Kelly Thompson

If/Then, just by the way it is written, will always be about if the woman playing Elizabeth/Liz/Beth is on or not.  While the show was on Broadway Elizabeth was played by Idina Menzel so obviously people will always want to compare.  I for one, am not going to do that because Jackie Burns was too amazing. She completely sold both story lines and sang her face off.  The vocal performance that this character requires is no easy feat and Burns made it look effortless.

There isn't much to say about Kinky Boots that hasn't already been said about it.  Kinky Boots is a great musical.  It has to be one of the best musicals to come through Cincinnati in some time.  It's a fun, toe-tapping, emotional roller coaster and every second is enjoyable.  It can be assumed that a musical about drag queens is going to be a good time and it really was but the surprising part is that there were so many different emotional levels to it.

Pippin brings the audience into a traveling circus who are performing a tale of Pippen a prince of a land who is struggling with finding himself. Pippen believes he is extraordinary and wants an extraordinary life but find out that an ordinary life may actually be the thing he has been looking for. The same can be said for this production. Pippin the musical really wants to be extraordinary when in fact it is just ordinary. The plot is just so so and none of the musical numbers are catching. There was one very big bright spot however and that was the circus acts.

The Cincinnati Shakespeare production of A Comedy of Errors was a delightful show. I find that Cincy Shakes really excels at comedies and they had all their strong comedic actors in this one and their presence was very much felt. A Comedy of Errors is about 2 sets of twins that were separated and then one half of them shows up at the other half's hometown. Of course this means insanity ensues because they all get mixed up for one another and cause havoc on each other's lives.

I'm normally not a fan of an one person shows because what I love about theater is the interaction between multiple actors and the emotions that can come from that. However, I Love, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti has made me rethink my previous thought. This was an engaging, fun and interesting one person production.

Dirty Dancing is now playing at the Aronoff and if I had to simply sum up my thoughts on the production I would say this: This show has a major identity crisis going on.

Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park started their new season off with Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club. The Playhouse started this new season exactly like last season ended, pretty great. Sherlock is a great way to start a season; not only was is thoroughly enjoyable but the cast was stellar as well.

The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park's 2014-2015 season is just over a month away which made me think back on last season and how fantastic it was. Like any local theater company there are going to be hits and misses but when it comes to the Playhouse, their hits were grand slams and their misses are like a double. It was the most enjoyable season of all companies in Cincinnati because it offered a nice variety of big, elaborate productions to small, two person productions.

Phantom is consistent and apparently is a show that parents or grandparents want to experience with their children. My second question was am I going to enjoy the show after having already seen it once on stage and the movie (which has to be the most literal stage to screen translation ever) multiple times? I did enjoy it. As much as I did the first time I saw it, no but this tour added new and interesting elements that kept this reviewer's attention.

Playhouse is the Park is putting on their production of Pride & Prejudice. Pride & Prejudice has been performed and made into movies multiple times so critiquing the play itself is kind of pointless because most of us have made up our minds already on whether we like it or not. I happen to think it is a great play and enjoy it every time I see a movie version of it or the play version. And this production is no different, I enjoyed it.

I've seen Wicked multiple times (a few more times and I will be in double digits) and every single time, I enjoy myself. That proves how powerful this musical has become and how its themes will always be relevant. But what can make or break any performance, no matter how many times you see it, are the performers. If they are having a bad day or aren't as strong as they are suppose to be, the audience can leave disappointed. In the case of this tour of Wicked Alison Luff, who plays Elphaba, made this show.

4000 Miles by Amy Herzog tells a complicated story that involves a young man and his grandmother. Leo arrives at his grandmother's (Vera) New York apartment in the middle of the night after riding across the country on his bicycle. He ultimately stays with her for months and their relationship takes on many levels during this time. Leo is grieving and recovering from the loss of a friend and Vera has to get use to someone else in her apartment after the death of her husband. This production was able to find a balance between emotional and funny, which can be a hard thing when the scene never changes and only has 4 actors.

The Ensemble Theater took on the daunting task of performing Tribes by Nina Raine. Tribes tells the story of Billy, a deaf young adult, who moves back in with his hearing family. That plot already seems somewhat complicated but there are some surprising developments into Billy's life and then add the fact that he gets his first ever girlfriend and this play spirals completely out of control in the best way possible.

Megan Hilty sang with the Cincinnati Pops, conducted by John Morris Russell, over the weekend. The Pops did what they always do which is play outstanding music. They didn't miss a note in any number and if their rendition of "He Lives in You" from the Lion King doesn't spark a Disney Night with the Pops idea, I will be shocked (I'll also be first in line for that show).

Megan Hilty will perform with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra January 24-26, 2014. Hilty made her debut with the Cincinnati Pops back in 2009 when she stepped in at a moments notice for an ailing Kristin Chenoweth. Audiences were blown away and her return has been eagerly anticipated ever since.

The Cincinnati Shakespeare Company put on their production of Hamlet recently. Overall, it was a solid show and the acting was pretty good but I have to admit that there were elements that I didn't understand. Hamlet is a very long play yet there was only about a 20-30 minute period where I felt the time dragged by and that is an accomplishment in itself.

The Cincinnati Shakespeare Company (CSC) opened their annual showing of Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some) over the weekend. To put it simply, it was very funny and with just a 4 person cast, they really managed to abridge almost every BHC (Beloved Holiday Classic).

The Ensemble Theater Company (ETC) took on a daunting task with their production of Around the World in 80 Days. This production of Around the World in 80 Days was pretty good for all it had to accomplish. Did ETC accomplish everything, of course not but no production could unless it was a national tour or something.

Flashdance the Musical is a fun night at the theater. Am I going to remember some inspirational message or an overarching theme, probably not but what I will remember is that I had a great night at the theater. Isn't that ultimately what musical theater is about? Flashdance had upbeat music, emotional moments and great choreography, basically everything that I hoped I would see.

Cabaret is one of the most commonly known musicals in the world which means audiences are going to come in with expectations. Now, what does that mean for a new production of it? It means the crew and cast want to try new things to make it feel fresh. That is exactly what Playhouse in the Park's production did, they tried new things and some things worked and others did not.