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BWW Review: Audience Taken On An Emotional Roller-Coaster Ride by Superlative DEAR EVAN HANSEN at the Connor Palace
Rogers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma ushered in the era of book-centric American musicals that have been designated as musical comedies. The beginning, middle and ending structured stories normally contain singing, dancing, show stoppers, comedy, a few conflicts, and a satisfying ending, in a two-act f...
BWW Review: Welcome to the Renaissance! Touring SOMETHING ROTTEN Delights at EJThomas
Theater history books refer to 'The Black Crook,' which opened in 1866 in New York, as the first book musical. According to 'Something Rotten!,' by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O'Farrell (book) and Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick (music and lyrics that honor should go to 'Omelette.'...
BWW Review: Should We Laugh or Cry? State of Civility Examined in NATIVE GARDENS at CPH
Negative racial and ethnic stereotypes, anti-ageism, political philosophical differences, and border conflicts are not usual topics for a comic play. But, author Karen Zacarias, whose 'Native Gardens' is now in production at Cleveland Play House, believes 'humor humanizes' when what could be the bas...
BWW Review: The Horrors of Addiction Showcased in WATER BY THE SPOONFUL at Ensemble
Chemical addiction is the 'compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance (such as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol).' In those with addiction, the substance controls the person, rather than the person being able to control their desire to stop usage or change their addictive behavior....
BWW Review: A BRONX TALE at Pasadena Playhouse
Calogero Lorenzo 'Chazz' Palminteri is a Bronx guy through and through. He lives and breathes New York Yankee pinstripes, is addicted to 'sauce,' and 'tawks' Bronxese....
BWW Special Report and Reviews: A Visit to Broadway With The BWU Senior Class
OnStage's 2018-2019 rankings of musical theater programs ranked Cleveland suburban Baldwin Wallace University' as number 1 in the nation, indicating that it was the 'top destination for any student wanting to study musical theatre.'...
BWW Review: ART Examines the Value of Friendship and Esthetics at Blank Canvas
What is art? What is friendship? What is the value of a piece of art? What is the value of friendship? These are just some of the questions which are put forth in Yasmina Reza's French-language play that has been translated into English by Christopher Hampton and is now in production at Blank Canvas...
BWW Review: Well-conceived THE END OF THE TOUR introduces CLE to Seat of the Pants Productions
Since 2012, Seat of the Pants, self-referred to as a 'band of storytellers,' has been traversing the countryside in various locations around Northeast Ohio, focusing their actions on 'sharing compelling narratives in unique spaces and developing an aesthetic rooted in imaginative staging and human c...
BWW Review: Overly Long, Poorly Conceived THE PRIDE on Stage at Convergence Continuum
Convergence Continuum recently staged 'Rapture, Blister, Burn' a very well written clearly staged show, that highlighted the author's intent and purpose. It was a standout production....
BWW Review: TINY HOUSES Gets Built Saying A Lot About Life And Needs In World Premiere At Cleveland Play House
In 1906, San Francisco had an intense earthquake and resulting fires. Little did my newly immigrant grandfather know that when he went to build 'shacks' in the city by the bay, that he would be part of what has recently become a new trend-building 'Little Houses.' He constructed many 200 square feet...
BWW Review: Local Playwright Eric Coble's THE VELOCITY OF AUTUMN at Karma
Cleveland Height resident Eric Coble is the area's most prolific and successful contemporary playwright. His scripts have been produced locally, as well as on- and off -Broadway, and at a significant number of national theaters....
BWW Review: SuperbLADY DAY Jazzes Up The Beck Center
Having seen Audra McDonald's Tony Award winning Broadway performance of Billie Holiday in 'Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill,' I went to see the Beck production of the show with trepidation....
BWW Review: Thought-Provoking THE NETHER at Dobama
In this era, confusion and uncertainty are the present trend in many cutting-edge plays by a new breed of playwrights that Dobama is using as its writing stable....
BWW Review: Enjoyable SCHOOL OF ROCK at the Connor Palace
What happens when a musical film earns over $131-million on a $35-million-dollar investment? If you are Andrew Lloyd Webber, you buy the rights and turn it into School of Rock The Musicalwith lyrics by Glenn Slater and book by Julian Fellowes....
BWW Review: KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN at Blank Canvas
Musicals come in different forms. Musical comedies, such as 'Cinderella' and 'School of Rock' intend to entertain. Musical dramas--think 'Dear Evan Hansen,' 'Come From Away,' and 'Hamilton,' relay thoughtful ideas in words, song and dance. The musical tragedy, such as 'Sweeney Todd' and 'The Kiss Of...
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