Amanda Finn - Page 3

Dirty Dancing is essentially a stage tribute to the film from which its based, which is evident from the dialogue as it's taken almost verbatim from the movie. As are the iconic songs - even though only a fraction of the performers actually sing. Those actors that do sing are not main characters, which is even more of a shame since so many of the performers (Gillian Abbott and Samuel Pergande as Baby and Johnny respectively) have backgrounds in voice. The fact that the main characters do not even utter a single note is baffling to anyone who is familiar with musical theatre.

It's quickly becoming a household name. Although it's nothing like some of the shows considered 'classic Broadway', it has erupted into an existence far from anything of its kind on stage. Book of Mormon could be considered a somewhat mythical creature in the realm of theatre. The ultimate amalgamation of all things Broadway and South Park - this show is a masterpiece.

In a world that is so meticulously run by big business, it often seems as though the universe itself revolves around the almighty dollar. Particularly in the reality for artists, the corporate world is rarely viewed as an entity of good. Rather, it is seen as a soul sucking enterprise that can leave one wondering if their colleagues are man or beast. That appears to be the purpose of Doug Reed's latest brainchild The Nails.

It happens faster than one can fathom. A child acts out in a public space - one automatically looks to the parent's reaction. A slew of questions arise: does that happen often? What are you going to do about this? Why aren't you more upset? Why did you even bring your child here?

Loosely based on William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night and paired with some of Elvis Presley's most beloved music is a feel good show worth dancing to. All Shook Up has shimmied its way to the Fireside's stage and immersed its audiences in an atmosphere of intoxicating nostalgia.

'Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.' - Rudyard Kipling Kipling's musing on what it means to be a writer could not be truer. Broom Street Theater's latest original production, The Point of It All, tackles the sensitive subject of living with a drug addiction. Writer and Director Dan Myers drew from his own experiences to tell the stories of those who could not or cannot find their own words.

Mamma Mia has come to The Overture Center in downtown Madison this week! The feel good musical that is jam packed with catchy tunes is going to be in the capital city for a few more days. Georgia Kate Haege, who is playing Donna Sheridan for the second time, as well as Jeff Drushal (who plays Sam Carmichael) were kind enough to provide me a little bit of time this morning. In the final stretch of the national tour, I got the chance to sit down with these two lovely performers to chat about their show and what they have going on next.

Colorful buildings cascade down the walls of the Evjue Stage at the Bartell Theatre. When the lights are dim they appear to slowly fade into the darkness. It is only when the lights are fully illuminating the playing space that the images are melting into nothingness. Backgrounds become distorted until the lights dim once more. It is the darkness that creates a safe, familiar space in the world of the Loman family.

Even Madison's most dedicated theatrical hipsters have heard of [Title of Show] - the Broadway musical that effectively parodied a true story as well as the strenuous process of creating art. The show follows the plights of 'two nobodies in New York' as they attempt to create an award winning musical in three weeks for the 2004 New York Musical Theatre Festival. Admittedly exploiting their friends for the sake of creative enterprise, Jeff and Hunter hatch their ideas and watch as they begin to fly.

A quaint, well-loved home is where the scene is set. Minimal set dressings to mask the beautiful awkwardness of the first scene - with remnants of Anton Chekov's greatest works scattered upon the mantle. A seagull, a sister, a cluster of cherry blossoms, and a brood of hens watch over the home from their perch. These little trinkets are entirely appropriate since three of the four title roles were named after Chekov's characters. Vanya, the brother in the play, blames the unfortunate circumstance of his unusual name on his having professors for parents.

In the midst of the season of repentance for Catholics comes a musical drenched in symbolism. Begging answers to serious dilemmas that young people now face with the unchanging church. Bare: A Pop Musical does for the religious community what Rent did to the society at large regarding AIDS. It cries out for reformation through heart wrenching melodies.

Many small Wisconsin towns thrive on their rich European history. In a state steeped in a melting pot of culture, it seems almost unreal that anyone would try to do away with any aspect of that existence. However, in the 1930's there was a push to demolish the crumbling stone houses that etched the story of Mineral Point, WI - until two men got in the way.That is where this story begins.

The musical that has had theatregoers buzzing since its premiere, The Book of Mormon, has finally made its way to Madison. It's a show so full of lewd behavior that one would almost have to assume it was written by the men behind the series South Park. That shock value - however - is what makes this show so unbelievably fun.

?A mesmerizing cascade of light, fog, and draperies send audiences into the colorful Land of Oz at the Fireside Dinner Theatre. Without the sudden Technicolor shock that the film has to offer, the stage adaptation must always concoct a way to conjure their twister to transport their heroine into her fantastical imagination and - per usual - Ed Flesch and his highly capable cast and crew deliver.

Cultivating a night of two shows that really show the drastic differences between how men and women deal with uncomfortable situations, the Sun Prairie Civic Theatre presented "A Night of Bridge and Beer" this past weekend. Featuring two one acts, The Coal Diamond by Shirley Lauro and Lone Star by James McLure, SPCT brought in a lot of fans who were ready for a fun evening.

"…the plot revolves around the lives of the four March daughters - Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy - and follows their triumphs and tragedies as they grow up, fall in love, and face life." Per the playbill comes a simple, but altogether truthful, analysis of the lengthy goings on of Louisa May Alcott's classic novel Little Women. In playwright Thomas Hischak's stage adaptation, Alcott's timeless work remains as close to the original text as one could hope. In this particular version, however, Jo takes on the role of narrator which provides an entirely new dynamic to a work that many know quite well.

The story itself begins to unfold as two people sit side by side in an imagined car. Not looking at one another at first, but they begin to interact intimately. It isn't until Liz Angle, as Li'l Bit, halts the physicality that Edric Johnson, as her Uncle Peck, will actually make eye contact.

Milwaukee was transported from its gloomy, snowy space to a warm Grecian island on Friday when the national tour of Mamma Mia rolled into town. Directed by the brilliant Phyllida Lloyd (who directed both the film version as well as the critically acclaimed film The Iron Lady), the feel good musical certainly had the audiences in Uhlein Hall grooving to the music.

?There's always some sort of debate regarding Scott Walker brewing in Madison. Despite what anyone thinks of him as a politician, there is a fairly large disdain for the man in the artistic community. This could not be clearer than in Broom Street's newest production written by former Wisconsinite Brian Leahy Doyle. Doyle, along with composer Michael Dilthey, has created a musical parodying Walker's first term that hovers around the massive protests in 2011.

Every once in a while there is a performance that is completely open ended. Where every audience member walks away with a different sense of what happened, what it meant, and why it mattered. That is the case with a series of scenes entitled Beta Blockers, produced by Left of Left Center at TAPIT/New Works this past weekend and one last time on Wednesday the 18th.