Jay Irwin

Dear Readers, there are some shows that just hold a special place in your heart, even if they may not age as well as you hoped. Charles Strouse and Lee Adams’ classic “Bye Bye Birdie”, currently playing at the 5th Avenue Theatre, is one of those shows for me. I loved both movie versions, saw what I consider to be the quintessential production back in 1990 starring Tommy Tune and Ann Reinking. Hell, I’ve even done the show several years ago. So, I’m a little picky about it when I see it again, and while this current production doesn’t surpass my previous experiences (I doubt anything could), it was certainly a solid production with a lot of fun moments going for it.

Dear Readers, Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” is a difficult show at best. On the one hand it’s a romantic comedy, filled with love and sex and music, and on the other hand it’s a story where some characters are in mourning for loved ones and other characters are performing vicious tricks on people just for the fun of it. So, when ACT and Seattle Shakespeare company announced they were tackling this as their first joint venture since they merged companies, I wondered which way they would take it. Sadly, they leaned in heavily on the romantic, the silly, and the music, and all but abandoned the depth. And while I enjoyed many of the performances, and very much enjoyed the music, other performances amounted to just a lot of yelling, and the ending left me wanting.

Dear Readers, if you were lucky enough to catch the circus arts troupe The 7 Fingers at the Rep back in 2023 with their thrilling “Passengers” show then you know how amazing they are, and you know why the Rep chose to bring them back. But if you missed them back then (or even if you didn’t) now’s your chance to catch them again as they are back in town with their latest offering, “Duel Reality”. And just as before, they’re here to make us gasp, cheer, and even feel with their sometimes death-defying antics.

Dear Readers, when discussing the musical of Alice Walker’s classic novel “The Color Purple”, you must acknowledge the production’s own journey from the tepidly received original 2005 Broadway production to the enthusiastically received 2015 Broadway revival which launched the career of the incredible Cynthia Erivo. We can discuss them in a bit but to start I will say that the current production at Village Theatre is certainly in the 2015 camp, with its streamlined production and roof shaking performances.

Dear Readers, It’s true, the Queens are back. The glorious rock show “Six” is back at the Paramount to melt our faces and maybe even teach us a little history. And while it’s still the same amazing show that, if you know, you know, I just wish the Paramount, and really all the musical theater houses in town, could work out their sound mixes so lyrics could be heard over the rockin’ band.

Dear Readers, I want to set the not-so-wayback machine to January 2024 when I got to see the first preview of Eddie Izzard doing her one person “Hamlet” in New York. Now I want to emphasize, this was the first preview of a brand-new show, and it was rough. This is to be expected. But afterward I was out on the street waiting for my cab when Izzard came out of the theater. Faced with the glory that is Eddie Izzard, and me being a big fan, I blurted out, “You were amazing!” Which she was, even in a rough show. She looked at me and said “That was a six. Come back later and you’ll see a ten!” Well, it’s taken a little while, but I finally got to come back now that she’s brought her tour of the show to Seattle at the Seattle Rep. And I’m happy to report she was right; we’re at a ten now.

Dear Readers, it’s always a dangerous proposition for a playwright to put the emotion they want you to feel in the title of their play. One such show would be Alexis Scheer’s “Laughs in Spanish”, currently playing at the Seattle Rep. If you’re going to tell me there are laughs, then there had better be laughs. And while there were some laughs, there were not enough and, really, only some chuckles.

Dear Readers, we live in divisive times. That’s no news to anyone. Our society is extremely polarized with many basing beliefs on fear, misinformation, and xenophobia while those in charge propagate that division by spreading lies. Sadly, this kind of behavior has been around forever, but if we can look at stories of this ilk, then maybe we can learn to rise above them. And that’s where shows like “Parade”, currently performing at the 5th Avenue Theatre, come into play.

Dear Readers, sometimes we get magic on stage. Whether that’s in the form of a captivating performance or some brilliant tech wizardry or maybe some stunning direction, this magic is what we yearn for when we go to the theater. Lucky for you, all three have come to the Paramount with the gripping “Life of Pi”.

Dear Readers, in the past I’ve talked about plays that are essential for your theatrical education, plays that are just good for you. If those fluff plays out there are candy, then these essentials are your vegetables. Once such play is Lorraine Hansberry’s Pulitzer Prize winning classic from 1959, “A Raisin in the Sun”, considered by many to be one of the best plays written. But there’s nothing saying that these essential plays can’t be entertaining, as is evident in the current production at Taproot Theatre. They’ve expertly given us our veggies but cooked them to perfection and given some delicious seasoning or sauce to make it all go down well.

