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NASHVILLE THEATER REVIEWS

The latest reviews and critic recommendations from Nashville
BWW Review: AcTEENg and Murfreesboro Little Theatre's Powerful Restaging of THE LARAM

BWW Review: AcTEENg and Murfreesboro Little Theatre's Powerful Restaging of THE LARAMIE PROJECT

by Jeffrey Ellis — July 9, 2021
When Matthew Shepard was brutally murdered in 1998, anyone could scarcely have known or even surmised the impact his life would have on people the world over and today, almost 23 years after the fact, his presence on this earth continues to be felt in ways both momentous and personal....
BWW Review: Nashville Children's Theatre Returns With Imaginative and Immersive CHARL

BWW Review: Nashville Children's Theatre Returns With Imaginative and Immersive CHARLOTTE'S WEB

by Jeffrey Ellis — July 1, 2021
Welcoming audiences to an NCT production for the first time in 16 months – albeit outside and away from its traditional theater space in downtown Nashville and relocated to a working farm west of Nashville – Nolan and his team have crafted the best possible production to herald the company’s r...
BWW Review: AN EVENING WITH PLAYHOUSE 615: BROADWAY MUSICAL REVIEW

BWW Review: AN EVENING WITH PLAYHOUSE 615: BROADWAY MUSICAL REVIEW

by Jeffrey Ellis — June 28, 2021
Sometimes, when life is getting you down, there is nothing more pleasing than hearing some showtunes performed by a game and capable lot of performers with the intent of nothing more controversial than lifting your spirits and entertaining you in the way they know best. And that, my friends, is exac...
BWW Review: Adam Pascal 'So Far...' Charms Audience at Nashville's Tennessee Performi

BWW Review: Adam Pascal 'So Far...' Charms Audience at Nashville's Tennessee Performing Arts Center

by Jeffrey Ellis — June 13, 2021
As you might imagine, Adam Pascal – the Tony Award-nominated star of Rent, who went on to play Radames in Elton John’s Aida on Broadway, William Shakespeare in Something Rotten, among an impressive list of roles (including Chicago’s Billy Flynn, Memphis the Musical’s Huey Calhoun and the emc...
BWW Review: Cumberland County Playhouse's DUCK HUNTER SHOOTS ANGELS Makes You Laugh,

BWW Review: Cumberland County Playhouse's DUCK HUNTER SHOOTS ANGELS Makes You Laugh, Makes You Think

by Jeffrey Ellis — June 8, 2021
ou have to hand it to Mitch Albom (the well-known sportswriter turned memoirist turned playwright turned heartland media mogul): the man knows how to craft a tale certain to appeal to a wide swath of his audience, manipulating and cajoling them along the way with good humor and sometimes incisive wi...
BWW Review: Outrageously Camp SLOPPY BONNIE Trades on Stereotypes and Cliches

BWW Review: Outrageously Camp SLOPPY BONNIE Trades on Stereotypes and Cliches

by Jeffrey Ellis — June 4, 2021
Outrageously camp and deliriously fun – what more can you expect from a pandemic-shattering original musical called Sloppy Bonnie? – but are we so blinded by the pure joy of the return to live theater (albeit in a parking lot, however spacious it may be) that we are forgiving of the stereotypes ...
BWW Review: Record-shattering HAMILTON Settles Into Multi-Week Run at TPAC With Dazzl

BWW Review: Record-shattering HAMILTON Settles Into Multi-Week Run at TPAC With Dazzling Performances and Electrifying Intensity

by Jeffrey Ellis — January 2, 2020
Lin-Manuel Miranda's epic masterpiece Hamilton - the Broadway behemoth that continues to take the theater world by storm one city at a time, one stage at a time - has settled into its multi-week run at Nashville's Tennessee Performing Arts Center....
BWW Review: NASHVILLE'S NUTCRACKER at Tennessee Performing Arts Center

BWW Review: NASHVILLE'S NUTCRACKER at Tennessee Performing Arts Center

by Melia Kraus-har — December 13, 2019
Artistic Director Paul Vasterling has set Nashville's Nutcracker with the Nashville Symphony at the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition. Here, Drosselmeyer introduces Clara to the magical imagination and diversity of Nashville. In the ballet's opening, Clara sees a Nutcracker doll made by a German ...
BWW Review: World Premiere of AUNTIE CLAUS at Nashville Children's Theatre is the Per

BWW Review: World Premiere of AUNTIE CLAUS at Nashville Children's Theatre is the Perfect Holiday Gift

by Jeffrey Ellis — December 4, 2019
Since arriving in our midst in early 2017, Ernie Nolan justifiably has gained a reputation as an innovator, a creative genius (Hyperbole? The answer is a resounding a?oeno,a?? judging from his artistic achievements of the past two-plus years) and a master of challenging the status quo. As executive ...
BWW Review: ELF THE MUSICAL Brings Holiday Magic and Fun to Crossville's Cumberland C

