Stage Write

The Actors Theatre of Indiana has finally found a permanent home. Their latest production, Chicago, is on stage now at the Studio Theatre in the Carmel Center for the Performing Arts. The intimate setting is just right for the talented group and fans of their work will now know exactly where to find them. Chicago starts, and ends, with a bang. The sexy show is set in the 1920s when booze and jazz were “corrupting” the youth in the big cities. Roxie Hart, a young married woman, kills her lover and finds herself first in jail and then in the newspapers as she plots to get herself a verdict of not guilty and a big vaudeville show. Velma Kelly is another singing murderess with high hopes and rough ways. The two women look out for # 1, as does their lawyer, Billy Flynn. One of the best aspects of the show is the wonderful live band which provides the well-known jazz songs throughout the show. The choreography (by Michael Worcel) is also topnotch. There's not a dull moment as the tirel...

When I first heard Broadway Across America was bringing "The 101 Dalmatians Musical" to Clowes Memorial Hall I was so curious to see how they would portray a cast that mainly consists of animals. Other musicals, like "The Lion King," have done it successfully, but it's not easy. 101 Dalmatians takes on this tricky challenge by covering the canine cast in spotted costumes. The puppies are played by kids, the dogs are played by adults and the humans are all on concealed stilts, which allow them to tower above their pets. It was the perfect way to make the entire production from a dog's eye view. The sets are all wonderfully whimsical, with slanted furniture and London townhomes. The plot remains basically the same as the Disney movie of the same name, but doesn't contain any of the songs from the film. One surprising bit in the show is a delightful number of tricks performed by actual dalmatians. 101 Dalmatians is the perfect musical for little kids. Even ...

"Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" is one of the rare musicals that was made into a movie long before it ever reached the stage. It was released in theaters in 1954 and become a stage musical in 1985. It is on stage now at Beef & Boards Dinner Theatre for the first time in almost a decade. Seven brothers live alone up in the mountains. Their house is full of men and in desperate need of a female hand. The eldest brother, Adam, goes into town and returns with a wife, Milly. Soon all of the brothers want their own wives. Inspired by an old Roman tale, the brothers decide to steal their wives from the local town. The show's lead couple, Tony Lawson, who plays Adam, and his wife Milly, played by Krista Severeid, are a couple in real life and will marry two weeks after the show closes. Their chemistry is clear on stage and whether fighting or courting, they are delightful to watch together. The camaraderie between the seven brothers works well. Fun dance sequences and a con...

When a community theater decides to produce a big, well-known musical, there is always a risk that its production will unwittingly beg comparisons with other versions of the same show audience members have seen in the past. It's next to impossible not to picture the other dance sequences or compare the actors' voices in your mind. The Indianapolis Civic Theatre's current production of "West Side Story" does just that. It's a fun show in its own right, but it's definitely not a big budget production. Half of the men in the Sharks gang were caucasian. The Sharks' tense relationship with the rival gang, the Jets, is based on the fact that it is made up of Puerto Ricans who recently immigrated to America. Inconsistencies like that can be distracting. The best part of attending shows at a theater made up of avocational actors is seeing a break out star. The musical's Maria, played by Angela Nichols Manlove, is the perfect example. Her obvious talent ris...