SEATTLE THEATER REVIEWS

Dear Readers, if you know me at all you know my disdain for most things Andrew Lloyd Webber. With so much repetition and borrowing from other’s works, I just don’t see the appeal. But many love him and so it should come as no surprise that Showtunes Theatre would choose to dust off one of his gr...

The MAP Theatre gang is back, Dear Readers, and as usual they’re not ones to shy away from the bizarre with their latest offering, “Blood Countess” by Kelleen Conway Blanchard. This gothic, horror, sex, comedy doesn’t pull any punches. I just question if it needed all the punches it landed....

This weekend, Intiman Theatre and The Seagull Project opened their outstanding, heart-wrenching, and purposefully uncomfortable production of Maxim Gorky’s The Lower Depths. Housed at the Erickson Theater, the extremely cohesive 14-person cast takes the audience on a journey that is intertwined wi...

If you’re unfamiliar with the playwright Samuel D. Hunter, Dear Readers, you shouldn’t be. His latest, “A Case for the Existence of God”, currently playing at ACT, isn’t the first of his we’ve seen in the area. We were blessed with his “A Great Wilderness” back in 2014, plus his “T...

Village Theatre has welcomed a new show and a new Doctor to the stage this weekend. With a set that can’t leave your mind after stepping out of the Issaquah theater, and a leading lady who steals the show (good news, since she’s the only one in it), Becoming Dr. Ruth is a labor of love and arduo...

Come with me, Dear Readers, for a little trip down the rabbit hole to “House of Hearts”, the latest offering at The Can Can. If you’ve read my previous reviews of The Can Can shows, you know of my love for these folks. And if you’ve seen any of their shows, you know they consistently put on ...

Dear Readers, I hope you already have your tickets to “The Book of Mormon”, currently playing at the Paramount Theatre, because it’s pretty much sold out. And with good reason as it’s a near perfect show....

Dear Readers, I am loathed to admit that I’ve never seen one of Dina Martina’s Christmas shows. Hey, I’ve only had 25 years to catch one. I have seen her perform before, way back when at Thumpers on Capitol Hill (back when that existed). Well, she’s back at ACT this year with “The Dina Mar...

Dear Readers, you know I’m not a fan of the bio musical. Very few get it right with jamming too many songs in or a bad book. Unfortunately, “MJ” the Michael Jackson bio musical currently playing at the Paramount suffers from both of those things, and more....

It’s the holiday season, Dear Readers, and you know what that means. Myriad productions of “A Christmas Carol” in the area. Just to name a few, there’s the old, trusty standby production out at ACT. And last week I saw an amazing one man “Christmas Carol” performed by the incredible Alle...

Dear Readers, you know I love a good rousing tap number as much as the rest of you. So those old musicals on stage such as “Singing in the Rain”, or “Holiday Inn” are right up my alley. ...

Two contemporary compositions provided the framework for the haunting, ebullient Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 82 by iconic Finnish composer Jean Sibelius in a recent program, performed live in Benaroya Hall on Nov. 16, 2023, and streamed on the innovative Seattle Symphony+ service. Helmed by...

First off, Dear Readers, I need to put it out there that “Beautiful: The Carole King Story” is one of the few bio-musicals that gets it right. Sure, it’s got killer music from an icon but the book from Douglas McGrath is, in a word, beautiful. But beyond my affinity for this show, I also need ...

First off, Dear Readers, I want to wish the Seattle Rep a Happy 60th Birthday this week. They’ve had an impressive run. Having said that I wish I had a better Birthday gift for them as their current production of Louisa May Alcott’s classic “Little Women”, as adapted by Kate Hamill, was not ...

I know what you’re thinking, Dear Readers. “Didn’t you just review this one?” Yes, it’s only been a little over a year since “Hadestown” came through town. But with the number of people I know personally alone who just could not get tickets last time, I’m not surprised it’s back pl...

The Seattle Rep is certainly known for bringing in some rare gems over the years. I still geek out over shows like “The Brothers Size”, “An Iliad”, and of course “Come From Away”. And this season is kicking off brilliantly, in no small part to the shimmering, magical jewel currently play...

Dear Readers, I firmly believe that the smaller theaters in the area can accomplish anything that the bigger budget theaters can. Strawberry Theatre Workshop is a prime example of this as I’ve seen some stellar things from them over the years. Unfortunately, their current production of the musical...

What did our critic think of ALCINA It’s worth going to see for the glorious music and courageous, proficient singing...

Dear Readers, last night I discovered at “Cambodian Rock Band”, the latest collaboration of ACT and the 5th Avenue Theatre, that I am officially a cranky old man. This is an astounding play from an astounding playwright but infused with a rock concert vibe. Now, I’ve never been a concert guy a...

Dear Readers, it struck me last night, while watching The Can Can’s current production of “The Hitchcock Hotel” of the intersection of horror, humor and sex. Any horror movie fan knows that a good laugh is the perfect way to release that tension after a good scare. And sex certainly plays a pa...

While watching the opening routine in “Passengers”, currently playing at the Seattle Rep, I found myself seeing a move I knew. We referred to it as a “coffee grinder” in my tap-dancing days and I was totally able to pull it off … when I was nine. Also, that was the only time I watched this...

Author Ken Ludwig has certainly had a prolific career filled with some wonderful gems, “Crazy for You”, “Lend Me a Tenor”, and “Moon Over Buffalo” to name just a few. So, Village Theatre’s new production of his 2017 work, “Sherwood: The Adventures of Robin Hood” sounds like a rolli...

In these tumultuous theatrical times, it’s of little surprise that The 5th Avenue Theatre would head back under the sea with a remount of “Disney’s The Little Mermaid”. I mean, they just did it back in 2016. But it’s a crowd pleaser and I suspect a bit of a cash sea cow so here we are. ...

Dear Readers, I’m thrilled to say that my opinion of “Tina, The Tina Turner Musical”, currently playing at the Paramount, has changed. I saw it way back in 2018 in London and was not impressed. The show, while having tons of talent, also had tons of problems. Fast forward to now and it seems l...

DANCING AT LUGHNASA at SecondStory Repertory is a glimpse into the past and a way of life that has disappeared. It is not an idyllic revelry but rather an examination of a time when people who were caught between two wars struggled to find balance amidst many opposing forces. It is a show where the ...