Casa Manana kicked off their 60th season of bringing Broadway and children’s theatre to Fort Worth with a captivating, high-energy performance of the 14-time Tony Award-winning classic, Hello, Dolly!, based on Thorton Wilder’s 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers.

Last summer, I had the chance to see many of the shows that were participating in the 10th annual Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. There were many intriguing selections, not all of which I had the chance to see, unfortunately. Among such shows which I had been hoping to see, at the time, was Girl Inside the Mirror, a new theatre-dance piece from writer/director Nicoletta Mandriotti. Thankfully, however, I recently had the chance to see it during its second run at Theater for the New City – as part of their annual Dream Up festival – upon being invited to review the show.

There’s a lot of impressive history behind the Duplex Cabaret Theatre. I remember when I first went there to see a friend perform in her own show this past summer, and seeing and hearing about all the past legends – from Joan Rivers to Woody Allen – spent their early careers in this legendary venue. Of course, like any venue that has so many guest performers, it’s fair to assume that for all the good performers, there are also the bad ones. Every so often, however, there are also the performers who aren’t bad, but aren’t phenomenal, either, which is what I was treated to this past weekend.

Jim Cartwright’s acclaimed play Road has long been considered one of the greatest representations of a struggling 1980s Britain, where communities banded together to fight against the drudgery and monotony of the often bleak daily grind via the channel of whiling away the midnight hours with drinking, partying and sex. In short, Road marks a turning point in British history, where new cultural resilience gave rise to something greater, more developed and poised to tackle new challenges. The same can be said of the newly renamed Leeds Playhouse, which has now entered its brand new season, and while the old building is currently being refurbished, they’ve taken over one of the old scenery workshops and transformed it into a pop-up theatre space. Minting this new space is the aforementioned Road, directed by Amy Leach.

Last month, I had the opportunity of seeing All the Kings Horses, a relatively short but brilliant drama at Shetler Studios’ Bridge Theatre which revolved around the highly important issue of domestic violence. It was just the most recent work from the prolific writer/director Pamela Scott, who is clearly keeping busy this summer, as she immediately followed it up with the return of a previously produced, critically acclaimed one-act, now playing at the Hudson Guild Theatre as part of the New York Theatre Festival’s 2018 NYSummerfest.

In recent years, an increasing trend I’ve noticed in independent theatre is one of artists taking the short stories of legendary writers from the 19th and early 20th centuries, and adapting them for the stage, in the hopes of re-introducing these stories to new generations. Some of these adaptations have generally been more impressive than others. However, In the Penal Colony – based on the short story by Franz Kafka of the same name – certainly stands out, in that goes further than other such works, in terms of how creative they are with the way they depict the story.

Manhattan Repertory Theatre is known for frequently hosting the short play productions of new playwrights, over the course of the entire year. For the sake of full disclosure, I will say that I myself had my 1st play in NYC produced at Manhattan Repertory Theatre nearly two years ago, and my personal experience with them has been highly positive. So when I was recently invited to review another writer’s short work at Manhattan Rep this past weekend, I admit I was quite intrigued.

The Background Notes informed us that playwright Rosamund Small, a recent graduate of the Soulpepper Academy, adapted Edith Wharton’s Bunner Sisters for the stage. It’s heartening to know that Soulpepper trains its’ graduates to continue their craft on home base territory within the two theatres here at the Young Centre. As the pieces continue to be picked up, let’s hope there is more opportunity for theatre of this calibre.

When you think about it, we’re not all that different as human beings. We love, we argue, we solve problems, we grow and evolve, we may feel jealous occasionally, the list goes on and on. For anyone reading this review, I have a hard time believing how that would be a disagreeable assessment of the human race. Less certain, however, is whether these feelings are also felt universally among insects, such as larvae and butterflies. Yet in the new play Larvae, the clear and definitive answer is “yes”.

Whenever I see a play promote itself as a “serious comedy”, I admit that my gut reaction is almost always half enthusiastic and half skeptical. Enthusiastic because I love plays that make me think about serious issues just as much as I love a good laugh, but skeptical because of how challenging it can be to pull off the perfect balance of being hysterical without being too serious, and vice versa. As I was watching the so-called “serious comedy” Suicidal Life Coach, one of several new plays being presented at the Hudson Guild Theatre this summer, I was reminded of why this is how I often react that way.

I believe the best way to describe the sensation one gets when experiencing the Broadway stage musical adaptation of multi-platinum selling recording artist Gloria Estefan's life story is to actually use one of her very famous songs: "The Rhythm is Gonna Get You."

