Photos: First look at Curtain Players’ LITTLE WOMEN
by Jerri Shafer - Dec 5, 2024
Based on Louisa May Alcott's 1868-69 semi-autobiographical two-volume novel, it focuses on the four March sisters - traditional Meg, wild, aspiring writer Jo, timid Beth and romantic Amy - and their beloved Marmee, at home in Concord, Massachusetts, while their father is away serving as a Union Army chaplain during the Civil War. Intercut with the vignettes in which their lives unfold are several recreations of the melodramatic short stories Jo writes in her attic studio. Performances run Dec. 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, & 21, 2024 at 8:00PM, Dec. 15 & 22, 2024 at 2:00PM at Curtain Players, 5691 Harlem Road, Galena, Ohio 43021. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit: http://curtainplayers.org
Photos: First look at Gallery Players' THE PRODUCERS
by Jerri Shafer - Feb 29, 2024
The plot is simple: a down-on-his-luck Broadway producer and his mild-mannered accountant come up with a scheme to produce the most notorious flop in history, thereby bilking their backers (all “little old ladies”) out of millions of dollars.
Photos: First look at Gallery Players' THE PRODUCERS
by Jerri Shafer - Feb 23, 2024
Check out the exclusive first look photos of Gallery Players' production of THE PRODUCERS in Columbus, Ohio. Featuring a talented cast and crew, this Mel Brooks musical promises to be a hit.
Photos: First look at King Avenue Players' THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME
by Jerri Shafer - Nov 2, 2023
The musical begins as the bells of Notre Dame sound through the famed cathedral in fifteenth-century Paris. Quasimodo, the deformed bell-ringer who longs to be 'Out There,' observes all of Paris revelling in the Feast of Fools. Held captive by his devious caretaker, the archdeacon Dom Claude Frollo, he escapes for the day and joins the boisterous crowd, only to be treated cruelly by all but the beautiful Romani woman, Esmeralda. Quasimodo isn’t the only one captivated by her free spirit, though – the handsome Captain Phoebus and Frollo are equally enthralled. As the three vie for her attention, Frollo embarks on a mission to destroy the Roma – and it’s up to Quasimodo to save them all.
Photos: First look at Gallery Players' SOMETHING ROTTEN
by Jerri Shafer - Mar 16, 2023
Set in the 1590s, brothers Nick and Nigel Bottom are desperate to write a hit play but are stuck in the shadow of that Renaissance rock star known as “The Bard.” When a local soothsayer foretells that the future of theatre involves singing, dancing and acting at the same time, Nick and Nigel set out to write the world’s very first musical. But amidst the scandalous excitement of opening night, the Bottom Brothers realize that reaching the top means being true to thine own self, and all that jazz.
Performances run Mar. 18 - Apr. 2, 2023. at Gallery Players, 1125 College Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43209. Please visit https://columbusjcc.org/something-rotten/ to get specific showtimes and purchase tickets.
Photos: First look at Gallery Players' THE SECRET GARDEN
by Jerri Shafer - Dec 5, 2022
Orphaned while living in India, 10-year-old Mary Lennox returns to Yorkshire, England to live with her embittered, reclusive Uncle Archibald, whom she has never met. There, the ill-tempered and lonely Mary meets Martha, a chambermaid, who tells her of a secret garden which belonged to her aunt Lily before she died. Mary’s search for the garden introduces her to a slew of other characters and a spirited robin that seems to be trying to talk to her.
Book and Lyrics by Marsha Norman, Music by Lucy Simon, Directed by Ross Shirley, Music Direction by Allan Finkelstein. Cast: Nadia Marshall, Ashley Winer, Jennifer Myers, Jay Rittberger, Amy Silver Judd, Michael Ruehrmund, Thor Collard, Nick van Atta, Michael Broadhurst, Molly Domanski, Deborah Brennan, Brady Brennan, Jacob Erney, Sonny Pierce, Dan Hildebrand, Alexa Rybinski, David Boley, Karen Sahlin, Lauren Bandman, Ajay Kumar, Madhavi Sudhir, Wendy Cohen, Laura Dachenbach.
Performances run Dec. 3 - 18, 2022. Gallery Players, 1125 College Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43209. Please visit https://columbusjcc.org/the-secret-garden/ to get specific showtimes and purchase tickets.
