Review: WALLER'S LIFE IS ONLY IN PERIPHERY IN AIN'T MISBEHAVIN'
by Paul Batterson - September 09, 2024
The cast adjusts the mood of the show quickly. It seamlessly moves from the bravado of “Fat and Greasy” to a somber reading of “Black and Blue” as images of newspaper coverage of lynchings and hate crimes are projected in the background....
Review: WILD THINGS at Shadowbox Live
by Paul Batterson - August 20, 2024
While not all the sketches are home runs, most offer a solid chuckle to nearly everyone. It may not be an event you can feel comfortable taking your grandparents to, but maybe you could bring a drunk Aunt Martha and Uncle Bill this time around....
Review: AMERICAN IDIOT at Abbey Theater Of Dublin
by Paul Batterson - August 14, 2024
What is refreshing about AMERICAN IDIOT is since it’s a pre-professional project, the entire cast is in the 14-19 age range. That is about the same age as the characters in the show. This cast doesn’t come across as amateurish. Lavery nails his role as Tunny, who comes home from the Gulf War broken,...
Review: LEGALLY BLONDE at Garden Theater
by Paul Batterson - July 15, 2024
SNS elevates its presentation with another stellar cast, tight choreography and several minute details and musical director Jonathan Collura helps the cast deliver the show’s snappy, tightly fashioned songs with power. The net result far exceeds the entertainment value of the original non-musical mo...
Review: EVOLUTIONARIES at Shadowbox Live
by Paul Batterson - June 18, 2024
Under the direction of Julie Klein, the theater troupe weaves together the divergent catalogue of the two icons with a variety of singers and styles, multimedia presentations, and the storytelling of Michelle Daniels....
Review: THE LION KING at Ohio Theatre
by Paul Batterson - June 16, 2024
While at times THE LION KING seems like a note for note repetition of the movie, what pushes the musical into new territory is the costume design, a stellar group of actors, and of course, an empowering soundtrack....
Review: THE TEMPTATIONS AND THE FOUR TOPS at McCoy Center For The Arts
by Paul Batterson - June 13, 2024
Two questions almost immediately sprang up when people were told that the Temptations and the Four Tops were performing June 11 at the Jeanne B. McCoy Center for the Arts in New Albany. People asked, Those two groups are still around? and How many of the original members are left?...