Technically the effects still work, and I watched as the shocked younger members of the audience witnessed practical effects to contrast all the CGI they had grown up on. PHANTOM OF THE OPERA still has the same magic three decades later.... (more...)
Though it's 2018 in Houston, Texas, at the height of the 2018 primary election, but thankfully, there's an escape from the tumultuous political climate where blue and red are the subject. The color of today is green.... (more...)
I was fortunate enough to see Houston's Classical Theatre Company present THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, written by Arthur Conan Doyle (Writer of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes novel series). This production of THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES, directed by Melissa Flower, was a wonderful curveball t... (more...)
Today is the last day Dominique Morisseau's SKELETON CREW will run at the Alley Theatre. The play is the final chapter 'The Detroit Project,' a 3-play cycle which includes DETROIT '67 and PARADISE BLUE.... (more...)
Pulitzer Prize-Winnng Sam Shepard's CURSE OF THE STARVING CLASS displays the lives of the working-class Tate family as they navigate everything from suffocating debt, to teenage crime, to marital distress and back again. Checking the fridge for food (that is never there) is a regular routine-turned-... (more...)
In a way it is like watching a heady special episode of CHEERS set in London in the early 1620s. It seems like a place where everybody would know your name, and in the case of Will they did.... (more...)
No need to bury the lede: this production of LES MISERABLES is the most true-to-Broadway theatrical experience I have ever had outside of the Great White Way. Cameron Mackintosh's subtle updates breathe new life into the classic material, and deliver one of those rarified theatrical moments in which... (more...)
The year is 1872, the setting is London, and the bet was made at exactly 8:55pm for 20,000 pounds. Or, at least that's how our practical, punctual main character Phileas Fogg would describe the scene. Fogg, a logical and calculated gentleman is willing to bet his entire fortune on the latest claim t... (more...)
In the theatre world, your first time seeing Rodgers & Hammerstein's OKLAHOMA! is essentially a rite of passage. You either love it or you don't-and the pendulum can swing either direction depending on the actors, designers, and director's choices. Ever since I sat in my Survey of Musical Theatre cl... (more...)
JESUS HOPPED THE 'A' TRAIN does what 4th Wall Theatre Company does best: explore valid, thought-provoking, true stories that linger on your mind for days following.... (more...)
THE MOORS seeks to say something about the visibility and state of women today through the lens of satirizing Victorian era romantic literature like JANE EYRE, WUTHERING HEIGHTS, or THE WOMAN IN WHITE. I am not sure it wholly achieves what it sets out to do, but it certainly has a lot of fun along t... (more...)
Originally conceived by playwright Young Jean Lee, it was performed as spoken word broken up by punk rock songs about pain and death. Somehow performer Alli Villines has turned it into a ukulele folk festival! But I ask dear reader, what could be more punk rock than a collection of named ukuleles pl... (more...)
This is an intense drama exploring the depths of a man who feels ostracized by a group that is already shunned by society. It's a play about loneliness and deathwishes that spiral out of control.... (more...)
OLEANNA demands to be seen again, and The Landing Theatre Company has just the right chops to bring it to life at 14 Pews. It feeds off the intimate space, and they have found two actors who have the energy to deliver the message at the right pitch to make the audience squirm.... (more...)
Ambition, love, why we do the things we do, all of these topics get drawn out into the ether between the jokes and name-dropping. It's a deep piece despite it just being a rave and rant about a famous lady who hoards her stuff.... (more...)
LOVE NEVER DIES is an unmitigated disaster of epic proportions. The show is a study of what happens when someone in power values consumerism over content. It is a production propelled by run-amuck theatrical vanity, seemingly produced with the single intention of filling seats, backed by a marquee n... (more...)
Neil Simon's GOD'S FAVORITE does what I believe good theatre is intended to do: take a multifaceted, complex topic and present it in a humanized, relatable, and entertaining manner. This can take many forms, and GOD'S FAVORITE pinpoints perhaps one of my favorite forms of theatrical communication: f... (more...)
