Jennifer Whitcomb-Oliva News

Jennifer Whitcomb-Oliva's miraculous transformation into music legend Billie Holiday may well be the performance of 2017, theater-wise, in a city where we revere and venerate our favorite vocalists. But in Music City, where live theater is often perceived as a mere afterthought by the entertainment establishment, oftentimes performances such as hers may be given short shrift, overlooked by the so-called powers-that-be whose tastes tend toward the middle of the road, pop-infused, sound-like-everyone else, cookie cutter variety of singers.

Feeling the urge to let your imagination run wild, your spirit to soar or to just leave the world in which you live and go on an adventure? Sounds like a trip to the theater is in order! Luckily, companies all over the Volunteer State have been hard at work, creating new productions to transform and to transport, shows that will entertain you this summer. That's where THE NASHVILLE THEATER CALENDAR comes in handy: Peruse our listings every week to find out what shows you should see!

GOOD MORNING, THEATERATI! It's Thursday, June 1, 2017 - or, as we like to call it #TheaterThursday, 'June is busting out all over…' as a song from Carousel reminds us, and there's no better way to kick off a new month than by planning our theater outings for the weekend! Tomorrow night at Cumberland County Playhouse, the company, cast and crew unveil the 2017 model of Smoke on the Mountain, which marks the 24th year of the musical playing in Crossville. Weslie Webster directs and her cast includes Daniel W. Black and Lauren Marshall as Sanders family father and mother Burl and Vera.

GOOD MORNING, THEATERATI! And a gracious good morning to Kate Adams Kramer, our very first Theaterati cover girl! Today we are pondering the theatrical question of 'Kevin Spacey...Tony Awards host...what the hell?' Perhaps you might opine about that bit of news and share your impressions with us: we promise not to tell a soul!

Gracie McGraw, Molly Balsam and Jenna Pryor opened Act Two of the awards show with a medley of Hamilton-inspired songs.

'7 Ways to Sunday' is a new musical written by Eric Fritsch and Cori Anne Laemmel that will run September 15th-18th and 23rd.

'7 Ways to Sunday' is a new musical written by Eric Fritsch and Cori Anne Laemmel that will run September 15th-18th and 23rd.

Two Broadway veterans join with a group of seven of Tennessee's most enduring, influential and outstanding theater artists to comprise the Class of 2016 First Night Honorees, who were revealed Monday night during the annual First Night preview party, hosted by First Night founder and executive producer Jeffrey Ellis.

The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) presents The First Church of Mary, The Repentant Prostitute's FIFTH ANNUAL!!! Benefit Concert, Revival and Potluck Dinner, a new musical about faith, narcissism and red velvet cake with book and lyrics by Geoff Davin, additional music and lyrics by Nicole Boggs & KelleyAnn Hocter & additional music by David Mescon.  Martha Wilkinson directs a cast of six, including Geoff Davin, Megan Murphy Chambers, Jennifer Whitcomb-Oliva, Brooke Leigh Davis, Rosemary Fossee, and Michael San Miguel. The First Church of Mary is being staged at the June Havoc Theatre, 312 West 36th Street, 1st Floor in NYC for five performances from Monday, July 18 through Friday, July 22, 2015.

Although the calendar tells us we're still in the spring season, things are quickly heating up in Nashville - theatrically speaking - and theater-goers have a plethora of shows coming up from which to choose, including some summer musicals that are sure to set feet a-tapping and a classic drama that's sure to provoke more thought and discussion than perhaps ever before.

2015 First Night Honoree Martha Wilkinson - the winner of nine First Night Awards for outstanding lead actress in a musical - leads the Nashville Repertory Theatre cast of the Oscar- and Tony Award-winning Chicago, running March 19-April 16 at the Andrew Johnson Theater at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center.

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Shows are opening, shows are closing and Fiddler on the Roof is back onstage for Actors Pointe Theatre Company while Tom Sawyer takes a bow at Springhouse Theatre in Smyrna! Obviously, the 2016 theater season continues to reveal itself at a breakneck pace, giving audiences a veritable buffet of offerings from which to choose.

When you're talking about dance and dancers in Nashville, one name immediately rises to the top of the list: Billy Ditty. No matter the genre, no matter the venue, no matter the project, he exemplifies dance in Music City for many people.

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Chicago is one of my favorite cities on the planet, so it goes that Chicago, the Tony Award- and Oscar-winning musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb, is also one of my favorite stage musicals. Brash, sassy, laugh-out-loud funny at one moment, and heart-tuggingly and sweetly sentimental at the next - with a musical score that's memorable and pitch-perfect in the skillful way it tells the story of wannabe vaudeville superstars Roxie Hart and Velma Kelly - Chicago has been a part of the musical theater vernacular for almost 40 years.

Nashville Repertory Theatre is proud to produce the award-winning, Broadway hit CHICAGO, the murderous musical depicting the balance between power, notoriety, and getting your way. CHICAGO will run tonight, March 19, through April 16, 2016 in Johnson Theater at Tennessee Performing Arts Center.

2015 First Night Honoree Martha Wilkinson - the winner of nine First Night Awards for outstanding lead actress in a musical - leads the Nashville Repertory Theatre cast of the Oscar- and Tony Award-winning Chicago, running tonight, March 19, through April 16 at the Andrew Johnson Theater at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center.