BWW Reviews: Parade Scene Highlights Seven Angel's MIRACLE ON 34TH STREETDecember 3, 2012The parade seen is terrifically stages with marching bands, entertaining acts and the famous Macy's balloons all depicted while Music Director Richard DeRosa and his five-man band play a score by Meredith "Music Man" Wilson that includes "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas." Alexander Butler as Mara's grandson is adorable as is Grace Rundhaug, who believes in Santa when Kris is able to speak to her in her native Dutch. The real Macy's over at Waterbury's Brass Mill Mall also got involved in the production, decorating the theater lobby and providing discount cards in the program.
BWW Reviews: Hartford Stage Showcases Ghosts in A CHRISTMAS CAROLDecember 4, 2012Right from the start, Michael Wilson's adaptation of Charles Dicken's A CHRISTMAS CAROL makes it clear that its subtitle, "A Ghost of a Christmas Story," should be taken seriously. Not only do the four ghosts we expect pay visits, but others dance, fly, float and slither across the stage in a satisfying presentation now in its 15th season at Hartford Stage.
BWW Reviews: SOMETHING'S AFOOT at Goodspeed is a Whydunit MysteryOctober 27, 2012The biggest mystery surrounding SOMETHING'S AFOOT isn't who's murdering guests at a posh estate on a remote island. It's why Goodspeed would decide to present a revival of such a flawed musical when there are so many other more deserving shows out there. It's not a whodunit. It's a whydunit?
BWW Reviews: Taut Thriller TRYST Teases with Tension, TwistsAugust 13, 2012When dowdy, painfully shy Adelaide Pinchin (Andrea Maulella) meets dashing, smooth-talking, George Love (Mark Shanahan) it's love at first sight -- for him! Or is it? All is not what it seems in Karoline Leach's play Tryst, a taut, brooding, romance thriller full of creepy twists and turns that make you squirm and keep you on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen next and whether two very sad people can find happiness together.
BWW Reviews: 1962 Baltimore Comes to Life in Ivoryton Playhouse's HAIRSPRAYJuly 5, 2012It's 1962 Baltimore, where racial tension and segregation provide a backdrop for teen angst and lots of catchy tunes by Marc Shaiman (lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman) performed to stage-defying choreography by JR Bruno who manages to get some 15 ensemble members bopping around at times without crashing into each other on the small stage.