COLUMBUS THEATER REVIEWS

While at times THE LION KING seems like a note for note repetition of the movie, what pushes the musical into new territory is the costume design, a stellar group of actors, and of course, an empowering soundtrack....

Two questions almost immediately sprang up when people were told that the Temptations and the Four Tops were performing June 11 at the Jeanne B. McCoy Center for the Arts in New Albany. People asked, Those two groups are still around? and How many of the original members are left?...

What did our critic think of JOE JACKSON at At Davidson Theatre?...

What did our critic think of A WALK IN THE WOODS at The Abbey Theater? Bishara’s non-nonsense Honeywell verbally spars with Holliday’s frivolous Botvinnik. The Soviet diplomat believes the only way the treaty can work is if the two develop an attitude of friendship and trust. Honeywell believes ...

HAIR is not your typical linear, point A to point B musical. It roughly ambles through vignettes of the members of a “tribe” of hippies in New York City. And yet, HAIR is as important as it is subversive. Without it, shows such as RENT, ANGELS IN AMERICA, and HAMILTON probably wouldn’t stand a...

TINA: The Tina Turner Musical came blazing in like a bolt of lightning with thunderous applause on opening night at the Ohio Theatre, just as most of our state was under severe tornado warnings.  TINA tells the remarkable story of the musical legend, and shares it all – the good, the bad, and the...

This musical would flounder without a dynamic leading woman. In this case, TINA has two – Zurin Villanueva (who performed in the May 7 show) and Ari Groover because of the energy and vocal demands of the role....

The first night Batiste went from performing solo, to playing with a jazz trio to playing with a 41-piece orchestra in a two-hour span. The following night The former musical director of LATE NIGHT WITH STEPHEN COLBERT unveiled a previously unheard piano concerto commissioned by ProMusica. Either ni...

Brilliant acting mixed in with a powder keg of singing, dancing, and orchestration stuns its audience....

RIDE THE CYCLONE is more like an eccentric Tim Burton film than a John Hughes hug fest. However, the moments of genuine humanity and sentiment keeps the show from going off the rails....

The Shadowbox motto is to do to sketch comedy what Second City does for improv. To do that, it uses a simple formula: crisp writing and solid acting produce big laughs....

The script is filled with pratfalls, sight gags, puns and “Dad jokes,” but what makes this play work is the backstory and the personality given to each character and each role contributes something to the plot....

Cooney’s script is much like a van Gogh painting. Some characters, like Erin, are created with intricate paintbrush strokes; others are fingerpainted in concentric circles....

Broadway Musicals are often fantasies, musical representations about things that could not possibly happen. The saddest thing about Short North Stage’s production of THE PROM, which runs from March 14 through April 7 at the Garden Theater, is that it is based partly in truth....

With familiar hits such as “Dancing Queen,” “Mamma Mia,” and “Honey, Honey,” MAMMA MIA! has a leg up on most musicals: audiences already know the songs. But to surmount and overcome the expectations of audiences is no easy feat. The 25th Anniversary Tour of MAMMA MIA! blows all expectati...

In his two-hour set, Metheny, the only artist to win Grammys in 10 different categories, was like a magician as he revealed the skills that garnered him gold records for Still Life (Talking), Letter from Home, and Secret Story....

Rico Parker joins a talented quartet of actors, performing with Wilma Hatton (Faye), Clarissa Rai (Shanita), and Alan Tyson (Reggie), in bringing this two-act, two-hour show to life. Each actor brings out certain nuances to his or her character, revealing the character’s strengths and concealing h...

Nominated for a record-setting 14 Tony Awards and winning 6 in the original production in 1970, Stephen Sondheim’s COMPANY was one of the first musicals to deal with contemporary dating, marriage, and divorce.  Originally played by a male lead, Director Marianne Elliott (with approval from So...

The two seem to have that innate ability to write simple poetry without making them seem like something you would find at the Valentine’s cards bin at Walmart....

Shadowbox Live reached deep into their skill sets to celebrate the 11 leaders’ achievements through art, words, dance and song while educating the audience on their significance.  ...

In lesser hands, THE WORRIES OF WESLEY could turn into an afterschool special on television. However, Alan Tyson’s direction and Moss’s idiosyncratic screenplay turn the issue of anxiety into something far deeper...

A show about domestic violence and oppression doesn’t sound like a cheery night at the theater. Here’s what makes the show work: the music and lyrics, especially in the opening three numbers, are about as uplifting as one can get in a show and secondly, there are opportunities for redemption for...

Director Joe Bishara uses overhead projections of the actual leaders in the play, allowing the audience to compare the actors on the stage and the Roosevelt and Churchills on newsreels....

Produced and directed by Julie Klein, PILLOW TALK provides a collection of Shadowbox Live’s best skits of the past year, hits the right notes for a variety of patrons. the two-act mixture of rock and roll and comedy opened Jan. 5 and runs through April 13 at the troupe’s stage at 503 S. Front St...

Helping children to understand their feelings is important so they know they’re not alone and that there are coping skills they can use Christy Farnbauch,...