Murray Ross News

Point Park University's Pittsburgh Playhouse announced a compelling 2020-2021 season today, celebrating love, human resiliency and community spirit.

The Colorado Theatre Guild's 12th Annual Henry Awards was held Monday, July 17, 2017 at the PACE Center, 20000 Pikes Peak Avenue in Parker, Colorado.

I admit it, melodrama is something of a guilty pleasure of mine. I don't mean 'melodrama' in the way you're thinking, with audiences booing and hissing the mustache-twirling villain as he ties some dewy blonde to the railroad tracks. I mean stories where everything-the characters, the situations, the emotions-are larger than life. It's one of the reasons I enjoy musicals so much; after all, what could be more melodramatic than singing out your feelings at the top of your lungs?

The Humber River Shakespeare Company proudly presents its annual production of Dickens' holiday classic, A Christmas Carol.

Murray Ross' adaptation of Ghosts distills Henrik Ibsen's three-act play into a brisk, intermission-free 100 minutes. A concession to shorter attention spans? Perhaps, but Ross' primary focus here is maintaining an uninterrupted pace as the events of the play hurtle towards their inevitable tragedy, brought about by a past long-concealed but ultimately inescapable.

Although it takes some time, Theatreworks' funky take on Shakespearean comedy is ultimately hilarious and magical.

Caught somewhere between classical and modern modes, The Liar is a truly entertaining evening.

'What does it mean?'

The Humber River Shakespeare Company presents its annual production of Dickens' holiday classic, A Christmas Carol. This December, gather with friends and family as five actors, armed with exquisite costumes and a trunk full of story-telling treasures, bring to life the timeless tale of greed, ghosts, and salvation.

The Colorado Theatre Guild's 9th Annual Henry Awards will take place Monday, July 21, 2014 at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, 6901 Wadsworth Blvd in Arvada, Colorado. The evening begins at 6 p.m. with cocktails and a silent auction. The awards ceremony will begin at 7 p.m., followed by an after-party. Tickets are $23 for CTG members (limit 2 per person), $30 non-members or $50 VIP. Tickets go on sale beginning July 1 by phone only through the Arvada Center Box Office by calling 720-898-7200.

Theatreworks sure knows how to set a scene. Last season, Everyman on a Bus had audiences boarding a charter for a literal and allegorical journey around the Colorado Springs downtown area. Now comes Venus in Fur, staged in an abandoned building on Tejon Street with blacked-out windows and a 'For Lease' sign over the door. Just walking into the space feels like taking part in clandestine activity.

Cymbeline is well worth a trip-though you'll have to decide for yourself whether that trip is down the tree-lined path at Rock Ledge Ranch, or within a smoke-hazed mind. This play, in the end, is mostly what you make of it.

In his director's notes for The Wild Duck, Murray Ross suggests Henrik Ibsen's play isn't produced often in America because of its bleak cynicism, resolving in a 'stunning black hole' of despair. He's probably right.

The stage may be unconventional-and uncomfortable-but Theatreworks' new interpretation of Everyman is worth the trip.

We all know death can strike any place any time, often coming as a most unwelcome surprise. In the greatest play of the Middle Ages, Death comes to Everyman when he's least expecting it, and tells him to get ready for the trip of his life. 600 years later Death is still coming to every man, and in the THEATREWORKS revival of the play, Everyman will get his bad news on a city bus leaving from downtown Colorado Springs. He won't be travelling alone: 35 audience members will be joining him for the ride of his lifetime. Everyman on a Bus plays Wednesdays through Sundays, February 21-March 17, with two performances each night.