Reviews
Dramaworks’ A Delicate Balance Delivers Uncompromising Thought-Provoking Drama
A nameless terror has upended the fragile homeostasis in Agnes and Tobias’ carefully-ordered uppercrust existence, all the more frightening because its anonymity makes it uncomfortably universal for the audience at Palm Beach Dramaworks’ production of Edward Albee’s A Delicate Balance. What starts in this laudable production as a play about a troubled family of privilege, which keeps our attention simply because they are engagingly hyper-articulate, then ends as a shattering indictment of self-deception and hypocrisy in human interaction.
Showtime’s [title of show] Is Theatre Geek’s Nirvana
If you’ve ever kicked in the chorus line of a community theater production of Mame, you’ll likely adore Showtime Performing Arts Theatre’s [title of show]. But if you’ve ever secretly practiced a Tony Award acceptance speech in your bathroom, then [title of show] is a must-see.
Caisley’s Happy Is Corrosive Flawed, But Intriguing Comedy About Self-Deception
New Theatre’s production of Robert Caisley’s sardonically titled Happy is not an evening you “like” watching an “emotional terrorist” spend 80 minutes mercilessly carving away a nebbish’s illusion of well-being. But even with a flawed mounting of a script that still needs work, Happy is undeniably an intriguing examination of modern man burying true feelings under a socially-acceptable but life-denying veneer.
Not Your Average Nutcracker
Darkness has often been an element of classic Christmas stories: A Christmas Carol, It’s A Wonderful Life, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. But leave it to the House Theatre of Chicago to come up with a quirky twist on The Nutcracker co-produced with the Adrienne Arsht Center.
Maltz’s Music Man Is Slam Bang Brassy Dancing Celebration
We’re entering another period of as many as six productions opening in one week. As a result, reviews may not remain in the center featured position more than one day. Please check out recent reviews by clicking on entries listed …
FGO’s La boheme Still Thrills
It shouldn’t work. Not anymore. Not in the 21st Century. That time-worn plot, the one-dimensional characters, the unabashed sentiment. But Florida Grand Opera’s production of La bohème underscores how Puccini’s masterpiece remains a moving, even relatable experience after more than a century of familiarity, lampoons and Broadway adaptations.
Misbegotten Sound Quality Cripples Outre’s Admirable Attempt To Do The Wild Party
Tragedy suffused opening night at Outré Theatre Company’s inaugural production of the dark musical The Wild Party, but it wasn’t the story of Jazz Age hedonists plummeting through a doomed love quadrangle. It was so many hard-working artists’ work going down the toilet because of the worst sound of any production since Actors Playhouse’s infamous Hairspray last season.
MTC’s Inventive Staging Of Chekhov’s Three Sisters Is By Turns Brilliant And Bothersome
Miami Theater Center’s inaugural adult project, a fresh vision of Chekhov’s Three Sisters, is not a smoothly gelling work of art, let alone entertainment. The flaws are considerable, persistent and cannot be discounted. But they are outweighed by sustained bursts of dazzling imagination, passion, skill, craft, ingenuity and a commitment to creating a unique theatrical experience.
Mosaic’s Birds Is Insightful Sociological Drama Not Hitchcockian Thriller
Cannily, there is not a feather in sight during the entire 85-minute The Birds at the Mosaic Theatre — appropriate because the subject is not an eerie avian apocalypse, but how humanity reacts under extreme pressure. Conor McPherson’s adaptation is far more a sociological morality tale than Daphne du Maurier’s 1952 suspenseful novelette or Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 pure thriller.
Catch Me If You Can Entertains But Won’t Stick With You
Once upon the 1960s, there existed theatrical offerings on Broadway unapologetically called the tired businessman’s musical. They were well-made, well-executed but unassuming diversions that left audiences feeling they had been transiently entertained if not especially moved, inspired or provoked to reflection. Ironically set in the same period, the 2011 musical Catch Me If You Can unintentionally qualifies for the category as evidenced by the peppy road show making its South Florida debut at the Kravis Center’s stand-alone Broadway series.
A PaperStreet Web Design
