10 Jun 2019

My Love(s), There's Only You (Both) in My Life … : “A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder,” at the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre through June 16

By Pamela Briggs

The Clinton Area Showboat Theatre's production of A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder is likely the most purely entertaining show I've ever seen. Everything exists to delight, laugh at, or marvel over – as long as you can accept murder as entertainment, which humanity has been doing for at least 2,500 years of recorded history.

10 Jun 2019

The Girls of Gilead: "The Spitfire Grill," at the Spotlight Theatre through June 16

By Madeline Dudziak

During Friday’s opening-night performance, Megan Warren’s voice pierced the darkness to begin the Spotlight Theatre’s production of The Spitfire Grill, her immaculate a cappella vocals grabbing the audience’s attention before the music and lights even dared join her. Before her first song “A Ring Around the Moon” ends, you’ll be entranced by Warren’s depiction of Percy, if not for her plight of starting over after being released from prison. then because the folksy music so perfectly suits her voice.

10 Jun 2019

Seasons of Love Songs: "Holiday Inn," at the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse through July 20

By Rochelle Arnold

Paraphrasing from the latest presentation at the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse, “If you need musical medication, the Holiday Inn fills the prescription." And June 7's opening night for this Irving Berlin spectacle was certainly therapeutic, delivering a fantastic, high-energy, fast-paced, never-a-dull-moment performance. With its seasoned dancers and strong vocals, you'll thoroughly enjoy this production. It does not disappoint.

03 Jun 2019

Spirited Hijinks: "Blithe Spirit," at the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre through June 9

By Madeline Dudziak

Is it a success or a failure when a ghost appears during a séance if you don’t actually believe in the occult? The Richmond Hill Players allow you to decide for yourself with their latest production: a delightful take on the ghostly comedy Blithe Spirit.

03 Jun 2019

Bubbles, Bubbles, Tail, and Troubles: "The Little Mermaid," at the Timber Lake Playhouse through June 16

By Rochelle Arnold

Mermaids seem to be popular with the kids nowadays. There are local advertisements for actual swim lessons in which children wear mermaid tails and are instructed on how to navigate the water. And Saturday’s matinée-under-the sea-performance of Disney's The Little Mermaid at the Timber Lake Playhouse had tiny-tyke patrons all dressed up in their mermaid tails and crowns just so they could be like their favorite princess Ariel. What a fun way to kick off the inaugural show in the theatre’s 2019 summer season!

20 May 2019

Brace(let) Yourself: New Ground Theatre’s “American La Ronde,” at the Village Theatre through May 26

By Madeline Dudziak

It’s an unfortunate tale you’ve heard a lot lately: The Village Theatre, home of New Ground Theatre, wound up with water in the basement this past month. But “The show must go on!” is a cliché for a reason, and Friday's opening-night performance of American La Ronde, indeed, went on as planned to recap the romantic journey of a single silver bracelet.

13 May 2019

Sesame Treat: “Avenue Q,” at the Playcrafters Barn Theatre through May 19

By Pamela Briggs

Though it expresses both the highs and lows of life, the Playcrafters Barn Theatre's Avenue Q – the three-time Tony winner with music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx and book by Jeff Whitty – is an uplifting treat overall, packed with superb performances.

06 May 2019

Stars, in Their Multitudes: “Silent Sky,” at the Black Box Theatre through May 12

By Pamela Briggs

The Black Box Theatre's Silent Sky, by Laura Gunderson, is uplifting and brilliantly executed. First produced in 2010, the play follows the adult life of far-seeing astronomer Henrietta Leavitt beginning in the late 19th century. Because she is a woman, she's only allowed to do “scut” work – categorizing and cataloging thousands of stars; a daunting task. However, she used the drudgery to pursue and discover a shining truth which changed our understanding of the universe.

06 May 2019

Some People Call Him the Space Cowboy: “The Little Prince,” at the QC Theatre Workshop through May 19

By Madeline Dudziak

In author Aaron Randolph III’s brand-new adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s classic tale The Little Prince, we’re immediately introduced to Aviator (Randolph) as he tells us a tale from his past, in which he crashed his plane and met a boy, Little Prince (Daniel Rairdin-Hale), who is traveling from planet to planet. Aviator and Little Prince have a lot to learn from each other, and this charming production serves up many life lessons.

29 Apr 2019

Barbara Park Avenue: “Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook,” at the Circa ‘21 Dinner Playhouse through May 18

By Madeline Dudziak

I’ve got to hand it to director Kimberly Kurtenbach, who expertly captured every child’s attention before last Thursday’s performance of the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse's Junie B. Jones Is Not a Crook by blasting the ever-popular Baby Shark. When the dance party was cut off for pre-show announcements, the room full of smiling children was already fully engaged and ready to be wowed.

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