Connecticut Theater Reviews Page 4

BWW Review: VANYA AND SONIA AND MASHA AND SPIKE at Castle Craig Players
by Sean Fallon - May 14, 2022

On Friday, May 13th, I saw a play I was previously not familiar with.  VANYA AND SONIA AND MASHA AND SPIKE was performed by the Castle Craig Players at the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT.  This is a modern (about ten years ago) play written by controversial playwright Christophe...

BWW Review: PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL at The Bushnell
by Ariana Straznicky-Packer - April 29, 2022

I had the opportunity to see PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL, during its visit to The Bushnell in Hartford. Based on one of Hollywood’s most beloved 1990’s movies that launched America’s sweetheart, Julia Roberts, into stardom. Fans of the movie will be happy to see that the story hasn’t dramatically chan...

BWW Review: SPIRIT OF THE SIXTIES at Downtown Cabaret Theatre
by Sean Fallon - April 23, 2022

On Friday, April 22, 2022, I had the pleasure of seeing another phenomenal production at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre in Bridgeport, CT.   I have been looking forward to SPIRIT OF THE SIXTIES since I first heard of it, and even more when I found out that it has the same stellar cast as their previou...

BWW Review: LOST IN YONKERS at Hartford Stage
by Ariana Straznicky-Packer - April 15, 2022

Lost in Yonkers Finds Standing Ovation at Hartford Stage Opening Night Hartford Stage presents Neil Simon’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Lost in Yonkers, featuring four-time Academy Award-nominated, two-time Golden Globe Award winner, Emmy Award-nominated actor and director Marsha Mason (co-dire...

BWW Review: CHOIR BOY at Yale Repertory Theatre
by Brooks Appelbaum - April 11, 2022

Tarell Alvin McCraney's CHOIR BOY, playing at Yale Repertory Theatre through April 23, is directed by the prodigiously talented Christopher D. Betts; Betts has created a terrific production, for the most part, with outstanding acting, singing, and scenic, lighting, and costume design. The play itsel...

BWW Review: BEAUTY AND THE BEAST at Downtown Cabaret Theatre
by Sean Fallon - April 03, 2022

On Saturday, April 2, at 2:30 PM, I had the pleasure of seeing BEAUTY AND THE BEAST at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre in Bridgeport, CT. Directed by Andrea Pane, this tale as old as 1740 is reinterpreted by Phill Hill for a modern, young audience and features music primarily from the 1990s....

BWW Review: DEAR EVAN HANSEN at The Bushnell
by Ariana Straznicky-Packer - April 02, 2022

Dear Evan Hansen is an award-winning show that explores deep, dark themes and intricate relationships which I’ve never seen so well-defined on a musical stage. The new National Tour’s performances felt raw, real, and powerful. While the script has brief moments of comedy to balance the dark with lig...

BWW Review: JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR at ACT Of Connecticut
by Sean Fallon - April 02, 2022

On Friday, April 1, I had the pleasure of seeing the ACT of CT’s unique adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR.  This 1971 musical that is primarily told through music with lyrics by Tim Rice has been redesigned and reinterpreted by the director, Daniel C. Levine who has incorpor...

BWW Review: 'THE EXTREMISTS?' 'Exactly...' at TheatreWorks New Milford
by Jared Reynolds - March 30, 2022

What does 12 Angry Men and The Extremists have in common? Did you guess politics? Because if so, you would be right. On the set of a politics talk show, “Issues in Focus,” Dick Hedgerow brings on a guest, Norman Krieger, to discuss his upcoming book on battling extremism in the world. What was set u...

BWW Review: DREAM HOU$E at Long Wharf Theatre
by Brooks Appelbaum - March 26, 2022

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BWW Review: AN EVENING OF ONE ACTS 2022 at Ridgefield Theater Barn
by Sean Fallon - March 19, 2022

Every year, one of my favorite annual theater traditions is seeing the evening of one acts at the Ridgefield Theater Barn, in Ridgefield, CT.  I had the pleasure of continuing that wonderful tradition on Friday, March 18, with AN EVENING OF ONE ACTS 2022 which continues with the consistent first-rat...

BWW Review: SHIRLEY VALENTINE Lightens Up The Season at Brookfield Theatre Of The Arts
by Jared Reynolds - March 15, 2022

The village came together to raise a child, putting all of their skills to the stage to blow the audience away with a light-hearted, uplifting, and hilarious story that brought us all to the sunny shores of Greece; or, at least how we imagine that would feel....

