagerie" at Theatre on the Ridge
Theatre on the Ridge’s production surface dives initially and then spirals downward deeply into the very being of a disintegrating family.
Off-Broadway Review: PTP/NYC’s “The Possibilities” and “The After-Dinner Joke”
PTP/NYC’s thirty-second season includes two plays by the company’s “usual suspects.” The double bill, currently running at Atlantic Stage 2, includes four of the ten short plays in Howard Barker’s 1987 “The Possibilities” and Caryl Churchill’s 1977 “The After-Dinner Joke.” Both offerings invite the audience to grapple with provocative content that often seems elusive and controversial and that raises numerous essential, enduring questions.
Snaps to the Hawthorne Players “Legally Blonde: The Musical”
The Hawthorne Players present “Legally Blonde: The Musical” at the Florissant Civic Center Theatre. The story follows the story of “Elle Woods” who gets scorned by her boyfriend and decides to change herself in order to win him back. That includes being admitted to Harvard Law school. The story is based off the film released in 2001, which is based off the novel by Amanda Brown also released in 2001.
Review: "Hand to God" at TheaterWorks
I always appreciate TheaterWorks’ selections being edgy and unconventional, and their latest offering, Hand to God, meets the mark. All the advertising warning about its content is there for a reason; this is not your grandmother’s Sunday matinee. Hand to God is outrageous beyond measure; so much so that at times it’s difficult to catch your breath either from laughing or sheer awe. What makes this play unique is its layering of profane absurdity; just when you think its ungodly cup hath spilleth over, more impious antics flow forth.
A UK Review in [exactly] 250 Words: "Sweet Charity" at the Watermill Theatre
Sweet Charity, currently playing at Newbury's Watermill Theatre, is a fun, immersive and completely unique production. Performed by a very strong cast of thirteen actor-musicians, this show will draw you in, make you laugh, and surprise you more than once.
Sweet Charity is not at all what you would expect from a 1966 musical. The Watermill Theatre's production of this classic feels fresh and new, and draws out relevant, topical themes (particularly gender equality), whilst maintaining a fantastically fun, jazzy and mischievous vibe.
Broadway Review: “Straight White Men”
When entering The Hayes Theater to see “Straight White Men, the audience is bombarded by loud music – so loud, one cannot speak to one’s neighbor. Person in Charge 1 (more later) approaches to ask if the music is too loud. If one answers ‘yes,’ one gets a free set of earplugs. If one answers ‘no,’ one finds out later that they are “privileged.” The audience learns in a pre-curtain sharing that the loud music (now stopped) is meant to make the audience feel uncomfortable. The only discomfort is the ensuing ninety-minute new play by Young Jean Lee.
UK Review: "Summer Holiday: The Musical"
The iconic 1963 film Summer Holiday, starring a young Cliff Richard, will have undoubtedly provided some relief to the rain-sodden Brits in the more than likely cold February of its release that year. In recent years, building on the success of the much-loved film, its story has found a new life on stage, having now been adapted into a musical. As I walked into the Leeds Grand Theatre, where I managed to catch it on its national tour, I looked forward to experiencing the summertime vibes the show promised to drench its audience with – I’m sure this would definitely make it the hottest summer we’ve had in England for a very long time…
Off-Broadway Review: “The House That Will Not Stand” at New York Theatre Workshop
Beartrice Albans (a resolute and Machiavellian Lynda Gravátt) spent her life under the oppressive laws that governed people of color in the colony of Louisiana. Specifically, she was Lazare’s placée a status that allows her as a woman of color to set up common law households with a white man to circumvent legal prohibitions. Beartrice’s mother signed the papers that placed the young woman into this form of indentured servitude. Lazare, of course, was married to a white woman although he and Beartrice had three daughters together. In “The House That Will Not Stand” at New York Theatre Workshop, Marcus Gardley examines what happens to Beartrice and her daughters when Lazare dies (mysteriously) and new American laws – post Louisiana Purchase in 1813 – threaten to leave them homeless and living in poverty. Is there any chance of survival for the house Beartrice “built” during her time with Lazare?
Review: Hershey Felder Unveils "Beethoven"
At the age of nine, while attempting to play one of Beethoven’s most recognized and beloved piece’s Fur Elise, Hershey Felder developed an interest in one of the world’s greatest composers.
Not only is Felder a brilliant actor, concert pianist, storyteller, he also is a historian. Right now at The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, he is telling a masterful story about the life of Ludwig van Beethoven.
