Marilyn Monroe was a world famous sex symbol and one of Hollywood’s top movie stars in the 1950s, and nearly 55 years after her death, she remains a major cultural icon. Barbara Schweitzer’s MM is a surreal psychodrama that takes place inside Monroe’s mind in the moments following a drug overdose on the night of […]
There are some shows that launch their performers into stardom. Then, there are shows that are themselves launched into stardom by their performers. If/Then is definitely an example of the latter. It ran on Broadway in 2014, and its primary draw was its star, Idina Menzel. Just coming off of her Frozen fame, it was the perfect […]
It’s a bold move for a play to begin with a joke told in Portuguese and offer no translation to the audience. But that’s just what The Clean House, currently playing at Contemporary Theatre Company, does. The play is a whimsical journey through fantasy and reality, love and loss, class and gender. The audience begins […]
Directed by Rachel Hanauer and co-created by she and Jeff Blanchette (both of whom were lead actors in the production, alongside co-stars Sarah Dunn and Angela Jajko), I Love… What’s His Name? is a delightful musical take on the all-too-often confusing world of dating in the age of Tinder, Grindr and selfish, apathetic people. […]
Young Frankenstein is a cheerfully silly musical featuring excellent performances and superb choreography, performed May 5 through 7 at the Stadium Theatre. The show was adapted from the 1974 film directed by Mel Brooks, who wrote the music and lyrics. Frederick Frankenstein, a brilliant but eccentric scientist, inherits his grandfather’s castle and encounters a […]
It’s always a treat to head to The Arctic Playhouse, and it is especially nice when the show on the stage is a Daydream Theatre production, the resident theater of The Arctic Playhouse. Lenny Schwartz celebrated his 30th birthday with a production of an original play he wrote, so it was only fitting that […]
I love seeing new theater, mainly because I never know what to expect! Sure something can be billed as a comedy, but maybe it’s not that funny. Something can be billed as poignant, but maybe it’s really kind of flat. It’s exciting as an audience member to sit there as the lights come up on […]
Counter-Productions Theatre Company has a history of choosing relevant plays that create discussion. Their latest production, Lonely Planet by Steven Dietz, does not disappoint. You don’t want to miss this incredible two-man show running through May 7 at AS220’s Black Box at 95 Empire. Lonely Planet is a lovely statement on friendship, memory and fear […]
Neil Simon is one of America’s most successful playwrights for a reason. He is skilled at crafting funny dialogue and memorable characters while reflecting our common humanity. That is why it is sad to report that Rumors, now being presented by Swamp Meadow Community Theatre, is one of Simon’s weaker efforts. The talented cast […]
Chicago is a musical with a lot of punch. This sizzling production with songs by the famed composers Kander and Ebb tells the tale of vixens Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly in the world of 1920s Chicago. Roxie shoots her no-good lover and hires hotshot attorney Billy Flynn to defend her in court. While […]