The Sweet Stuff has drastically changed my perception of what can be accomplished in the space and the type of show that can be performed. It is a gritty drama with social relevance that boasts a fantastic script and some strong performances.
Dental Society Midwinter Meeting keeps you laughing, but Laura Jacqmin’s new play needs some tweaks in order to get the audience to care about what is happening on stage. Surrounded by talent in all aspects of the production and supported with clever excessively descriptive writing
Peter Yarrow and Noel Paul Stooky returned to Ravinia to pay tribute to Mary Travers who passed on September 16, 2010 at age 72.
When you have Kevin Anderson, Francis Guinan and young Bubba Weiler in your cast you have the makings of a fine show. Their acting and the smart flowing direction by Sandy Shinner save the evening. Joel Drake Johnson’s strange play, A Guide For the Perplexed, sure is a puzzlement since it leaves more unanswered questions than it resolves
To understand the premise of the Les Enfants Terribles: Prom Night show at the Red Tape Theatre, one must first understand the logic behind the bouffant, or buffoon, character. The bouffant is a French derived “clown” act that keys in on the grotesque and absurd facets of human nature, rather than the vibrant and cheerful ones we’re used to seeing at the circus
The quality of acting and chemistry between the ensemble members is outstanding. The characters in the play have a sense of hopelessness, loneliness and desperation, but the play expresses this while still being decorated in beauty and raw emotion. The music is moving in itsel
When the best thing about a play is the set (designed by Kathy Arfken), you know the work is in trouble! I can’t understand why they chose anything by Canadian playwright George F. Walker to mount? He may be the worst playwright to find his plays on stage that I’ve ever encountered.
After The Fall is a study of one man’s search for meaning through the thoughts and memories stuck in his head. Using a narrative flashback featuring generous use of personal confessional monologues, Quentin (Nathanial Swift in a powerful, honest tour de force performance) is obsessed with how pointless is life has been. His focus is on his personal fall from innocence as he shows an intense moral discomfort.
This Train not only utilizes the power of spoken language, but the power of song, art, and even “hobo language.” A combination of storytelling, multimedia, song; This Train is a rare piece of theatre that is not to be missed.
Hesperia is one of these instances, confidently relying on the ability of the actors and the language of playwright Randall Colburn to create a wonderful evening of black box theatre.