SEATTLE THEATER REVIEWS

Get yourself ready for something naughty, witty and all around fun as the Seattle Rep has brought to town David Ives' battle of wills and words, “Venus in Fur”. This ribald evening from two powerhouse performers is rife with Ives' typical meaty dialog will keep you guessing as to who's really i...

When my Mom goes to see shows of mine that are on the edgy or weirder side she inevitably comes back with the comment, "That was interesting" afterward. Translation: not my thing and a little too weird. I, on the other hand, like a little weird in my theater especially when it culminates into a go...

One of the things I love about William Finn's shows is that he draws such rich and flawed characters which makes them all the more real and relatable. This is extremely true in his most popular work, "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee", currently playing at Seattle Musical Theatre, where t...

If you know what I mean when I say things such as "Are you telling me cocoanuts migrate?!?" "She's got huge tracks of land!" and "Ni!" then you're my kind of nerd who understands the joy that is "Monty Python and the Holy Grail". And while musical theater nerds are aware, I was surprised to find ou...

A new work is always a risk even from author Charles Waxberg who gave us the amazing "A Shade of Green" a few years back. In this case from Theatre 9/12 we kind of have two works from Waxberg with his new play "The Equation". And while the performances in the piece were admirable, only one of the ...

It's a show that's done by pretty much everyone and their dog. Why? Because Larry Shue's "The Foreigner" is somewhat easy to put up (one set, manageable cast) and it's one of Shue's funnier and smarter pieces. So it's kind of a staple for smaller theaters. But while it is an easily doable show, ...

The absolutely stirring performances would have been enough. Even if the script for Seattle Rep's world premiere of "A Great Wilderness" were just so-so the ensemble cast knocking ball after ball out of the park would have been enough to make for an amazing evening. But when you add in the fact th...

When any of Steve Martin's plays such as "Picasso at the Lapin Agile", currently playing at Second Story Rep, is done well it can be a riotous evening of surreal fun. But when it misses the mark it's still funny but lacks that certain spark of genius that Martin is known for. And while SSR's produ...

Before "Rent" put AIDS into the mainstream, before "The Temperamentals" looked at the plight of closeted gay men, there was "The Normal Heart", Larry Kramer's somewhat autobiographical, ground breaking master work which shoved the AIDS crisis and the gay lifestyle front and center at a time when peo...

I've never particularly been a fan of Shakespeare's histories. To me they amount to a lot of political posturing. But even with all the posturing they usually amount to a story with high stakes for all involved. Unfortunately the pacing and some performances from Seattle Shakespeare Company's cur...

Opera has long been considered at the epitome of class and sophistication. Well it's time to give up that idea as 'Jerry Springer: The Opera' has come to town from Balagan Theatre in association with Seattle Theatre Group, and they've taken the highbrow nature of Opera and defecated all over it. A...

The servants are downstairs and the Masters upstairs and the scandals and secrets are flying. It could be another episode of the PBS hit "Downton Abbey" except in this case the scandal is … well, you won't know until the audience shouts it out. As it is with most improv shows at Jet City Improv'...

I've never particularly warmed to Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Evita". Like most of his shows it just feels like a lot of flash and very little substance. So I can't really come at this production from the point of view of a fan of the show but I can point out some truly stirring performances within it....

Holiday theatrical traditions are alive and well at ACT but the two shows playing couldn't be more different from each other. First off with their 38th annual production, ACT presents the classic “A Christmas Carol” with all the polish and flash that you've come to expect. And then with their ...

Take equal parts Dickens and Shakespeare, add in a healthy spoonful of historical tom-foolery, the zest from a bawdy queen and stir it up til you don't know one play from another and you'll have the latest outing from one of the more impressive small theater companies in town, Sound Theatre Company,...

Any Charles Dickens' tale basically has the same theme, working through adversity to get to hope. But even with that simplistic theme his characters are extremely nuanced and complex. And any production of a Dickensian play needs those nuances lest the show just turn into melodrama. Unfortunately...

It's the day after Thanksgiving and suddenly I feel myself getting attacked from a Thanksgiving turkey. No, it's not my Sister's cooking but the world premiere offering from Balagan Theatre of "Thankskilling, The Musical". It's still the completely offensive and hilarious show I saw in the summer ...

When casting my reviewers eye to the world premiere musical version of Roald Dahl's "James and the Giant Peach", currently playing at Seattle Children's Theatre, I am forced to look upon the show from two perspectives. From the kid perspective, as this is children's theatre, will this be entertaini...

I love it when a production manages to actually make me giddy with its technical aspects whether that be the gorgeous set, the intricate staging or the storytelling lights and sound. It appeals to the theater geek in me. So, Dear Readers, you can imagine how much I was in geek heaven at the Seattl...

Someone left the gate open on the asylum again as the not-quite-right-in-the-head boys of The Habit are back with their next round of outside the box sketch comedy with "The Habit 13" at The Bathhouse Theater. And really, what better way can you start off the holiday season than a visit with some c...

The year was 1996, it was the second time "Les Miserables" was coming through town and I was finally going to see it live. I sat there in the dark and let that incredible score and story flow through me and was such a weepy mess that my friends questioned if I was going to be alright. That experie...

OK Broadway Producers, we need to have a chat. I understand your need to turn every mildly successful movie into a big flashy Broadway Musical in hopes that the name recognition will sell tickets. And I understand that "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", currently on tour and playing at the Paramoun...

It's not the happiest or most easily accessible of shows, which is probably why it's not often done. But those that know it and can allow the score to wash over them know "Floyd Collins" is an absolutely beautiful score with a somewhat hopeful yet heart aching story. And the folks over at STAGErig...

Pass the cigars around; it's the birth of a brand new theatre company. Lungfish Productions has just arrived and is currently presenting their first show, "Sophie" by Bryan Willis, as their first staged production over at The Downstage Theatre. And while the play itself didn't leave me reeling, yo...

"You know we're going to talk about sex tonight, right?" Those are some of the first words spoken by Isabella Rossellini (with a devilish twinkle in her eye) after she walked onto stage the other night at the Moore Theatre for her "Green Porno" performance letting the audience know we were in for o...