Photos: First look at Wagnalls Community Theatre's LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS
by Jerri Shafer - Nov 3, 2022
Seymour Krelborn is a nerdy orphan working at Mushnik's, a flower shop in urban Skid Row. He harbors a crush on fellow co-worker Audrey Fulquard, and is berated by Mr. Mushnik daily. One day as Seymour is seeking a new mysterious plant, he finds a very mysterious unidentified plant which he calls Audrey II. The plant seems to have a craving for blood and soon begins to sing for his supper. Soon enough, Seymour feeds Audrey's sadistic dentist boyfriend to the plant and later, Mushnik for witnessing the death of Audrey's ex. Will Audrey II take over the world or will Seymour and Audrey defeat it?
Performances run November 4 - 13, 2022 at The Wagnalls Memorial, 150 East Columbus St, Lithopolis, OH 43136. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit:https://www.facebook.com/WagnallsCommunityTheatre/
Photos: First look at Pickerington Community Theatre's GUYS AND DOLLS
by Jerri Shafer - Jul 7, 2022
Set in Damon Runyon’s mythical New York City, Guys and Dolls is an oddball romantic comedy. Gambler, Nathan Detroit, tries to find the cash to set up the biggest craps game in town while the authorities breathe down his neck; meanwhile, his girlfriend and nightclub performer, Adelaide, laments that they’ve been engaged for fourteen years. Nathan turns to fellow gambler, Sky Masterson, for the dough, and Sky ends up chasing the straight-laced missionary, Sarah Brown, as a result. Guys and Dolls takes us from the heart of Times Square to the cafes of Havana, Cuba, and even into the sewers of New York City, but eventually everyone ends up right where they belong.
Performances run July 8 thru the 17th, 2022 at the Wigwam Theater (10190 Blacklick-Eastern Road Northwest, Pickerington, OH 43147). For tickets: http://pickeringtoncommunitytheatre.org/
Photos: First Look at the Butterfly Guild's CINDERELLA
by Jerri Shafer - Mar 4, 2022
For its 64th annual production, Butterfly Guild of Nationwide Children’s Hospital is pleased to announce Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella will take place on March 4, 5 & 6, 2022 at the historic Palace Theatre located at 34 W. Broad St. This family-friendly, Broadway-quality production benefits the Hospice and Palliative Care Programs at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the only programs of its kind in central Ohio.
The timeless enchantment of a magical fairy tale is reborn with the Rodgers & Hammerstein hallmarks of originality, charm, and elegance. Originally presented on television in 1957 starring Julie Andrews, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella was the most widely viewed program in the history of the medium. Its recreation in 1965 starring Lesley Ann Warren was no less successful in transporting a new generation to the miraculous kingdom of dreams-come-true, and so was a second remake in 1997, which starred Brandy as Cinderella and Whitney Houston as her Fairy Godmother.
If you are interested in making a donation or sponsoring our play, visit our website: https://tinyurl.com/rsqpdxn Questions? Please call 614.355.5400 or email Giving@NationwideChildrens.org
Performances are March 4th thru the 6th, 2022 and will be held at the Palace Theatre, 34 W Broad St, Columbus, OH 43215. For tickets visit: https://my.cbusarts.com/events/2986
Photo Coverage: First look at Imagine Productions' A FUNNY THING ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM
by Jerri Shafer - Feb 21, 2020
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is a nonstop laughfest in which Pseudolus, a crafty slave, struggles to win the hand of a beautiful, but slow-witted, courtesan named Philia for his young master, Hero, in exchange for freedom. The plot twists and turns with cases of mistaken identity, slamming doors and a showgirl or two. This unforgettable, hysterical musical allows a terrific ensemble of comedic actors to shine – 'something for everyone, a comedy tonight!'
Performances are February 21st thru the 29th at the Columbus Performing Arts Center, 549 Franklin Avenue, Columbus, OH 43215. For tickets or more information, visit: https://www.imaginecolumbus.org/
Winners Announced For 2019 BroadwayWorld Columbus Awards
by Alan Henry - Jan 10, 2020
Following a record number of nominations and votes, winners have been announced for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Columbus Awards, brought to you by TodayTix!! The nominees were set, audiences voted, and now we get to recognize local theatres and performers for their outstanding achievement!
Just Two Weeks Left To Vote for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Columbus Awards
by BWW - Dec 16, 2019
There's just two weeks left to vote for the 2019 BroadwayWorld Columbus Awards, brought to you by TodayTix! The people have spoken nominations are set, and now you can vote to make sure your favorite local theatre's achievements and performers are recognized!