Our St. Louis Critics
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BWW Reviews: OUR TOWN at Stray Dog
Thornton Wilder's venerable American classic OUR TOWN is an interesting character study, focusing its attention on a small New England town and the changes that occur to various characters as time passes. This was an era when entire families put down roots and never gave a thought to moving, with ch...
BWW Reviews; The Black Rep Brings Their Season to a Close with Lively Production of THE ME NOBODY KNOWS
THE ME NOBODY KNOWS is a musical plea for understanding by a group of underprivileged children that's set in one of the poorer neighborhoods of New York City. It's an indictment of our current social and economic conditions that this show, written in 1970, explores themes and issues that still reson...
BWW Reviews: Opera Theatre of St. Louis Continues Season with Strong Production of EUGENE ONEGIN
While Alexander Pushkin's original verse novel, EUGENE ONEGIN, had its protagonist at the center of attention, composer Peter Illyich Tchaikovsky and writer Konstantin Shilovsky's operatic adaptation (with an English translation by David Lloyd-Jones) instead focuses on Tatiana, the woman whose heart...
BWW Reviews: The Midnight Company's Intriguing Production of AN APOLOGY...
The classic German legend of Faust gets an interesting re-imagining with playwright Mickle Maher's An Apology for the Course and Outcome of Certain Events Delivered by Doctor John Faustus on This His Final Evening. This is an hour spent in the company of a very regretful Doctor John Faustus, along w...
BWW Reviews: JEWEL Delivers Gem of a Performance at the Sheldon Concert Hall 6/6
The first thing that strikes you about Jewel as a performer is her incredible vocal range, and she began her performance at the Sheldon Concert Hall (June 6, 2010) with a sweetly rendered solo version of 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow'(also covered on her 2009 album 'Lullaby'), that acted as a sort of ...
BWW Reviews: Circus Flora's Daring and Dazzling INGENIOSO Plays Through 6/27
Last year was the first time I'd taken my son to see Circus Flora, and even though he was excited to go again, he's at the stage where he's a wee bit afraid of the dark. So, when the lights went down at the beginning of this year's show, INGENIOSO, he freaked out a little. But, the charm of the perf...
BWW Reviews: Lyceum Theatre Opens 50th Season with Funny and Frenetic Production of THE PRODUCERS Through 6/12
Mel Brooks is an equal opportunity offender, and I think that's one of the reasons he's able to get away with so much. When it was in the planning stages, it seemed highly improbable that he could turn his 1968 feature THE PRODUCERS into a Broadway musical, much less a runaway hit. But, he and write...
BWW Reviews: New Jewish Theatre Closes Season with Outstanding Production of LAUGHTER ON THE 23RD FLOOR
Sometimes when I'm seeing a show about a particular subject I'll look through my library and re-read (or newly purchase) books that pertain to it. When I noticed that the New Jewish Theatre's production of Neil Simon's Laughter on the 23rd Floor was on the schedule, I decided to bone up. So, I picke...
BWW Reviews: Stages St.Louis Does Terrific Work with Their Production of BIG RIVER 5/28-6/27
The was my first time seeing BIG RIVER, and I must confess to some misgivings I harbored concerning William Hauptman's adaptation of Mark Twain's classic tale, 'The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.' The original is a work of great American literature, filled with dialogue that's now considered contro...
BWW Reviews: Shakespeare Festival St. Louis Presents Exceptional Production of HAMLET
When the weather cooperates as sweetly it did on opening night (May 28, 2010), there's nothing that can compare to the experience of sitting under the stars in Forest Park and watching an ensemble of top notch performers and technicians take on the task of staging one of William Shakespeare's classi...
BWW Reviews: Opera Theatre of St. Louis Open Season with THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO
If I was going to introduce someone to the world of opera, I might have them take in a performance of THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO, because it's a tuneful show filled with farcical plot machinations that are both amusing and satisfying in the manner in which they unfold. There's a reason why Mozart's work...
BWW Reviews: HotCity Theatre's Taut Production of THE SINKER
I love seeing a brand new play, because I can go in with no preconceived notions, and experience something for the very first time. HotCity Theatre's Greenhouse festival has produced another winner in playwright Jami Brandli's fascinating and edgy new work, THE SINKER. This is a tautly mounted produ...
BWW Reviews: Soundstage Productions' Nostalgic Presentation of THE SOUNDSTAGE RADIO HOUR
I've professed my fondness for old time radio before, so it should come as no surprise that I decided to take in the Soundstage Productions' presentation of The SOUNDSTAGE RADIO HOUR, which pairs an episode of the popular long time comedy series 'My Friend Irma' (which later graduated to both televi...
BWW Reviews: YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN Plays the Fox Theatre Through 5/23
I grew up looking forward to Friday nights, because that's when channel 30 would broadcast 'Chiller Theater', providing a burgeoning horror fan like myself with the chance to view all the creepy classics that sprang from the loins of Universal Studios during the 1930's and 40's. I was eleven years o...
