Review: ONCE at NextStop Theatre

NextStop Theatre’s Once was a lively, emotional force that made the whole theater sing. 

The show was the finale of Artistic Director Heather Lanza’s inaugural season and set the tone for more rockstar productions in the upcoming 2026/27 season. 

Once is a musical based on the acclaimed film of the same name. It remains the only musical to have won an Oscar Award, Grammy Award, Olivier Award, and Tony Award—an OGOT, if you will. If the accolades don’t ring a bell, this movie-turned-musical also inspired another movie, Begin Again starring Mark Ruffalo and Kiera Nightly.

Set on the streets of Dublin, Once follows “Guy,” an Irish musician, and “Girl,” a Czech immigrant, who meet by chance and bond over music and vacuums. Over the course of one week, their creative partnership deepens into something more, exploring how fleeting moments can reshape an entire future. 

Walking into the NextStop Theatre, the stage was already alive and singing. Actors skipped around the set of an Irish pub, pantomiming the hustle and bustle of regulars in a bar while a local live performer played songs on a stage within the stage. Singer and guitarist Dan Blanchet covered the likes of “Maneater,” “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” and “500 Miles” to the hype of the audience and actors, setting the friendly, interactive tone that resided over the whole show. 

While the warm-colored, cluttered bar of MacLennane’s Pub was the primary setting, the scenes morphed into other locations through immersive lighting and shifting set pieces by Hailey LaRoe and August Henney, respectively. The timely, cohesive costumes and well-placed props by Imari Pyles and Bridgette Tran—including the real instruments—harmonized with each scene.  

The production team as a whole clearly, earnestly believed in this show, which was infectiously endearing. Every person on stage gave it all they had: as an actor, singer, dancer, and musician. And on top of that, they had to do it with decently convincing Irish and/or Czech accents, facilitated by dialect coach Jen Rabbitt Ring. The stamina required by the ensemble to maintain the quality of the music and acting was so impressive, and they forgivably faced dips where the tempo lagged because they got stretched too thin.

Lead actor Carter Crosby had the earnest facial expressions and heroic yet emotional belt of a Disney prince for the perfect moody and heartfelt interpretation of Guy who carried the weight of the show and its world on his shoulders. Reinforcing this was the ever-constant strength and talent of Emily Erickson, whose haunting soprano and skillful piano struck a balance of resilience and vulnerability, pushing everyone forward and holding the keys to the piano and to the musical’s success. 

A few over-the-top ensemble members made the tone of the production sometimes teeter onto the cornier side. Ari Post (Billy) and Colin Villacorte (Andrej) took to yelling extravagantly when it was their time in the spotlight, which works better in short bursts than whole scenes. The style of interpretive dancing that emerges in the second act also pushed into comedy that seemed unintentional. In the narrative, it is a little hard to believe that the good-but-not-amazing songs and lyrics trigger some of the life-altering scenes, but that is more of a note for the original music writers, Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová. Overall, NextStop’s execution of the music revived and empowered the original. 

NextStop Theatre’s Once was full of melodious talent, heart, and spirit. Catch the musical, whirlwind romance through June 27th. 
 

Duration: 2.5 hours, including a 15-minute intermission

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