SHEA’S SMITH THEATER

by Michael Rabice - December 07, 2025

A heartfelt holiday story based on a beloved Christmas film sprinkled with iconic Irving Berlin tunes just about sums up the delightful stage musical WHITE CHRISTMAS now on stage at Shea’s 710 Theatre. Musicalfare has settled into their  new digs after a record breaking production of COME FROM AWAY....

by Michael Rabice - November 25, 2025

Niagara on the Lake will always be known for it's quaint lakeside charm, full of shops, restaurants, and tourists. So it's seems perfectly fitting that the Shaw Festival presents it's last incarnation of their beloved version of Charles Dickens' A CHRISTMAS CAROL. This fresh adaptation by Festival A...

by Michael Rabice - November 21, 2025

Never trust a wolf is sheep's clothing, as the saying goes. But in this case Mr Wolf is a college professor who harbors dark secrets, delusions and young girls in his home. This disturbing plot makes for a gripping evening of theatre in Rajiv Joseph's play MR. WOLF, now playing at Road Less Traveled...

by Michael Rabice - November 14, 2025

Everything Oz continues to enchant and enamor. The national touring production of WICKED landed at Shea's Buffalo Theatre this week. And like that infamous house that dropped from the sky, WICKED has an impact that rivals any of even the most famous Disney musicals. The 2003 Broadway musical was mad...

by Michael Rabice - November 10, 2025

Broadway now has 'OH, MARY,' exploring Mary Todd Lincoln's life ( sort of!).  Buffalo's Irish Classical Theatre is now presenting a fascinatingly wonderful play THIRST by Ronan Noone, where we meet the downstairs staff of Eugene O'Neill's masterpiece A LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT.   ...

by Michael Rabice - October 27, 2025

The days when old fashioned musical comedies were drawn  from classic  love stories, silly high school antics and farces will always be tried and true. But more heady topics like mental illness, Alzheimers, race relations, big business, and corrupt governments also have found a place into the unique...

by Michael Rabice - October 08, 2025

Part romance novel, part heartbreak story of the ravages of Alzheimer's, Nicholas Sparks' novel THE NOTEBOOK is now a Broadway musical. No, not of  the glitzy  singing and dancing stage spectacular variety, but moreso a stage drama with music. The excellent National Touring production opened at Shea...

by Michael Rabice - September 26, 2025

A modern day Restoration Comedy with a contemporary gender fluid  slant takes to the stage in  Liz Duffy Adams' play OR, now playing at Buffalo's Irish Classical Theatre. This polished production brings a modern day sensibility to a 17th century comedy of sorts. Adams pens a play that while set in t...

by Michael Rabice - September 15, 2025

A renaissance of Buffalo born theatre productions at the former Studio Arena Theatre in Buffalo continues to burnish brightly. As I sat in the crowded, newly renovated Shea's 710 Theatre, thinking how the facility had been mothballed a decade ago, Buffalo's hometown pride burst through. On afternoon...

by Michael Rabice - August 21, 2025

'Tale as old as time,' the lyric goes in the heart warming production of Disney's BEAUTY AND THE BEAST now playing at Shea's Buffalo Theatre. I knew I was in good hands when the sparkling new production of the beloved classic begins with Angela Lansbury's voice reciting the story that has captured c...