Jeffrey Ellis News

Directed with confidence by Corbin Green (who telegraphs his focused vision for the piece throughout the production) and acted with grace, style and alacrity by a superb ensemble of actors, Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire, now onstage at Boiler Room Theatre, may well be the most satisfying production ever presented by BRT.

It was one of those moments in life when inspiration, like so much lightening, struck and thereafter nothing would ever be the same...When Vali Forrister's niece Haviland was 12, she shared with her aunt some of her poetry: 'I told her it was good,' Vali remembers. But shockingly, Haviland's response was: 'No, it isn't. My teachers tell me I'm too dark.'

Nashville theater-goers may have experienced the second coming on Monday night - what with the return of those FIVE divas with their Encore performance - and while it might not have been part of that much-discussed rapture we've heard so much about of late, they certainly responded rapturously to the entertainment provided by the quintet of versatile triple threats.

Led by the charming Debbie Kraski, who commands the stage with grace and wit as the show's wacky protagonist, director Jenny Noel's talented cast delivers a pleasant and amusing summer diversion by way of John Patrick's Everybody Loves Opal, now onstage at Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre.

While critics and fans alike justifiably lament the paucity of female leads in Broadway musicals this season just past, you need look no further than the current tour of The Color Purple for a musical filled to overflowing with noteworthy women characters. The beautiful and moving reimagination of Alice Walker's extraordinary novel of faith, despair, horror, beauty, love and redemption, The Color Purple might best be described as a woman's story, but it is, in every possible way, a human story as universal and as affecting as any work of musical theater ever created.

Thanks to Carolyn German and her efforts to engage younger performers through musical theater and cabaret, Nashville area producers and directors should have a consistent supply of new and interesting actors (who clearly comprehend the history and legacy of musical theater) for their shows for years to come. No further proof of this is needed than the latest production from German and her cohorts: Roar!, which bears the telling and descriptive subtitle of 'the fringe, the flappers, the jazz...the '20s!'

Celebrating their company's 61st season - which makes them the oldest community theater in Middle Tennessee - Nashville's Circle Players recognized outstanding achievement during the 2010-2011 season with the presentation of the Circle Awards on Sunday, June 19.

The Five Dollar Recession Theatre Company, Nashville's newest theatrical outfit, makes its debut Thursday, June 23, with its production of Martin McDonagh's The Cripple of Inishmaan, playing at the Belmont Little Theatre (underneath Hail Hall on the Belmont University campus) through Sunday, June 26.

Directed and choreographed by the multi-talented Bryan Wlas, who plays Ambrose Kemper in this musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker, The Renaissance Players' production is lovingly brought to the stage by a large cast of locals - some making their stage debuts, some coming out of self-prescribed stage retirement, and still others adding the show to their professional acting resumes - who represent the very best of community theater, cheerfully and resolutely giving their all to infuse Hello, Dolly! with spirit, verve and camaraderie. Sure, the production has its flaws (so what if Horace Vandergelder sounds like a Confederate Army veteran, the show's being done in a small Southern town for goodness' sake!), but the cast and crew are having so much fun that you can easily overlook almost anything to be transported by one of musical theater's most appealing and enduring scores.

Who says you can't bring a full-length spy thriller to the stage? Who said you can't have 'train chases, plane crashes, shadowy murders, beautiful spies, trilbied heavies, dastardly villains with little fingers missing, not to mention some of the most iconic moments in the history of cinema' - as the Broadway description depicts - certainly not playwright Patrick Barlow.

Fighting with Forks, a creative collective of filmmakers based in Nashville and Cincinnati, decided the time was right to start working on their first full-length feature film, The Many Monsters of Sadness, launching a Kickstarter campaign to raise the necessary funds for the project.

Five exceptional young talents take on the songbook of one of America's favorite pop/folk/country music performers in Roxy Regional Theatre's production of Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver, now onstage in Clarksville through July 2. Directed with obvious affection and respect for the musical revue's hero by Tom Thayer, it's as if the pop music soundtrack of the early- to mid-1970s (with attention paid to Denver's later efforts as well) has come to life in the just under two hours of music.

By turns, Duck Hunter Shoots Angel will make you laugh out loud, consider deep and philosophical questions and, perhaps, even shed a few tears. Certainly, it's funny and heartwarming, and yet another example of writer Mitch Albom's estimable ability to provoke thought while entertaining - which, quite frankly, has become the stock in trade of the artistic collective at Crossville's Cumberland County Playhouse.

This is the 2nd video promo produced by T.S. Productions for Miracle in Rwanda a one woman show based on a TRUE STORY of immaculee Ilibagiza. Nashville actress Tamiko Robinson stars, directed by Barry Scott.

One of Broadway's biggest musical hits ever - Hello, Dolly! - winner of 10 Tony Awards, is next onstage at Dickson's Renaissance Center as The Renaissance Players present the musical comedy by Jerry Herman, known to many as 'the king of showtunes,' running through June 26, starring Marilyn Fair, Linda Sue Simmon Runyeon, Bryan Wlas, and Nathan W. Brown.

In the cast, there's a blend familiar faces from local theater productions and a whole slew of newcomers. During the run-up to the show's opening night, we introduced you to members of Kate's cast - and now that the show is up and running, we're happy to introduce you to another cast member...Jessica Higgins...

In the cast, there's a blend familiar faces from local theater productions and a whole slew of newcomers. During the run-up to the show's opening night, we introduced you to members of Kate's cast - and now that the show is up and running, we're happy to introduce you to another cast member...Sandra Kennelly...

During the June 7th, 2011 Comedy on the Cumberland show, the Roxy Regional Theatre gave a sneak peek of their upcoming show Almost Heaven: The Songs of John Denver. Weaving together the songs of John Denver with interviews, fan letters and passages from his autobiography, Almost Heaven was originally conceived by Harold Thau with orchestrations, vocal arrangements and music supervision by Jeff Waxman. Directed by Tom Thayer, the musical revue features Keith Panzarella, Erica Haines Cantrell, Bryan Benware, Kendall Anne Thompson and Ryan Bowie, with David Lovell on guitar, Tom Thayer on piano and Thad Wallus on bass.

Nicole Begue Hackmann and her husband, Nathaniel Hackmann, are paired as Laurey and Curly in Cumberland County Playhouse's production of Oklahoma! opening Friday, June 17, in Crossville. In this teaser from the show, the Hackmanns sing 'Surrey With the Fringe On Top' from the timeless score.

Nashville's show-stopping quintet of captivating, sexy, sultry, uber-talented women of FIVE - known among the intelligentsia as Melodie Madden Adams, Megan Murphy Chambers, Cori Laemmel, Laura Matula and Erin Parker - reclaim the stage Monday, June 27, with Five: An Encore Performance, building on the momentum that started in March with their debut performance at Street Theatre Company.