Rejoice Dear Readers, as the Carnival is in town. But not your average carnival. No. This is the Can Can and to celebrate their 20th anniversary (yes, they’ve been titillating for 20 years) they’ve brought us a sultry, steamy, magical extravaganza with “Carnival of Curiosities”.

Dear Readers, when the rights for local theaters to produce hit shows become available, or start to become available, you know every theater will be vying to be the first. One such show currently in this situation is Sara Bareilles and Jessie Nelson’s huge hit “Waitress”. And once those rights are out there, we get to see what the local houses can do. Are they up to the task or will it just be a pale imitation of the Broadway and touring runs? The 5th Avenue Theatre has stepped up to be the first in this case and I’m thrilled to say, with a top notch cast and some able direction this first in the area production of “Waitress” is smacked clean out of the park.

If you’re at all familiar with the plays of Lauren Yee, Dear Readers, then you know of her delightfully odd situations, rich characters and scintillating dialog. People are still talking about last season’s “Cambodian Rock Band” but my favorite was her “King of the Yees”. Her work brings out the good and the bad in relationships and leaves you smiling or even giggling while tragedy strikes. And her latest, “Mother Russia”, with its World Premiere at the Seattle Rep, falls right in line with those other gems.

Dear Readers, I love a good play that can make me feel something. Not just tell me a story but immerse me in the subject. One such play is Sarah Ruhl’s “Letters From Max” currently playing at Seattle Public Theater. And while it certainly got to me, the play itself has some accessibility issues I need to discuss.

Dear Readers, if you’re not familiar with the Jason Robert Brown love story, “The Last Five Years” currently being offered from ACT and The 5th Avenue Theatre, you could get a bit confused watching it. So be sure to read on to avoid confusion. But for myself, I’ve seen it a few different times. I’ve seen it with a larger cast than just the normal two people, I’ve seen a production that chose to change the intent of the breakup, and, of course, I’ve seen the movie. But the story isn’t what confused me in this production. No, my confusion came from trying to convince myself that these two people were now or ever in love. No chemistry. But we’ll touch on that more later as well.

Dear Readers, I’m all for a slice of life play showing the inequities in class, race, gender, etc. in the past and spotlighting how far we have not come. Such a play is Pearl Cleage’s “Blues for an Alabama Sky”, currently playing at the Seattle Rep. It’s not a new play; in fact it’s about 30 years old. But it still packs in some resonance. What it fails to pack in completely is much of an arc or ending for its characters.

Dear Readers, first off let me wish you a Happy New Year and here’s hoping we’re in for some outstanding theater in 2025. But for now let’s set the not so way back machine to 2021 where I managed to see a new musical in previews Off-Broadway, “Kimberly Akimbo”. And let me say, Readers, it didn’t blow me away. It was cute with some fun songs but didn’t thrill me. Then it went to Broadway, and everyone lost their minds over it, and it won the Tony. Now, here we are in 2025, and that same show is at the Paramount, and while I found it a tighter show and certainly adorable and charming, I still have issue with the lack of memorable songs and, honestly, its Tony win especially when stacked up against some other shows that season.

Dear Readers, buckle up! Not because we’re about to go 88 mph but because I’m about to be a musical theater snob. The trend of turning popular (or even not so popular) movies into big splashy Broadway musicals is not a new one. And when it works such as with the likes of “Legally Blonde”, “Waitress”, or “Some Like It Hot”, it can be glorious. But for every one of those, you also get the likes of “Pretty Woman”, “Dirty Dancing”, or God forbid “Flashdance”. Shows that were better left on the silver screen. One such show is “Back to the Future: The Musical”, currently playing at the Paramount Theatre. And even if they could have gotten the car running (we’ll get to that in a minute) the show is still a travesty.

Dear Readers, I do love a good farce. That rollicking romp with oodles of physical comedy and improbable situations. Combine that with a good comedy of manners and it’s gold. What that spells is Noël Coward’s classic “Blithe Spirit” and lucky for us, it’s playing at the Seattle rep. And while there were a few little hiccups, the show is a laugh riot!