by Adam M. Schenck Have you ever been sitting there in the audience, Live Theatre Goer, and wondered, “Why are there so few people here and so many people at home watching television?” Well, this critic has had that thought, and let me say that I can’t recall having a solid belly laugh at a…
Walking into the Southern Theater to see a retelling of a story first performed on stage over two millennia ago is a wonderful experience. The contrast of the exposed modern lighting and minimalist set pieces to the beautiful, century-old proscenium arch is a fantastic metaphor for the show itself, blending old and new. These are the Men is a…
By LIZ BYRON. Leah’s Train is officially the first play I have ever seen that included time travel without a trace of science fictioniness (real word). It’s also the first production I’ve seen that involved Jewish migrants during wartime that didn’t depress me, and one of the only times I’ve seen an actor under the age…
The Pillsbury Production of Death Tax: Living On By ADAM SCHENCK and BECKY HALAT Imagine a world where instead of death being the great equalizer, one can live on—“be preserved”—if one has the money to maintain care. Lucas Hnath’s script offers a somewhat frightening look at the future of elder care, showing the awkward discussions…
By LIZ BYRON. “So, what’s the play about?” a friend casually asked me, when I told her I’d seen Mixed Blood Theatre‘s production of HIR. It took me a moment to compose an answer for her, because this play is just so full of story that I didn’t even know where to start. It’s about gender identity and sexuality…
Open Eye Figure Theatre’s new production Nothing is Something is a sweet and thought-provoking piece of art. From the creative team of Noah Sommers Haas and Liz Schachterle (both the sole performers as well) we take a journey of exploration into a strange world. We begin with an explorer and a ball, spend some time in…
by CHRISTINE SARKES SASSEVILLE Stephen Schwartz of Wicked and Godspell fame and Director Diane Paulus have created a wildly entertaining and exhilarating revival of Broadway’s original 1972 Bob Fosse iconic version of Pippin, now at the Orpheum Theatre through Sunday. With soaring vocals, jaw-dropping acrobatics, charming and relatable characters and a cute kid and a dog, Pippin offers…
By LIZ BYRON. Project Opera’s Music of Mozart is described as “a Mozart Dance Party – 1980s style”. Picture teens with crimped hair, Madonna-inspired fingerless gloves, and neon t-shirts. Now picture 18th century high-piled wigs, bustles, and velvet waistcoats. Now mix them together, and add some Magic Flute, and you’ve got it. Project Opera is the youth training…
By REBECCA HALAT and ADAM SCHENCK. Time: is it a theme or a medium? The phenomenon of people living to unforeseen old age hasn’t been seen since biblical times, and old age is definitely ripe for investigation through the theatrical arts. Anyone who has visited an elder family member in an “old folks’ home,” or…
by MICHAEL J. OPPERMAN Act I opens on a piazza floating in a bucolic Italian countryside. As idyllic as a scene from a Sophia Loren movie. Field workers and townspeople move around the square. We see our first glimpse of Nemorino (Leonardo Capalbo), the erstwhile hero of the story. Expressive and charismatic, Capalbo wanders the…
