Michelle Petrucci

Last week, Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach, FL welcomed Legally Blonde's Original Producer Hal Luftig to the school for a day of master classes with DSOA theatre students and a performance of DSOA's production of Legally Blonde. Luftig, winner of four Tony Awards and Producer of such Broadway hits as Kinky Boots, Evita, Legally Blonde, Movin' Out and Thoroughly Modern Millie, enlightened the young actors about the theatre business and will hopefully return in the future!

LEGALLY BLONDE at Dreyfoos School of the Arts Opens February 27!

While some musical theatre Grinches may hold fast to the stage rule 'never work with children or animals,' most producers of 'Annie' know why the opposite is true. Leading into the holiday season, there may be no better reminder of love and family than a little girl's bravery to strike out into the nasty world of Depression-era Manhattan alone in search of just that. The level of optimism written into the tried and true legit score is unparalleled and, when performed with honesty and integrity by the Maltz Jupiter Theatre's cast, audiences find themselves rooting not only for the child but also for the generosity of a community.

Getting into the spirit of Halloween, the Maltz Jupiter Theatre opened its 2013-2014 season with Frederick Knott's tale of intrigue Dial M for Murder. Unlike the classic whodunit mystery, however, the play revolves not on solving the crime but on watching the main character squirm as he tries to get away with murder.

Slow Burn Theatre Company of West Boca is already known for having a penchant for the dark and slightly off-centered musical and has enjoyed a few mostly successful seasons with hits such as Side Show and Sweeney Todd. With a cast of strong local singer-actors, the company breathes life into this challenging piece in such a way that we forget about its technical rigors and are taken on an emotional rollercoaster.

Miami regional theatre Actors' Playhouse wisely chose pint-sized powerhouse Julia Dale to lead their company to victory with their production of Ruthless! The Musical, which opened this weekend at the Miracle Theatre.

The fast-paced anecdotal collection of vignettes takes a musical romp through the struggles and unexpected joys of being a parent in a completely relatable way, whether you are a parent or not. Mostly set up as, at least, PG-13 humor (never underestimate the comic effect of belting out a long curse word), Rated P surprises with a few tender moments from the women that will touch your heart when you least expect.

It seems a wise and refreshing choice for a theatre company known for producing thought-provoking and challenging works to decidedly chill out over the summer. The saving grace of Slow Burn's production lies in the casting of Clay Cartland and Courtney Poston as lovers Robbie and Julia respectively.

Aside from having the gumption to produce the more offbeat and challenging musicals, what Slow Burn Theatre Company can accomplish with a minimal amount of outside resources is truly commendable. Surely I was in the audience of a much more seasoned, union regional house.

It seems an obvious choice for Miami to produce one of the first regional productions of In The Heights, a musical centered around Latin culture in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. Theatre is meant to be relatable and hold up a mirror to its audience and, after feeling the electricity on opening night, the line between actor and audience was barely discernable.

Thoroughly Modern Millie, a classic piece of musical theatre in its own right, brings a prohibition-era energy and crispness to the lively set while keeping focus on a simple story of a small-town girl. Whether you go to the theatre for the love of music, dance, story or spectacle, it was all there in perfect harmony on opening night March 7th in Jupiter.

Serving as Director/Choreographer for most of Slow Burn's productions, Fitzwater builds this world as a maddening circus filled with somehow completely relevant freaks of nature.

Recreating this iconic movie on the stage is an ever-daunting task but has been a staple of the regional theatre scene since it closed on Broadway in the mid 1980s. There are not many noticeable adaptations or deviations from the original Comden and Green 1952 film, and this may be an inherent flaw in the piece. Add to that the obvious preconceptions and expectations nearly every theatergoer has upon venturing out to experience a production, and any producer will know they have their work cut out for them. However, there is also something to be said for the ability to trust such a tried and true combination of song and dance that has the promise to delight on a presentational level, at the very least.

A favorite among contemporary musical theatre lovers, Jason Robert Brown's The Last Five Years has been championed as one of his best. After the show opened at the Minetta Lane Theatre in 2002, its original cast recording under the new Sh-K-Boom label spread like wildfire through communities of aspiring young actors and composers, inspiring a new generation of musical theatre. Brown has been recognized as a leader in adapting theatre for modern audiences and creating pieces that are so relatable, they are almost cathartic.

In this retelling of Meredith Wilson's 'The Music Man,' with early 20th century Midwest slang and an almost too quick gift-wrapped resolution, director Mark Martino and choreographer Shea Sullivan were able to successfully breathe new life into a script and score that, especially for younger audiences, could so easily remain stale.

This AVENUE Q delivers exactly what fans of the show expect: a raunchy, shocking humor neatly gift-wrapped and presented under the guise of seemingly cute puppets with dirty minds and no filter.

Without getting political or even all that specifically religious, Actors' Godspell places focus on the ever-growing importance of an accepting and loving community, a message well-received.

Paul Louis and Nick Santa Maria, creators and writers of "Real Men Sing Show Tunes…And Play with Puppets," find a way to appeal to both sexes with clever rhymes, well-timed skits and the occasional shocking curveball.

As eerie candlelight dances across dark walls, two actors create an intensely creepy world that extends past the fourth wall and lures the audience into its chilling tale. With great use of theatrical magic, The Naked Stage manages to transform a tiny black box theatre into a grandiose haunted mansion with the use of slight shifts of light, simple blocking patterns and the dynamic believability of both actors.

An infectious blend of Miami heat and Studio 54 spice, "The Donkey Show" brings the 70s alive by way of an over-the-top, rollicking disco extravaganza.