For the past few years, there’s been an ongoing debate throughout the United States and Europe over whether or not to accept refugees from Syria and other Middle Eastern nations in turmoil, and if so, how many. Often, those who support either barring or limiting the welcoming of these refugees cite the need to put the care of their home nations first and foremost, above all others. However, when watching a show such as HAK – a new one-act drama from Berkay Ates, which recently completed its residency at HB Studio – it’s only harder to see how anyone could argue that failing to care for refugees is anything but terrible for humanity.

This year's Edinburgh Fringe has many fantastic shows. I have seen a variety of different shows, I have already reviewed SDTN's fantastic 5 star production, Propeller and The Lyceum's stunning 4 star production of Waiting for Godot. However, I have also managed to see more great shows that I would definitely recommend.

The moral turpitude of those who “consume” is in the spotlight in Lillian Hellman’s 1936 “Days to Come” currently running at Mint Theater Company at Theatre Row’s Beckett Theatre. On the surface, Hellman’s second play focuses on the dispute between labor and management in the small town of Callom, Ohio where Andrew Rodman’s (willful but wimpish Larry Bull) family brush factory has been shuttered by a strike. Because Andrew has a close relationship with the workers, he would like to see the strike end; however, he cannot afford the increase in wages being demanded by those workers. His sister Cora (a whining and wistfully weak Mary Bacon) does not want the strike to end.

In 2016, a small theatre company in New York made waves when they presented an all-female production of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest in Central Park and Prospect Park. For the most part, the attention it received had little to do with it being an outdoor performance, or even that it was an all-female cast. Rather, it was because the entire cast performed the show sans clothing. The following summer in 2017, Torn Out Theater would return with an all-male production of Hamlet, also performed outdoors and in the nude. This year, however, the company decided to take things in a slightly different direction, with a mixed-cast nude performance of a play by history’s first recorded professional playwright.

More details are available at https://capitoltheatre.com/.Although the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale was first published nearly 200 years ago, the version of the Little Mermaid that most people have ingrained in their minds is that of the hugely successful Disney animated film that started the Disney Renaissance of the late 80s and early 90s. The version of The Little Mermaid that is now being produced by the Port Hope Theatre Festival at the beautiful Cameco Capitol Arts Centre in Port Hope, Ontario, is the Disney telling, which was adapted for the stage and made its Broadway debut in 2008.

“Sometimes fate is like a small sandstorm that keeps changing directions. You change direction, but the sandstorm chases you. You turn again, but the storm adjusts. Over and over you play this out, like some ominous dance with death just before dawn. Why? Because this storm isn't something that blew in from far away, something that has nothing to do with you. This storm is you.” – Franz Kafka

Mental health and suicide prevention are issues of vital importance, and I’ve long believed that artists in theatre needed to do more to explore these issues, and to fuel a conversation around them. So naturally, as I was reading about Bryan Williams’ new musical Alex and Eugene, I had high hopes and high expectations. Unfortunately, while not a terrible show, much was left to be desired.

The world of political machinations took a precarious turn of events at the opening night production of Julius Caesar at Stratford’s Festival Theatre. Seana McKenna essays the role of the pompously doomed, Ides of March leader who returns victorious from a civil war against the forces of the rival general and statesman, Pompey. Caesar is welcomed back with a mighty popular acclaim from the Roman people. His friend, Mark Antony (a confident and bold Michelle Giroux), offers the crown to his ruler which becomes an issue of contention and alarm among a group of senators led by Brutus and Cassius (Jonathan Goad and a tightly solid performance by Irene Poole) who consider this move by Caesar as politically ambitious and a threat to the Roman government system.

Having premiered on Broadway in 2014, Terrence McNally’s incredible drama Mothers and Sons is now playing on the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre stage at Shakespeare and Company in the Berkshires. It is a timely play about the complexity of the relationship between a mother and her son. McNally skillfully crafts characters that seem all too familiar and yet we in the audience don’t see how events will unfold as we become engrossed in each scene. We laugh at the uncomfortable jokes they make in their effort to ease the tension that is building. We gasp at the harshness and bluntness of the things they say. We tear up when they break down in unbearable pain. We see our family members, our friends and our coworkers in the various facets of these characters. In this play about change, personal growth, acceptance of others and, without a doubt, love, we see a glimmer of hope and compassion come from the youngest character; who in his innocence and kindness, shows us that good can come from bad and love can be shown in the smallest of ways.