Courtney Symes - Page 8

Broadway at Music Circus is taking us back to England again, not to a shoe factory or the Globe Theatre, but to a gloomy moor in Yorkshire.  Based upon the 1911 Frances Hodgson Burnett novel of the same name, The Secret Garden premiered on Broadway in 1991 and earned three Tony Awards, including Best Book of a Musical. 

Cirque du Soleil is back in Sacramento, this time under the big top at Sutter Health Park.  It brings to us its reimagined classic, Alegria, which features updated costumes, characters, and music.  Boasting a multi-cultural cast from over 20 countries, Alegria takes the best the world has to offer and presents it on stage for all to enjoy.

Broadway at Music Circus welcomes you to the Renaissance with its newest resounding success, Something Rotten!  This is the first time the Tony Award-nominated musical is being performed at Music Circus and the round lends a special intimacy to the production that, I’ll admit, made it better than the national tour.  With a book by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell and music and lyrics by Karey and Wayne Kirkpatrick, Something Rotten! will hilariously satisfy Oxfordians, who question how an uneducated man such as Shakespeare could have written such sophisticated content as is attributed to him.  Even loyal Stratfordians will enjoy the story of Shakespeare-as-plagiarist, for there is no resisting the irreverent humor and jaw-dropping talent that make up the show. 

Just over the Sierra Nevada Mountain range from the Sacramento Valley lies the town of Reno, Nevada. Its proximity to Sacramento makes it a popular destination for entertainment and its casinos attract well-known talent. It was during one of these concerts that serendipity intervened, and I met the charmingly eclectic indie artist, Jonathan Louis. A drummer for a local group called The Band Cell, Louis is branching out into solo territory with new songs “The Next Big Thing,” and “Bouncy.” Broadway World spoke to Louis about the post-pandemic music scene, his quirky style, and how The Who inspired his music career.

Another classic from the 1940s is gracing the stage at Broadway at Music Circus.  This time, it’s Kiss Me, Kate, the musical-within-a-musical that cemented Cole Porter’s return to Broadway as a successful lyricist and composer.  It ended up being Porter’s longest-running Broadway show and won the very first Tony Award for Best Musical. 

The world has changed a lot since 1945, when Carousel opened on Broadway.  The Tony Awards hadn’t been established yet.  Interracial marriage was not yet legal.  Its score speaks of a bygone era when people comported themselves with a certain modesty and societal rules were very different.  One would wonder how such a show has survived through the years, but Rodgers and Hammerstein’s second musical has themes that are relevant today.  Domestic violence, poor choices, hope, and redemption are all things that society still experiences.

After being dark for two years, Broadway at Music Circus opened its 2022 season with Kinky Boots, the glittery hit from Broadway legend Harvey Fierstein and 80s icon Cyndi Lauper.  After opening on Broadway in 2013, it surprised everyone by surpassing its competition and securing a season-high 13 Tony Award nominations and 6 wins.  In addition to Best Musical, Kinky Boots won the Tony for Best Original Score, making Lauper the first woman to win alone in that category-in her first foray into Broadway composing. 

Broadway Sacramento is closing out their 2022 Broadway on Tour season with the first national tour of Tootsie.  Based on the 1982 film of the same name, Tootsie features music and lyrics by David Yazbek (The Band’s Visit, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) and a Tony Award-winning book by Robert Horn.  Rolling Stone called it “musical comedy heaven” and they’re not wrong.   Easily the funniest show of the season, Tootsie is full of one-liners, sarcastic wit, and self-deprecating humor. 

This year's graduating seniors have had anything but a normal high school experience and the past two years have taught them resilience, flexibility, and grace. Undoubtedly, they deserve a bit of celebration for their tenacity and courage. Luckily for students at Sonora High School, Todd Schroeder is back after a five-year hiatus to raise money for the Todd Schroeder Young Artists' Grant to benefit young graduates going into the arts. Todd himself is a graduate of Sonora High School who went on to a successful career as a pianist, composer, and music director. Since 1995, Todd has been giving back to the community with this grant. This year boasts an impressive lineup of celebrities, such as Jason Alexander of Seinfeld fame. Broadway World spoke to Todd about his organization and what we can look forward to at this year's benefit concert that will be happening in Sonora on April 30.

