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Showing posts from 2015

Top 2015 Shows and 2016 Events

I’m so grateful for the diverse theatres throughout Indianapolis. Whether its classic musicals or cutting edge productions from off Broadway, each one offers something unique. Here are my favorite shows from 2015. Make sure you keep an eye on these theatres in 2015!   Also, there are a few great events coming up in 2016 to watch for. Sitelines is a new venture. It will feature plays that have never been performed in Indy in spaces that enhance the production. HART will present The Winter's Tale in White River State Park July 21, 22, and 23, 2016. The Indianapolis Fringe Festival takes place every August. Going...Going...Gone is a monthly improv show based around an auction. 1) Cabaret Poe (Q Artistry) at the Theatre on the Square 2) The Hound of the Baskervilles at the Indiana Repertory Theatre 3) Pride and Prejudice at the American Players Theatre 4) Spamalot at the Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre  5) The Drowsy Chaperone at Beef & Board Di

A Very Phoenix Xmas X: O Come, Let Us Adore Us

A Very Phoenix Xmas celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. The irreverent Christmas show has become an audience favorite as a nontraditional entertainment option during the holiday season.   Anyone familiar with the show knows not to expect sugar and spice, but there are moments of quiet reflection worked into the production that hit all the right notes. In honor of reaching the decade milestone, the show features longtime Phoenix regular Gayle Steigerwald in a unique role. Between skits she provides some behind-the-scenes tidbits and fun looks back at how the show has evolved over the years. The walk down memory lane is equally entertaining for those who have been at every show and for those attending for the first time. For those unfamiliar with the structure, imagine a theatre version of a Saturday Night Live Christmas special. Each section features a new story, song, dance, or funny skit. Regulars will recognize the sock monkeys dancing the can-can and the

April 4, 1968: Before We Forgot How to Dream

On the night of April 4, 1968 Bobby Kennedy was scheduled to give a campaign speech in Indianapolis. Instead, he announced the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. to a stunned crowd. In this world premier play by James Still the audience sees the events of that night unfold through the eyes of one small family.   At the heart of the play is a married couple, John Henry and Addie, transplants from Kentucky, raising their two kids who are Hoosiers by birth. I loved their interactions. From the first moment they made you feel as though they were a family you knew, bickering and teasing in equal measures. Tracy N. Bonner's performance as Addie was particularly moving. She has a complexity, as a mother, wife, neighbor, and a woman, and she conveyed that beautifully. The generational difference of our characters is one of the most interesting parts of the play. This heartbreaking news, along with the impact of the Vietnam war and the racial struggles the country is facing all e

Titus Andronicus

Titus Andronicus is the Reservoir Dogs of Shakespeare. It’s the most violent of the Bard’s plays and a perfect fit for October. Director Thomas Cardwell has set the story of two warring clans in a post-apocalyptic world and the show sucks the audience in from the opening scene. The Indie Artist Colony provides a stark world in which EclecticPond can build its gritty new society. Everything from the costumes to the set design is intentionally rough, suggesting haphazardness to its creation. The costumes, an assorted mix of layered leather, fur, scarves, and vests enforces the scavenged look of a society that’s been put together in a piecemeal fashion.   The show hosts a large cast on the small stage and as the bodies start to pile up, the revenge plots grow darker. The play includes one of the most infamous dinner scenes in all of western literature.  Tamora is played by Kelly Gualdoni, in a wildly different role than the last time audiences saw her perform for EclecticPo