BWW Review: THIS BITTER EARTH at TheaterWorks Hartford
by Brooks Appelbaum - March 01, 2022

This Bitter Earth, playing at TheaterWorks in Hartford through March 20, is a moving and poetic work that explores the love between two men, Jesse and Neil, and their central conflict....

BWW Review: THE DIVAS at Ridgefield Theater Barn
by Sean Fallon - February 13, 2022

On Saturday, February 12, I had the pleasure of seeing THE DIVAS at the Ridgefield Theater Barn, in Ridgefield, CT.  This story, written by Jack Neary, is a comedic series of seven different one act plays that depict the lives of fictional divas Bethel and Clarice, two middle-aged stage actresses wh...

BWW Review: RAPUNZEL at Downtown Cabaret Theatre
by Sean Fallon - February 13, 2022

On Saturday, February 12, at noon, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another Phill Hill masterpiece, at the Downtown Cabaret Theatre, in Bridgeport, CT, a musical adaptation of the classic story of RAPUNZEL.  This is the story of a princess who is trapped by an enchantress, high up in a castle, waiti...

BWW Review: The NIGHT OF THE ASSASSINS overwhelm at Brookfield Theatre Of The Arts
by Jared Reynolds - February 06, 2022

The best part of reviewing shows is that I have the opportunity to see shows that I have never heard of before. I entered Brookfield Theater to see Night of the Assassins, and I settled in for what promised to be an intense afternoon; an intensity that surpassed all expectations....

BWW Review: 'ANGRY, RAUCOUS' ANYTHING BUT SHAMELESS at Hartford Stage
by Andrew Beck - February 04, 2022

Although “Angry, Raucous & Shamelessly Gorgeous” is the title of Atlanta playwright Pearl Cleage’s new play, it quite amply describes the two women at the center of this literary comedy....

BWW Review: NICKEL MINES at ACT Of Connecticut
by Sean Fallon - January 20, 2022

On Thursday, January 20, I had the pleasure of seeing a phenomenal show that I have been waiting to see for about two years!   It was well worth the wait!  The ACT of Connecticut has struck gold with NICKEL MINES, an emotionally intense musical based on the true story of an Amish school shooting, pe...

BWW Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL EXPERIENCE at Fairfield Center Stage
by Sean Fallon - December 15, 2021

On Wednesday, December 15, 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.  While in the past, it has b...

BWW Review: A Lesson Learned with DOT at Brookfield Theatre
by Jared Reynolds - December 15, 2021

Not every Christmas is a happy one- that’s just the reality of growing up- but that doesn’t mean that the holiday season can’t still be special. You must make the most of every moment you can because you never know when those moments will run out. This lesson rang loud and true on stage at the Brook...

BWW Review: WHO'S HOLIDAY! at Castle Craig Players
by Sean Fallon - December 12, 2021

Two weeks before Christmas my wife and I’d go To Meriden to see a phenomenal show The Castle Craig Players have done it again At the Memorial Playhouse of Almira F. Stephan A first rate performance we highly enjoyed With Dr. Seuss characters this show has toyed...

BWW Review: THE SANTA STORY at Downtown Cabaret Theatre
by Sean Fallon - December 05, 2021

On Saturday, December 4th, at 12:00 P.M., I had the pleasure of seeing yet another Phill Hill written masterpiece, THE SANTA STORY, at Downtown Cabaret Theatre, in Bridgeport, CT.   Phill Hill has incredible writing talent in putting new spins on traditional children’s tales, while his creative geni...

BWW Review: A Holiday mix-up creates a delightful night at TheatreWorks New Milford
by Jared Reynolds - December 04, 2021

A holiday classic with a fun twist, 'What the Dickens?' takes the audience on a unique journey that is destined to delight and entertain!...

BWW Review: STEEL MAGNOLIAS at Castle Craig Players
by Sean Fallon - October 17, 2021

On Saturday, October 16, I had the pleasure of returning to the Almira F. Stephan Memorial Playhouse in Meriden, CT, to see the Castle Craig Players’ performance of STEEL MAGNOLIAS by Robert Harling.  Under the superb direction of Pam Amodio, this stellar cast provides what is both a humorous and em...

BWW Review: MAMMA MIA! at Fairfield Center Stage
by Sean Fallon - October 16, 2021

On Friday, October 15, I had the pleasure of seeing yet another phenomenal production by Fairfield Center Stage, an innovative theatre company that continues to go that extra mile to bring the audience fresh new experiences with familiar shows that Fairfield Center Stage brings to life in positive w...