Herbert Paine - Page 27

Hale Center Theatre's THE MAN WHO CAME TO DINNER is rollicking good fun featuring knock-your socks-off performances by Hector Coris and Bryan Stewart, backed by a solid cast character actors.

Cathy Dresbach and Matt Zimmerer are the fire and ice of this stirring and well-staged and finely cast production by Theater Works of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Jeffrey Hatcher's Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club is now on stage at Desert Foothills Theatre. Directed by Amy Serafin, the fun of the play is in the twists and turns that engage and captivate the audience until the true culprit is unmasked and the conceit that has driven the crime is revealed.

Mesa Encore Theatre is celebrating the 70th Anniversary of Rodgers and Hammerstein's CAROUSEL with a delightful and dazzling production, directed by Philip Fazio and Sarah Wolter and featuring standout acting and singing performances by Brenda Jean Foley as Julie Jordan, Joseph Cannon as Billy Bigelow, Alanna Kalbfleisch as Carrie Pepperidge, and Harmon Swartz as Enoch Snow.

The Heiress, Ruth and Augustus Goetz' award winning 1947 drama based on Henry James' 1880 novel, Washington Square, is in 2015 a tired, tedious, and entirely predictable chestnut. Theatre Artists Studio, which has had its share of theatrical wins this year, has not fared well in resurrecting it to the fiery psychological drama and social critique that the promos have proclaimed it to be.

Arizona Broadway Theatre's current production of Les Miserables, directed by James Rio is an exceptional staging of the musical classic, featuring rich and nuanced performances by Kiel Klaphake as Jean Valjean, Mark DiConzo as Javert, and Carly Grossman as Eponine and the magical scenic and lighting design of Paul Black.

The Choose Your Own Adventure series for children ~ stories calling on the reader to make choices for the characters at critical turning points in a plot ~ is a nifty concept on which to base a musical entertainment, and the multi-talented Jamie Elizabeth Maletz has taken an inspired, if not fully refined, stab at such a challenge with the staging of CHOOSE YOUR OWN... for which she has also written the book, music, and lyrics.

Rooted in Peace chronicles Greg Reitman's odyssey to answer these crucial questions: Why are we so crazy? Does pop culture teach us how to be violent? Is there a peace game? How do we transcend the collective trauma that we derive from our constant exposure to violence? Why is peace so difficult to achieve? In due course, he learns about the keys to enlightenment and transformation.

The Immigration Paradox, the 2012 documentary written and directed by Lourdes Lee Vasquez, seeks the truth about the immigration issue, its causes, what and who are driving the noise of polarization, and what will it take to resolve the issue. A thoughtful work that can serve as an additional resource for civil discourse on the issue and its complexities.

SAND CASTLES, written and produced by Jordon Hodges and directed by Clenet Verdi-Rose, and featuring the stunning performance of Anne Winters, is a powerful and haunting tale of a child lost but found, her path to recovery after a decade of captivity, and the toll it takes on a family.

Hurray for Advanced Style, a manifesto in film that calls upon us to free ourselves from society's fixation on commercialized notions of beauty and aging! The special joy of the movie is the introduction to a bevy of enchanting beauties, role models in their own right. This highly-acclaimed documentary, directed by Lina Plioplyte, features seven remarkable New York women, as young as 62 and as advanced as 95, who decry the conventions of fashion and fashion for themselves the style that best suits them.

Under the direction of Philip Fazio, Stephen Sondheim's Follies is receiving Arizona's first fully produced production at Theater Works. Mr. Fazio has pulled out all the stops to stage an extravaganza that in Broadway lore has been dubbed one of the great milestones of musical theater. Conceptually, the show has the ingredients and the theatrical devices that can make for a great show, but, live and on stage, the production feels cluttered. Its brilliance lies rather in its outstanding technical aspects, in large part attributable to Mr. Fazio's artistic vision.

The line between hope and despair is thread-thin. For an adolescent girl, tumbling in a tailspin of woes, the pathway to salvation may be as seemingly simple but as frustratingly elusive as parental patience and caring, a strategic retreat to a place called Maheo, peer support, and maybe even a horse named Betsy Moo. It may take a village to save a kid, but ultimately the kid needs to choose life. Girl on the Edge, directed by Jay Silverman and making its world debut at the Sedona International Film Festival on February 28th, tells the story of 15-year old Hannah Green, brilliantly portrayed by Taylor Spreitler, and her journey from victimhood to self-discovery.

In his directorial debut, Damon J. Bolling has more than fulfilled his dream of staging DREAMGIRLS; he has delivered a powerhouse theatrical experience. The stage is set at Desert Foothills Theatre for a cast, led by Chanel Bragg and Krystal Pope, that will literally knock your socks off, grab you by the lapel, and speed up your adrenaline.

Triumphant! Exhilarating! Dazzling! Ib Andersen's masterful and extraordinary staging of August Bournonville's Napoli is a cornucopia of bravura performances, bristling with energy, velocity, and vivacity.

In Rick Cleveland's ingenious Five Presidents, directed by Mark Clements and on stage at the Herberger Theatre, the 38th to the 42nd occupants of the Oval Office come to pay their respects to #37, Richard Milhous Nixon. It's a delicious concept and an undeniable hit, brought to life by the splendid performances of Jeff Steitzer as Gerald Ford, Martin L'Herault as Jimmy Carter, Steve Sheridan as Ronald Reagan, Mark Jacoby as George H. W. Bush, and Brit Whittle as the incumbent Bill Clinton.

BURNING IN THE NIGHT: A HOBO'S SONG is as fine a piece of theatrical artistry as one will find in the Valley of the Sun. On stage at the Mesa Arts Center from February 6th-8th and continuing on February 13th at Theatre Works in Peoria, Richard Warren's brilliant adaptation of Dale Wasserman's epic memoir, directed by Dan Schay and masterfully performed by Mike Lawler, needs to be seen not only for the quality of the production but also for the sweet and compelling reminder of freedom's real meaning.

Desert Stages Theatre's production of Eric Simonson's Lombardi, directed by Mark-Alan C. Clemente is a surefire touchdown, featuring inspired performances by Timothy Pittman as Lombardi and Dyana Carroll as the coach's stalwart wife Marie.

Three short plays, staged readings of works in progress by women playwrights, are the centerpiece of Arizona Women's Theatre Company's Eighth Annual Pandora Festival ~ a rich and much-needed opportunity to channel their creative voices.

Robyn Allen and Alexandra Utpadel deliver singularly powerful turns in Theatre artists Studio's production of RAPTURE, BLISTER, BURN