To paraphrase that renowned philosopher Monty Python, “And now for something completely silly.” To open its 2019-20 season, the Maltz Jupiter Theatre has commissioned a new spoofy take on Bram Stoker’s classic vampire tale, Dracula. Or more accurately, on the general idea of Dracula, since co-adaptors Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen gleefully concede that they never read … [Read more...]
Slow Burn’s production turns so-so ‘Shrek’ into a winner
How can you tell that the pot-bellied, antenna-eared green ogre named Shrek and assertive, yet incurably romantic Princess Fiona are meant for each other? They fart and burp with compatible pride. In the shorthand of musical comedy – well, in Shrek, the Musical at least – that means love. Chances are you know that already from the 2001 Oscar-winning Dreamworks … [Read more...]
Is world ready for a ‘Dracula’ farce? Maltz, writers think so
Don’t feel bad if you have not read Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Neither had Gordon Greenberg, who co-wrote and directs the new comic version of the classic vampire tale in a world premiere at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre, opening tonight. “And guess what? I still haven’t,” he concedes shamelessly. “Wikipedia is great,” Greenberg adds, referring to the online compendium from which he … [Read more...]
First-rate performances carry Dramaworks’ stirring ‘Streetcar’
One could argue whether A Streetcar Named Desire is Tennessee Williams’ finest play. After all, there are so many of them to choose among. But there is no denying that fragile Southern belle Blanche DuBois and her brutish brother-in-law Stanley Kowalski are two of his greatest characters. The evidence is very much on view now at Palm Beach Dramaworks, where the lyrical … [Read more...]
Wick’s ‘Shuffle’ takes too long to get hot
For those with a low tolerance for delayed gratification, be forewarned. Hot Shoe Shuffle, the tap dance musical from Australia now being revived by Boca Raton’s Wick Theatre, does eventually heat up, but it takes until the second act for its temperature to rise. That slow combustion is really built into the show’s storyline. You see, it concerns the seven performing … [Read more...]
‘Hot Shoe Shuffle’ promises tap razzle-dazzle at The Wick
A tap-happy musical romp, Hot Shoe Shuffle, was a big hit in its native Australia in the early ’90s, and then went on to similar acclaim in London’s West End. Although next aimed for Broadway, the show never made it to New York, but decades later the revived show arrives this weekend at the Wick Theatre in Boca Raton. Managing executive producer Marilynn Wick went … [Read more...]
Community theater: Delray Playhouse’s ‘Calendar Girls’ uncovers a heart of sweetness
By Dale King Here’s the skinny on Calendar Girls, the sexy, comic stage production with a tender and heartwarming backstory that opens the 2019-2020 season at Delray Beach Playhouse. The more mature may think the show has something to do with singer Neil Sedaka, who had a hit song of a similar name around 1959. No, in truth, Calendar Girls is based on actual events that … [Read more...]
Actors ready to ride Williams’ iconic ‘Streetcar’ for Dramaworks
Of the many plays by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Thomas Lanier “Tennessee” Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire is considered his most popular work and, arguably, his best. “I think it’s one of the most brilliantly constructed plays I’ve ever been able to work on,” says Kathy McCafferty, who will be playing Southern belle Blanche DuBois at Palm Beach Dramaworks, … [Read more...]
Season Preview 2019-20: ‘Hamilton’ might be hottest ticket, but area theaters have plenty of worthy shows planned
There are plenty of interesting productions looming in the area this season, but the hottest ticket is unquestionably Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, at the Kravis Center in late January and then the Arsht Center the following month. Do what you have to to get tickets. You didn’t need that right arm anyway. A year ago, the Stage Door Theatre was readying a move to a larger, … [Read more...]
MNM’s ‘Man of La Mancha’ true to the mad knight’s idealism
Although based on a novel written in 1605, a musical drama about a fervent idealist facing a stubbornly vindictive government can seem surprisingly timely today. The musical in question is Man of La Mancha, based on Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote, which opened on Broadway in 1965, an era of Vietnam War protests. But such are the show’s sweeping themes of compassion, good … [Read more...]