New Closing Performance of LIZZIE Announced!
by A.A. Cristi - Oct 28, 2016
Jobsite and the Straz Center have added a final performance to the run of LIZZIE, providing one more opportunity to experience this unique rock musical that is blowing Tampa Bay audiences away. The Drama Desk Award-nominated LIZZIE, taking the nation by storm in over a dozen licensed productions, will now conclude its run with an 8pm show on Sun., Nov. 6, in the Jaeb Theater at the Straz Center where Jobsite is resident theater company.
Photo Flash: Let the Sun Shine In! Meet the Cast of HAIR at Kravis Center
by BWW
News Desk - May 20, 2016
MNM Productions today announced that its production of the world's favorite tribal rock musical HAIR will open this Today evening at the Kravis Center's Rinker Playhouse. The show will run for 20 performances May 20-June 5 and feature a multi-talented 22-person cast including such highly acclaimed veterans of numerous South Florida stages as Mike Westrich (George Berger), Michael Scott Ross (Claude), Alexa Baray (Sheila), Fo'i Meleah (Dionne) and Elijah Word (Hud). Scroll down for a sneak peek at the company in costume!
Photo Flash: Let the Sun Shine In! Meet the Cast of HAIR at Kravis Center
by BWW News Desk - May 17, 2016
MNM Productions today announced that its production of the world's favorite tribal rock musical HAIR will open this Friday evening at the Kravis Center's Rinker Playhouse. The show will run for 20 performances May 20-June 5 and feature a multi-talented 22-person cast including such highly acclaimed veterans of numerous South Florida stages as Mike Westrich (George Berger), Michael Scott Ross (Claude), Alexa Baray (Sheila), Fo'i Meleah (Dionne) and Elijah Word (Hud). Scroll down for a sneak peek at the company in costume!
BWW Review: Theatre UCF's Silent REELING Recreates Buster Keaton Silliness
by Matt Tamanini - Feb 24, 2016
We've all heard the saying, 'They don't make 'em like they used to.' Now, thanks to Theatre UCF's REELING, running through February 28th, they actually do still make 'em like they used to, complete with banana peels, pratfalls, and not a single spoken word. This one-of-a-kind play recreates the zany charms and enthusiastic silliness of the classic silent films of Buster Keaton. Written by Barry Kornhauser, REELING features an original, era-appropriate soundtrack by Michael Koerner that underscores all of the madcap action. While REELING won't make you forget the brilliance of Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle, or Charlie Chaplin, it will make you nostalgic for a time when there was no greater revenge than a pie in the face.
BWW Review: UCF Seniors Leap for the Stars in Dream Roles Concert
by April Montgomery - Dec 14, 2015
What could be more exciting than a stage full of musical theatre students performing the roles they dream to play in the decade that lies ahead? Answer: Absolutely nothing. I was one of the fortunate audience members to share in the experience of night two of the Dream Roles Concert, performed by the UCF BFA Musical Theatre Senior Class (with half the class performing on December 12 and the other half on December 13). From the opening medley to the finale, all of the students had stars in their eyes and a fire in their hearts. UCF is known for attracting impressive talent and I can only imagine the pride felt by the staff, family and friends in the audience. I only wish I'd witnessed night one to have captured the complete essence of the pseudo recital.
BWW Review: Theatre UCF's Talented HAIR Cast 'Trips' Back to 1968
by Matt Tamanini - Oct 18, 2015
Since its Off-Broadway debut in 1967, HAIR has become a touchstone for musical theatre fans with a fondness for the decade's counter-culture revolution. Having won both a Tony and a Grammy, there is no doubt that this musical, which defies nearly every theatrical convention, has become as important a part of the genre's cannon as any of the Golden Age's classics. However, it is a show that I have just never 'got.' Perhaps I am too square to appreciate the flower-power sensibility, or too straight-laced to understand the era of psychedelic drugs and free love. Nonetheless, the score by Galt MacDermot (music) and James Rado and Gerome Ragni (lyrics) contains some of the theatre's best 'rock' songs with pop cross-overs 'Aquarius,' 'Good Morning Starshine,' and 'Let the Sunshine In.' Theatre UCF's production of 'The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical,' which runs through October 25th, might not have been able to make me appreciate the show's trippy conceit, but it did confirm that the program has just as much talent as nearly any of Central Florida's professional theatres.
BWW Interview: Producer Gabe Friedman Dishes on His Broadway Cares Fundraising Cabaret
by Kimberly Moy - Oct 13, 2015
If you've ever seen a show on Broadway or even professional companies touring nationally, you may have hear a curtain call speech requesting donations for a charity called Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. This non-profit group uses the funds to help those suffering from HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS affects people across the nation and that fact was not lost on UCF Senior Gabe Friedman. Gabe and other UCF students are hosting a fundraiser cabaret on October 30th to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Below, Gabe discusses with Broadway World what he's been up to and a little more about this fundraiser.
