Regional Roundup: Top 10 Stories This Week Around the Broadway World - 5/22; Center Stage's MARLEY, MASTER CLASS in New Orleans & More!

By: May. 22, 2015
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This week, we go around our Broadway World to feature stories in Baltimore, New Orleans, Detroit, and more. Check out our top 10 stories around our Broadway World below, which include MARLEY at Center Stage, MASTER CLASS in New Orleans, and SOLD in Arizona, just to name a few.

East/Northeast

CABARET

1. Washington, DC: Editor Emma Kouguell reviews CABARET at Signature Theatre (running through June 28). She says, "Under the direction of resident music director Jon Kalbfleisch, Cabaret shines with fantastic live musicians, along with a stellar cast and powerful voices. The play stars Wesley Taylor (NBC's Smash and Broadway's Rock of Ages), who plays a devilish emcee with piercing eyes and elastic moves, and Barrett Wilbert Weed (Off-Broadway's Heathers: The Musical), who plays Sally Bowles with sass and vigor, commanding the stage with her voice." Read more here.

2. Baltimore, MD: Editor Jack L.B. Gohn reviews MARLEY at Center Stage. He says, "It is a completely different matter to see such a production in the intimate setting of the 541-seat Pearlstone Theater. And it is no small satisfaction to witness the Pearlstone's audience using that space the way it is encouraged to do here: singing along, standing up and dancing along with the show. At the finale, the audience is invited to come up to the stage and dance with the cast - fourth wall be damned. After years of occasionally stodgy, if always tasteful, productions at Center Stage, Kwei-Armah in four seasons has simply swept aside the old paradigms of what could be done and what should be done in that house." Read his full review here.

3. Detroit, MI: Editor Anton Anderssen reviews MUSIC MAN at Downriver Actors Guild, playing thru May 17. He says, "These actors have spectacular stage skills; I loved the dancing, and thought Tommy was a professional. Agile and lanky Harold Hill jumped into Marcellus' arms like a feather light cygnet in Swan Lake. There is a clever foot dance in the library, and energetic Shipoopi ragtime routine that made me want to visit 1912." Read more here.

Midwest

SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER

4. Milwaukee, WI: Editor Peggy Sue Dunigan reviews Uprooted Theatre's SUDDENLY LAST SUMMER. She says, "William's poetic language leaps from the stage in Uprooted's intense, no intermission production, a joy to listen to when spoken by these actors under Johnson's direction. Gobel radiates charm before releasing her cunning and inhabits Violet's character. Williams created strong women roles and Suddenly Last Summer presents two incredible performances in this Uprooted production, which Gobel and Thompson uphold. Causey's polite and well spoken Doctor walks the fine line between the two women becoming more sympathetic to Catharine in spite of Violet's generous offer to support his lobotomy research if he treats her niece." Read more here.

Southeast

5. New Orleans, LA: Editor Tara Bennett reviews Theatre Baton Rouge's MASTER CLASS. She says, "Moon balances the role of the dominating diva and tough teacher, producing a deft balance of comedy and drama. What lingers most however, is Moon's pleasing subtle portrayal of an aging woman who can't resist the steady pull of memories from a past filled with achievements and glamour, yet also riffed with struggle and loss." Read her full review here.

West

6. Palm Springs, CA: Editor Audrey Liebross interviews David Reuther, who is playing Jean Valjean in Theatre Royale's LES MISERABLES at the Fox Performing Arts Center. Audrey asks, "Why do you think Les Miz has touched so many people, despite being "sung through" with almost classical-sounding music?" David Reuther responds, "The songs from beginning to end are so powerful for all of the characters that sing them. The audience is taken on a journey through lives that they can both sympathize and relate to, giving the musical a simple but heartfelt message." Read the full interview here.

SOLD

7. Arizona: Editor Herbert Paine reviews SOLD, which is running in Sedona, Arizona. He calls it "a provocative and disturbing account of the brutality of human trafficking, specifically that of young girls sold into prostitution and slavery. There is no doubt about it, this film is mandatory viewing for all people. It merits wide distribution. It is an essential addition to the growing library of documentation regarding the abuses of the innocents of our world. It is laudable for the intelligence it brings to understanding the technology of terror and the systematic dynamics of enslavement." Read more here.

Canada

8. Toronto: We have a first look at Mirvish's Reimagined TITANIC in Toronto, which could be heading to Broadway. Check out the amazing photos here.

Europe

9. Italy: New Editor Beatrice Baldassarri reviews RENT at il Teatro Pandurera di Cento (FE). The performance was presented entirely in English translation. Check out her full review here.

National Tour Highlight:

10. Editor Linda Ann Watt reviews the National Tour of PIPPIN, which is playing at the Belk Theater at Blumenthal Performing Arts Center, May 19-24. She says, "Pippin's paternal grandmother, Berthe, played by, Tony Award nominated and television Maude star, Adrienne Barbeau, is delightful to watch. Barbeau still has what it takes and gives the audience her all on a swinging trapeze. The acrobatics and circus arts in this show, choreographed by Gypsy Snider, Les 7 doigts de la main, meld beautifully into the storyline and dance numbers, choreographed by Chet Walker. There is added magical flair with illusions designed by Paul Kieve." Read her full review here.

This week, we would like to welcome Beatrice Bibibalda as our newest editor in Italy, Patrick O'Brien in Chicago, Hannah Wing in Washington DC, and Amy Boyle who will be providing photo coverage for all the exciting theatrical happenings in Chicago.

Want to join our growing team? We have positions available in several U.S. regions and International countries! Contact christina@broadwayworld.com for more information!



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