BWW Review: ELF THE MUSICAL Brings Holiday Magic and Fun to Crossville's Cumberland County Playhouse

by Jeffrey Ellis — December 3, 2019
Luckily, for audiences at Crossville's Cumberland County Playhouse (where Elf, The Musical runs through December 21 in a delightful and sparkling production helmed by producing director Bryce McDonald), the role of Buddy is entrusted to Chris Hallowes, who has proven himself the personification of t...
BWW Review: WINTER WONDERETTES Takes You On a Delightful Holiday Trip at Cumberland C

BWW Review: WINTER WONDERETTES Takes You On a Delightful Holiday Trip at Cumberland County Playhouse

by Jeffrey Ellis — November 26, 2019
There's no better way to ease into the hijinks and hubbub of the holiday season than with a nostalgic trip down memory lane with the awesomely talented, tremendously charming and oh-so-delightful quartet, aka the Marvelous Wonderettes, in Roger Bean's confectionary Winter Wonderettes, the seasonal f...
BWW Review: SINGIN' IN THE RAIN Sings and Dances Up a Storm at Chaffin's Barn Dinner

BWW Review: SINGIN' IN THE RAIN Sings and Dances Up a Storm at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre

by Jeffrey Ellis — November 20, 2019
Hailed as a a?oenear-perfect movie musical,a?? Singin' in the Rain is nonetheless a challenge for companies mounting a full-scale version of it a?oelive and onstage.a?? It's not just about making it rain onstage during the show's eponymous song and dance number, but more about capturing the magic of...
BWW Review: THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL Brings Spectacular Visuals, Startling Energy to Nas

BWW Review: THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL Brings Spectacular Visuals, Startling Energy to Nashville's TPAC

by Jeffrey Ellis — November 7, 2019
Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? Spongebob Squarepants, of course a?" and now, the ambitious but kind, optimistic yet somehow down-to-earth a?oesimple spongea?? is taking his show on the road in a colorful, fun-filled, peripatetic and eye-poppingly surreal musical fresh off Broadway: The Spon...
BWW Review: Hatty Ryan King's Star Shines Brightly in Lipscomb's BRIGHT STAR

BWW Review: Hatty Ryan King's Star Shines Brightly in Lipscomb's BRIGHT STAR

by Jeffrey Ellis — November 7, 2019
There is something about Hatty Ryan King a?" the young woman playing Alice Murphy in Lipscomb University Theatre's superb production of Bright Star (the recent Broadway musical by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell) now onstage at Collins Alumni Auditorium through November 10 a?" that sets her apart fro...
BWW Review: Nashville Rep's PIPELINE Issues Powerfully Eloquent Challenge to Audience

BWW Review: Nashville Rep's PIPELINE Issues Powerfully Eloquent Challenge to Audiences

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 22, 2019
Dominique Morisseau's Pipeline, which continues Nashville Repertory Theatre's 35th season, is an emotionally driven work of contemporary eloquence and power, a play which audiences should experience in hopes of opening their eyes to the institutional prejudice and bias that exists in this country a?...
BWW Review: Circle Players' 2019 Staging of THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW Shouldn't Be Missed

BWW Review: Circle Players' 2019 Staging of THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW Shouldn't Be Missed

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 21, 2019
I love The Rocky Horror Show and Clint Randolph and his stellar ensemble of performers have won me over! Their 2019 production of The Rocky Horror Show is incredibly good, outlandishly fun and faithful to the material. Clearly, it ain't your grandma's musical theater (well, actually, it is a?' seei...
BWW Review: Street Theatre Company is on a Roll This Season: Go See TOXIC AVENGER For

BWW Review: Street Theatre Company is on a Roll This Season: Go See TOXIC AVENGER For Proof

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 20, 2019
Street Theatre Company has been on a bit of a roll in 2019 a?' there's been a spate of terrific shows, the move into an impressive new space on Elm Hill Pike that will allow the company to grow, and they've continued the legacy created by company founders by continuing to push the envelope in ways c...
BWW Review: Some Judicious Editing Could Create a Hit With ACT 1's NIGHTMARIUM INCIDE

BWW Review: Some Judicious Editing Could Create a Hit With ACT 1's NIGHTMARIUM INCIDENT

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 19, 2019
Eric Butler is a good writer. That is obvious from his thoroughly believable, unquestionably authentic dialogue he's crafted for The Nightmarium Incident, the original suspense thriller he's written for ACT 1's 2019-20 season and concluding its two-weekend run at Nashville's Darkhorse Theater tonigh...
BWW Review: Roxy Regional Theatre's Latest Iteration of ASSASSINS is Brilliant and Ch

