Hannah Daly News

It is the winter doldrums here in North Country, but what better way to combat those blues than to take in an entertaining, moving, or inspiring evening at one of Maine's fine theatre companies? And if not in winter, why not plan ahead by subscribing to some of these companies or buying seats for one of the many exciting upcoming events for 2019? To assist you in your planning, BWW offers these picks of the ten productions and company repertoire to which we look forward most.

Anita Stewart's staging of Dickens' A Christmas Carol has been a beloved fixture on Portland's Christmas scene for quite some time now, and, indeed, despite changing casts, much of its appeal resides in its familiarity to audiences. On the December 23rd matinee, the venerable production got a fresh new uplift in the performance of Dustin Tucker as Scrooge.

Dustin Tucker's THE HAUNTING 2.0, presented in the Studio Series at Portland Stage, proves to be a sophisticated and fascinating sequel to last season's inaugural Halloween event. Shaping six horror stories by Maine writers into an imaginative, often chilling dramatic sequence, Tucker's piece explores the psychological dimensions of terror with a combination of visceral fear and dark humor.

It's Baaaaack! Portland Stage announces the return of an original Studio Series Production Haunting Hour 2.0 curated by Dustin Tucker and featuring Maine authors: Joe Hill, Monica Wood, Callie Kimball, H.W. Longfellow, Ian Carlsen, and Rick Hautala.

Portland's Greek Festival ended a few weeks ago but the spirit of that ancient culture hangs in the air with the latest production from the Fenix Theatre Company. Sarah Ruhl's gentle makeover of the myth of 'Orpheus and Eurydice' is being presented in and around the small wading pools at Deering Oaks Park.

Good Theater closes its 16th season with Ken Ludwig's A Comedy of Tenors in its Portland premiere. This madcap comedy is the sequel to Ludwig's award-winning Lend Me a Tenor.

The last offering in the Good Theater's current season is cause for celebration! Ken Ludwig's 2015 comedy, A Comedy of Tenors, serves up a frothy concoction of revolving door farce, sophisticated irony and broad parody, witty double entendres, and a breathlessly wacky plot line that makes the evening speed by joyously.

Good Theater closes its 16th season with Ken Ludwig's A Comedy of Tenors in its Portland premiere.  This madcap comedy is the sequel to Ludwig's award-winning Lend Me a Tenor.

A Comedy of Tenors by Ken Ludwig.  Good Theater presents the Portland premiere of this madcap comedy that is the sequel to Lend Me a Tenor.

Good Theater is proud to present the Maine premiere of Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron's smash hit off-Broadway comedy event, Love Loss and What I Wore, directed by Steve Underwood, featuring a rotating cast of Portland's favorite actresses.  Love Loss and What I Wore plays January 20-March 6 at the St. Lawrence Arts Center, 76 Congress Street, Portland where Good Theater is the theater in residence.  For tickets and information contact Good Theater at 208-835-0895 or go to the company's website at www.goodtheater.com.

The complex, sometimes conflicted, often poetic relationship between what we wear and self image and identity forms the framework of a delightful, delicately lyrical, and warmly wistful play by Nora and Delia Ephron, based on the book by Ilene Beckerman. Presented as a staged reading with a rotating cast of five actresses, Portland's Good Theater brings this exquisitely written piece to life with affectionate wisdom.

Good Theater presents the Maine premiere of Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron's smash hit off-Broadway comedy event, Love Loss and What I Wore, directed by Steve Underwood, featuring a rotating cast of Portland's favorite actresses. Love Loss and What I Wore plays January 20-March 6 at the St. Lawrence Arts Center, 76 Congress Street, Portland where Good Theater is the theater in residence. For tickets and information contact Good Theater at 208-835-0895 or go to the company's website at www.goodtheater.com.

Among the many holiday season theatrical offerings, the annual musical revue, Broadway at the Good Theater inevitably proves to be a refreshing and original approach to ushering in a season of good cheer. The 2017 production, conceived, written, and directed by Brian P. Allen, is no exception; in fact, if anything, this year's show is bigger, bolder, and full of delightful surprises.

Eric Kunze and Kathy Voytko will join Good Theater for their annual Broadway at Good Theater concerts November 29 - December 3 at Good Theater's home, the St. Lawrence Arts Center, 76 Congress Street, Portland. This year the concerts will be a tribute to the 1950s - the height of the Golden Age of Broadway.

Good Theater Artistic Director Brian P. Allen chose to close the season with a lovely, lyrical production of Horton Foote's platy, The Trip to Bountiful, in which Louisa Flaningam's luminous interpretation of Carrie Watts is surely one of the Portland theatre calendar's highlights.

Good Theater, the professional theater in residence at the St. Lawrence Arts Center, is pleased to present Horton Foote's multi-award-winning The Trip to Bountiful starring Broadway veteran Louisa Flaningam. Bountiful opens March 29 and plays through April 30.

Good Theater, the professional theater in residence at the St. Lawrence Arts Center, is pleased to present Horton Foote's multi-award-winning The Trip to Bountiful starring Broadway veteran Louisa Flaningam.  Bountiful opens March 29 and plays through April 30.  

William Shakespeare's The Tempest is TAM's Shakespeare in Maine Communities offering for 2016. The Tempest will tour for three weeks to schools and community centers across the state from October 10-29 and run for one weekend only in Cumston Hall October 14 through 16. TAM's production is part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. The Shakespeare in Maine Communities tour is also funded in part by a grant from the Maine Arts Commission and the Fisher Foundation.

William Shakespeare's dynamic and relentless history, Henry V, is TAM's Shakespeare in Maine Communities offering for 2015. Henry V will tour for three weeks to schools and community centers across the state and run for one weekend only in Cumston Hall October 16-18. This production is supported in part by the Maine Arts Commission and The Betterment Fund.

Syracuse University's Department of Drama presents David Mamet's SPEED-THE-PLOW, beginning tonight, February 21, and running through March 2, 2014 at Arthur Storch Theater.