BWW Reviews: Street Theatre Company's TOMMY IN CONCERT Performances Will Rock Your WorldFebruary 24, 2012Led by an ensemble that includes the always superb Michael Holder in the titular role of Tommy, the "deaf, dumb and blind kid" who becomes a "pinball wizard," setting off widespread public acclaim and becoming a cause celebre in the process, Tommy in Concert also features the inspired pairing of Holly Shepherd and Ben Van Diepen as Mrs. Walker and Captain Walker. Despite the age difference of the two actors-not to mention their youthfulness in relation to Holder's casting as their onstage son-Shepherd and Van Diepen are believably cast as young lovers who marry in the early days of World War II only to find that first blush of romantic dreaminess devolve into the nightmarish consequences that set the show's plot in motion.
BWW Interviews: MICHAEL ADCOCK and The Friday FiveFebruary 24, 2012With the Tony Award-winning musical Spring Awakening making its Tennessee premiere tonight in Tullahoma in a sparkling new production directed by Robert Allen, we present dueling "Friday Fives," featuring the show's two leads. The focus of this interview? None other than Michael Adcock, winner in January of a BroadwayWorld.com Tennessee Theatre Award for his performance in Anything Goes at Murfreesboro's Center for the Arts.
BWW Interviews: BLAIR ALLISON Answers Our Friday FiveFebruary 23, 2012Today's spotlight falls upon Blair Allison, who in January was recognized as one of First Night's Top 11 of 2011 Actors We'd Invest In For the Biggest Payoff (If We Had The Money). Tonight she opens in the Tennessee premiere of Spring Awakening, playing Wendla Bergman at Alpine Chateau, February 24 and 25, directed by Robert Allen (and playing opposite Michael Adcock, who stars in today's second installment of The Friday Five). After rolling in the hay as Wendla, Allison will focus on her next onstage assignment: The Ugly Duckling, running March 16-18 in the Belmont Little Theatre.
SPRING AWAKENING Premieres in Tullahoma for 3 Performances in FebruaryFebruary 23, 2012Tullahoma's Alpine Chateau Restaurant will present Tennessee's community theatre premiere of 2007's Tony Award-winning best musical Spring Awakening on February 25 at 9:30 p.m. and February 25 at 8:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. at The Historic Coker Building, 401 Wilson Avenue.
BWW Interviews: Will Butler, On Becoming Eugene Morris Jerome in Circle Players' BRIGHTON BEACH MEMOIRSFebruary 21, 2012Will Butler is pretty jazzed up about playing Eugene Morris Jerome in Circle Players' upcoming production of Neil Simon's Brighton Beach Memoirs which might be due, in part, to the fact that he's pretty certain he's got all the lines down pat. But the real reason he's excited is that Brighton Beach marks his return-it's kind of a comeback for the young actor-to the Nashville stage since his "senior capstone project" at Belmont University in 2010.
Holder, Shepherd and Van Diepen star in TOMMY IN CONCERT at STC in FebruaryFebruary 21, 2012The Who's Tommy in Concert is the next offering from Street Theatre Company, continuing the sold-out success of its In Concert series, playing for six performances February 22-26. STC's 2011 In Concert offerings-Chess in Concert and Ragtime in Concert-were both included in First Night's Top 11 of 2011 Outstanding Theatrical Events.
BWW Interviews: Holly Shepherd Stars as Mrs. Walker in TOMMY IN CONCERT at Street Theatre CompanyFebruary 19, 2012In the days before Tommy in Concert bows at STC's venue (conveniently located at 1933 Elm Hill Pike), we'll introduce you to the principals who weigh in with their takes on the production. First up: Holly Shepherd, a Nashville stage favorite making her STC debut which follows her recent one-woman show that wowed sold-out crowds and her First Night's Top 11 of 2011-honored performance as Miss Hannigan in Annie at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre…
BWW Reviews: ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING Lands Flatly in New Production at Chaffin's BarnFebruary 18, 2012Try as they might, director Martha Wilkinson and her talented ensemble of actors just can't breathe enough life into a thin, tepid script to make it work onstage for audiences eager to be entertained. Virginia Cate and Duke Ernsberger's Elvis Has Left The Building is pleasant enough, with a promising premise, yet it falls flat despite the best efforts of the cast and crew putting forth the new production at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre.
