James Lindhorst

Stages St. Louis has announced full casting for their season opening production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. The ensemble, comprised entirely of actors who call St. Louis home, includes multiple St. Louis Theater Circle Award winners.

Director Kathryn Bentley has built an infectious production of Colin McLaughlin and Ryan Marquez’s new groove heavy musical. She inspired and evoked vibrant performances from a high-octane cast who enthrall the audience with lively storytelling. Bentley delivers Eleventh Hour Radio’s ‘save the world’ message by entertaining instead of preachy bludgeoning. Eleventh Hour Radio is a head nodding, toe-tapping, irresistible bop. It is simply a fun time

Rebekah Scallet has once again brought St. Louis audiences a newer work to the NJT Wool Studio Stage with resounding success. Her production of Prayer for the French Republic is a gripping story with cataclysmic force. The Salomon and Benhamou Families face paralyzing fear steeped in the long history of Jewish persecution expertly captured by a gifted powerhouse acting ensemble. This deeply gripping and devastating production leaves the audience filled with empathetic catharsis.

World renowned opera singer and Tony Award winner Paulo Szot will be spending a lot of time in St. Louis this summer. Szot will make his Opera Theatre of St. Louis (OTSL) debut in The Light in the Piazza and reprise his Tony winning role as Emile de Beque in South Pacific at The Muny.

The surreal script can best be described as oddly bizarre. Dead Man’s Cellphone is a fantasy that explores human obsession with digital technology and the effects it has on our relationships. But it goes beyond the plot device to connect the protagonist to a dead man’s family. It examines how we sanctify the departed when we may have little or no information about them. Those who enjoy abstract and experimental theater will the love Dead Man’s Cellphone. Others, while they may not like Ruhl’s play, should appreciate the exceptional work by the talented director, cast, and crew.

When the Olivier Awards were handed out this evening in London, Stages St. Louis Founder and former Executive Producer, Jack Lane was keeping a keen eye on the results from his home in St. Louis.

Chorus of Fools swung for the fences taking on Romeo & Juliet. While they didn’t hit a home run, it was certainly a quality at bat. Director Eric Satterfield staged an emotionally satisfying production led by the outstanding performances of Zach Pierson, Tia René Williams, Celeste Genevieve Gardner, and Rowan Van Horn.

The Orange Girls and St. Louis Actors’ Studio’s The Half-Life of Marie Curie is a beautiful work. The production brings together all the design elements of a play into an artistic expression of friendship and feminism through intelligent story telling. It is flawlessly directed, convincingly acted, and meticulously executed. Its originality, integrity, honesty, and impact would make any Nobel prize winning scientist proud.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern may be dead, but the St. Louis Shakespeare Festival is very much alive. Those lucky enough to have secured a ticket to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead won’t be disappointed by this chaotically lively production of what Director Tom Ridgley calls “Tom Stoppard’s masterpiece.” The frenetically vibrant three act, two-and-one-half hour play, moves expediently courtesy of Ridley’s brisk direction and Jeff Cummings, Mitchell Henry-Eagles, and Ryan Omar Stack’s hyperbolic performances.

Fresh off their 13-wins at last night’s St. Louis Theatre Circle Awards, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis announces their upcoming season celebrating their Diamond Anniversary at The Rep. This season, 60-years in the making, include five mainstage performances, three productions in the Steve Woolf Studio Series, and launches their new Diamond Concert Series.

New Jewish Theatre’s 14 wins and The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis’ 13 wins sweep the St. Louis Theatre Circle Awards. In ceremonies on Monday night, New Jewish Theatre’s production of Cabaret won the most awards, including Outstanding Production of a musical. The Rep’s productions of Tarell Alvin McCraney’s The Brothers Size and The Cottage were named Outstanding Production of a Drama and Outstanding Production of a Comedy.

Robbin, From the Hood has ambitious intent. Playwright Marlow Wyatt has crafted several potentially compelling scenarios about those living in impoverished and marginalized communities and how the conditions effect their population. But in its current iteration, Robbin, From the Hood loses its dramatic impact from its attempt to dramatize too much.

Flyin’ West is a family drama set against the backdrop of the migration West. The Jon Royal directed production succeeds because of the naturalistic acting of Handy, Pryor, Lockett, and Yancy. The women create realistic, believable relationships among the women they portray. The chemistry in Royal’s casting and the performances he elicited makes the familial connections feel genuine and the outside threat they face feel real.

Stages St. Louis is about to be thrust onto the international theatre scene with the U.K. premiere of The Karate Kid - The Musical. The critically acclaimed world premiere played to sold-out houses during its 5-week run that was originally produced at Stages St. Louis in 2022.

This year’s Spectrum 2026, produced by First Run Theatre, was unique. The six-play festival featured four wittily written plays that stood on their own. Two were flat-out funny, one was a bit macabre, and Tortured Poets Department was beyond charming.

STAGES St. Louis founder Jack Lane may need to clear space on his mantle for additional hardware. This morning, when the Society of London Theatre announced their 2026 nominations for the Olivier Awards, Lane became a first time Olivier nominee. Two of his productions, Evita and The Producers picked up nominations for Best Revival of a Musical.

When Kelly Howe and Joe Hanrahan take the stage at Blue Strawberry on Friday, March 13, 2026, the pair will be celebrating a special anniversary. Their long running hit Just One Look premiered 3-years ago on the exact same stage. Just One Look is the first, and most successful, of Midnight Company’s scripted cabaret shows. The show blends cabaret performing with storytelling. It’s not exactly a club act or a Broadway musical, but a nostalgic look at one of the most successful female rock artists of all time. When Hanrahan and Howe, announced this collaboration in early 2023, Broadway World called the show featuring Linda Ronstadt’s songbook “the most anticipated theatrical event of the new season.” It’s clear from the show’s success that Ronstadt’s chart-topping music is still as popular today as it was a half-century ago.

You will be entertained by Kathryn Bentley and Colin McLaughlin’s new play, but that is only one small part of why their work needs to be seen. This historical drama is an important part of St. Louis’ Black History. A Brick and a Bible is an empowerment story about women raising their voices for change, social justice, better working conditions, and equal pay for equal work. It tells of unknown events that were critical to the labor movement. The Funsten factory worker strike is part of what made St Louis one of the centers for labor activism in the Midwest.

Lucy Kirkwood’s play The Children is fascinating and compelling. Her script prompts discussion about corporate responsibility, what accountability an organization’s employees should own, and how tragic circumstances force people to face personal transgressions and the fallout from their poor decisions.

When Lucas Hnath’s play premiered on Broadway the New York Times and Time Out New York called it “the best play of the season.” It’s an engaging and modern script tackling themes of feminist autonomy and self-determination. Weber’s staging is well-conceived and highly entertaining. Layton, Reed, Doggett, and Coffey all turn in expressive portrayal as a cohesive ensemble.