At Nashville Children's Theatre, Self-Expression Shines, Sparking Young Imaginations in HIP HOP CINDERELLAApril 18, 2023Among attributes audience members have come to expect from a Nashville Children’s Theatre production – fired by significant amounts of imagination and enough creativity to empower the minds of every youngster who has ever been introduced to the transformative power of live theater by the artists of NCT – are unique approaches to live performance, replete with stunning visuals, the casting of actors who look like their young audiences, and refreshingly new and exciting concepts that breathe new life in ages-old tales.
Actors Bridge Ensemble's World Premiere Production of Alicia Haymer's HEAVYApril 15, 2023When the history of live theater performance in Nashville, post-pandemic, is written sometime in the future, it’s highly likely there will be a chapter dedicated to and inspired by the significance of the artistry of Alicia Haymer, the actor/director/playwright who grew up in Nashville and whose impact on local theater goes all the way back to her childhood.
Friday 5(+1): Shelby Anderson and Mike Wargo from THE DATEApril 13, 2023Playhouse 615 hosts a workshop production of Zach Leon’s musical The Date this weekend, April 14-16. Located at 11920 Lebanon Road in Mt. Juliet, Playhouse 615 is the latest theatrical endeavor by Joel Meriwether and Ann Street Kavanaugh. Leon’s The Date stars Shelby Anderson and Mike Wargo. A staged reading of Leon’s Buke’s Island was presented in March at Café Coco.
Review: Superb Performances Highlight Nashville Repertory Theatre's THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIMEApril 2, 2023The power of theater to transform lives and to transport audiences to worlds perhaps unknown to them is no more profoundly felt than in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the play by Simon Stephens based upon the novel of the same name by Mark Haddon. Now concluding its run at the Andrew Johnson Theatre at Nashville’s Tennessee Performing Arts Center, in a satisfying production directed by Micah-Shane Brewer for Nashville Repertory Theatre, the story’s emotional heft and provocative storyline is representative of theater that audiences can appreciate deeply and from which they can learn the unexpected.
Review: Belmont University Musical Theatre's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Showcases Students' Immense TalentsApril 1, 2023Can you recall way, way back to 1991 when the Disney animated film version of Beauty and the Beast was first released? Well, even if you can’t, I certainly can remember how every theater aficionado I knew was exulting about the wondrous work and how it should be made into a live stage musical. In fact, it appeared that every film and theater critic worth his or her salt was noting the worthiness of such a transfer from film to stage.
Nashville Repertory Theatre Announces 39th Season OfferingsMarch 31, 2023Nashville Repertory Theatre today unveils its 2023-24 Mainstage Season, with a line-up of musicals, plays and a brand-new holiday season spectacle. In celebration of the company’s 39th season, Nashville Rep invites audiences to explore the idea of courage and bravery in everyday life.
Review: Presented in the Perfect Setting, Studio Tenn's SMOKE ON THE MOUNTAIN Will Revive Your SpiritMarch 29, 2023It was in Fall 1995 that I first was introduced to the gospel singing Sanders Family of “up near Siler City, North Carolina,” in a production of Smoke on the Mountain at Nashville's venerable Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre. In 2023, the family returns again, as if by magic or perhaps accompanied by flights of angels, in a warmly nostalgic, sweetly sentimental and altogether lovely production from Studio Tenn -- playing through April 2 -- at the historic sanctuary of the First United Methodist Church in downtown Franklin, which stands in quite nicely for the First Baptist Church of Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, on a Saturday night in 1938.
The Friday 5(+1) on Wednesday: The Cast of Street Theatre Company's ORDINARY DAYSMarch 15, 2023Nashville's Street Theatre Company begins its residency at The Barbershop Theatre this weekend with their production of Ordinary Days, running March 17-April 1. Today, the musical's four castmembers - Angela Madaline-Johnson, Sachiko Nicholson, Grant Weathington and Alan Smith - take on our Friday 5(+1) questions to offer you some insight and to tell you why they think you should come see their show.
Review: BUMT's Sparkling and Sophisticated THE WORLD GOES 'ROUND Is Gone Too SoonFebruary 22, 2023Sometimes, even imperceptibly and when you least expect it, you may find yourself in search of something that helps to take you away from the rigors of the real world, to transport you to a long-dreamed-of land of fantasy which exists in your heart of hearts. Perhaps that journey is spurred on by a passing thought, a barely realized memory of something lost long ago to the past, or you hear a snippet of a song, a melody that instantly makes your heart fill with emotion, and you are swept away…
Review: The Queens of SIX The Musical Enchant Their Nashville Audience On Opening NightFebruary 22, 2023Make no mistake about it: SIX, the Tony Award-winning musical about six women historically tethered to one another by a common – but not “a commoner” – ex-husband, is raucously funny one moment, remarkably heartfelt the next, with plenty of history punctuating the moments in between. SIX, the high-spirited and energetic take on the lives of Henry VIII’s half-dozen wives, is also totally unlike any musical theater offering that has come before it.
'Engaging, Inspiring, Fascinating' Irma Herrera Brings Her One-Woman Show to TPAC This WeekendFebruary 6, 2023Engaging in conversation with Irma Herrera – even if it’s via Zoom in the middle of a busy day during which a remodeling project on her San Francisco home is under way, with the sounds of construction in the background as proof – is one of the most delightful ways to spend a scant hour on a sunny afternoon: talking about the importance of showing respect to another human being by pronouncing their name as they do, and discussing the intersectionality of immigrant’s rights, human rights, women’s rights, LGBTQIA rights, worker’s rights and the rights of the poor.
MOMIX's ALICE! Inaugurates TPAC's 2022-23 International Dance Series This WeekendJanuary 26, 2023Moses Pendleton, the founder and artistic director of MOMIX – the celebrated dance company that inaugurates Tennessee Performing Arts Center’s 2022-23 International Dance Series this weekend – readily admits that he’s had a lifelong affinity for Lewis Carroll and his fanciful tale of a young girl whose unexpected journey to Wonderland provides the inspiration for the company’s Alice! which will transport audiences from the James K. Polk Theatre on their own wondrously captivating journey.
Review: HADESTOWN 'Mesmerizes and Captivates' During Weeklong Stand at Nashville's TPACNovember 2, 2022Mesmerizing and captivating are just two of the words that might best describe Hadestown, the Tony Award-winning best musical of the truncated 2019-20 Broadway season, which is now commanding ovations of rapturous applause from adoring fans at Nashville’s Tennessee Performing Arts Center during an eight-performance run through Sunday, November 6.
Review: Lauren Shouse's Sublime Direction of THE CAKE Provides Much Food for ThoughtOctober 28, 2022Lauren Shouse’s directorial resume is quite the impressive one and over the years she’s helmed productions for Nashville Repertory Theatre that have been justifiably acclaimed both by audiences and critics alike. But despite the notoriety that seems to always accompany a “Lauren Shouse-directed production,” perhaps none is more deserved than the accolades that follow in the wake of The Cake, the latest entry on her already stellar list of shows.
Interview: Award-winning Author Lewis Kempfer On The Publication of 120 SEATS IN A BOILER ROOMOctober 10, 2022Tomorrow – October 11, 2022 – marks yet another momentous day in the history of Boiler Room Theatre, the late and lamented theater company that originally brought professional theater to The Factory at Franklin. 120 Seats in a Boiler Room: The Creation of a Courageous Professional Theater, the latest book by BRT co-founder Lewis Kempfer (who is an award-winning author in addition to his multi-hyphenate theater titles as director-producer-actor-designer), will be released by Amazon.