Sean Fallon

On Saturday, November 11th, I had the pleasure of seeing ELF, the musical, performed by Fairfield Center Stage, at Wakeman Hall inside First Congregational Church of Fairfield. With book by Thomas Meehan and Bob Martin and music by Matthew Sklar and Chad Beguelin, this musical is based on the 2003 movie. Director Marcelle Morrisey, musical director Clay Zambo, and choreographers Emily Frangipane & Kelsey Kaminski combine their talents to bring out the best in this phenomenal ensemble cast. The music is of the traditional show-tunes genre, a rarity in more recently written musicals.

NIGHT OF JANUARY 16TH is a three-act courtroom drama by Ayn Rand, set in 1933. Director Pamela Amodio helps bring out the best in this phenomenal ensemble cast who all appear to be greatly enjoying their roles! The case involves a young woman named Karen Andre who is standing trial, being accused of the alleged murder of her former lover and boss, Bjorn Faulkner.

On Sunday, July 30th, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another first-rate production put on by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT, INTO THE WOODS!  This is the first time I have ever seen this show performed live, and it has given me a whole new appreciation for this James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim masterpiece!   The brilliant direction of Ian Galligan combines with the musical direction of Nick Ciasullo and choreography of Todd Santa Maria to bring out the best in this stellar cast, and in this musical itself!  It is as if the musical was written to be performed by this cast! 

On Friday, July 28th, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another phenomenal performance by Musicals at Richter, in Danbury, CT, Meredith Willson’s THE MUSIC MAN.  Musicals at Richter has a talent in making their outdoor venue feel like the perfect venue for every show they put on, including THE MUSIC MAN, as the moon shines from behind the trees backstage!  They also manage to get the perfect cast for each show, with each cast member excelling at the role they play, as the cast gels together as a collective group of highly talented local performers who are spectacular in their stage presence, stage chemistry with each other, acting, singing, dancing, and ability to radiate positive vibes from the stage, helping the audience enjoy watching them perform as much as the cast enjoys performing!  The directing of David Halliwell combines with the musical directing of Peter Randazzo, and the choreography of Lindsay Miller to help maximize the talents of this stellar cast!

On Friday, July 7th, I had the pleasure of yet again being blown away by the incredible talent that Musicals at Richter, in Danbury, CT has found to star in their show, this time, being a musical comedy that I have never seen before, THE ADDAMS FAMILY.

On Friday, June 16, I had the pleasure of seeing a phenomenal performance of 9 TO 5, the musical, at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre in Bridgeport, CT.  I joined the opening night packed house in tremendously enjoying this production!  With book by Patricia Resnick and music and lyrics by Dolly Parton, this show, based on the movie, while comedic, also addresses the important issues of sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace, how both can take on various forms, and both can be devastating and infuriating to those who are subject to them.  This entire cast is spectacular in the way they perform their roles, under the direction of Andrea Pane, choreography of Christina Ronquillo, and musical direction of Zachary Kampler.

On Friday, June 2, I had the pleasure of seeing NEXT TO NORMAL presented in the absolute most phenomenal way possible!  The Ridgefield Theater Barn in Ridgefield, CT, has maximized the potential of this emotionally deep and powerful musical!  Directors Matt Austin and Jessica Chesbro combine their strong directing talents with their brilliant set design skills to create an immersive experience that draws the entire audience into the show!  This stellar cast of six first-rate performers brings their characters to life!  The stage presence of all six cast members and dynamics between them all yield authenticity that makes the audience feel the characters’ emotions, in this intimate setting.   The audience was truly moved by this story with book and lyrics written by Brian Yorkey, coupled with the music written by Tom Kitt, as performed by this amazing cast and live band, in this perfectly arranged venue for this show!

On Saturday, May 13, 2023, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another first-rate installment of playwright Roger Bean’s Marvelous Wonderettes jukebox musical series, THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES DREAM ON, as put on by the Castle Craig Players, at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse, in Meriden, CT. 

On Friday, May 12th, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another phenomenal production by Fairfield Center Stage, GUYS & DOLLS, which is one of the absolute best musicals ever written, with music by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, based on characters created by Damon Runyon.  As someone who has seen this show performed on Broadway, I am qualified to say decisively and without exaggeration that Fairfield Center Stage’s performance of GUYS & DOLLS far surpasses and outshines what I saw on Broadway!  Fairfield Center Stage has yet again chosen the perfect cast and perfect venue for their production!  The venue is Wakeman Hall, inside First Church Congregational of Fairfield.   Fairfield Center Stage maximizes the use of both the stage and the area in front of the stage throughout the show.  Director Brian Crook, Musical Director Frank Martignetti, and Choreographer Bonnie Gregson combine their talents to bring out the best in the first-rate ensemble cast who all look like they are having a wonderful time playing their respective roles, with excellent stage chemistry, radiating positive energy throughout the audience!   The stage presence and dynamics between the cast members are sensational.  The performances are so believable, all around, that it is easy to forget that this is a fictional story.

On Saturday, April 22, 2023, at 2:30, I had the pleasure of seeing what is arguably the absolute best younger audiences production I have ever seen at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre in Bridgeport, CT, WIZARD OF OZ!  Phill Hill has created a phenomenal masterpiece in his adaptation of the classic story by L. Frank Baum in a brilliant and entertaining manner, loaded with great music from the 1980s!

