Brian Best News

If you were to ask me to list my five favorite musicals (or even my top ten), there is a very good chance I would not include Meredith Willson's The Music Man among my chosen favorites. But then I see another production of that particular Willson tribute to Americana that features a fast-talking salesman and a beautiful young librarian named Marian and I am suddenly reminded that I absolutely adore The Music Man and all 76 of its trombones - and I feel remiss in not listing it among the shows I love.

Opening tonight at The Larry Keeton Theatre in Donelson is a sparkling new revival of Meredith Willson's The Music Man, directed and choreographed by Stephanie Jones-Benton, with musical direction by Ginger Newman. Featuring a roster of the Keeton Theatre's favorite stars, the show runs through October 28.

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Looking for a way to beat the heat this weekend? What's better than sinking into a seat in a darkened auditorium and letting the talented actors onstage whisk you way to a whole different world from the world iin which you toil Monday through Friday? Theater companies throughout the midstate are ready to dazzle you with their latest productions and here are some of this weekend's best bets...

Looking for an early summer diversion? We're happy to suggest some theatrical offerings to occupy your time, to keep you out of the heat and humidity - which seems to have really descended upon us this past week - and place you smack in the middle of a darkened auditorium that's certain to cool you down while entertaining you in high style…

We pride ourselves on our bounteous Southern hospitality here in Nashville, so who's gonna explain this: On Thursday, as thousands of country music fans gathered downtown for CMA Fest and thousands more fans of every musical genre you can think of were headed southward for the Bonnaroo Music Festival - just another summer in Tennessee, mind you - a truck spilled its load all over Interstate 65-S, adding to the hot, humid atmosphere with a whole mess of fish parts. Yep, you heard it right: smelly, disgusting fish parts baking on the hot asphalt under the blazing sun.

It's another busy theater week in Tennessee, and in Nashville there are an extra 50,000 to 100,000 country music fans jamming up traffic and increasing wait times at local restaurants, thanks to CMA Music Fest, which natives and longtimers will remember as Fan Fair. So while you're steering clear of our version of Broadway in downtown Nashville, which will be teeming with more people than you can shake a stick at (as my mama would say),  you should instead make reservations to see some local talent onstage at some of the shows included in our Critic's Choice column today!

Is there anything more magical or more transformative than live theater? Honestly, I can't think of anything which can take you from the depths of despair to the fanciful heights of imagination so quickly - and there certainly is no art form in which things can change so capriciously or quicker, either for good or bad.

It's another busy weekend of new shows opening and many others continuing to delight audiences, with ACT 1's Dog Sees God and Street Theatre Company's Dogfight both opening tonight, while two shows that opened yesterday will continue to treat audiences to some especially wonderful music. Plus, there's a whole slate of shows being performed at Crossville's Cumberland County Playhouse, a revival of Osborne & Epplers' Southern Fried Nuptials down in Woodbury at the Arts Center of Cannon County, and John Chaffin's Cliffhanger enters its final weekend at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre. Go to the theater, young man (and woman) and let yourself be transported to a whole new world of magic and enchantment!

Jenny Norris Light plays Sarah Brown, with Michael Maupins as Sky Masterson, Hallie Long as Miss Adelaide and Brian Best as Nathan Detroit in The Larry Keeton Theatre's eagerly anticipated production of the classic Broadway music Guys and Dolls. Directed by Ginger Newman (who doubles as musical director as well), with choreography and staging by Cary Street, the musical that introduced the theatrical standards 'Bushel and a Peck,' 'Adelaide's Lament' and 'Luck Be A Lady Tonight' to Broadway audiences runs at the Keeton Theatre tonight, June 4, through June 20.

No matter what the calendar says, we're in early summer already - insofar as theater in Tennessee is concerned, at least - and there are four new shows opening this week that should command your attention. Along with a number of shows that are continuing their runs (like John Chaffin's Cliffhanger at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre), you have plenty of diverse and intriguing onstage offerings to keep you in the relative, air-conditioned comfort of a darkened theater. We've done the necessary research, made the calls to the people-in-the-know and have included the dates, the phone numbers and the websites to make it as easy as possible for you to buy tickets and go show some support for the arts while indulging in the magic of live theater…

Sometimes it seems there is so much theater happening that it's difficult to keep track of it all. From personal experience, despite all the datebooks, smart phones, tablets, desktop computers and laptops...it's hard to keep everything straight in this wacky business of the show.

Jenny Norris Light plays Sarah Brown, with Michael Maupins as Sky Masterson, Hallie Long as Miss Adelaide and Brian Best as Nathan Detroit in The Larry Keeton Theatre's eagerly anticipated production of the classic Broadway music Guys and Dolls. Directed by Ginger Newman (who doubles as musical director as well), with choreography and staging by Cary Street, the musical that introduced the theatrical standards "Bushel and a Peck," "Adelaide's Lament" and "Luck Be A Lady Tonight" to Broadway audiences runs at the Keeton Theatre June 4-20.

Perhaps no singing group more aptly captures the spirit of America during World War II than the glorious Andrews Sisters: the sound of Patty, Maxene and Laverne somehow encapsulates the romantic notions of a world at war that still delights audiences and conjures up visions of all-American spirit and spunk. With songs like 'Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,' 'Hold Tight,' 'Three Little Sisters,' and 'Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree,' audiences are immediately taken away to wartime - well, actually, the war's in its waning days (the time is March 1945), but young men are still risking their lives to ensure our liberties while saving the world from the Axis powers.

Looking for something fun to do in Nashville this week? Have no fear, gentle BWW Nashville readers, our team of writers have done the necessary legwork - we're all about saving you time and helping you make informed decisions about how to spend your entertainment dollar, after all - and we are delighted to present you with our very first Critic's Choice column, filled to the veritable brim with suggestions for great stuff going on around our fair state. Now, get out there and have some fun, y'all! And while you're at it, you'll be doing some good for the community by supporting the arts in the Volunteer State!

Photographer Kenn Stilger and Heavnly Perspective Photography have captured some gorgeous photographic images of Street Theatre Company's production of Memphis the Musical, which opens at Bailey STEM Middle School in Nashville tonight.

This week the spotlight shines on Lauren Frances Johnson, who has made her mark in Music City, performing on stages all over town and sharing the remarkable talents that have won her legions of followers. Charming and gorgeous, she has stage presence to spare and tonight, as she opens as Felicia Farrell in Street Theatre Company's production of Memphis the Musical, she's destined to command the stage like nobody's business!

Celebrating its 65th season, Nashville's Circle Players is Middle Tennessee's oldest community theater organization and I can think of no better way to celebrate that milestone than with the company's current show, the Tim Larson-directed version of Ragtime, the musical adaptation of the acclaimed E.L. Doctorow novel.

Looking for a fun fright this Halloween? The Circle Players production of THE ADDAMS FAMILY sure to give you all the giggles and screams you'll need. Directed by Brett Meyers, this show brings to life the beloved characters from the comic panels of Charles Addams and subsequent TV shows and movies.

William Schermerhorn has won a Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Original Song that was perfomed in 85th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on NBC, called (Won't You) Join Our Parade. The Emmy award winning song (Won't You) Join Our Parade was performed by Stage Door Manor and written by composer, Doug Katsaros and lyricist, William Schermerhorn.