Leon Dobkowski News

Merrimack Repertory Theatre concludes its 40th season with Molly Smith Metzler's CRY IT OUT, a delightful human comedy that surfs along on the waves of a burgeoning friendship between a pair of mothers of newborn babies, while also acknowledging the myriad challenges that lurk beneath the surface. The playwright examines some of the decisions faced by families when baby makes three, bringing up socioeconomic differences, stresses on the marriage, and debating child-rearing best practices. Over coffee in their adjoining backyards, the women help each other navigate the waters of their new realities and learn that modern day motherhood is no day at the beach.

Paper Mill Playhouse presents the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical Disney's Beauty and the Beast with music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, and book by Linda Woolverton.

Merrimack Repertory Theatre (MRT) will present Molly Smith Metzler's Cry It Out, an insightful comedy about the absurdities of being a new mom, as the final show of its 40th Anniversary Season, from April 24 to May 19, directed by Amanda Charlton at the Nancy L. Donahue Theatre at Liberty Hall, according to Artistic Director Sean Daniels and Executive Director Bonnie J. Butkas.

When attending a jukebox musical, it's expected that the best part of the show will likely be the cherished songs and vocals. MAMMA MIA showcases music and lyrics by ABBA's Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, and a book by Catherine Johnson that is predictably a bit surface-level and 'cheesy', for lack of a better word. Of course, this effect is almost expected when adapting a collection of an artist's songs for the stage, and cheesy can be wonderful. However, there is a way to stage a cheesy musical without seeming inauthentic. There were moments in Theatre Under the Stars' MAMMA MIA that worked, and some that didn't.

The Muny announced today that critically-acclaimed St. Louis artist Mary Engelbreit will provide the inspiration for its final production of the 101st season, Matilda, August 5-11. 

In the video below watch as the Dynamos preview 'Dancing Queen' from TUTS' Mamma Mia!

We are pleased to announce the winners for the 2018 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Nominations were reader-submitted and voted on by you - the local theatergoers!

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) has announced its cast for Mamma Mia!.

It's the last week to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

There's just two weeks left to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

There's just two weeks left to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

There's just one month left to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

You may say, Dear Readers, that it's impossible to have a bad production of the Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse, and Martin Charnin classic "Annie". Throw some precocious kids on stage, belt out those recognizable tunes and you're gold. Well, I beg to differ as I've seen my share of "Annie" productions that missed the point, or the heart or maybe just didn't quite have the kids to pull it off well. (You know what they say, never work with kids or animals and this show has BOTH!) Well the current production at the 5th Avenue not only has the perfect tone for this boisterously fun old time musical, but they know exactly where the heart is in the show and in the audience and which buttons to push on both. Not to mention those precocious kids all seem to be consummate professionals with killer voices. So much so I'm suspecting they were actually just short adults. Maybe?

There's just one month left to vote for the 2018 BroadwayWorld St. Louis Awards, brought to you by BroadwayHD! Nominations were reader-submitted and now our readers are already setting records as they vote for their favorites. Regional productions, touring shows, and more are all included in the awards, honoring productions which opened between October 1, 2017 through September 30, 2018. Our local editors set the categories, our readers submitted their nominees, and now you get to vote for your favorites! Voting will continue through December 31st, 2018.

You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, we're telling you why, Buddy the Elf is coming to town! In fact, he just opened an effervescent production of 'Elf The Musical' at the John Engeman Theater in Northport.

The John W. Engeman Theater presents ELF. Performances began on Thursday, November 15 and run through Sunday, December 30, 2018. Check out photos of the cast celebrating opening night below!

The John W. Engeman Theater presents ELF. Performances began on Thursday, November 15 and run through Sunday, December 30, 2018. Check out photos of the cast taking their bows below!

The John W. Engeman Theater announces the cast and creative team for ELF. Performances begin on Thursday, November 15 and run through Sunday, December 30, 2018.

Irish Repertory Theatre announces full casting for the return of The Dead, 1904 - an immersive adaptation of James Joyce's classic story, "The Dead," adapted by the Pulitzer Prize winning Irish poet Paul Muldoon (Moy Sand and Gravel) and novelist Jean Hanff Korelitz (Admission, You Should Have Known).

On Monday, September 24, 2018 Innovative Theatre Foundation, the organization who for the past 14 years has been dedicated to celebrating Off-Off-Broadway, presented 26 awards and four honorary awards for outstanding achievement in theatre at the 14th Annual New York Innovative Theatre Awards Ceremony, at Centennial Memorial Theatre (120 West 14th Street, NYC). If you were unable to attend, watch a replay online at www.nyitawards.com/live.