On Friday, April 21st, I had the pleasure of seeing CABARET at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre in Bridgeport, CT.  This highly thought provoking play has book by Joe Masteroff, and songs written by John Kander with lyrics by Frank Ebb.  Even though it was written in 1966, it addresses concepts that are relevant in the modern day, like how we may be unaware of the serious injustices going on across the world, until they directly impact us or someone we know. It also shows how people who believe that politics is irrelevant to their own personal lives do not become immune to the consequences of the wrong people rising to power.  Most importantly, it shows the lethal results of a society that rejects moral absolutes and lets the shifting sands of feelings and emotionally manipulative propaganda define its sense of reality, right, and wrong.  

On Sunday, March 12th, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another phenomenal installment of the Downtown Cabaret Theatre’s Decades in Music series, THE 1980S.  Of the three so far, this one has been my favorite!  THE 1980S is written by Phill Hill, directed and choreographed by Jennifer Kaye, and performed at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre in Bridgeport CT.  THE 1980S represents a trip through song, dance, and video clips of the decade I entered as a pre-schooler and left as a high school freshman.  Consistently with the Decades in Music series, the usual stellar cast of Robert Peterpaul, Everton Ricketts, Mikayla Petrilla, and Saige Bryan provide first-rate performances that truly captivate the feel of the decade and radiate positive energy throughout the audience.  The performers have excellent stage chemistry with each other, harmonize well, and truly look like they are having a great time up on stage, and when breaking the fourth wall and interacting with the audience!

On Saturday, March 11, 2023, I had the pleasure of experiencing one of my favorite annual theater traditions in seeing AN EVENING OF ONE ACTS 2023 at the Ridgefield Theater Barn in Ridgefield, CT.  This annual event is a new series each year of original one act plays, mostly in the comedy genre, and always done extremely well by a very talented cast.  Seven total one acts were performed this year, with no intermission.  The prop and scene changes, during the blackouts, between each one act were smooth and efficient.  This was a packed house in an intimate setting.  The cast enters and exits through the center aisle of the audience.  The walls of stage left and stage right are visible to the audience.  Every audience member seemed to be highly entertained.

On Saturday, March 4, 2023, I had the pleasure of seeing DOUBT, yet another first-rate performance by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT.  I had previously seen the movie in 2009, but I must say that this play, which originally pre-dates the movie, is far better, especially with this cast!  The play is written by John Patrick Shanley and brilliantly directed by Oliver Kochol who brings out the best in this stellar cast whose stage chemistry with each other is so strong that every interaction feels real!

This comedic musical stage adaptation of a classic children’s story has been brilliantly written and directed by Andrea Pane, who also performs in it, showing that in addition to his already well established versatile first-rate acting, he is also phenomenally gifted as a playwright and as a director.

On Saturday, December 10, at 8:00 PM, I had the pleasure of seeing one of my absolute favorite annual shows, A CHRISTMAS CAROL EXPERIENCE, as put on by Fairfield Center Stage. This annual production is easily the show that I talk up the most frequently during the year, every year. I am also excited that it has returned to the Burr Mansion, where it originally was performed, and where I feel it fits the best! Fairfield Center Stage has successfully repeated the groundbreaking excellence that I experienced for the first time back on December 22 of 2018.  This is a show I have subsequently enjoyed every year since then!

On Saturday, December 3, 2022, I had the pleasure of seeing EVERY CHRISTMAS STORY EVER TOLD, which is easily the funniest stage comedy I have seen in the last three years!  It is yet another first-rate Christmas comedy production performed by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT.  EVERY CHRISTMAS STORY EVER TOLD is a hilarious satirical farce written by Michael Carleton, James Fitzgerald, and John K. Alvarez.  It is brilliantly directed by Bobby and Carleigh Schultz.  It stars the highly talented trio of Chris Brooks, Rick Bennett, and Bobby Schultz. 

On Saturday, October 15, 2022, I had the pleasure of seeing Neil Simon’s CALIFORNIA SUITE as performed by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT. CALIFORNIA SUITE is different from a typical Neil Simon play in that rather than being one continuous story, it is four separate playlets that have three things in common: location, location, and location. Some audience members may be familiar with this concept in that it was used in A.R. Gurney’s The Dining Room. In CALIFORNIA SUITE, the location is not a dining room, but in Suite 203 & 204 in the Beverly Hills Hotel, a hotel that incidentally has lousy room service, but an entertaining cleaning staff.

On Thursday, September 8th, I had the pleasure of seeing THE EXONERATED at The Ridgefield Theater Barn, in Ridgefield, CT.  This show is amazing, based on true stories, and sends some deeply impacting messages that touch the emotions to the core, in a good way. It opens awareness in the minds of the audience, about things not always being as they seem, and people not always being who they may appear to be.

The Castle Craig Players have done it, with a first-rate cast, in Meriden, CT! On Saturday, July 30th, I had the pleasure of seeing a show that I had been looking forward to ever since it was first announced. As someone who has been a fan of the board game Clue since 1985, Clue the movie since 1986, and even Clue the VCR game, several years later, I was very excited to see CLUE, the play, as performed by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT. The play is by Sandy Rustin, Hunter Foster, and Eric Price, based on the screenplay by Jonathan Lynn. Under the wonderful direction of Ian Galligan, the Castle Craig Players have successfully put on yet another phenomenal production that combines comedy with murder mystery!