A legendary holiday-film perennial and thrilling song-and-dance showcase for Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye will be brought to theatrical life when Rock Island's Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse presents the eagerly awaited return of Irving Berlin's White Christmas, its November 9 through December 30 run treating audiences to a Tony-nominated treat featuring timeless Berlin hits in “Blue Skies,” “Happy Holiday,” “Let Me Sing and I'm Happy,” and “I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm.”

A 1957 film classic currently ranked by Internet Movie Database voters as the fifth-greatest movie of all time, Sidney Lumet's riveting 12 Angry Men will be given a fresh spin at Moline's Playcrafters Barn Theatre from November 4 through 13, with 12 Angry Jurors delivering a gender-blended take on a work described by the New York Times as a "taut, absorbing, and compelling drama that reaches far beyond the close confines of its jury-room setting."

Boasting funny, memorable songs and characters who, according to Broadway World, are "funny, touching, and powerful because they're realistic," Motherhood: The Musical enjoys its area-debut run at Moline's Black Box Theatre November 3 through 12, this four-woman stage hit lauded by Stage & Cinema as "a perfect show for groups of women who want to attend a bright and funny revue that showcases their domestic experiences with humor and some insight."

A surreal thriller and pitch-black comedy that will enjoy four performances in the days before Halloween, the student-produced The Pitchfork Disney will run October 27 through 30 in Augustana College's Honkamp Myhre Black Box Theatre, author Philip Ridley's work lauded by London Theatre as a play “for those who completely and wholly enjoy confrontational and edgy theatre. If you’re looking for a chilling play that will haunt you for the next 24 hours in the best possible way, then you’d better pick up some tickets."

For Augustana College's first show of its 2022-23 season, director and professor of theatre arts Jeff Coussens, his skilled cast, and creative staff have taken on Tartuffe – and have triumphed.

If Halloween is approaching, it must be time for that annual theatrical command: “Let's do the 'Time Warp' again!” Consequently, the Circa '21 Speakeasy will stage its seventh-annual presentation of the cult-musical smash The Rocky Horror Show from October 21 through 30, treating audiences to live performances of classic songs in this nutty, interactive experience that has been delighting show regulars and virgins alike for close to 50 years.

One of the most famous and beloved comedies in the history of world theatre will enjoy a rousing comeback when Rock Island Augustana College stages Molière's 1664 classic Tartuffe, its October 13 through 16 bringing the French playwright's vision to life in a delightful, rhyme-scheme adaptation by Richard Wilbur that previously starred such acting legends as John Gielgud, Derek Jacobi, and Joan Plowright.

The 1999 winner of the United Kingdom's Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Play, Conor McPherson's arresting and chilling drama The Weir enjoys an appropriate-for-Halloween run at Iowa City's Riverside Theatre from October 14 through 30, the work praised by the New York Times as “beautifully devious” and by the Evening Standard as “a modern masterpiece.”

On Saturday night, I had the great pleasure of introducing a friend to The Producers. Her only prior knowledge of the show was me incessantly singing “Springtime for Hitler” at her and my assurances that the musical was funny. And director and Spotlight Theatre co-owner owner Brent Tubbs and his talented cast of 29 held up their end of the bargain, offering a virtual – and visual – smorgasbord of humor.

If you were to tell me a marriage could teeter on the brink of destruction simply due to the addition of a dog … I’d have countered that no one would let canine conflict get that far. Only that’s exactly what happens in the Playcrafters Barn Theatre's production of Sylvia, written by A.R. Gurney and directed by Kathy Graham. Friday’s performance ultimately left me feeling like I am killing it with marriage, as both my husband and I agree on our position on getting a dog: While they’re great, dog ownership simply isn’t for us.

Pages