Bert Scott News

Theater Breaking Through Barriers will return Off-Broadway with Brecht on Brecht. Directed by Nicholas Viselli, with musical direction by Dionne McClaine-Freeney, BRECHT ON BRECHT will begin performance on October 19 and will celebrate its opening night on Thursday, October 28, 2021, running through November 20, 2021, at A.R.T./ NY Theatre.

This latest production puts the classic tale of Don Quixote and its author in an almost shocking new context - one that's as powerful as it is surprising... Though the dialogue stays the same, with references to the Inquisition intact, Cervantes's prison is very clearly a U.S. immigration detention center in the 21st century...

This reimagined Man of La Mancha will feature Miguel Salas as Miguel Cervantes/Don Quixote, Annabell Mizrahi as Aldonza, and Radamés Medina Meléndez as Sancho.

In the world of musical theatre, there are some shows that feel fresh and new, no matter how many times you see them. These are the musicals you drop everything to experience even if it may be your fortieth time. For musicals like that, the thrill of seeing what a different theatre, director, designer, or actor may do with a favorite piece can often be just as thrilling as sitting in an audience for opening night of a world premiere musical. For me, this is the case with Alan Menken and Howard Ashman’s LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS – a cautionary tale of what lengths some may take for love, fame and success all wrapped up in a colorful, fun, and nearly perfect book with catchy songs and memorable characters. A frequent choice when asked what my favorite musical may be (and I have seen/heard/performed in many), LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS is the perfect mix of comedy, horror, camp and love story all rolled into one. So, imagine my thrill sitting outside (without a mask based on the new CDC rules!) at the Walt Disney Amphitheatre in Lake Eola Park on opening night of Orlando Shakes latest production as the chords of the opening number began. Excitement, anticipation, and curiosity - and I am here to tell you 100 minutes later (without intermission) my expectations were not only met, but exceeded.

For their second in-person, socially distanced production at Lake Eola Park, Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF is taking over Orlando with the hilarious award-winning, musical send-up of sci-fi 50’s movies, Little Shop of Horrors (May 5 - 23, 2021).

For their second in-person, socially distanced production at Lake Eola Park, Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF is taking over Orlando with the hilarious award-winning, musical send-up of sci-fi 50’s movies, Little Shop of Horrors (May 5 - 23, 2021).

In William Shakespeare’s beloved comedy, A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM, a motley cast of characters find themselves in an idyllic forest filled with magic and wonder. So, it is quite apropos that Orlando Shakes’ current production of this timeless classic is being offered outdoors, at a park (Lake Eola Park) in a beautiful setting by the water. And like the young lovers and the “Mechanicals” who enter the woods not knowing how their lives will change before the night is through, audiences seated in the Walt Disney Amphitheatre are in for an evening of magic and merriment – one that, I must say, is long overdue.

Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF gained approval from the national professional actors union, the Actors' Equity Association (AEA), for an enchanting production under the stars filled with laughter and romance.

Winners have been announced for the 2020 BroadwayWorld Orlando Awards - which were back bigger than ever, celebrating the best in local theatre of the past decade! 

Just in time for the holidays, Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF brings Central Florida two heartwarming holiday offerings. Return to the theater in person for The Laura Hodos Holiday Cabaret! The Darden Courtyard will be transformed into an outdoor performance space with a new tented canopy for all to enjoy the incomparable Laura Hodos in a charming, holiday cabaret performance. 

Florida Repertory Theatre has announced that two of its canceled productions are now available for online streaming and on-demand in-home viewing for ticket-buying patrons.

A few weeks back, I attended the opening night of The Three Musketeers at Orlando Shakes. I marveled, in particular, at a rotating stage and staircase designed by Bert Scott. The way the production team used that stage always impressed me. Imagine my delight when I came back to Orlando Shakes for the opening weekend of HENRY IV, PART 1 and saw that same exact stage now being used to represent 1492 England rather than 1628 France. Part of it is my fault, I didn't know they'd be using the same stage and assumed another theatre space at Orlando Shakes would house HENRY IV. But now knowing that this same space was used for two plays got the wheels in my head turning. It's a genius move on Orlando Shakes' part, creating a very fitting double-feature of entertainment. The same cast, the same stage, but two wholly different stories unfold.

Shakespeare's epic Fire and Reign series continues with a dynamic production of Henry IV, Part 1, produced by Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF. This production will run in repertory February 19 - March 21, 2020 along with Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers, as adapted by Catherine Bush. Tickets (starting at $30) are available now by phone (407) 447-1700 ext. 1, online at orlandoshakes.org, or in person at the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center (812 East Rollins Street).

Ask anyone to describe the Three Musketeers, and you'll get the usual answers: three heroes, bound together in brotherhood, inseparable in the most dire circumstances. They were a holy trinity of masculinity and friendship, the #SquadGoals of the 19th century. But unless one were intimately familiar with Alexandre Dumas' novel or its many adaptations, five will get you ten the average Joe today would be remiss to actually name all of them. That's not the fault of the average Joe, but rather the reputation that precedes these fictional characters. Most would be familiar with what they are, not necessarily who they are.

Swashbuckling sword fights and romance lie at the center of this thrilling take on Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers by Catherine Bush, produced by Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF, runs from February 5 - March 22, 2020. This bold production will run in repertory with William Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1. Tickets (starting at $30) are available now by phone (407) 447-1700 ext. 1, online at orlandoshakes.org, or in person at the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center (812 East Rollins Street).

There's honey in the bushes, Lord, and water in the wella?? Garden Theatre's 12th season continues with the folk musical Violet. Directed by Tara Kromer, the production will transport Winter Garden audiences to 1964 Appalachia, where a young woman decides to take a trip that could change her future. Violet runs January 24 - February 9, 2020. 

Becoming Dr. Ruth by Mark St. Germain, produced by Orlando Shakes in partnership with UCF, runs from January 8 - February 9, 2020. In this incredible one-woman performance, actress Eileen DeSandre* embodies media personality Dr. Ruth in a tell-all reflection of her extraordinary life. Becoming Dr. Ruth is presented in partnership with the Holocaust Memorial and Resource Center of Central Florida through the generous support of Jim and Valeria Shapiro. Tickets (starting at $30) are available now by phone (407) 447-1700 ext. 1, online at orlandoshakes.org, or in person at the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center (812 East Rollins Street).

There's just one final week to submit votes for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Orlando Awards, brought to you by TodayTix! Vote today to make sure your favorite local theatre's achievements and performers are recognized!

We're heading into the final week of voting for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Orlando Awards, brought to you by TodayTix! Vote today to make sure your favorite local theatre's achievements and performers are recognized!

There's just two weeks left to vote for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Orlando Awards, brought to you by TodayTix! The people have spoken nominations are set, and now you can vote to make sure your favorite local theatre's achievements and performers are recognized!