This iteration of the Tamarie Cooper Show explores the leading lady's emotional baggage, battle against minor depression, and all of the discarded bad ideas that the troop has come up with when they were in line at 4am at Taco Bell. In other words, business as usual for Tamarie and her cast of usual... (more...)
Never before have I stepped into a theatre, seen the curtain rise, and then heard the familiar notes of Kelis' 'Milkshake' ring out from the stage. While this song seems out of place for a theatrical context, The Ensemble Theatre's SISTAS showcases a home for it onstage, along with over thirty other... (more...)
Despite its flaws, it's hard not to enjoy GUYS & DOLLS. The music is infectious, and the characters are memorable. This production isn't perfect, nor is it a rendition of the old classic; some attendees are bound to be startled or surprised by the modern twists. But if you know what you're getting g... (more...)
STRANGERER things take place at the 2004 presidential debate, when President George W. Bush and Senator John Kerry decide to murder PBS newsman and debate moderator Jim Lehrer. Absurdist playwright Mickle Maher's funny and farcical reimagining of the debate is as ambitious conceptually as it is com... (more...)
JIM LEHRER AND THE THEATER AND ITS DOUBLE AND JIM LEHRER'S DOUBLE is strange, evocative, terrifying, and hilarious. For audiences seeking something out of the ordinary, for those who welcome intellectual challenges, and for folks who want a really big laugh, buy a ticket today.... (more...)
BWW Review: THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA reigns supreme at Broadway At The Hobby Center
BWW Review: All Hail THE WIZ at TUTS
BWW Review: THE CHOIR OF MAN at The Grand 1894 Opera House
BWW Review: THE RETURN OF SHERLOCK HOLMES at Classical Theatre Company- Provides Many Happy Returns
BWW Review: Skeleton Crew Revolutionizes the Alley Theatre
BWW Review: EVIL DEAD THE MUSICAL camps out at Obsidian Theater
BWW Review: Catastrophic's CURSE OF THE STARVING CLASS Is the Most Beautiful Dysfunction You'll Ever See
BWW Review: Cheers to THE BOOK OF WILL at Main Street Theater!
BWW Review: LES MISERABLES at the Hobby Center for Performing Arts is a Dream (I Dreamed)
BWW Review: AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS Is Your Imagination Personified at A.D. Players
BWW Review: Theatre Under the Stars' 50th Anniversary Season Celebrates Houston As Home With OKLAHOMA
BWW Review: JESUS HOPPED THE 'A' TRAIN Wrestles With Truth at 4th Wall Theatre Company
BWW Review: THE MOORS muddles through at Mildred's Umbrella
BWW Review: WE'RE GONNA DIE makes it all better at Horse Head Theatre Company
BWW Review: PORCELAIN bravely cruises at The Caduceus Theater Arts Company
BWW Review: OLEANNA provokes at The Landing Theatre Company
BWW Review: BUYER AND CELLAR dazzles at Main Street Theater
BWW Review: No Love for Andrew Lloyd Webber's LOVE NEVER DIES
BWW Review: GOD'S FAVORITE Highlights Faith & the Human Condition at A.D. PLAYERS
BWW Review: THE TAMARIE COOPER SHOW FIELD TRIP! is a busolad of fun at Catastrophic Theatre
BWW Review: SISTAS the Musical Showcases Strength & Soul at The Ensemble Theatre
BWW Review: A Darker SWAN LAKE Glides Onto Houston's Jones Hall Stage
BWW Review: A Modern Twist on the Classic Tale - GUYS & DOLLS at Theatre Under the Stars
BWW Review: STRANGERER Things on Stage at The Catastrophic Theatre
BWW Review: JIM LEHRER AND THE THEATER AND ITS DOUBLE AND JIM LEHRER'S DOUBLE - Double the Jims, Double the Fun
