Like the play it’s about, “Indecent” is a challenge to produce onstage. There are several difficult intimacy levels that require true professionalism, and sensitive subject matter including anti-Semitism and homophobia. But it lands well, under meticulous and caring direction, at JCC CenterStage.
Theater Review
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Theater review: ‘Mauritius’
A play about stamp collecting doesn’t seem particularly gripping, in theory. But when the story also includes a true crime feel and comes from the pen of playwright and proven mystery writer Theresa Rebeck, things get interesting.
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Theater review: ‘You Can’t Take It with You’
As a hobby and an amateur art form, community theater is vital. It’s where many famous performers first get a taste of the stage, after all. But when the mistakes in a show detract from enjoyment and overall content of the show, it’s time to rethink strategy.
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Theater review: ‘The Humans’
The issues raised in “The Humans” are reminiscent of conversations every family has at some point — financial, age, health, careers — and director Mark Cuddy guides the ensemble’s chemistry in such an authentic way that it’s easy to forget there isn’t a real family onstage.
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Rochesterians get jazzed at ‘Chicago’
For those who want a fun and even silly experience, the show’s Lucille Ball-esque slapstick humor and vampy tunes hit the right note.
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Theater review: ‘Ordinary Days’
Set in New York City and bursting with song, “Ordinary Days” follows four intertwining storylines, unveiling the surprising ways that a few lives can overlap in a city of more than eight million people.
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Theater review: ‘The Magician’s Daughter’
Geva presents the world premiere of Lila Rose Kaplan’s semi-autobiographical play about a daughter’s relationship with her high-functioning addict father.
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Theater review: ‘Peter Pan’
With an ensemble of more than 40 (including many elementary and middle school-age children) and a jovial, gender-neutral Peter Pan, Robert Wesleyan College Community Theatre’s production of J. M. Barrie’s classic story is a celebration of youth, joy, and freedom.
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Theater review: ‘The Last Night of Ballyhoo’
While holiday classics have their place, it’s refreshing to see a new option on the season once in a while. “The Last Night of Ballyhoo” doesn’t contain a single Christmas carol or Santa sighting, but it’s an insightful look at the prejudices a community can hold against even its own members.
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Theater review: ‘The Legend of Georgia McBride’
Theatrical productions aren’t generally written about Florida. The Sunshine State, with its gators and gulf coast, doesn’t set the stage for a production in quite the same way a cosmopolitan city or the Midwest does. But for Matthew Lopez’s 2015 play “The Legend of Georgia McBride,” a small town Florida setting somehow works perfectly.
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Theater review: ‘Les Misérables’
Fresh off a two-and-a-half year Broadway revival, RBTL’s current season special, the national tour of “Les Misérables,” features an inimitable cast. Every lead performer is precise, nailing the well-known characters they are portraying.
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New play ‘Bravura’ spotlights Hochstein, the man
The play tells the story of the gifted violinist who was tragically killed during World War I at the age of 26, and whose name is now synonymous with meaningful music education in Rochester.
