Phoenix Metro Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 21

BWW Review: TIDE POOLS Reflects Well On Theatre Artists Studio's New Summer Shorts
by Herbert Paine - June 17, 2016

Michael Fleck's TIDE POOLS ~ a creative, contemplative, and lovely 'paean' to Steinbeck ~ is one of eight engaging short plays on themes comical and whimsical and all relevant in Theatre Artists Studio's ninth annual festival of innovations, New Summer Shorts....

BWW Review: Pearls of Talent Abound In THE LITTLE MERMAID
by Herbert Paine - June 13, 2016

SPECTACULAR is the key word for Valley Youth Theatre's current production of DISNEY'S THE LITTLE MERMAID, directed by Bobb Cooper and featuring enough pearls of talent to fill an oyster bed or two. Karol Cooper's lavish costumes, Dori Brown's sets, Mike Eddy's lighting, Mark Fearey's orchestra all a...

BWW Review: The Band Is Where It's At In ROCK OF AGES
by Herbert Paine - June 06, 2016

The band is the essential heartbeat of rock & roll! In Arizona Broadway Theatre's current production of ROCK OF AGES, Mark Foreman (keyboards), Daniel Stotz (bass), Douglas Ramlow (percussion), and Andrew Hake and Jeff Lauffer (guitars) prove the point with an explosive and electrifying nonstop perf...

BWW Review: YOU CAN'T KILL A STORY Recalls Arizona's Day of Infamy
by Herbert Paine - June 03, 2016

Ben Tyler's YOU CAN'T KILL A STORY: THE MURDER OF DON BOLLES is not only a moving and truly theatrical memorial to Don Bolles but it is also a compelling tribute to the power and imperative of a free and unfettered press,...

BWW Review: Scottsdale Musical Theater Company Presents KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN
by Herbert Paine - May 27, 2016

With its array of accolades ~ novel, film, and musical ~ and the richness of its themes and content, KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN is a treasure trove of possibility, to be mined deeply and imaginatively for its allusions to the mythology of the spider woman, cinema, and revolution. On these varied accou...

BWW Review: Gripping, Compelling and Explosive - HOSTAGES Explores The Heart of Darkness
by Herbert Paine - May 23, 2016

Todd Michael Isaac and Mike Traylor deliver riveting and captivating performances as two hostages, isolated in a sterile cell and united only by their shared Kafkaesque despair, in iTheatre Collaborative's gripping and compelling production of Yussef El Guindi's HOSTAGES....

BWW Review: WHEN YOU WISH Is A Wish Unfulfilled
by Herbert Paine - May 23, 2016

Phoenix Theatre premiering WHEN YOU WISH: THE STORY OF WALT DISNEY, a highly idealized and superficial portrait of the mogul of animated filmdom that leaves too many stones of character and relationship development unturned....

BWW Review: DISCORD Is Revelation Lite Well Served
by Herbert Paine - May 13, 2016

Scott Carter's DISCORD is more akin to an extended SNL sketch ~ longer to the tune of ninety minutes, comprised of a series of XV scenes, and made thoroughly bearable thanks to the whirlwind performances ~ albeit caricatures ~ of its original cast, Larry Cedar (Jefferson), Mark Gagliardi (Dickens), ...

BWW Review: DAVID SEDARIS Is America's Humorist Laureate
by Herbert Paine - May 02, 2016

If America had an award for satirist-in-chief, David Sedaris would be the odds-on favorite. If there were a garland for humorist laureate, it would rest on his head. DAVID SEDARIS on-tour proves the point in an evening of readings and commentary that is both intellectual, personal, and theatrical....

BWW Review: THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK Is An Invocation to Choose Life Even In The Darkest Hours
by Herbert Paine - April 25, 2016

In Hale Centre Theatre's current production of the award-winning classic, THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK, high school ingenue Sarah Pansing plays the central character to the hilt, conferring upon the role a sensibility and sensitivity that one might expect of an old soul. Her performance is not enough how...