Review: "It Shoulda Been You" at SCC Center Stage Theatre
"It Shoulda Been You" is a charming musical about a wedding that goes wrong and then right and then wrong and then right again. A modern love story, the plot is fast paced and has many moving parts. Center Stage Theatre completes the season with a top-notch production.
Review: Fun and Endearing “SCHOOL OF ROCK” Surprises at Segerstrom Center
When it comes to seeing a fresh new show with low or even non-existent expectations, nothing is more pleasurable and satisfying than walking out at the end of it with a huge, beaming smile on your face and a somewhat gobsmacked feeling of "my gosh, I can't believe I really liked what I just saw!"
Review: Pure entertainment now plays on The Winnipesaukee Playhouse stage with their production of Mamma Mia!
It was not a perfect performance, but live theatre is rarely all together perfect and that is one reason why people love it so much. It’s fresh, exciting and anything can happen; just like life. The audience couldn’t get enough and stood loudly applauding not only during curtain call, but again through and to the end of the encore. Direct quotes from the audience after the show: “Wow”, “Excellent”, “So much fun”, “I loved it” and many more positive comments. If you need a break from a reality of stress and strife, go see this immensely enjoyable production.
Review: "Annie" at The Muny
‘Annie’ continues the 100th season at The Muny in St Louis. The musical set in the time of the Great Depression is about an orphan named ‘Annie’ (Peyton Ella) who is selected by billionaire ‘Oliver Warbucks’ (Christopher Sieber) to stay with him in his mansion for Christmas. Both Ella and Sieber have amazing solos and fantastic chemistry as we follow the plot.
Review: "Barnum" at Prince William Little Theatre
While many of us are still awestruck over the smashing success that was The Greatest Showdown, we might forget that it wasn’t the first musical to deal with P.T. Barnum, nor was it the most accurate musical to do so. The great folks at PWLT, possibly cashing in on the subject’s popularity, mounted a very entertaining production of Barnum. Barnum, as the name suggests, follows the life and tribulations of P.T. Barnum, spanning decades and focusing mostly on what happened behind the scenes of his illustrious circus. It begins with Barnum in a low-profile sideshow, attempting to sell “Humbug” to as many people as he can, then we slowly see him become more and more successful, leading to his museum purchase. After that, we see tragedy after betrayal after tragedy as Barnum must ultimately figure how to go about his love of the circus.
Off-Broadway Review: “Mary Page Marlowe”
Under Lila Neugebauer’s exquisite direction, the actors playing Mary Page each give intriguing performances that focus on the pastiche of one “ordinary” American facing the dangers inherent in leaving “the crib” and separating and individuating from the nuclear family.
Review: “The Ugly Kids” at the Fresh Fruit Festival
There are several people out there who are dealing with some sort of eating disorder, which is having a significant impact on their health and their day to day lives. Chances are, even if you don’t have an eating disorder yourself, there’s a strong chance that you know someone who does. It’s just like any other mental illness, and deserves far more attention and discussion than it is currently getting from society. Thankfully, The Ugly Kids – one of several outings at this year’s Fresh Fruit Festival – is here to try and shine some light on the effect this issue is having on young people.
Review: “Pass/Fail” at the Trans Theatre Festival
If there’s anything that should be apparent to most theatergoers by now, it is the fact that bigotry is alive and well in the United States. Despite the progress made for LGBTQ rights over the past decade, it’s clear that there’s still more that needs to be done, to ensure that everyone in our society is treated fairly and equally. That is especially true, when it comes to people who are transgender, and as Sandy Gooen’s poignant new play Pass/Fail points out, not even places such as theatre or music classes are guaranteed as spaces where people can fully express who they are.
Review: An Engrossing Production of August Strindberg’s "Creditors" Now Plays at Shakespeare & Company
August Strindberg’s tragic comedy Creditors is a fast-paced, psychologically intense look at life and the cost of relationships. In this adaptation by playwright David Greig, three characters must face their past choices, and in doing so come to the realization that their present state is a result of those choices. Through deception they come to realize the debts they owe others and the unfathomable cost of love. Strindberg, in his naturalistic style, is a master of balancing the darkness of a dramatic psychological thriller and an authentic, unapologetic comedy. The three veteran actors (Jonathan Epstein, Ryan Winkles and Kristin Wold) who have taken on this play under the incredible direction of Nicole Ricciardi have expertly captured each facet of their multidimensional characters. In doing so, they grabbed the audience’s attention from the onset and held it to the end.