Charles Shubow - Page 2

Leslie Odom, Jr. ascended to international fame by originating the role of 'Arron Burr' in the hit musical HAMILTON and won a Tony for Best Actor in a Musical in 2016. He will be joining the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra for a one night only concert, Nov. 1, 2019. Coincidentally, that is also the date of the film HARRIET opens in which he has a leading role. On November 8 his newest album will be released.

Director Paige Hernandez does a masterful job in a play about boxing and racism.

Welcome back to Bethesda Round House Theatre! After a successful renovation, the theater has reopened on East-West Highway with impressive architectural improvements. One will notice immediately upon entering the lobby, huge changes with a complete makeover. There is a huge bar and seating area that was desperately needed. I do believe they could use more variety of refreshments though.. The theater's intent is to get people to a performance early and stick around afterwards.

Walter Bobbie demonstrates his amazing direction.

Maestra Marin Alsop shows support for her musicians by conducting a superb concernt on September 14, 2019 at the New Shiloh Baptist Church.

PHANTOM OF THE OPERA plays Baltimore's Hippodrome Theatre October 9 to Oct. 20, 2019.

It was exactly ten years ago I first saw Stephen Temperley's SOUVENIR at Baltimore Center Stage which starred Tony Award winner, Judy Kaye. I could not imagine seeing a better version of it ever. But, I was wrong. The Rep Stage version is just plain spectacular and the two actors who perform here, Grace Bauer and Alan Naylor are just plain marvelous.

Alan Paul directs and demonstrates the power of live theater.

It is not often one opens a theater program and on page one sees a letter from composer Stephen Sondheim. I had the privilege of attending the joint Jason Robert Brown and Stephen Sondheim concert on June 24, 2019 at Town Hall in New York City to raise funds for 'Brady United Against Gun Violence' (see link below). It was a very moving evening of great theatrical music by two of this country's best composers.

You may have heard of the long journey of LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS from a 1060 Roger Corman horror film (with a young Jack Nicholson) to a 1982 Off-Broadway hit musical, a 1986 film with Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, and Steve Martin, and a revival in 2003 this time on Broadway with Hunter Foster, Douglas Sills and Kerry Butler. And believe it or not, another revival coming to Off-Broadway previewing on September 17 and opening October 17 to the Westside Theatre Upstairs with Jonathan Groff, Tammy Blanchard, Christian Borle, and Kinglsey Leggs.

A potpourri of beautiful music from Gilbert & Sullivan to Broadway.

I really enjoyed the Eran Kolirin's 2007 Israeli-Egyptian film 'The Band's Visit' . The story involved the Alexandria Ceremonial Police Orchestra who get lost in Israel on their way to a concert performance at the Arab Cultural Center in a large city named Petal Tikvah and instead the bus they take arrives at the small town of Bet Hatikva. With the next bus not due until the next day, the musicians are invited to spend the night with the town natives (there is no hotel) and have dinner. The moving film tackles the subject of Egyptians and Israelis in 1996 who in 1967 had a hard-fought war on the Sinai Peninsula.

Credit Signature Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer for this season on a high.

Let me admit when I saw MATILDA on Broadway in 2013 (winner of 5 Tony Awards), I did not enjoy it. I just could not understand the character of the buffoon Miss Trunchbell, the Olympian hammer throwing athletic principal of Matilda's school. He was the villain of all villains.

BWW Review: DISASTER! at Cockpit in Court Summer Theatre at Essex Community College is a HOOT

When you leave the theater and you immediately purchase a copy of the play, that should indicate that you have really enjoyed it. This does not happen often but it happened to me as I left the Lansburgh Theatre (temporary home of the Round House during renovations) in DC. I loved A DOLL'S HOUSE, PART 2, I had to read it and enjoy it some more...and I did!

I had never seen a professional production of HELLO, DOLLY! until now. I recall the 1969 film with Walter Matthau and Barbra Streisand. I did see the play it is based on, THE MATCHMAKER by Thornton Wilder at the Williamstown Theatre Festival and really did not enjoy it.

Everyman Theatre is presenting two plays in repertory: QUEENS GIRL IN THE WORLD and QUEENS GIRL IN AFRICA. Olney Theatre's wonderful MARY STUART could be labeled QUEENS GIRLS IN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND.

I must applaud Everyman Theatre's Artistic Director Vince Lancisi for having the brilliant idea of ending its season with two plays by Caleen Sinnette Jennings in repertory: QUEENS GIRL IN THE WORLD and QUEENS GIRL IN AFRICA. What a genius!

George C. Wolfe's SPUNK was first staged at New York's Public Theater in 1990. It is based on Zora Neale Hurston's 1937 novel 'Their Eyes Were Watching God'.