BWW Reviews: CORBiAN Visual Arts and Dance Production of DARWIN at Wash U.
CORBiAN Visual Arts and Dance is a unique group of individuals, led by artistic directors Ian Carney and Corbin Popp, who are committed to bringing startling and engaging imagery to the stage. By utilizing illuminated wiring, puppetry, and a troupe well versed in dance and movement, they're able to ...
BWW Reviews: The Black Rep Presents Intriguing and Engaging Production of ART Through 5/23
The saying goes that 'one man's trash is another man's treasure', and that old adage is brought into sharp focus by Yasmina Reza's provocative script for her play ART. But, the play also examines relationships, and how tenuous they can become when fundamental disagreements occur between friends. Rez...
BWW Reviews: Magic Smoking Monkey Theatre's Funny Production of THE ONE-HOUR STAR WARS TRILOGY:LIVE!
I was thirteen when Star Wars came out in May of 1977, and it made quite an impression on this particular teenage boy. I was a little older when The Empire Strikes Back came out, and even more so by the time Return of the Jedi premiered, but they were enjoyable romps as well, although I personally c...
BWW Reviews: Hilarious Production of AVENUE Q at the Fox Theatre through 5/2
I was just a wee bit too old to have watched Sesame Street when it premiered on public television during the late 1960's, although I was certainly aware of its impact. But, it wasn't until my son was born a few years back that I was
fully exposed to its sunny charms. Which is probably why AVENUE Q,...
BWW Reviews: Stray Dog Theatre Presents Funny and Touching SHIRLEY VALENTINE Through 5/14
Performing a one person show would seem to be a rather daunting task to me. After all, if you blank out or skip a part, there's no one around to guide you back to your place. That's what makes Teresa Doggett's work as SHIRLEY VALENTINE in Stray Dog Theatre's Studio Workshop Production so amazing. Wi...
BWW Reviews: New Line's WILD PARTY is Wildly Entertaining
Andrew Lippa's musical adaptation of Joseph Moncure March's epic poem, THE WILD PARTY, is a brilliant work, especially if you're anything like me, and you like your entertainment on the dark side. It's a decadent jewel gleaming with sinister possibilities, and thus, far removed from the current tren...
BWW Reviews: Mustard Seed Theatre's Production of TARTUFFE is Delightful and Hilarious
Some people cannot be convinced of something unless they see it with their own two eyes, and even then they can be skeptical. This is a problem that Orgon, a character from Moliere's classic comedy TARTUFFE faces. Everyone around him, except his Mother, seems to understand that the man that Orgon ha...
BWW Reviews: Mark Knopfler Impresses at the Fox Theatre
It's been a long time since Mark Knopfler graced St. Louis with his presence and the wait was certainly worth it for those lucky enough to capture his performance at the Fox Theatre (April 22, 2010) this past Thursday. Flanked by a large band consistenting of any number of multi-instrumentalists, Kn...
BWW Reviews: Ben Nordstrom and Katy Tibbets Shine in 'Broadway Romance'
With late morning sunshine streaming through the gorgeously colorful plate glass windows of the Sheldon Concert hall, accomplished singers/actors Ben Nordstrom and Katy Tibbets, along with pianist extraordinaire Neal Richardson, took to the stage to present a wonderful hour of 'Broadway Romance' for...
BWW Reviews: St. Louis Actors' Studio Presents A DOLL'S HOUSE
Though elements of its plot has been pilfered by countless writers and filmmakers over the years, Henrik Ibsen's classic, A DOLL'S HOUSE, still manages to pack a punch today. The tale of a woman in a seemingly idyllic marriage who suddenly finds herself being extorted because of a risky decision she...
BWW Reviews: New Jewish Theatre Presents ROMEO AND JULIET
If you've read my reviews for the last few years then you know that I really enjoy a good re-imagining of a classic. I like experimentation in theatre, and it's always a thrill to see new life pumped into a time-worn favorite. There are certainly a lot of interesting ideas at work in writer/director...
Videos
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God of Carnage New Jewish Theatre (NJT) (6/11-6/28) |
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The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Stages St. Louis at the Kirkwood Performing Arts Center (5/29-6/28) |
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The Light in the Piazza Loretto-Hilton Center (5/30-6/28) |
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The Wasp by Morgan Lloyd Malcom Albion Theatre (6/12-6/28) |
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Kauffman Stadium Kauffman Stadium (7/15-7/15) |
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16th Annual Missouri Chamber Music Festival June 10-21 at The Sheldon Sheldon Concert Hall (6/15-6/15) |
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Guns N’ Roses at Busch Stadium Busch Stadium (8/16-8/16) |
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2026 WSIE Music Series w/Yacht Rockers – June 27, 7-9pm Harold Square Outdoor Amphitheater (6/27-6/27) |
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Miles at 100: A Centennial Celebration Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center (6/27-6/27) |
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Ludo The Pageant (10/24-10/24) |
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