Reviews Category
Once Upon a Time
Into the Woods
“Once upon a time” proclaims the wise, old narrator, played by Broadway veteran David Patrick Kelly, cueing the accomplished, 15-member onstage orchestra that’s conducted by talented Musical Director, John Bell. What a dynamic opening to one of Stephen Sondheim’s finest, lush and best-loved scores!And just like that, this incredibly magical, magnificent musical is off and running.
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A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
The Importance of Being Earnest
I normally start a review with a brief, spoiler-free synopsis, but I don’t think I can do that this time. If you aren’t already familiar with Oscar Wilde’s classic farce, I think the fun will be in letting it unfold in front of you with no help from me. And whether you are familiar with the show or now, Theatre Above the Law’s new production, directed by TATL Aristic Director Tony Lawry, will be delightful way to spend an evening.
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A Journey to the Other Side
The Wonder
Are you familiar with a paranormal occurrence that was dubbed “The Watseka Wonder”? Apparently, it’s part of Illinois history. One can learn about this series of incidents and experience the strange events through an ethereal, somewhat unsettling World Premiere by actress/playwright Maggie Lou Rader. The story may frighten, confuse or even inspire theatergoers to delve further into this factual, but almost forgotten, incident from the state’s past.
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Music in the Mountains
The Porch on Windy Hill
The Covid-19 pandemic forced the world to stay cooped up at home for over a year. When people did go out they were advised to wear face masks to help protect them from the contagious, air-borne disease. But like so many others, Mira and Beckett, have been cooped up in their tiny New York apartment for so long, that they burst out and embark on a road trip. But this twosome are unique. Both are brilliantly talented musicians and highly educated. Mira is a classically trained violinist and Becket, who’s a more-than-capable musician on any stringed instrument, is working on his dissertation. He’s exploring the concept that folk music is adapting and changing along with the population. And, since they’re also activists for social change, the couple’s always looking for a cause to support.
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You’re in the Band
School of Rock
Dewey Finn is a down-on-his-luck wannabe rockstar. He’s been renting a room from his lifelong friend and closet rock music aficionado, Ned Schneebly. Schneebly is a substitute teacher who shares his life with domineering girlfriend, Patty. But without a steady income, nor any inclination to find another job after being fired from his band, Dewey has turned into a freeloader in danger of losing his living quarters.
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Hopelessly Devoted to You
Grease
What can be said about a musical that might even be called a modern-day theatre classic since it’s one of the most often produced musicals in the world? Since the show first appeared at Chicago’s Kingston Mines back in 1971, and then went on to Broadway a year later, albeit more sanitized, “Grease” has truly become “The Word.” For a while it was the longest-running show on the Great White Way.
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A Home Run Hit
Damn Yankees
If you could sell your soul, what would be so important that you’d trade an eternity in hell to make it happen? Well, Joe Boyd is a middle-aged, long-suffering baseball fan. However, he’s so frustrated by his team’s losses that after Meg, his patient and loving wife retires for the night, Joe pledges an unthinkable oath to the universe. Grumbling and griping about his team’s defeat, Joe shakes his fist at the heavens and shouts that he’d sell his soul if his beloved Washington Senators could finally “beat those damn Yankees.” Suddenly, from out of a puff of smoke, a tall, debonaire gentleman appears.
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Armed With a Rock in a Sock
Is God Is
“Make your dad dead. Make him real dead. All the way dead. Lots of blood is fine.” Thus is the crystal clear command directed by a dying mother to her battle-scarred twenty-something twin daughters. The audience is in for an unsettling revenge story, peppered with gallows humor and staged upon a pristine, white stage setting that will end up splattered with blood.
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Filled With Mystery and Amour
Last Night and the Night Before
In the shadowy opening scene of Donnetta Lavinia Grays’ drama about a family, the silhouette of a man can be seen digging a large hole. We hear his heavy breathing and the scraping of his shovel before he finally dumps a burlap-wrapped body into what appears to be a makeshift grave. Then the lights change, the grave disappears and we discover Monique, a pretty, young African-American woman, with her young daughter, Sam, in tow. She’s knocking on the door of an upscale Brooklyn brownstone. In a tale that flip-flops between rural Georgia and urban New York, and the present and the past, the relationships between family members, both biological and chosen, are tested.
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Sleuthing and Self-Discovery
Galileo’s Daughter
A smart, prolific New York playwright, primarily known for her Off-Broadway dramas, opens this World Premiere by Jessica Dickey. Known only as the Writer, the playwright speaks directly to the audience, continually breaking the fourth wall. While trying to decide whether or not to sign divorce papers, the Writer heads to Italy to clear her mind and do some research for her next play. As the play jumps back and forth in time, the playwright finds herself in modern-day Florence, the birthplace of the Renaissance, searching for a collection of archived letters written by Maria Celeste to her father, Galileo Galilei.
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