HOUSTON THEATER REVIEWS

Stark Naked Theatre Company's production of William Shakespeare's MACBETH has been on everybody's lips for weeks, even months, now. As soon as the show was announced a gentle hum of excitement began, and turned into a blistering roar by last night's opening night performance. Co-Executive Directors ...

The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts has two stages, but most people are only familiar with Sarofim Hall. Nestled on the corner of Rusk and Bagby is the gorgeous and intimate Zilkha Hall, which seats 500. The space was originally planned as a black box theater, and Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS)...

The hugely popular 1983 film Flashdance, starring Jennifer Beals, received a musical facelift and had its world premiere in July 2008 at the Theatre Royal Plymouth. Following a UK Tour, FLASHDANCE – THE MUSICAL opened on London's West End in late 2010. However, the show closed earlier than expecte...

Houston Ballet is kicking off the summer with their resplendent production of JOURNEY WITH THE MASTERS. This amazing treat is made complete with thrilling dance compositions by three of the world's leading modern choreographers, George Balanchine, Ji?i Kylian, and Jerome Robbins. The three acts are ...

The Eklektix Theatre Company is celebrating a year of producing theatre in Houston with a concert production of Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater's SPRING AWAKENING. A fully staged version of the musical was their inaugural venture in Houston, so this production which only runs for two performances is a...

The Alley Theatre is currently presenting Jeffrey Hatcher's 2011 literary mash-up SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE ADVENTURE OF THE SUICIDE CLUB. The play had its world premiere at The Arizona Theatre Company, and garnered mixed to positive reviews. In the play Jeffrey Hatcher attempts the tall order of mixi...

In all honesty, I was dreading seeing Broadway Across America - Houston's presentation of SISTER ACT's First National Tour at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts last night. As a fan of Alan Menken, I was elated to get my hands on a copy of the Original London Cast Recording in 2009. After givi...

The A.D. Players is kicking off the summer with a vibrant and thrilling production of Cathal Gallagher's MALCOLM AND TERESA. The play is a fascinating biography of British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge, who is credited for popularizing Mother Teresa. In 1932, he visited Moscow as a correspondent for...

Stages Repertory Theatre is hosting the American Regional Theatre Premiere of ROAD SHOW, a musical with Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a Book by John Weidman. The musical premiered in 1999 under the title WISE GUYS at the New York Theatre Workshop, but a legal case held up further producti...

Main Street Theater is closing their excellent 38th season with the wildly entertaining, often hilarious, and deeply moving CLOSE UP SPACE by Molly Smith Metzler. The zany dramadey is a Susan Smith Blackburn Prize Finalist and had its world premiere in 2011 in a Manhattan Theatre Club staging at New...

There is always a certain electric buzz that seems to surround any production of a show with a recognizable title. Some people will research the origin of the show, and with John Guare's SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION, they'll find that Frigyes Karinthy, a Hungarian author, playwright, poet, journalist, ...

Having grown up on Monty Python reruns and films, it doesn't take a lot to get me excited about seeing a production of Monty Python's SPAMALOT. The hilarious hit musical is making a gloriously triumphant return to Houston in its first locally produced performance at Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS). T...

The Ensemble Theatre has a reputation for producing thought-provoking and intellectually stimulating art. From this season alone, they have moved hearts and minds with their skillful productions of THE NACIREMA SOCIETY and KNOCK ME A KISS. Their current production of David Mamet's RACE masterfully w...

The Catastrophic Theatre is currently reviving Mickle Maher's THERE IS A HAPPINESS THAT MORNING IS by popular demand. The show originally had its Houston premiere in 2009, and apparently was quite a sensation. At Friday night's opening night performance of this run, I instantly saw why....

Black Lab Theatre is closing their exciting 2012-2013 season with a provocative and hilarious Regional Premiere production of David Henry Hwang's 2011 play CHINGLISH. The fresh and poignant comedy is a timely exploration of the business and economic relationship between China and the United States. ...

As part of the Alley Theatre's New Play Initiative, where the Alley facilitates a creative collaboration between playwrights, directors, actors, and designers, the organization is producing Kenneth Lin's edgy and fresh drama WARRIOR CLASS. Kenneth Lin's INTELLIGENCE-SLAVE was previously produced in ...

Paul Hope's Bayou City Concert Musicals (BCCM) is proudly continuing their mission of bringing to Houston the best of the best from show business' yesteryears. Sometimes it is in the form of a forgotten or neglected musical, like their concert stagings of ONE TOUCH OF VENUS, THE SECRET GARDEN, and F...

The Texas Repertory Theatre Company is continuing their 8th Season with Bernard Slade's TRIBUTE. The play was penned as a vehicle for Jack Lemmon, and earned him both a Tony Nomination and a Drama Desk Nomination for his performance. The engaging, 1978 piece introduces audiences to Scotty Templeton,...

As I stare down the barrel of my own 10-year anniversary from graduating high school, I found more than one of the characters in Standing Room Only Production's presentation of local award-winning playwright Michael Weem's FEELING ALRIGHT! honestly relevant and applicable to me and my life. And I'm ...

Mildred's Umbrella is closing their 2012-2013 season with the Houston premiere of the moody and atmospheric formula bending genre play RAVENSCROFT by Don Nigro. The 1991 drama serves as the basis for THE MANOR, a 1999 film with Peter O'Toole, and introduces audiences to Inspector Ruffing, a man chal...

Bayou City Theatrics is continuing their inaugural season with Houston's first locally produced professional staging of Elton John and Tim Rice's AIDA. The musical, with a book by Linda Woolverton, Robert Falls, and David Henry Hwang, was originally produced on Broadway by Disney Theatrical Producti...

...

...

This weekend, the Houston Ballet Academy and Houston Ballet II performed their 2013 Spring Showcase in the Cullen Theater at the Wortham Center, showcasing why this program is globally recognized as one of the preeminent dance training programs....

Last night, Houston's Opera in the Heights opened their production of Giuseppe Verdi's FALSTAFF. The mirthful and comedic opera is the last production of their 2012-2013 season, but the most exhilarating aspect of the production is seeing an opera performed so intimately. This was my first time to v...