Rarely Theatre’s cast for its second outing is a who’s who assembled from a variety of other companies. Theatergoers will recognize the names behind the scintillating production of Theresa Rebeck’s Seminar — an evening of theater that is both thought-provoking and wildly entertaining in a voyeuristic and slightly sadistic way. Director Scott Keel’s talented group […]
The musical A Chorus Line ran on Broadway from 1975 to 1990 and won practically every award that existed for theater during its run. Asheville Community Theatre’s production is presented by Aloft, and runs through Sunday, March 1. It’s directed by Chanda Calentine with musical direction by Gary Mitchell and choreography by Tina Pisano-Foor. Mother-daughter […]
From the side-splittingly funny, fanny-exposing opening to the tear-jerking conclusion, NC Stage Company‘s production of Sharr White’s Annapurna is a tour de force on every level. Charlie Flyn-McIver’s direction is spot on, and the play is set within the tiny, messy slum of a single-wide trailer. That set, by scenic designer Julie K. Ross and […]
The eclectic double-bill embraced the raw and slightly rough-around-the-edges aspects that make Fringe such a visceral delight to watch.
When it comes to guaranteed laughs, the comedy team of Charlie Flynn-McIver and Scott Treadway has become something of the Hope and Crosby, or perhaps the Bill Murray and Harold Ramis of Western North Carolina. Nowhere is this more evident than in Don’t Dress For Dinner, currently onstage at NC Stage Company. One of the […]
Asheville is filled with great theater. So much so, that it is somewhat surprising when something exceeds expectations. Different Strokes Performing Arts Collective‘s new production of the Geoffrey Naufft’s play Next Fall does just that. The show is funny, tragic and will cause viewers to challenge many preconceived notions about religion, homosexuality, family and death. […]
Knights of Allentown have chosen one of the most revered plays of the 20th century, if not of all of theater, in the company’s current production of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting For Godot. The meaning of the 1953 absurdist play has been something of constant speculation since the play was first performed. The production opens with […]
The collaboration between Montford Park Players and the Warren Wilson College theater department of Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale is part Shakespeare and part wild Gypsy bazaar. It’s also all fun and totally enthralling, making this the second successful team up Montford has done in the past few months (after teaming up with The Magnetic Theatre […]
It’s hard to say if the Addams Family (the cartoon, the TV show, the movie) translates successfully to the musical format. The answer is is subjective and depends upon the viewer’s feelings about music theater and/or Addams-brand noir-schtick. There’s something jarring around the gloriously macabre Addamses cavorting and bursting into song. On the other hand, […]
After seeing the show Impossibilities: An Intimate Evening of Magic, Mind Reading and Mayhem, I am firmly convinced that Asheville’s arts scene is missing exactly this type of show. A big tip of the magician’s hat to NC Stage Co. for bringing this dynamic duo and their warm, friendly and all around dazzling show to […]
Water shutoffs in Detroit, the recent takeover attempt of Asheville’s water system by the State of North Carolina: Haywood Arts Regional Theatre’s staging of the oddball musical smash Urinetown is timely. The show is all about people living under a public utilities nightmare scenario where water is restricted to levels of personal discomfort and hygiene. […]
When bringing a beloved stage production like Little Shop Or Horrors (based on a B-movie from Roger Corman) to life, you have to have a good balance of humor, thrills and chills. You also need more than a little creative pizzazz to make it work without coming across as cheap or amateurish. As the underdog […]
Internal racism in the African-American community is not something that very many people would be comfortable talking about, much less seeing unfold on stage in front of them. Yet the new production by the unflinchingly brave Different Strokes Performing Arts Collective delivers as many laughs as it does thought-provoking moments. Sisters, by Marsha Jackson, isn’t […]
The inventive new Anam Cara Theatre production of the bloodiest of all of Shakespeare’s plays, Titus Andronicus, owes more than a slight nod to HBO’s Game of Thrones, and may hold the secrets to that show’s origins. Indeed, I spent a good part of the evening wondering if, perhaps, George R. R. Martin saw a […]
The group behind Teatro del Gusto calls the cabaret circus a “feast for the senses.” The new series, which premiered at The Orange Peel on July 13, included vaudeville, burlesque, and classic circus entertainment. Local rockers Red Honey opened the show with a set of half a dozen tunes — some original and some covers. […]
Sharyn McCrumb’s best-selling novel, Ghost Riders, comes to life (and after-life) onstage at Parkway Playhouse in Burnsville as its summer season moves into high gear. The tale, the characters and the mood of the play creep like an eerie fog moving along the ridgelines of the Appalachian Mountains.
Theater review by Jeff Douglas Messer If you like Monty Python, if you like tongue-in-cheek musical theater, and you like to laugh, Asheville Community Theatre has the show for you. And, it is likely to become the big-hit stage production of the summer. From a pure entertainment standpoint, this has everything you could ask for, […]
Remember Neil Sedaka? Remember when the Catskills was a legendary place of song and comedy? Chances are, if you do, you’ll be right at home with Haywood Arts Regional Theatre’s new production of the toe-tapping, tuneful jukebox musical, Breaking Up is Hard to Do, featuring the music of Sedaka. Jukebox musicals are gaining in popularity: […]
The Golden Age of Hollywood is alive and well at North Carolina Stage Company. All the glamor and some bits of the juicy gossip come to life in an intimate and fun evening, all wrapped in the special event: A Conversation with Edith Head starring Susan Claassen, artistic director of Tuscon, Arizona’s Invisible Theatre. The […]
In a brave new production of Diana Son’s play Stop Kiss, the audience is confronted with the uncomfortable reminder of how recently we, as a society, were far less accepting of same-sex relationships. And, while not as shocking as it may have been a decade ago, Stop Kiss still has major impact. Not so much […]
