BWW Reviews: END OF THE RAINBOW - The Rainbow Shines Bright Over The Playhouse

The rainbow that started with L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz truly does end in the Cellar Theatre of The Playhouse where a real treasure can be found. END OF THE RAINBOW, a Play with Music by Peter Quilter takes a hard look at the final days of the tragic legend known as Judy Garland played in this production by Anna Gangai. Her performance should become the talk of the town as there are moments where I was convinced that she was channelling Ms. Garland herself. Chris Berry who plays Mickey Deans. Garlands 4th husband and new manager, whose talents are often seen in musicals here proves that his acting chops are not just limited to song and dance characters/
The whole show is pulled together with a Set Design by Alfy Valdez that is both smart in its usage of a small space and in a visual sense, considering the fact that we are in one small room, I felt as if we are in a small hotel room/radio station and later a concert venue. This is part of the reason why I love seeing shows in the Cellar Theatre, a small space would be frustrating to put on any show but with this production, The Playhouse once again proves that they are brilliant and will take a risk in an outing on this huge play in such a small space. At the helm of the production is Director Tim Hedgepeth whose understanding of the show can be seen throughout the piece as he has found a way to make it all work perfectly. I am eagerly awaiting when both Time and Anna move to the big stage for the Playhouse Production of Gypsy which if End of the Rainbow is any indication I will be the first in line to see it. End of the Rainbow was a great example on the talent that this city has to offer and how when it all works together so beautifully this city has the potential to rival anything on Broadway.

At the moment END OF THE RAINBOW runs at the The Playhouse is SOLD OUT! with added performaces hopefully to be added. Vist theplayhouse.org