When Christmastime draws near, it seems that almost every theatre in town gets into the holiday spirit. As usual, Houston audiences have a plethora of choices when it comes to holiday entertainment. This season A.D. Players is presenting Thomas Ohlson's comedy GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, CHRISTMAS TREE ORNAMENTS AND MYRRH. The play premiered Off-Broadway in 1964 at the Riverside Church and ran for 20 performances. It introduces audiences to a fourth wise man who, despite his best efforts, misses the birth of Jesus Christ.
The Pass-It-On Christmas tells of wonderful news in the air - the Son of God is born! Follow a zany troupe of actors as they recount the adventures of a shepherd boy and his lamb crossing the countryside, passing on the news that Jesus is born. A touching comedy, this show reminds us that everyone can tell someone about the miracle of Immanuel: God is with us!
Joseph Kesselring wrote ARSENIC AND OLD LACE in 1939, and the darkly comic play premiered on Broadway on January 10, 1941 at the Fulton Theatre, now named the Helen Hayes Theatre. Brooks Atkinson, theatre critic for The New York Times, famously stated that the play was "so funny that none of us will ever forget it." Eventually, ARSENIC AND OLD LACE moved to the Hudson Theatre, and closed on June 17, 1944, after having played 1,444 performances. The zany, madcap comedy is considered to be Joseph Kesselring's most successful play and is one that still manages to captivate audiences today. A.D. Player's current production of the classic, well directed by Joey Watkins to pop with delightful enthusiasm and energy, proves that the roughly 74-year-old play is as funny as ever.
The A.D. Players is closing their 2012-2013 MainStage season with a beautiful and heartwarming production of Joseph Robinette's adaptation of L. M. Montgomery's ANNE OF AVONLEA. This delightful sequel to Anne of Green Gables focuses on the next chapter of the beloved protagonist, Anne Shirley's, life. ANNE OF AVONLEA invites viewers into the little town of Avonlea, where we see the exceptional red-head embark on a new adventure as a school teacher. The play centers on Anne and her endearing and oftentimes humorous interactions with all of the people who call Avonlea home.
A.D. Players is currently presenting the Regional Premiere of Cathal (pronounced Cal) Gallagher's riveting drama MALCOLM AND TERESA. The Play chronicles the life of Malcolm Gallagher and his BBC interviews of Mother Teresa, which helped make her a known and popular person worldwide. Before attending the show on Saturday, May 25, I got to chat with Cathal Gallagher, and he discussed his career, writing process, and MALCOLM AND TERESA.
The A.D. Players is kicking off the summer with a vibrant and thrilling production of Cathal Gallagher's MALCOLM AND TERESA. The play is a fascinating biography of British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge, who is credited for popularizing Mother Teresa. In 1932, he visited Moscow as a correspondent for the Manchester Guardian. He was one of the few journalists that looked into the reports of famine in the Ukraine, and he traveled there without the permission of the Soviet authorities. He sent his reports back to England in the diplomatic bag, to avoid censorship; however, he found that the British people and the journalism world in general were not ready or willing to accept that the new Socialist nation was not the utopian worker's paradise that the USSR claimed it was. Later, in 1968, with a reputation for being a tough interviewer for the BBC, he interviews Mother Teresa. She opens his eyes to the squalor and suffering in Calcutta, a city he had lived in the 1920s. After his initial interview with her, he re-examines his personal faith while championing Mother Teresa's charitable ministries.
Direction by Jennifer Dean keeps this Texas style 'Beauty and the Beast' parable clipping brightly along during the first act, which is pleasantly bubbly and tender. In the second act, the writing and direction together slow the pace of the sprightly comedy. The writing, especially, becomes filled with redundant moments and removes every ounce of subtly from the themes and messages beautifully constructed and pristinely directed in the first act. While, as a whole, THE FIRST CHURCH OF TEXACO is pleasant, I couldn't help but feel that the second act could be pared down some to keep the momentum rocking forward.
As the world premiere production of Will Ledesma and Braden Hunt's musical version of THUMBELINA was in its opening weekend at A.D. Players, I got the opportunity to speak with book and lyric writer Will Ledesma. We discussed his career as a writer, his process, and the show itself.
Houston's A.D. Players, while always producing theatre that is safe for the whole family, produces a full season of Children's shows that many Houstonians may not know about. Their most recent offering is the World Premiere of the musical THUMBELINA, adapted from the story by Hans Christian Andersen with a Book and Lyrics by Will Ledesma and Music by Braden Hunt.
Thumbelina, a new musical, with Book and Lyrics by Will Ledesma, Music by Braden Hunt and Adapted from the story by Hans Christian Anderson, will run Jan. 15 - Feb. 2 (Opens Jan. 16) at A.D. Players.
BroadwayWorld brings you the Best of Houston in the year 2012. Check out the Top Theatre Stories from each month during in the year 2012. We look forward to another exciting year of theatre in 2013!
For the holiday season, A.D. Players is presenting SANDERS FAMILY CHRISTMAS. The family friendly holiday musical is part of the SMOKE ON THE MOUNTAIN series, and was written by Connie Ray, Conceived by Alan Bailey, and has musical arrangements done by John Foley and Gary Fagin.
Four Maps to Bethlehem by Marion Arthur Kirby will run at A.D. Players, tonight, November 27 - December 22, 2012, with opening night slated for November 28th.
To kick off their 2012-2013 season, A.D. Players is presenting Steven Dietz's Edgar award winning play SHERLOCK HOLMES: THE FINAL ADVENTURE. The play itself is an adaptation of American actor William Gillette's 1899 play, which borrows Irene Adler from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's "A Scandal in Bohemia" and Professor James Moriarty from "The Adventure of the Final Problem." Irene Adler is an opera singer and a superficial villainess in her own right, tempting Sherlock Holmes' typically nonexistent romantic feelings. Professor James Moriarty is the malevolent architect of most of England's iniquitous scum, which earns him Sherlock's admiration for being a completely reserved and ultimately clever man.
