Stage Write

One man, three fiancés, one Paris apartment; what could possibly go wrong? The Indiana Repertory Theatre presents Boeing Boeing, a farce set in the 1960s and complete with all the hallmarks of the genre. The three women are all flight attendants from different countries.  Bernard (Matt Schwader) is a charming man whose selfish view of the world leads him to believe that dating three women, who all think they're the only one, is the perfectly acceptable. When his old friend Robert arrives from Wisconsin the show really gets moving. Robert (Chris Klopatek) is bumbling and sweet and completely overwhelmed by this unusual situation. His naïveté pairs well with Schwader's worldly confidence. The essential element of any farce set is plenty of doors! The trendy '60s set, complete with period furniture and art, certainly covers that criteria. With seven doorways, the characters have plenty of options for dramatic entrances and exits. A porthole window and balcony add ev...

The Indiana Repertory Theatre opens its 44 th season with an American classic. The Great Gatsby is F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous portrait of the dark side of the American dream. His novel captures the futility of spending your life longing to capture an illusion. In Simon Levy’s adaptation the play brings that heartache to life in all its glittering intensity. We see the story unfold through the youthful eyes of Nick Caraway (Zach Kenney). In the midst of the jazz era he moves to New York City and connects with his cousin and the wealthy elite in her crowd. He’s in awe of his new friends, but also troubled by the strange lack of morality they all seem to embrace. Hillary Clemens portrayal of Daisy Buchanan brought something to the role that I’d missed in other film portrayals. For me, her struggle had more depth and felt more real. She’s a character that’s often depicted as shallow and selfish with little else to offer, but Clemens instills her with a relatable disillusionment....

Hamlet This season the American Players Theatre is tackling one of Shakespeare’s most revered tragedies, Hamlet. This production includes the full text and clocks in at three and a half hours with one 20 minute intermission. And they’ve made every single minute count! The show stars Matt Schwader as the tortured prince. He nails Hamlet’s infamous rise and fall of emotions and his delicate balance of sanity. He also manages to infuse just the right amount of humor and snark into Shakespeare’s lines. He is broken and grieving and yet he embraces his role of feigned madness to achieve his goal. It’s a powerful performance. The intense drama deals with the issue of grief and love in equal parts. Hamlet is reeling from the death of his father when he finds out that his mother has married her former brother-in-law. Their marriage comes so quickly on the heels of the death that Hamlet resents both of them. Soon he learns his father was actually murdered by the usurping king, his...