It’s been almost 19 years since Wicked debuted on Broadway, but you would never know it by the reception Sacramento gave the national tour this week.  Read our critic's review of the show 'Wicked has lost none of its salability and the energy was palpable in the room in anticipation of the show that surpassed Les Miserables to become Broadway’s fifth longest-running musical.'

Fence (fens) n. 1. A structure that functions as a boundary or barrier, usually constructed of posts, boards, wire, or rails.  Or, as in August Wilson’s Fences, it can also be an allegory to keep the things out that you fear the most while locking all that is precious within its confines.  Is it ever successful?  Sacramento Theatre Company (STC) welcomes you back to the Main Stage to explore that question with their production of the Tony Award winning play. 

Broadway Sacramento has hit it out of the park again with Anastasia-The New Broadway Musical.  The 2022 Broadway on Tour season opened on Tuesday, satiating those who were eager for more after December’s hit run of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. 

That crazy, crafty confectioner is at it again.  This time in the new musical Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, playing through January 2 at the newly revamped Safe Credit Union Performing Arts Center.  That’s right, Willy Wonka is back with his national tour that was put on pause, and he’s ready to make all your candy dreams come true. 

Broadway Sacramento continues its phenomenal comeback season in the newly renovated SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center with An Officer and a Gentleman. Based on the Academy Award-winning 1982 film starring Richard Gere, the musical boasts an impressive 1980’s arrangement including the hit “Up Where We Belong.” Sacramento is the third stop of the first North American tour, which visits over 50 cities through 2022.

After what Executive Director Michael Laun calls “the longest theatrical intermission ever on record,” Sacramento Theatre Company is back with its 77th season, which is aptly entitled WHO, WHAT & WHERE.  Really, do any of us know who, what, or where we are anymore?  I do know where you should be, though, and that’s at the Sacramento Theatre Company watching their regional premiere of Gloria: A Life. 

After a year and a half hiatus, Broadway Sacramento is back in a big way!  Their 2021 season opened on Wednesday in the newly renovated SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center with the most revered piece of theatre in recent memory-Hamilton. Patrons were treated to a beautifully redesigned venue that includes updated sound and seating.  Broadway World was able to experience the much-anticipated opening and it was just as magical as a post-pandemic return should be! 

In the Sierra foothills are a cluster of quaint towns full of Gold Rush history.  Two of these, East Sonora and Columbia, house the venues that make up Sierra Repertory Theatre (Sierra Rep).  Main stage shows, cabarets, and youth workshops can be seen in the original East Sonora Theatre and in the Historic Fallon House Theatre in Columbia State Historic Park.  Lucky for us, they are back to making history beginning in September with their new, in-person season!  Broadway World spoke with Jerry Lee, Associate Artistic Director (and Shrek himself!), about what we can look forward to at Sierra Rep.  

When I started writing for BroadwayWorld, never did I think that I would be an audience of one.  Then 2020 happened and here I am, the lone spectator, reviewing a one-act play-the first live performance I've seen in over a year.  Maybe fittingly, it is a play about death.  More specifically, it's about coming to terms with the feelings that arise from unresolved issues we have with those about to transition. I'm sure most of us have thought about death a great deal over the past year.  Have we, though, thought about exploring our relationships in order to reach a place where we are at peace should the unthinkable happen?  

Around this time last year, thousands of students flocked to the round at Music Circus for a weekend of singing, dancing, encouragement, and camaraderie.  The Junior Theater Festival West (JTF) drew in groups from places as far away as the U.K. and South Korea.  This year, during the weekend of January 15-17, the venue was much different but the sentiment was the same.  Theatre groups from all over the globe participated in a virtual JTF that highlighted all of the magic that makes JTF such an unforgettable experience.  

Back in Sacramento and ready to enter the California music scene is Troy Jagan, better known as The Jungle. His sound is an appealing mix of jazz, funk, r&b, and pop music complemented by a falsetto that brings to mind a young Michael Jackson. BroadwayWorld Sacramento spoke to The Jungle about his return home and the upcoming release of his new EP, Inferno, on April 17.