What had you accomplished by the age of 12? Worked a paper route? Opened and run a lemonade stand? Ben Krieger of Palm Beach Gardens, 12, is already a veteran stage performer, having appeared in three national tours of Broadway shows. This Tuesday night, when he opens in Finding Neverland at the Broward Center, he will have notched some 250 performances in the past two … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: May 12-14
Music: Like her or hate her, writer Ayn Rand has had a large influence on a certain segment of American politics and culture. This Saturday, Rand’s most famous novelistic creation, John Galt, is the musical subject of a new piece for 10 pianos and two percussionists by the American composer Peter J. Learn. The piece was created at the behest of Circle founder Mia Vassilev, who … [Read more...]
Fierce reading of Rose drives strong ‘Gypsy’ at Maltz
As imported ringers go, Vicki Lewis continues to be a welcome visitor to the Maltz Jupiter Theatre. The 5-foot-1 “bundle of dynamite” – to borrow a phrase from her current triumph in Gypsy – has won over audiences here in such unlikely roles as the pushy title matchmaker in Hello, Dolly! and comic villainess Miss Hannigan in Annie. But neither performance quite prepared us … [Read more...]
For actress Lewis, it’s her turn to play Mama Rose
She has appeared on Broadway in revivals of Chicago and Damn Yankees, and can be heard in countless animated films from Finding Dory to TV’s Rugrats. But for audiences at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre, Vicki Lewis is the big-voiced, pint-sized actress who takes on such unlikely starring roles as matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi in Hello, Dolly! and crabby orphanage matron Miss … [Read more...]
Searing ‘Disgraced’ a triumph at the Maltz
Programming a not-for-profit regional theater is a balancing act between challenging material and work that is escapist entertainment, with many a company erring on the side of the latter. And yet last year – with the exception of plays by William Shakespeare – the most produced script in America was Ayad Akhtar’s Disgraced, his 2013 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama that holds a … [Read more...]
ArtsBuzz: Carbonell nominations, Oliveira contest, new PBG theater
The Maltz Jupiter Theatre again dominated the nominations for South Florida’s Carbonell Awards, recognizing excellence in resident professional theater, with 18 nods going to the company in northern Palm Beach County. Ten of those went to the Depression-era music hall show, Me and My Girl and another four went to the musical The Will Rogers Follies. The Maltz’s other four … [Read more...]
A fine bromance is at heart of ‘The Producers’
Among the many comic inspirations of Mel Brooks, one of the most enduring is the bromance between down-on-his luck theatrical producer Max Bialystock and his starstruck, gullible accountant Leo Bloom. Together, they hatch a scheme to find a surefire flop play, oversell stock in the production, then close the show quickly and pocket the excess investment money. First seen in … [Read more...]
Loehr astonishes in Maltz’s ‘Me and My Girl’
Regular Maltz Jupiter theatergoers will probably not be surprised to hear that Matt Loehr again gives an astonishing star turn in the Jupiter company’s production of 1937’s Me and My Girl. After all, by now they should be used to his stage antics, both comic and romantic. Whether the material is sturdy (Crazy for You, The Music Man) or weak (The Will Rogers Follies), the … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: Dec. 3-4
Theater: Frequent patrons of the Maltz Jupiter Theatre already know of the remarkable talents of Matt Loehr (three-time Carbonell Award winner for Crazy for You, The Music Man and Hello, Dolly!), but this physically comic song-and-dance man has never been better showcased than in Me and My Girl, the Maltz’s latest production knockout. This British musical from 1937 follows the … [Read more...]
Arts buzz: Carols in Delray, Maltz’s big plans
DELRAY BEACH — A holiday music tradition that began in Australia makes its debut Saturday in Old School Square when three major pop performers of the 1970s and 1980s will headline an outdoor concert. The Little River Band (Cool Change, Reminiscing), Stephen Bishop (On and On) and Kim Carnes (Bette Davis Eyes) will perform songs of the season as well as other hits in the … [Read more...]