items tagged with Jalayne Riewerts

The Reader's chief theatre reviewer, Thom White, saw and wrote about 52 area stage productions in 2011. I saw 39 and reviewed 12. Obviously, during our second-annual breakfast chat on the Year in Theatre, there was a bit to talk about.

As suggested by the title, the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre’s current offering, Sex Please, We’re 60, involves men and women of a certain age and their libidos, but thankfully it maintains a modicum of decency by placing the “action” off stage. The piece also features many clichéd jokes and absurd situations, but while I cringed at the images conjured by the title, it’s when the work is at its (relatively) raunchiest that the play and the cast work best.

To paraphrase one of Big River's best-known lyrics, I've been waitin' for the men to shine on the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre stage all summer long. In my estimation, and with the exception of a few notable performances - Antwaun Holley in Rent, Michael Oberfield in Show Boat - the male actors haven't really held their own against the female actors this season. That is, until Big River; on Saturday night, every single male performer in Mark Twain's boy-centric tale of Huck Finn offered a noteworthy performance.
Read More About Model Twain: "Big River," At The Clinton Area Showboat Theatre Through August 8...

At the end of Act I at Saturday's Clinton Area Showboat Theatre presentation of Noises Off, the couple sitting next to me said they weren't going to stay for the remainder of the play. (They, along with the rest of the audience, hadn't laughed all that much during the first portion of this comedy.) Apparently, however, the two changed their minds during intermission and did stay - and it was a good choice, as the show grew progressively funnier over the next two acts.

Character confusion makes for an enjoyable, lighthearted comedy in Richmond Hill Barn Theatre's current summer offering, Funny Valentines. And though the opening-night performance had a slow and somewhat shaky start in terms of line deliveries, the actors quickly settled into their roles and let their characters' quirks shine through.
Read More About Romper Room: "Funny Valentines," At The Richmond Hill Barn Theatre Through June 13...