The existence of MuCCC, a church-turned-arts venue, enables many small performance groups with a script and a dream to produce theatrical works. And while it’s important to support and encourage this kind of community theater, it’s equally as important for the troupes to reward audience members with a quality night out — especially if there’s […]
Theater
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JCC CenterStage announces 2017-18 season
In what has now become an annual tradition, JCC CenterStage Artistic Director Ralph Meranto held a “virtual press conference” via YouTube yesterday to announce the organization’s 2017-18 season. From his seat in front of the camera in the pristine Lipson Lounge — part of the $17 million, 26,000-square-foot renovations the JCC unveiled last fall — […]
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Theater review: ‘Sister Act’ at RAPA
By now, “Sister Act” is a story firmly etched into the cultural consciousness. A lounge singer aspiring to stardom finds herself in mortal danger when she accidentally witnesses her shady boyfriend murder someone; suddenly part of a witness protection program, she takes cover in a local convent, and light-hearted, slightly sacrilegious fun ensues. It is […]
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Theater review: ‘The Flick’ at JCC CenterStage
“The Flick” is a show for anyone who’s worked a job where their world has grown (perhaps
too) small; for anyone who’s been radically underpaid or thrown together with a motley crew of coworkers
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Theater review: Geva’s ‘Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner’
When “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” debuted 50 years ago, it was the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Interracial marriage was still illegal in 16 states, and the subject made a lot of people uncomfortable. Like a true artist, filmmaker Stanley Kramer saw a chance to begin a conversation, so he assembled an all-star […]
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Theater review: Screen Plays’ ‘The Cat’s Meow’
Hollywood has plenty of glittering folklore and tabloid-worthy stories that provide a brief glimpse into the dramatic past of the elite. Few, though, maintain the mystery of one particular November weekend in 1924. Through February 26, Screenplays — a community theater company that specializes in producing the Golden Age of Hollywood onstage — presents a […]
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Theater review: ‘The Underpants’ at Blackfriars
The topic of feminine undergarments has fascinated humans for centuries, dating back to a time when a pair of “underpants” contained more material than a pair of modern shorts. In many ways, the intimate garments represent vulnerability, gender roles — and an excellent opportunity for social commentary. That’s what German playwright Carl Sternheim believed, anyway, […]
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Theater review: “The Lake Effect” at Geva
Sometimes the person you need to meet is not the person you’d choose to encounter. That is, in essence, the premise of “The Lake Effect,” the 2013 play by Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph. A beautifully unfolding chamber drama, directed by Pirronne Yousefzadeh, “The Lake Effect” gives audiences an unflinching glimpse into a family fractured […]
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Eastman Opera undertakes two bold productions
When it comes to opera companies, you are what you perform. The works you produce tell the audience everything it needs to know about what you value in opera and where you see the art form heading. In that respect, Eastman Opera Theatre has made its focus clear with its recent programming: Francis Poulenc’s “Dialogues […]
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Theater review: “Sylvia” onstage at Geva
To herald in 2017, Geva Theatre Center is throwing its audiences a bone. “Sylvia,” which features a canine-centered storyline, opened on January 14; it’s the second comedy in Geva’s Wilson Stage season, following last fall’s season opener “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.” “Sylvia,” penned by Buffalo-born playwright A.R. Gurney, premiered […]
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Black Wall Street comes alive in new play
Following the Civil War, African-Americans began to establish all-black townships in the Indian and Oklahoma Territories. One of those townships was Greenwood — located north of the tracks in Tulsa. Created in 1906 by O.W. Gurley, one of Tulsa’s earliest pioneers, and other black entrepreneurs who invested in property, Greenwood over time became a self-sufficient […]
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WallByrd flies the coop
Virginia Monte and her theater company, WallByrd, have produced successful, unique interpretations of classic theater works. The group is now preparing for an exciting 2017
