Christopher Strawhun

Set in 2027, Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis' URINETOWN is an hilariously subversive fable of greed, corruption, love, revolution, and urination, in a time when water is worth its weight in gold and there's no such thing as a free pee. Set in a near-future dystopian Gotham, a severe 20-year drought has led to a government-enforced ban on private toilets. The citizens are forced to use public 'amenities' now, regulated by a single malevolent company that profits by charging admission for one of humanity's most basic needs. In this nightmare world, the punishment for an unauthorized pee is a trip to the dreaded Urinetown. But from the ruins of Democracy and courtesy flushes, there rises an unlikely hero who decides he's held it long enough, and he launches a People's Revolution to lead them all to urinary freedom!

This is the last chance to vote for the 2021 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards! The 2021 Regional Awards honor productions which had their first performance between October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.

Time is running out to vote for for the 2021 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards! The 2021 Regional Awards honor productions which had their first performance between October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.

Our readers set the nominees, and now voting is open for the 2021 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards! The 2021 Regional Awards honor productions which had their first performance between October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.

Our readers set the nominees, and now voting is open for the 2021 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards! The 2021 Regional Awards honor productions which had their first performance between October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021.

It's 1954. Everyone likes Ike, nobody likes communism, and Wade 'Cry-Baby' Walker is the coolest boy in Baltimore. He's a bad boy with a good cause -- truth, justice, and the pursuit of rock and roll.

It's 1954. Everyone likes Ike, nobody likes communism, and Wade 'Cry-Baby' Walker is the coolest boy in Baltimore. He's a bad boy with a good cause -- truth, justice, and the pursuit of rock and roll.

New Line Theatre, "the bad boy of musical theatre," has announced casting for its 29th season of adult, alternative musical theatre, which opens with the return of the wild, comic rock musical CRY-BABY,  based on the iconic John Waters film, a show which New Line first produced in 2012 in its American regional premiere, running Sept. 26-Oct. 19, 2019. The season continues with the electrifying new rock musical fresh from Broadway, in its regional premiere, HEAD OVER HEELS, a high-energy, adult romp about gender and sexuality, based on a 16th-century novel and using the songs of the 80s rock band The Go-Go's, running March 5-28, 2020. And the season closes with the return of one of New Line's biggest hits, which the New Liners first presented in 2007, the pitch dark satire URINETOWN, the hilarious, outrageous fable of greed, corruption, love, revolution, and urination, running June 4-27, 2020.

There are so many things to love about New Line Theatre's latest production, SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS, that this review is certain to be filled with superlatives. I've watched the 1957 film a number of times, and I like the way John Guare's book for the show uses the first act as a backstory before it touches on the events that actually take place in the movie during the second act. By attacking the story this way Guare adds depth and establishes the characters in ways that the film doesn't. The score is a cool and jazz-tinged effort by the late Marvin Hamlisch, with lyrics, by Craig Camelia, which give the numbers added bite. It's clear to me that the show requires the intimacy this production provides to fully succeed, and also explains its short run on Broadway. That's just one of the things that New Line does so consistently well. The movie is a dark, film noir masterpiece, and in adapting it as a musical for a large stage that claustrophobic atmosphere that is so necessary to the genre is lost. Here, the viewer becomes a fly on the wall, observing the machinations of the plot unfolding in the same way that the film utilizes closeups and shadows to pull us into its cynical world. Superior performances, a great band, and sharp direction make this show a must-see.

Welcome to Broadway, the glamour, power, and sleaze capital of the universe.

New Line continues its 26th season with the local premiere of the fiery 2002 jazz-rock musical THE SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS, by legendary film and stage composer Marvin Hamlisch (his last theatre score), lyricist Craig Carnelia, and Tony-winning playwright John Guare, based on the famous short story and film. The show was nominated for seven Tonys, including Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Score, and eleven Drama Desk Awards. It's a Faustian moral nightmare, all set to a sizzling 'jazz noir' score from the composer of the stage musicals A Chorus Line, They're Playing Our Song, Smile, The Goodbye Girl, and the film scores for The Sting, The Way We Were, Sophie's Choice, and many others. 

I always know to expect the unexpected when I attend a production by New Line Theatre. Artistic Director Scott Miller has a gift for choosing shows that are consistently engaging, entertaining, and smartly cast and directed. Whether it's a revival of a classic or something of a more recent vintage, each receives the same special care and attention that makes the old seem new again, and makes you wonder why some of the newer material wasn't more successful during their initial runs. With JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA, New Line brings us a St. Louis premier of a musical that has actually achieved a modicum of success (including a filmed staging in 2005), but it's not a choice that you're likely to find anywhere else in this region due to its adult nature and content. New Line is dedicated to taking those kind of risks. And, I'm so glad they are, because I love seeing presentations that push the envelope, especially when they're done so brilliantly. JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA (music by Richard Thomas with book and lyrics by Stewart Lee and Thomas) delivers a unique, funny, tuneful, and completely tasteless parade of humanity that will win you over immediately. Prepare yourself to see opera from an entirely different perspective, in way that manages to stay true to the very tropes that define the genre, while turning them on their head with delicious blasphemy.

New Line Theatre, "the bad boy of musical theatre," continues its 24th season of adult, alternative musical theatre, with the St. Louis premiere of the outrageous JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA, running March 5-28, 2015, at the Washington University South Campus Theatre, 6501 Clayton Road.

New Line Theatre, 'the bad boy of musical theatre,' continues its 24th season of adult, alternative musical theatre, with the St. Louis premiere of the outrageous JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA, running tonight, March 5-28, 2015, at the Washington University South Campus Theatre, 6501 Clayton Road. This show contains very adult content and language.

New Line Theatre, 'the bad boy of musical theatre,' continues its 24th season of adult, alternative musical theatre, with the St. Louis premiere of the outrageous JERRY SPRINGER THE OPERA, running March 5-28, 2015, at the Washington University South Campus Theatre, 6501 Clayton Road. This show contains very adult content and language.

New Line Theatre, "the bad boy of musical theatre," opens its 24th season of adult, alternative musical theatre with the St. Louis premiere of the new musical BONNIE & CLYDE, running now through October 25, 2014. BroadwayWorld has photos of the cast onstage below!

New Line Theatre, 'the bad boy of musical theatre,' opens its 24th season of adult, alternative musical theatre with the St. Louis premiere of the new musical BONNIE & CLYDE, running tonight, Oct. 2-25, 2014.

New Line Theatre, "the bad boy of musical theatre," opens its 24th season of adult, alternative musical theatre with the St. Louis premiere of the new musical BONNIE & CLYDE, running Oct. 2-25, 2014. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast below!