New Orleans Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations

Review: EXHAUSTED PAINT at Big Couch
by Tara Bennett - October 13, 2025

What did our critic think of EXHAUSTED PAINT at Fat Squirrel? Fat Squirrel's production of EXHAUSTED PAINT: THE DEATH OF VAN GOGH takes an unconventional approach to Vincent van Gogh's story....

Brilliant Deduction: Crescent City Stage's MS. HOLMES & MS. WATSON – APT. 2B
by Tara Bennett - September 09, 2025

MS. HOLMES & MS. WATSON - APT. 2B, Kate Hamill’s razor-sharp reimagining of the world’s most famous detective duo, finds its perfect home at Crescent City Stage....

Review: CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF at Tennessee Williams Theatre Company
by Tara Bennett - July 19, 2025

Tennessee Williams Theatre Company’s CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, now playing at the Marquette Theatre in New Orleans, does exactly that. It’s electric. It’s guttural. And it’s one of the boldest things I’ve seen TWTC do, and that’s saying something....

Review: Send in the Clowns: CLOWN BAR 2 with The NOLA Project
by Tara Bennett - May 21, 2025

If you’ve ever wondered what would happen if The Sopranos ran away and joined the circus, look no further than CLOWN BAR 2. The NOLA Project’s latest immersive experience is absurd, raunchy and riotously funny—with just enough heart beneath the greasepaint to make you unexpectedly emotional about mu...

Review: TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS at Crescent City Stage
by Tara Bennett - May 14, 2025

What happens when the written word becomes a lifeline? In TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS, Crescent City Stage delivers a stirring answer, offering audiences not just a play, but an experience in empathy and shared vulnerability....

Review: ORPHEUS DESCENDING at Tennessee Williams Theatre Company
by Tara Bennett - April 04, 2025

There’s a moment in ORPHEUS DESCENDING when Valentine Xavier, tall, lanky, with enough charisma to make a statue blush, enters a dry goods store in a dying Mississippi town, and you just know something is about to combust....

Review: WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? with The Fire Weeds
by Tara Bennett - January 13, 2025

Edward Albee’s WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? is a raw, relentless, and deeply unsettling theatrical titan. Since its debut in 1962, it has held its place as one of the most harrowing portraits of marital discontent and social decay in American theatre. The play dares its audience to sit through ne...

Review: WIT & WRATH: THE LIFE & TIMES OF DOROTHY PARKER at BB's Stage Door Canteen
by Tara Bennett - October 23, 2024

Dorothy Parker, the sharp-tongued wit of the Jazz Age, remains one of America’s most fascinating literary figures. In WIT & WRATH: THE LIFE & TIMES OF DOROTHY PARKER, Claudia Baumgarten brings this iconic figure to life in a one-woman performance that not only celebrates Parker’s legendary humor but...

Review: MURDER FOR TWO at Le Petit Theatre Is High-Energy Hilarity
by Tara Bennett - October 11, 2024

It’s official. Le Petit Theatre’s MURDER FOR TWO is the can’t-miss show of the year!...

Review: PENNY DREADFULS: THE REMARKABLE ROOMING-HOUSE OF MADAME LE MONDE
by Tara Bennett - September 25, 2024

The Tennessee Williams Theatre Company has launched the spooky season ahead of schedule with their production of PENNY DREADFULS: The Remarkable Rooming-House of Madame Le Monde....

Review: A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE at Tennessee Williams Threatre Company
by Tara Bennett - July 23, 2024

For almost a decade, anticipation has simmered among NOLA theatre enthusiasts, waiting for The Tennessee Williams Theatre Company to tackle one of the playwright’s most iconic works, A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, that has left an indelible mark on theatre....

Review: THE CAKE at Crescent City Stage
by Tara Bennett - June 13, 2024

THE CAKE, receiving its regional premiere, is the latest offering from Crescent City Stage and is now running now through June 16th. There are four more chances to experience this rich, emotional cultural reflection, which was a delight for this critic during Pride in Louisiana....

Review: MRS. DOUBTFIRE at Saenger Theatre
by Tara Bennett - May 17, 2024

Get ready to experience the beloved story of MRS. DOUBTFIRE like never before in this heartwarming and hilarious musical adaptation....

Review: KINGDOM OF EARTH at Tennessee Williams Threatre Company
by Tara Bennett - March 14, 2024

When the Tennessee Williams Theatre Company burst onto the Nola theatre scene in 2015, it sparked excitement and swiftly established itself as a leading authority on the works of the Bard of the South....

Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL at Crescent City Stage
by Tara Bennett - December 18, 2023

In a festive and spirited adaptation of Charles Dickens’s timeless tale, the iconic miser Ebenezer Scrooge takes center stage in Crescent City Stage’s latest production, A CHRISTMAS CAROL....

Review: Tennessee Williams Theatre Company's SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH
by Tara Bennett - August 01, 2023

Tennessee Williams’ SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH, an underrated tale of comebacks and second chances while desperately clinging to the past, is the playwright’s latest steamy, brutal Southern drama to hit the stage in New Orleans....

Review: VANYA, SONIA, MASHA AND SPIKE Delivers Chekhovian Comedy at Its Best
by Tara Bennett - June 28, 2023

What did our critic think of VANYA, SONIA, MASHA AND SPIKE at Crescent City Stage? The gloom and angst of Chekhovian characters provide funny fodder for Christopher Durang’s VANYA AND SONIA AND MASHA AND SPIKE, now in production through the Crescent City Stage....

Review: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF brings 'Tradition' to the Saenger Theatre
by Jenny Bravo - March 01, 2023

A fresh, exciting production of a well-loved musical theatre favorite that is sure to have you mesmerized....

Review: SIX THE MUSICAL at Saenger Theatre
by Jenny Bravo - December 08, 2022

Six the Musical is worth losing your head over. Fun, lively (pun intended), and a great dose of her-story. You won't want to miss this one!...