Stage Write

The American Player Theatre is just a quick drive north to Wisconsin. They produce a wide range of shows each summer in both their large outdoor theatre and smaller indoor location. It is always worth the drive and now in its 44 th season, there are still months left of productions available. Our Town It’s hard to explain the power of Our Town. It’s a quiet play about everyday life. It’s set in the town of Grover’s Corners, NH in the early 20th century. The cast of townspeople invites us to imagine with them as they go about their daily routines without much fuss. Truly, it sounds boring if you look at that summary. But what words can’t capture is the sweet moments between a husband and wife as they contemplate their child’s impending marriage or the zing of connection when two young teens first fall in love. Samantha Newcomb  plays Emily Webb a sharp and ambitious girl growing up in the town. Her story is at the heart of the play and it’s her brilliant, but simple observations t...

  I've always been fascinated by the world of restaurant kitchens. The Phoenix Theatre's latest show, How to Use a Knife, takes you behind the scenes and into that frantic world. During open hours things move fast for the chef and his crew. After the restaurant is closed we're able to learn a bit more about the broken man running his employees so hard. Chef George, played by Ryan Artzberger, is an addict who has fallen from his former glory. The performance reminded me a bit of Artzberger's turn as the cynic Simon Stimson in Our Town at the Indiana Repertory Theatre. The character has the same tone of disillusion and disgust. Ansley Valentine plays Steve, a quiet dishwasher with a mysterious past. He is a tireless workers who isn't interested in small talk.   Bryan Fonseca's direction keeps the show moving at a clipped pace, keeping the audience fully engaged. The casual banter between coworkers feels natural and the set itself feels like...

From the opening strands of music to the lilting melody that plays as the actors take their final bows 'Our Town' is a beautiful piece of theatrical work. The show is on stage now at the Indiana Repertory Theatre. Playwright Thornton Wilder wrote this Pulitzer Prize winning piece of work in the '30s, but its message still rings true decades later. The story is timeless and touches on points that every person on earth can relate to. Set in the small town of Grover's Corners, N.H. the play unfolds in three acts. First there is the daily life of a small town, then there is love and marriage and lastly there is what waits for us all in the final act, death. The production is staged as a play within a play. The stage is simple with few set pieces and even fewer props. Audience members are left to use their imaginations and rely on the outstanding acting the cast provides. Rarely does an evening at the theatre so completely satisfy. The show is about the simple joys of life, ...