Michael Rabice - Page 7

Everything old is new again. But who would think the new century would have 19th Century literature resurfacing in the form of theatrical plays. This season Buffalo has seen Jane Austen's 'Pride and Prejudice' characters in the new play MISS BENNETT: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY at Shea's 710 Theatre. But a good story is a good story. So in re-examining the age old hunt for an eligible bachelor we now bring to the stage Austen's SENSE & SENSIBILITY, that notable work that explores the issues of class, courting, and attaining the perfect husband. With some updating of the era and costumes, this timeless tale could allow Austen's often melodramatic story to play out as a 2019 romantic comedy feature film.

Watch out Murphy Brown, Will & Grace, and Roseanne.... Miss Bennet is back in town. In an age when Americans are looking to their past for reliable entertainment with TV reboots, movie prequels and Broadway revivals, Jane Austen is making a comeback of sorts as her beloved 'Pride and Prejudice' characters take to the stage to continue their stories in MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY.

It's not often that a Broadway musical creates so much press and hype that almost every US citizen has heard of the phenomenon that is HAMILTON. The show that got it's start off Broadway at NY's Public Theatre has taken the country by storm. Still the hottest ticket on Broadway 3 years after it has opened, the touring production has been anticipated in almost every US National tour market for a full two years prior to it actually surfacing. This has created record breaking subscription ticket sales just so everyone could be guaranteed a seat for HAMILTON.

Buffalo's Irish Classical Theatre Company has programmed and produced a gem of a play in their most recent outing, SIVE, by John B. Keane. Such a perfect blend of expert acting and captivating story telling is playing out in a play that would seem to have been exclusively written for this company. But while SIVE is a well known commodity on the other side of the pond, it's relative obscurity in the States allowed Buffalo's audiences to be sucked into the brilliant story.

A new entity has formed where the name of the game is collaboration and pooling talents to serve the greater good. Buffalo's All For One Theatrical Productions mounted their inaugural play last weekend with THE THREE MUSKETEERS. Obviously their company's name had a great deal to do with the chosen first venture, but more about that later.

Jewish oppression, immigrant families struggling to keep together, and an exodus of foreigners fleeing to America for a better life. Topics ripped from headlines of CNN are also the basis for the classic 1964 musical comedy FIDDLER ON THE ROOF. The record breaking musical is as relevant today as ever, and the National Tour settled into Shea's Buffalo Theatre last night after it's launch in Syracuse, NY two weeks ago.

Youth, ingenuity, and courage can be held responsible for Buffalo's latest artistic endeavor, STARRING BUFFALO. This new production company has creatively brought the concert musical to the Queen City and in it's inaugural production of Alan Menken and Steven Schwartz's THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, they got off to a flying start.

The quest to achieve the American dream is not a foreign concept, especially in today's society. But everyone's idea of what that dream entails can vary by sex, socioeconomic status and ethnicity. Clifford Odet's 1937 play  GOLDEN BOY examines one family's quest to dodge stereotypes and social status and rise with dignity in the process. Buffalo's Irish Classical Theatre  Company is presenting this fascinating play in a gut wrenching production.

How do you dust off an old classic and make it engaging and fresh for a 21st Century audience. The Shaw Festival has done just that in its gem of production THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. Many have heard the title but may not be familiar with the details of the intriguingly convoluted case that Sherlock Holmes and his pal Dr. Watson take on.

An eye-popping event that only Disney could produce...That is the spectacle ALADDIN that is completing it's run at Shea's Buffalo Theatre. This stage adaptation of the family favorite film is packed with more visual effects and glorious costumes than one is likely to see in 3 other Broadway shows combined.

When the stage directions in a script indicate 'to kiss' any good actor knows it will be 'stage kiss.' That is, kind of awkward at first attempt in the rehearsal hall, but hopefully with practice becomes convincing enough to the audience without the actors actually becoming emotionally involved with each other during the run of the play. That's alot of information to digest for an action that merely calls for two people playing their lips on each other's . Briefly stated, that is the underlying premise in the Shaw Festival's delightful romp, STAGE KISS playing at the Royal George Theatre.

'People come, people go,' 'some have, some have not.' Simple lyrics that can expose a myriad of stories and wounds. Just what one would expect in a busy hotel. No one is ever quite sure what happens behind the closed doors of a grand hotel, but outward appearances are often just that, appearances that don't always belie the truth. Given those opportunities for musical intrigue, The Shaw Festival is producing an elegant production of GRAND HOTEL at their Festival Theatre for their 2018 Season.

The Phantom of the Opera has returned to town, but there will be no familiar 'Music of the Night.' Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber has been penning a sequel to his blockbuster for years, and it has been performed in many versions, as LOVE NEVER DIES. Buffalonians may remember being titillated with the announced world premiere in Toronto years ago, but alas that announcement, as well as one of a Broadway production never occurred. London got dibs on it's premiere, then a reworked version went to Australia and now a new American tour is on the road letting the US decide what they think of the story.

A modern take on an old classic can be risky business, and morphing a murder mystery into a comical farce sounds intriguing on the page. Micro sized casts have done wonders with Hitchcock's 'The 39 Steps' and Charles Ludlam's 'The Mystery of Irma Vep,' so it is no surprise that comic playwright Ken Ludwig, known best for his brilliant 'Lend Me A Tenor' should take a stab at the genre. His adaptation of the classic Sherlock Holmes mystery 'The Hound of The Baskervilles' has been shortened to 'BASKERVILLE' and opened last night at Shea's 710 Theatre. This production by MUSICALFARE unfortunately is high on hijinks and low on true comedy.

Seldom is there a musical where the question asked is not have whether you seen it, but rather how many times have you seen it. Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1988 blockbuster THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is such a musical. Repeated viewings are commonplace in Western New York, with many having seen the original Toronto or New York production in addition to many of it's national tours.

Whatever your artistic quest may be, from unearthing gem stones or archeological ruins to discovering a lost manuscript of music, there is always an element of nostalgia and new found glee when the item arises. Stage director Fortunato Pezzimenti discovered Arthur Richman's unpublished 1922 script THE AWFUL TRUTH in the New York Public Library for The Performing Arts in 2011. Only briefly produced on Broadway in 1935, the story has been told on 3 occasions on the silver screen.

Andrew Lloyd Webber has become a household name and he is having a resurgence in popularity of late. His 1970 JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR garnered great accolades this past Sunday in it's TV presentation. Buffalo audiences will have no less than 4 of his works to see in the next year in the Shea's Buffalo Broadway Seasons with PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, LOVE NEVER DIES, and CATS all in the lineup. But his latest musical to hit Broadway is SCHOOL OF ROCK and the slick new touring production is in town for the week.

Oh, remember those great mega-musicals from the 90's? There was LES MISERABLES AND PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and OMELETTE: MUSICAL...Well OMELETTE was the little known musical from the 1590's, not 1990's, that is the subject of the riotous National Tour now playing at Shea's Buffalo Theatre, aptly named SOMETHING ROTTEN!

Unhappiness in rural Dublin-- Not an altogether unlikely topic for a play. But when Buffalo's Irish Classical Theatre included Conor McPherson's THE NIGHT ALIVE as part of their season of comedies, I wondered how it fit the bill. Happily the play about unhappiness somehow morphs from dark comedy to a classic film noir script and ticks all the boxes for a riveting production.

For it's second season offering the Shaw Festival and Shea's 710 Theatre in Buffalo chose to present Athol Fugard's MASTER HAROLD....AND THE BOYS. The production was a hit during Shaw's 2016 Festival in Niagara on the Lake and besides Buffalo, it recently was presented in Montreal.