By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) When it was announced that Ricky Graham would be in the director’s chair for Hello, Dolly! at Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts several months ago, there was anticipation this could have been one of the best versions of the Jerry Herman classic to ever grace a…
By ALAN SMASON, Special to Theatrecriticism.com For the past two decades, Stogie Kenyatta has researched, performed and perfected his one-man show The World Is My Home – The Life of Paul Robeson on stages across the globe. With a running time of nearly three hours including a 15-minute intermission, the two-act vehicle permits Kenyatta to perform…
By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) When President Dwight David Eisenhower was interviewed by historian Stephen Ambrose for his eventual official biography “Eisenhower: Soldier and President,” he made a startling statement. “Andrew Higgins was the man that won the war for us,” Eisenhower claimed, “because we had no boats anywhere at the outset…
By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) There are times when the special effects in Beetlejuice, the latest musical to occupy the historic space at the Winter Garden Theatre on Broadway, occur at such a dizzying pace, one can only compare them to serotonin and dopamine, the potent chemicals that douse the brain during…
By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) There is a point in the resolution of Garson Kanin’s Born Yesterday when the character of Paul Verrall blurts out “I know you. I’ve seen your kind down here for years. What the hell do you guys want, anyway? You’ve got all the oil and all the lumber…
BEST PLAY MORE INFO The Children The American premiere of a new play by Lucy Kirkwood. Author: Lucy Kirkwood MORE INFO Farinelli and the King Mark Rylance stars in this new play with music by author and composer Claire van Kampen about a Spanish monarch on the brink of madness who finds unexpected solace in the…
By AARON KRAUSE BOCA RATON — On the Playbill’s cover, gold, upper case letters spell out the title of the enchanting musical playing at The Wick Theatre and Costume Museum through April 8. If the gold coloring and capitalization are coincidence, they’re appropriately symbolic. That’s because we need a “Brigadoon” these days. It’s difficult not…
By HARRY DUKE Musicals are the bread and butter of community theatre. They’re usually crowd pleasers and, with their large casts, can bank on a crowd of family and friends to fill a good portion of the house. They require a certain amount of space and a certain level of talent. Directors often cast for…
By ALAN SMASON, Theatre Critic, WYES-TV (“Steppin’ Out”) Although he only lived to be 39, Thomas “Fats” Waller produced one of the most impressive volumes of popular music during the swing period of the 1930s and 1940s. With his characteristic stride style on the piano, he took jazz and popular music to new heights it…
