Annual holiday shows are a tradition in Kansas City, but only this year did I make it to “It’s a Wonderful Life,” now in its third season at the Metropolitan
MTH Theater at Crown Center offers up lively entertainment packaged around a history lesson in a spirited, scaled-down production of “Show Boat,” the 1927 classic by Jerome Kern and Oscar
Strong performances elevate the Spinning Tree production of “The Nance,” Douglas Carter Beane’s 2013 comic drama that offers a sobering look at what it meant to be a gay man
The late plays of Eugene O’Neill are his best, even when they seem erratic and forced. But their theatrical power — their ability to sweep an audience up in the lives of the people on stage — are undeniable. That’s the case with “A Moon for the Misbegotten,” now receiving a handsome, well-acted production from […]
I confess that reviewing plays and musicals for decades can leave one feeling a bit jaded. But now and then even a critic who thinks he’s seen it all can stumble into a show that utterly restores his faith in theater. And so it is with “Newsies,” the ebullient co-production marking the first collaboration between […]
The Living Room Theatre not so long ago recalibrated its mission: It would now be a company dedicated exclusively to producing work by playwrights currently or previously based in Kansas City. So I’m happy to report that director Rusty Sneary, co-founder of the Living Room, delivers a crisply performed production of Forrest Attaway’s “The Grave,” […]
Where’s the heat? That question began resounding in my head as I watched the world-premiere production of Nathan Louis Jackson’s “Brother Toad,” the most recent work from Kansas City Repertory Theatre’s resident playwright. Presented as part of the Rep’s annual New Works Festival, this production marks the fourth Jackson play seen by Rep audiences. The […]
I’ve always been a sucker for audacity and Qui Nguyen’s “Vietgone” is nothing if not audacious. This raucous, time-jumping saga about the legacy of the Vietnam War is an in-your-face mashup. Part love story, part sex comedy, part hip-hop musical, “Vietgone” is also a compelling history play. The through-line is how Nguyen’s own parents met […]
Hitler makes his case. Or doesn’t. In “Adolf,” Pip Utton’s solo performance about the reality and legacy of the modern world’s most murderous dictator, the British actor/playwright weaves a compelling portrait of the malignant narcissist who plunged the world into World War II and methodically killed millions in concentration camps. This performance represents the best […]
