Review: AVENUE Q at The Laboratory Theater Of Florida

The Laboratory Theater of Florida's production of the musical AVENUE Q tells the story of recent college graduate Princeton and his search for his purpose in life. He winds up on Avenue Q and meets a girl named Kate Monster.

AVENUE Q combines some actors performing normally, as humans, and some actors performing through puppets. This was such fun to watch, and I was thoroughly impressed with the work each actor behind the puppets did. It takes a lot to move and express emotion through puppets, and they did so perfectly.

Steven Michael Kennedy plays the puppet Princeton, Ruthgena Faraco plays the puppet Kate Monster, Todd Lyman plays the puppet Nicky, Ken Johnson plays the puppet Rod, Mark King plays the puppet Trekkie Monster, Gabrielle Lansden plays the puppet Lucy, Amanda Collins plays the puppet Bad Idea Bear 1, Sharon True plays the puppet Bad Idea Bear 2, Tracy Weaver plays the puppet Mrs. T, and the rest of the non-puppet characters include Gary Coleman (Robert Barner), Brian (Javen Fischer), and Christmas Eve (Liz Mora). Kennedy and Faraco were fantastic as Princeton and Kate Monster, and again I admire all the talent and work put into bringing the puppets to life. You could tell when they were struggling with something, and also when they were happy. I truly enjoyed each cast member's performance, both in acting and singing. This is a hilarious show, and the cast was clearly having a lot of fun.

Though the show features puppets, it is not exactly a show for young kids. There are adult themes and situations throughout, so keep that in mind. I really appreciated the fact that there were so many layers to the plot. Aside from being a comedy that has some wild moments, there were also many lessons underneath all of that. Finding your purpose and being an adult is hard, and this show encapsulates it so well. I also appreciated the growth the characters experienced in the show. Some of the standout songs in the show included "For Now," "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist," and "It Sucks to Be Me."

Carmen Crussard directed this production, with musical direction by Earl Sparrow, lighting design by Steven Kennedy, and a set built by David Farnum, Roger Bireley, William Payne, Mark King, Todd Lyman, and Jonathan Johnson. Everyone involved in the production did great work to bring it to The Lab's stage.

I'd definitely check out AVENUE Q while it's at The Lab, now through March 27. It's hilarious, there are many catchy songs, and it teaches you important lessons.

For more information and to buy tickets, click here: https://www.laboratorytheaterflorida.com/

Photo Credit: Sisk Media, LLC

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