Michael Rabice

Everything old is new again. That saucy playwright William Shakespeare continues to ignite audience's imagination, with two separate shows in Buffalo this month alone. But wait, not really his own plays, but plays based on the Bard's own writing. SOMETHING ROTTEN at Musicalfare has would be competitors trying to out-write him, while & JULIET, now playing at Shea's, aims to pit Mrs. Shakespeare (Anne Hathaway) against her own husband to write a better version of ROMEO AND JULIET.

With a penchant for the cutting edge and often obscure, Road Less Traveled Productions has programmed Jen Silverman's dark comedy WITCH in it's  regional premiere. Silverman is now represented on Broadway with the 2 person show THE ROOMMATE  with the unlikely duo of Patti LuPone and Mia Farrow.  This production of WITCH has all the makings of what should be a riveting production, but the script is not one for the ages.

Something hilarious is playing out on stage of Musicalfare Theatre in their raucously funny production of SOMETHING ROTTEN. It’s a daring title that befits the silly musical that’s only purpose is to amuse.

Witty, smart and heartbreaking. That about sums up the new musical THE FITZGERALDS OF ST. PAUL now playing as  a preview production at Buffalo's Irish Classical Theatre Company.

An utterly charming afternoon of fun perfectly sums up THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE, now playing at Shea's Smith Theatre. Second Generation Theatre Company has a track record of presenting quality productions in this cozy theatre, and they continue to produce at a very high level

​GREASE is the word, as the title song goes from the Blockbuster movie musical that had an all star cast including Olivia Newton John, John Travolta, and Stockard Channing. Next weekend  STARRING BUFFALO presents  the stage version in it's signature concert, semi staged style. And some of Broadway's newest rising stars  come to town for 3 performances of beloved 50's High School musical.

MY FAIR LADY is quite obviously the most perfect choice of a musical that the SHAW FESTIVAL could program and this 2024 musical offering is a  delicious delight, sure to please. It plays through December 22, 2024 and is the perfect excuse to visit Niagara on the Lake for the holiday season.

Not only are the Halloween decorations out at Target and Walgreens, but theatre season  for Irish Classical Theatre is beginning with a macabre story in a comedian's clothes as they present the very silly DRACULA: A COMEDY OF TERROR.

Rivaling the adventures of The Count of Monte Cristo, we now  hear the tale of a new found character who once took literary England by storm at the end of the 19th Century. SHIPWRECKED: THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF LOUIS DE ROUGEMONT (AS TOLD BY HIMSELF) has taken to the stage in 'an entertainment' written by Donald Marguiles. The action plays out upon the Road Less Traveled stage through October 13th.

The Buffalo theatre season is back in full swing and it's off to a great start, if the fine production of DISNEY'S NEWSIES THE MUSICAL is an indication. Playing at Shea's 710 Theatre alongside co presenter The D'Youville Kavinoky Theatre, the creative talent assembled showcases the best of Western New York's talent.

He's done it again! The famous sleuth and his sidekick are back at it, solving cases with cunning precision and insight. SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE MYSTERY OF THE HUMAN HEART is playing in a fabulous production at the SHAW FESTIVAL in Niagara on the Lake. Audiences are intrigued, captivated and thoroughly entertained watching this beloved character take on yet another case in Victorian London.

Who doesn't love a good belly laugh, a groan and a perpetual smile on their face for 2-1/2 hours. That's exactly what you'll be in store for when attending the joyously silly production of ONE MAN, TWO GUVNORS at the Shaw Festival in Niagara on the Lake.

O'Connell and Company is set to present the latest installment of THE GOLDEN GIRLS- THE LOST EPISODES 5- GOLDEN IS THE NEW BLACK. Billed as a hilarious, naughty drag parody of America's favorite sitcom, the script by David Cerda includes two new episodes.

Time travel back to the age of film noir when black and white movie dramas were played to the hilt with overarching mannerisms, full of prototypical characters and not too subtle close ups full of tension inducing musical scores. The Shaw Festival is producing one from that ilk with the classic Agatha Christie courtroom mystery WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION and the result is mesmerizing audiences at the Royal George Theatre.

The king of pop surely had a storied musical career that went from child star to tabloid fodder in his all too short life. The life of Michael Jackson, now the Broadway musical MJ, is igniting the stage of Shea's Buffalo Theatre through June 16th. Fear not , the moon walk, the infamous sparkly glove and that unmistakable breathy speaking voice is all there, but is that really enough to make a great musical?

Noel Coward may well have been the arbiter of all things regarding propriety , social class, and manners. So it may have come as a shock to some that his witty play PRIVATE LIVES, now playing at Irish Classical Theatre, makes it clear that his upper crust characters certainly  do NOT always behave with the best possible manners. Therein lies the crux of the comedy that audiences love, in part, thanks to the bad behavior of his cast

It's all aboard for 'the largest moving object in the world,' sings the  owner, designer and captain of the doomed ship Titanic. And Buffalo is in for a rare presentation of the 1997 TONY AWARD winning musical TITANIC, composed by Maury Yeston .

Something wonderful has taken to the stage at Buffalo ‘s Irish Classical Theatre, as Arthur Miller’s THE PRICE is being presented in a near perfect production. This seldom produced play may sound somewhat stilted in it’s formality of language, but the story continues to be captivating, all these years after it’s 1968 Broadway premiere.

Guilty as charged. I openly admit I really enjoy the ABBA musical, MAMMA MIA! There is a time and place for all kinds of entertainment, and the birth of the jukebox musical can almost certainly be attributed to kind of show MAMMA MIA has become. Now 25 years after it's opening, the national tour that is playing at Shea's Buffalo this week has audiences happily enraptured with a musical comedy that serves solely to entertain. And it most certainly succeeds.

A breakdown of  union labor relations, abuse in the workplace and  demands for higher wages surely doesn't sound like the stuff of musical comedy. Unless you're speaking of the classic 1954 musical THE PAJAMA GAME, now playing at the Lancaster Opera House.