BWW Review: Roxy Regional Theatre's Latest Iteration of ASSASSINS is Brilliant and Chilling

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 19, 2019
There comes a moment quite near the conclusion of Roxy Regional Theatre's production of Assassins that is both brilliant and chilling, perfectly encapsulating what the Stephen Sondheim-John Weidman musical is all about....
BWW Review: Nashville Children's Theatre's World Premiere of RETURN TO SENDER Hits Cl

BWW Review: Nashville Children's Theatre's World Premiere of RETURN TO SENDER Hits Close to Home in These Troubled Times

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 17, 2019
As the lights came up in Nashville Children's Theatre's Ann Stahlman Hill Theatre at the conclusion of Return to Sender a?" the world premiere production of Marisela Trevino Orta's adaptation of Julia Alvarez's novel of the same name, now onstage at NCT through October 27 a?" the familiar a?oedinga?...
BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Launches Stunning National Tour at Nashville's Tennes

BWW Review: ONCE ON THIS ISLAND Launches Stunning National Tour at Nashville's Tennessee Performing Arts Center

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 16, 2019
Visually stunning. Inventively staged. Compellingly acted. Beautifully told. Utterly delightful. Heartrendingly poignant. What more can be said about Once On This Island, the Lynn Ahrens-Stephen Flaherty musical which launched its national tour in Nashville last night with a remarkable opening perfo...
BWW Review: Elizabeth Caballero's Captivating Performance Highlights Nashville Opera'

BWW Review: Elizabeth Caballero's Captivating Performance Highlights Nashville Opera's MADAME BUTTERFLY

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 12, 2019
Elizabeth Caballero's captivating performance as the tragic romantic heroine Cio Cio San, the titular lead of Puccini's classic opera Madame Butterfly, is so breathtakingly, so exquisitely heartbreaking that she alone is enough to make the 2019-20 season opening production from Nashville Opera a tri...
BWW Review: Woven Theatre's Chilling and Suspenseful TALL TALES Opens at The Barbersh

BWW Review: Woven Theatre's Chilling and Suspenseful TALL TALES Opens at The Barbershop Theater

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 9, 2019
a?oeWhat the hell did I just sit through?a?? was my visceral reaction upon leaving the opening night performance of A.D. Timms' Tall Tales a?" the original a?oequeer horror storya?? presented by Woven Theatre Company at The Barbershop Theatre through October 20. Now, some 96 hours later as I sit dow...
BWW Review: Ammons, Krebs Lead Entertaining SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS at Spring

BWW Review: Ammons, Krebs Lead Entertaining SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS at Springhouse

by Jeffrey Ellis — October 4, 2019
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, the 1982 stage musical borne of the 1954 film treatment based on a story by Stephen Vincent Benet, doesn't hold up as well in 2019 as many classic musical theater titles a?" what with its sexist storyline, ersatz score that longs to remind us of something by Rodgers ...
BWW Review: Cumberland County Playhouse's YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN is a Monster Hit With Ha

BWW Review: Cumberland County Playhouse's YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN is a Monster Hit With Hancock at the Helm

by Jeffrey Ellis — September 22, 2019
Who'd have ever thought a seven-foot-tall, dark, handsome and green chap a?' crafted from the bits and pieces of various fellows gone home to meet their maker, as it were a?' could prove to be so likable, charming and, we daresay, sexy? But leave it to Mel Brooks (and Gene Wilder, his co-writer on t...
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Videos


Hamilton in Nashville Hamilton
TN Performing Arts Center Andrew Jackson Hall (6/17-6/28)
Ain't Misbehavin' in Nashville Ain't Misbehavin'
Playhouse 615 (6/05-6/21)
Frozen in Nashville Frozen
Chattanooga Theatre Centre (7/17-8/02)
Hamilton (Angelica Company) in Nashville Hamilton (Angelica Company)
Tennessee Performing Arts Center (6/16-6/28)
Gatsby Gala in Nashville Gatsby Gala
South Jackson Performing Arts Center (6/06-6/06)
Mary Poppins in Nashville Mary Poppins
South Jackson Performing Arts Center (7/17-7/26)
Disney's Frozen in Nashville Disney's Frozen
Playhouse on the Square (11/13-12/20)
International Folk Dancers in Nashville International Folk Dancers
South Jackson Performing Arts Center (6/09-6/09)
Les Miserables in Nashville Les Miserables
Playhouse on the Square (5/28-6/27)
The Book of Mormon (Non-Equity) in Nashville The Book of Mormon (Non-Equity)
Tennessee Performing Arts Center (6/02-6/07)