Cybele Pomeroy - Page 4

Toby's Dinner Theatre of Columbia, in celebration of Columbia's 50th anniversary and its own 45th presents JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT, gathering a beautiful assemblage of multi-cultural, multi-talented performers who shine in this unserious collage of an Andrew Lloyd Webber/ Tim Rice Old Testament crazy-quilt favorite.

Everyman Theatre pays exquisite attention to detail and creates an astounding feat of comedy in its production of NOISES OFF. The cast demonstrates comedic chops and executes pratfalls and buffoonery with commitment and perfect timing. Do yourself, your lungs and your liver a favor and laugh at the raucous riot. Don't be surprised if you find yourself craving sardines afterwards.

Dinner and a murder? It's Monday, why not! Do Or Die delivers humor and homicide two weeknights a month at local Glen Burnie favorite The Sunset Restaurant. Get tickets early, because Do Or Die kills with comedy and serves sellout crowds.

If you love Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, there's not a single reason you wouldn't like the show at Toby's Dinner Theatre. It's a fun production. There's a lot to love about it. Dinner is tasty. Everyone at Toby's is unfailingly polite, cheerful, helpful and speedy, including each member of the actor/wait staff. The productions are done with attention to detail and the actors are well cast. That combination of elements is rare in ANY public forum these days, so all credit to the management for creating this wonderful environment. If you enjoy dinner theatre, you will be pleased.

If you are already a Hathaway fan, you really must not miss this show. If you are not already a fan, prepare to be converted. I walk into the show knowing very little of Donny Hathaway and walk out touched and changed forever. Writer/Performer Kelvin Roston has created a brilliant work of heartbreak, genius and intimacy to terrify and delight patrons of Center Stage.

The script of STEEL MAGNOLIAS celebrates the resilience of women, and this production of it particularly does so.It is a production of heart, from many hearts, and quite heart-warming.

STOMP is in town for just one more performance. If you've never seen it, prepare to be rocked. The percussive dance sensation is touring and it brings the house to its collective feet. It's more than a show: it's an experience.

Director Tazewell Thompson, handling a tale that is heavy on narrative, guides the pliable ensemble to a performance that is dynamic, touching, amusing, lively and filled with gothic foreshadowing. Every sequence unfolds a new delight, from slapstick action to nuanced characterization to the most hilarious rendition of Hamlet it has ever been my privilege to witness. Script, direction, casting, performance and tech are each remarkable renditions of their kind. The beautiful language is retained, but made perfectly clear by action and diction. Additionally, it's heartily funny.

Toby's Dinner Theatre in Columbia, MD presents SHOW BOAT, an old-fashioned treasure of musical theatre history, complete with troubling ethical issues, a cast packed with talent, vintage choreography, a fashion parade of costuming and vocals that will alternately haunt you and have you humming. Including a tasty buffet meal pre-show, comfortable venue and impeccably congenial staff, an outing to Toby's is the complete package for a date or family fun day.

This musical is everything a piece of musical theater ought to be. There is a little prologue with the character of Jean Shepherd. We know immediately who is whom and the exact nature of the piece's dramatic crux. Devotees of the movie will find much that is familiar, though there has been some rearrangement, extension, enhancement and addition. Dialogue flows as stage dialogue should: with snappy delivery, different voices and more wit than is common in Real Life. Musical numbers are lively and either reveal character or move the plot. Scene changes are rapid and full of children's holiday pagent-styled elements. Ralphie's home is an adorable cutaway dollhouse. The cast is energetic and charming. This production should satisfy fans of musical theater, fans of the movie, fans of holiday shows, fans of family-friendly entertainment and really anyone who isn't a Grinch or a Scrooge.

If you've an interest in the unusual, if you have sampled traditional theatre and avant garde theatre and found them both not quite what you wanted, if you'd like to gather a few of your friends and your favorite '50s fancy duds, if you'd like an evening out that isn't clubbing and isn't pizza, do consider HOAX.

If you belong to a particular subset of music aficionados, you may love this show. Vocally and instrumentally, the performers do an excellent job of animating beloved legends.Their musicianship is impressive and Musical Director Amy Jones has done a terrific job creating authentic-sounding renditions of well-known songs. JP Coletta's athletic interpretation of Jerry Lee is absurdly fun to watch. As Elvis, Travis Artz is enthusiastic and delivers excellent footwork. Adding some feminine energy to the show, Elvis' girlfriend 'Dyanne,' portrayed by Bella Muller in a saucy, sultry performance, blows the audience away singing 'Fever.'

The performers of Happenstance Theater engage, intrigue, cavort, emote and display both physical precision and a remarkable range of organically produced sound effects. BROUHAHA's story, insofar as there is a story, lies in the development of the relationship between this cadre of classical clowns and the newcomers- that is to say, us, the audience. We become conspirators in the greatest of comi-tragic secrets: even in the direst of times, there is yet opportunity for playfulness and joy.

Center Stage, though undergoing renovations, presents DETROIT '67 at Towson University's Mainstage Theatre. The full-scale production, which features familiar characters and witty, realistic dialogue, includes excellent technical effects, a clever, accurately detailed set and snappy pacing.

MOTOWN the Musical could've been a hokey disaster that tried to cobble great hits together in some strained reach of a storyline, but it isn't. MOTOWN's plot is not contrived but completely realistic and heart-warmingly human. Baltimore and Motor City may be more like strained siblings than kissing cousins, but in some deep sense, Detroit IS Baltimore and this musical will resonate most particularly here, most particularly now. MOTOWN deserves to be not just a Broadway phenomenon but a part of our collective culture. It's fun, it's funny, it's sexy and it's full of the sort of hopeful commitment to brighter futures that used to be part of the American Dream.

The tech and scale of this North American touring production of PHANTOM OF THE OPERA are, in a word, magnificent. It is a spectacle of spectacles, and set designer Paul Brown deserves his own ovation. The sound, brilliantly executed by the Hippodrome techs and cleverly imagined by designer Mick Potter, creates an immersive environment which gives the unseen title character location and substance.

Let's say you like farce. Let's say you like Hitchcock films. Let's say you want a posh production for a shoestring budget. Let's say you need a cast of thousands but only have four actors. Let's say it's a long shot. But it might work. It could work. And THE 39 STEPS, now playing at Fells Point Corner Theatre, does work, very well.

If you like THE SOUND OF MUSIC, do go see it at the Hippodrome. You won't be disappointed. If you don't like THE SOUND OF MUSIC, (hard to imagine, but some folk don't), there's no reason to think that this production will change your mind.

If you enjoyed CABARET MACABRE, you'll be pleased by CABARET NOIR. Imagine a favorite musical artist releasing a new album: it's familiar but fresh. The Cabaret is a series of film-like clips, presented possibly in chronological order… or perhaps not. It's hard to tell. There is a glimmer of story, a hatful of characters, a whisper of atmosphere, a smorgasbord of music and a scent of mystery. Those who love Film Noir will be delighted, those who don't care for it will be charmed and amused, and those who don't know about it will never hereafter be able to take it seriously. Those who have never heard of Happenstance Theatre and its current show CABARET NOIR are seriously missing out on a wonderful thing.

Once again, Vagabonds produces a heartwarming show full of laughs, props and loveable, resplendently costumed characters. If you're in the mood for a happy, snappy little musical with a measure of murder in the mix, SOMETHING'S AFOOT is your cosy cup of tea.