Jeff Davis - Page 4

The words 'a collection of original short plays' have a tendency to either excite the seasoned theatergoer or strikes fear in their hearts. Every brilliant work was once original, and therefore some original work can be brilliant. On the other hand, a night of original short plays can be like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get. Sam Bass Theatre's current offering, Refried Flimflammery is occasionally the former, but more often the later. There are some moments of brilliance, but most of the evening is uneven.

There are a few performances that I've seen in my lifetime that have stayed with me for years. Glenn Close in Sunset Boulevard? Unforgettable. Michael Crawford in Phantom? I was six when I saw his performance, and I still remember it.

Austin Playhouse is proud to present one of the funniest comedies ever written. Shy Englishman, Charlie Baker has a hard time speaking to strangers. To help him out, his gregarious friend 'Froggy' LeSeur tells the residents of a rural fishing lodge that Charlie is a foreigner who doesn't understand English. Assuming their secrets are safe, chaos ensues when Charlie overhears dastardly plots involving the residents of Betty Meeks' lodge! Hailed as 'a charming comedy about the magic of kindness' by Chicago Theater Beat, The Foreigner is chock full of hilarious slapstick and witty wordplay.

The production may feature performers ranging in age from 13 to 18, but the entire cast is polished and poised well beyond their years.

There's something to be said for shattering expectations, and M. Scott Tatum and Julie Wright have much to say about the topic. It's clear that the Co-Artistic Directors of Half and Half Productions are passionate about finding creative and innovative ways to expand the reach of theater by breaking theater conventions while engaging and entertaining their audience.

Oh, Edward Albee. No one writes an American family drama quite like you.

It's no secret that Antony and Cleopatra is one of Shakespeare's most neglected works. Despite its well-known characters (who doesn't know who Cleopatra was?), the play is rarely produced. In a program note, Poor Shadows of Elysium's Artistic Director, Kevin Gates, suggests that the play's decline in popularity stems from the gender politics of the Victorian Era. 'I've always seen this as Cleopatra's play,' says Gates. 'Peter Brook observed that many Victorian actors felt the same, and that's one reason why the play fell out of favor during the Victorian era. No actor worth his salt wanted to be upstaged by an actress.' Gates and Brook are both right. This is indeed Cleopatra's play, especially in Poor Shadow's current production.

Described as 'a scorching masterpiece,' Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance is a riveting, funny, and thought-provoking examination of family and friends is one of the most successful plays in American theatre and all too rarely produced in Austin. Guest director Fritz Ketchum leads the production with show dates May 2 - 25, 2014 at City Theatre.

Poor, plain, easily ignored Nemorino. He's so in love with the beautiful Adina, but she doesn't love him back. Ultimately, lovesick Nemorino is forced to buy a love potion from a charlatan to win Adina's heart. While that may be the plot of Gaetano Donizetti's comic opera, it doesn't take a potion to fall for Austin Lyric Opera's superb production of The Elixir of Love. Every element of this superbly crafted production will win the love and adoration of the audience. Opera lovers will be entranced, and opera newcomers will be enchanted. If you are an opera novice or are under the impression that you hate opera, give this one a chance. You'll be surprised at how easy it is to follow this simple, charming, humorous show, and you'll be glad to know that given its 2 hour and 30 minute running time, it's a relatively brief affair.

Described as 'a scorching masterpiece,' Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance is a riveting, funny, and thought-provoking examination of family and friends is one of the most successful plays in American theatre and all too rarely produced in Austin. Guest director Fritz Ketchum leads the production with show dates May 2 - 25, 2014 at City Theatre.

For the last several weeks, the Austin theatre scene has been buzzing about the World Premiere of Roaring, now entering its final weekend of performances at Austin Playhouse. The original play, written by Austin Playhouse company member Cyndi Williams, has earned fantastic word-of-mouth and glowing reviews, including a rave from BroadwayWorld-Austin's Brian Losoya. Ms. Williams recently shared her thoughts on the play and its development...

If you saw Georgetown Palace's recent production of Lend Me a Tenor (or if you didn't, for that matter), you have good reason to see Moon Over Buffalo, now in its final week of performances. The similarities between the two shows are easy to pinpoint. They're both by Ken Ludwig. They're both backstage farces. They both involve mistaken identities. They both easily qualify as 'door-slamming comedies.' (Their sets even have the same number of doors). And they're booth hysterical. The Palace's gift for zany, over the top comedy is back on display with Moon Over Buffalo, and once again, the audience is left in stitches.

A decade or so from now, if you were to google 'Broadway shows that had a mediocre Broadway run but are regional theater crowdpleasers,' I'd be willing to bet that Catch Me if You Can would top the list. The musical, written by Hairspray's Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman with a book by Terrence McNally, played only 166 Broadway performances. Despite mixed reviews, the musical received 5 Tony nominations, including Best Musical. Norbert Leo Butz even took home the award for Best Actor in a Leading role (In other words, Butz beat out both leads from The Book of Mormon, and the Tony Awards reaction shot from Mormon's Josh Gad demands a YouTube detour before you continue reading).

I'm convinced that the city of Wimberley houses the Central Texas theater community's best kept secret: The Wimberley Players. The humble theater company in the small town of Wimberley is one of the best, brightest, and most professional theater companies in the area. Even Austinites who are vehemently opposed to gassing up the car and spending a little time and energy to drive south of the river would agree that Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean is well worth the trip.

To Austin area High School English teachers, I sincerely apologize if any of your students see The Baron's Men's current production of Romeo and Juliet. If they do, they may enter your class with the false belief that Shakespeare's play about impulsive, horny, and eventually suicidal teens is meant to be a comedy. It's not. The words 'A Tragedy' sometimes even accompany the title. The only tragedies of this production are the over three hour running time, the direction that plays the majority of the story for laughs, and the fact that The Baron's Men, while claiming to have great reverence for the Bard, would do this to one of Shakespeare's greatest works.