Beverly Friend

TREVOR, the Musical

This outstanding world premier musical, based on an Oscar-winning short
film, tells a coming of age story of a 13 year old struggling with his
sexual identity. While it is set in 1981 and times have changed, there is
still a universal recognition for all who have experienced the angst of
youth and remember the pain of being an outsider, the isolation of being
different. So important is the story that response to this brief film
(only 17 minutes in length) led to the Trevor Project —

Beverly Friend MUST SEE REVIEWS

Tom Williams

The Gin Game

Scrofano and Reeger — married thespians — are outstanding in their roles
and received a standing ovation. They follow in the footsteps of another
married pair of actors: Hume Cronin and Jessica Tandy whose Broadway
production, directed by Mike Nichols, deservedly won a Pulitzer Prize for
Drama in 1978 and was nominated for four Tony Awards. Others cast as the
sparring pair have included Charles Durning and Julie Harris; E.G.
Marshall and Maureen Stapleton, Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore, and
James Earl Jones and Cecily Tyson.

Beverly Friend MUST SEE REVIEWS Theatre Reviews

Tom Williams

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at Skokie Theater

Each of the youngsters is deliciously and yet endearingly flawed:
perfectionist overachiever Marcy Park (Shana Dagny), athletic,
hormone-driven Chip Tolentino (Mark Yacullo), and very touchy, stressed
out William Barfee (Dustin Rothbart).

Beverly Friend Florida Reviews

Tom Williams

The Kid from Brooklyn: The Danny Kaye Story

The musical is a pastiche of Kaye on and off stage, with little in tone or
impact to differentiate between the two. The best parts include his most
famous performances of such songs as “Deenah,” “Stanislavsky, ” “Anatole
of Paris,” “Mad Dogs and Englishmen,” and “Minnie the Moocher.” His best
on-stage moment is an emotional one with wife Sylvia after discussing the
possibility of children, when they embrace and dance, tenderly and
suggestively, to “Ballin’ the Jack.”

Beverly Friend Florida Reviews REVIEWS

Tom Williams

The Bris, the Bar Mitzvah and Beyond

A praised-filled puff line in the press release proclaims that the play is
“Funnier than ‘The Producers!'” This is a stunning, unbelievable
affirmation until you read who wrote it: David Jay Bernstein’s mother!
While this is obviously intended as humor, it has a ring of truth — ONLY
A MOTHER COULD LOVE THIS PLAY.

Beverly Friend Florida Reviews REVIEWS

Tom Williams

A Jew Grows in Brooklyn 2.0

The Florida audience fulfills all these criteria and more as they respond
to versatile actor/director Jake (aka Yankel) Ehrenreich in his new play,
an update of an earlier, quite successful version, both based on his book:
“A Jew Grows in Brooklyn, The curious Reflections of a First Generation
American” (published in 2010).

Beverly Friend Florida Reviews REVIEWS

Tom Williams

Danny Kaye and Sylvia: A Musical Love Story

The “Musical Love Story,” opens slowly, when Danny (Larry Buzzeo) and his
future wife Silvia Fine (Katie Angell Thomas), meet at the audition of the
1939 “Straw Hat Review.” Fine, who had written the music and lyrics for
the show, is initially turned off by “Danny Kaminsky’s” high jinks

Beverly Friend Florida Reviews MUST SEE REVIEWS Theatre Reviews

Tom Williams

The Most Happy Fella -Florida Review

While “The Most Happy Fella” has been called “the most operatic of classic
American Musicals,” Loesser cleverly interweaves down-to-earth subjects.
Cleo soaks her tired feet in a basin of water while singing about how
painful they are, farm hands stand on a corner singing “Watching All the
Girls Go By, ” Rosebella and Tony perform a hilarious duet in “Happy to
Make your Acquaintance,” and Herman is dazzled when he learns how to make
a fist and sings a tribute to his hand.

Beverly Friend MUST SEE REVIEWS Theatre Reviews

Tom Williams

Vegas: A Night on the Strip

It is all amazing, especially considering the limited stage in this cozy
theater. Once again, Stage Door rises to the challenge and proves that
“less can be more” — much more. “Vegas: a Night on the Strip” may not
replace an actual trip to Nevada — but this production is a work of art
in and of itself.

Beverly Friend Florida Reviews REVIEWS Theatre Reviews

Tom Williams

Sweet Charity

How interesting it would be to discover how many enjoy Sweet Charity as a light, fluffy, escapist musical, while still others may be struck by a culminating moral message of independence. While this is not as unique now as it might have been when the play first opened, it has a special significance today — following the shocking election upset.. At the risk of creating a spoiler, there was something quite provocative and pertinent about Charity, standing on her own, not needing a man to provide her happiness at play’s end. It is certainly a feminist affirmation.