BROADWAY AT BETHLEHEM to Feature Wilkinson, Osborne and MoreFebruary 18, 2012What is described as 'an incredible slice of Broadway' comes to Franklin for the sixth annual Broadway at Bethlehem - Divas & Desserts benefit on Saturday, February 18 with an array of talented performers including Broadwayworld.com award-winning actors Dietz Osborne and Martha Wilkinson co-hosting and featuring singers Megan Murphy Chambers, Melodie Madden Adams, Laura Matula, Kandace Williams and Maggie McNulty at the Bethlehem United Methodist Church, Performing Arts Center, 2419 Bethlehem Loop Road in Franklin, Tennessee.
Director Greg Greene Talks About Blackbird Theater's Upcoming PACIFIC OVERTURESFebruary 18, 2012Nashville audiences-and chattering, anticipatory theater critics-will be given the opportunity to weigh in with their own impressions of Pacific Overtures, thanks to an ambitious production from Blackbird Theater, the acclaimed company now in its sophomore season at David Lipscomb University's Shamblin Theatre.
BWW Interviews: Gina D'Arco Tackles THE FRIDAY FIVEFebruary 17, 2012First up is Gina D'Arco, one of Belmont University's most gifted actors, who tonight opens in Actors Bridge Ensemble's staging of Federico Garcia Lorca's The House of Bernard Alba (the professional company's annual collaborative production with Belmont University's Department of Theatre and Dance), directed by Jessika Malone, who helmed last year's critically acclaimed and award-winning production of Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl.
Vali Forrister Leads Cast of Jessika Malone-directed HOUSE OF BERNARDA ELBAFebruary 17, 2012Vali Forrister retuns to the stage for the first time since her 2006 triumph in How I Learned to Drive to lead the cast of Actors Bridge Ensemble and the Belmont University Department of Theatre and Dance's production of Frederico Garcia Lorca's The House of Bernarda Alba. Jessika Malone, artistic associate at ABE, directs the cast of Emily Mann's adaptation of Lorca's work which has been described as 'a cross between Downton Abbey and The Bachelor with an added splash of Mommie Dearest.'
Lakewood Theatre Launches 32nd Season with COLUMBO: PRESCRIPTION MURDERFebruary 17, 2012The play provided the impetus for the venerable Columbo television series, starring the late Peter Falk. The cast includes Eric Link (2011 Lakie Award Winner for Best Lead Actor), Buffi Holland, Pamm Howard (named BroadwayWorld.com's 'Best Featured Actress in a Play' for her performance in A Few Good Men), Rod Streng, April Hardcastle-Miles and Patrick Goedicke as 'Lt Columbo.'
STAGE TUBE: THE HOUSE OF BERNARDA ALBA from Actors Bridge and Belmont UniversityFebruary 15, 2012Jessika Malone, artistic associate at ABE, directs the cast of Emily Mann's adaptation of Lorca's work which has been described as 'a cross between Downton Abbey and The Bachelor with an added splash of Mommie Dearest.' Opening, Friday, February 17, and running through February 26, The House of Bernarda Alba plays Belmont University's Troutt Theatre at 2100 Belmont Boulevard. General admission tickets are $18, with tickets for seniors at $12.
Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre's ELVIS HAS LEFT THE BUILDING OpensFebruary 15, 2012From the same writing team that created Frankly, My Dear-Duke Ernsburger and Virginia Cate-comes the latest comedy opening at Nashville's Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre: Elvis Has Left the Building. Running February 16-March 18, the comedy is directed by Martha Wilkinson, artistic director of the company that is celebrating its 45th season of bringing theater to Nashville audiences.
What's Nashville's Favorite Love Song from a Broadway Show?February 14, 2012In a town where everyone from your next-door neighbor to your favorite barista - from your dental hygienist to your manicurist, your seatmate on the bus, your friendly neighborhood bartender and maybe even the guy who does your taxes - is a songwriter, you'll find that there's never a shortage of opinions on the topic of favorite songs. Ask a cross-section of Nashville theater-types what their favorite love song is from the annals of musical theater and you're going to get a barrage of answers.