Review: FAT HAM at Orlando Shakes
by Benoit Teves - Mar 10, 2026
Orlando Shakes’ production of FAT HAM is a sensory-rich, unapologetically Black, and proudly queer reimagining of Hamlet that trades Shakespearean tragedy for hard-won joy. Set against a stunningly detailed backyard cookout, Je’Shaun Jackson’s stylized performance as Juicy anchors a vivid ensemble that navigates familial duty and identity with breakneck pace and ear-watering humor. Ultimately, this breath of fresh ai' production asks the vital modern question: to be what others expect, or to be unapologetically yourself?
Review: BIRTHDAY CANDLES Crystallizes Moments at City Theatre
by Greg Kerestan - Mar 20, 2025
The first thing I noticed in the theatre at City Theatre's Birthday Candles was the set. I'm a longtime lover of thrift shops, junk shops and the maximalist 'detail everywhere' aesthetic of the Disney Imagineers. My companion for the night and I spent the preshow prying the set apart with our eyes (does that E mean anything? is that a flute or a clarinet in the box up there? hey, what's that in the corner there that I can't quite make out?), unaware that nearly every item in that montage would soon have a deeper meaning.
Review: H.M.S. PINAFORE at Winter Opera
by Steve Callahan - Nov 8, 2024
It's a splendid production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s 'H.M.S. Pinafore', and it brims with glorious music, wonderful voices, and bright, delightful, timeless comedy.
Interview: SPENCER PLACHY of DRACULA at CLASSICAL THEATRE COMPANY
by Brett Cullum - Oct 17, 2024
I've tried to draw as much from the novel as I possibly could. I have seen a handful of film depictions. There's one thing in the novel that Van Helsing mentions about how Dracula has what Van Helsing calls a child's brain. That being undead, you are reborn at that moment, and much of your experience of the world around you starts over.