Author Archives: Bill Hirschman
Iris Acker, A Seminal Figure In South Florida Theater, Has Died
Iris Acker — the vivacious actress, teacher, author, dancer, artistic director, producer and groundbreaking union leader who helped transform South Florida theater – died Sunday night after a lengthy battle with cancer.
Thinking Cap’s Crooked Captures The Pain of Adolescence And The Pain Of Being A Parent
Thinking Cap Theatre’s Crooked superbly captures the fear, confusion and pain of being an adolescent – and the same fear, confusion and pain struggling to raise one. With vibrant performances expertly directed, its an absorbing, moving and shattering journey that touches on religion, sexual awakening, and especially the prickly but prevailing mother-daughter relationship.
Now & Then Proudly Affirms Gay Romance Is Like Any Other
Now & Then, a world premiere musical in Wilton Manors, is a quiet gentle love story told with an inventive twist. But it’s a tale tracing the episodes of an arc so familiar that it might flirt with being boring — except for three redeeming aspects: a lovely score, a time bending book and making the lovers in this very traditional romance a gay couple.
Not Just For Kids, Theatre Lab’s Initial Family-Friendly Ronia Elevates And Inspires
Ronia, the Robber’s Daughter — the first offering of Theatre Lab’s family-friendly series — satisfies the parameters of youth theatre but with a pedigree that transcends its genre, a production bristles with imagination, wit and pathos that resonate across all generations.
Stage Door’s La Cage Surely Entertains But Feels Lackluster
Broward Stage Door’s La Cage aux Folles stresses the universal virtues of love and loyalty, delivered with only a wry smile to acknowledge that its protagonists are an aging gay couple including one drag queen. While undeniably entertaining and featuring some rich voices, this edition is noticeably missing some of the pizzazz that the material requires to make it a memorable evening.
An Hour Without TV: Earnest Social Comment But Rehash Of A Hundred Soap Operas
An Hour Without TV — in which an abused wife convinces her husband to give her one hour without ESPN so she can tell him she leaving – is easily the most mistitled drama in many years. It crams together every clichéd line and stock situation from shallow television soap operas about deteriorating marriages.
More News: Teen Ambassadors, New Theatre Lab Program, Charlie Cinnamon Exhibit, Kravis Volunteers & Insight Benefit
News about Broward Teen Ambassadors’ application deadline, Theatre Lab’s new series for families, Kravis Center’s volunteer opportunities, a benefit for Insight for the Blind, and a terrific exhibit on the life of press agent Charlie Cinnamon at the Jewish Museum
‘White Guy on The Bus’ Is GableStage’s Shattering Incisive Dissection Of Race Relations
White Guy on the Bus at GableStage is a merciless dissection of race relations in the 21st Century, but stunning plot twists prevent us from explaining much further than a wealthy white businessman strikes up an acquaintanceship with an African-American nursing student on a bus. But superb performances and a fierce script make this a don’t miss.
Starry Night In New City Players’ Transcendent Constellations
It’s almost paternalistic to praise New City Players as one of the gutsiest theaters in the region. But with its carefully-wrought and moving production of Constellations, the Players have outgrown the well-meant but limited expectations that arts patrons have of a so-called “fledgling theater.”

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