Writing about something like the One-Hour Theater Challenge, CTCs’ current offering, is a bit like trying to nail a bag of jelly to the wall – there’s no way to keep it contained or centered. In one sense, it’s a new play festival, with short works written primarily by CTC company members and associates. In […]
Playwright David Ives is a polarizing figure: audiences either love him or hate him. His work often has an irreverence that some find hilarious and others find off-putting. At his best, Ives can be as funny as Monty Python, as in his classic six-minute short play Philip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread (performed by […]
I always believed that big flashy musicals don’t work in intimate black box theaters. You need the large stage, the cat walks and the separation of the house from the stage. I am happy to announce that Academy Players’ production of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels has proven me wrong. This production envelops you in the world […]
With an ever-increasing number of new theater companies cropping up, fewer and fewer spaces remain in which they can perform. Salve Regina’s Reggie Phoenix has sidestepped that limitation by facilitating the opening of Newport’s Casino Theatre to accommodate a college-professional hybrid production of The Fantasticks that succeeds fairly well and ushers in a glorious new […]
Charles Shaughnessy, the stage and television veteran, is starring as Professor Henry Higgins in Theatre by the Sea’s new production of My Fair Lady, opening Jun 24. The story is based upon George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe. “It’s the best musical created,” said […]
Ocean State Theatre Company kicked off their summer season with Richard Dresser’s Rounding Third. And, while it has many funny moments, it falls a bit short of being a home run. Perhaps a solid triple. This baseball version of The Odd Couple pits the loud, gruff, “winning is everything” little league coach Don, played by veteran […]
Tony award winning Kinky Boots is at the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) thru June 14, and it’s a fast, funny and heartwarming show about the importance of being yourself. Charlie Price inherits from his father a shoe factory — a set beautifully designed by David Rockwell — and finds himself in way over his head. […]
Jukebox musicals are the theatrical equivalent of the mix tape. Sometimes, it’s just a collection of songs tossed in randomly for pure enjoyment and sometimes the songs are intended to flow together and attempt a narrative, an expression of intent using the songwriter’s words to convey something other than the original tune’s meaning. Mama Mia […]
The newest offering closing out the 51st season at Trinity Rep is, in a word, beautiful. Melancholy Play: A Chamber Musical is the latest world-premiere from award-winning playwright Sarah Ruhl and talented composer Todd Almond. Almost completely sung-through, the play is not what one would typically think of when one hears the word “musical” — or […]
I often say that RI theater is more than a community, it is a family. Well that is literally true at the Newport Playhouse. Newport Playhouse has been a staple on the island since 1983, and this family-run business does everything possible to make sure each patron feels special. The host with the most, Jonathan Perry, […]