By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) With the rapid rise of blatant antisemitism in the world today, there is probably no better time than now for the presentation of Moisés Kaufman and Amanda Gronich’s Here There Are Blueberries. A finalist for this year’s Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the play is a modern, scientific […]
By AARON KRAUSE If you look closely at the program for Palm Beach Dramaworks’ (PBD) polished and poignant production of the touching historical drama, Trying, you’ll notice a tilted “g.” This occurs not only on the program’s front cover, but inside. Possibly, the slanting letter symbolically suggests that we, as a society, are also slightly off […]
By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) James Bartelle, a founding member of The NOLA Project, has written a number of original works for the troupe of young, innovative performers through the years. These include their highly imaginative The Spider Queen performed in the outdoor splendor of the New Orleans Museum of Art’s Sidney […]
By ANNE SIEGEL MILWAUKEE, WI – The Broadway Series at the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts concludes its 2023-24 season with a bang. No, this is not a reference to the confetti-spewing walking stick owned by the impresario in Moulin Rouge! The Musical now playing in Milwaukee for a two-week run (May 14-26). It […]
By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) In what may be the greatest bit of casting for a national tour in decades, Rob McClure, the Tony-nominated actor brought his A game to the stage of the Saenger Theater as Mrs. Doubtfire began playing out nightly to what should rightfully be sold out shows. What […]
The American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League, sponsors of the Tony Awards for excellence on the Broadway stage, were announced on Tuesday, April 30. The awards will be presented on Sunday night, June 16, and broadcast over the CBS network and livestreamed over Paramount+. BEST PLAY Jaja’s African Hair Braiding Jocelyn Bioh, playwright Mary […]
By LOU HARRY While many companies have responded to the challenges facing post-lockdown theater by offering minimally cast shows and/or feel-good entertainments, the storied Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis has taken a very different approach. Through May 25, it’s offering not one but three – well, technically four but with two combined – of Shakespeare’s interconnected […]
By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Playwright Michael Frayn claims he got the inspiration to write Noises Off in 1970 while watching a comedy he had written unfold backstage. It occurred to him in several ways that much more of the action off stage was the stuff of a better comedy as actors […]
By ANNE SIEGEL War is hell, they say. But the months leading up to war can also be a kind of hell, as demonstrated by the characters in From Here to Eternity, a new musical that opened recently at Skylight Music Theatre in Milwaukee. The mundane reality of military life in the Hawaiian Islands before […]
By ALAN SMASON While the Academy Awards buzz was mostly about “Oppenheimer” and “Poor Things,” a smaller film starring Anthony Hopkins – “One Life” – was distributed a few weeks ago and is still playing if you can find it in area theaters. Starring Sir Anthony Hopkins as the aged Nicholas Winton, the now 86-year-old […]