Review: EVERYBODY'S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE at Valkyrie Theatre Company
by Courtney Symes - December 15, 2024
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie…and for good reason. The Valkyrie Theatre Company is putting on this inspirational show based on real-life British drag queen, Jamie Campbell. Its feel-good, energetic score by Dan Gillespie Sells and book by Tom MacRae tell the coming-of-age story of Jamie New, whose...
Review: ELF Brings Christmas Cheer to Broadway At Music Circus
by Courtney Symes - December 09, 2024
It’s a miracle on H Street! Finally, the magic of Broadway at Music Circus can be experienced outside of the summer months. In its first show since expanding its season to go almost year-round, the Music Circus team is offering a dazzling display of holiday splendor with a family favorite, Elf....
Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL: THE ROCK & ROLL PANTO at City Theatre
by Courtney Symes - December 05, 2024
Another week, another version of A Christmas Carol! Is this one ever tons of fun, though. A Christmas Carol: the Rock & Roll Panto, written by Christine Nicholson and Luther Hanson, plays at City Theatre at Sacramento City College in the Art Court Theatre. It features silly antics, a ghost in drag, ...
Review: 'TIS THE SEASON: FOLKTALES & FABLES Spreads Holiday Cheer at B St. Theatre
by Courtney Symes - December 02, 2024
The B St. Theatre is solidifying its reputation of excellent holiday entertainment with its newest Family Series offering, ‘Tis the Season: Folktales & Fables. Like previous years, this show consists of vignettes, written by multiple playwrights, that feature different traditions throughout the worl...
Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL at B St. Theatre Brings Contemporary Fun to a Classic
by Courtney Symes - November 26, 2024
It’s time again for a favorite holiday tradition – seeing the various Christmas shows that Sacramento has to offer. At the top of my list every year is A Christmas Carol. Dickens’s classic tale of avarice is one of the most produced works during the holidays, but few are like the version that is bei...
Review: THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE at FreeFall Stage
by Courtney Symes - November 07, 2024
Over seventy years after its initial publishing, C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe continues to entertain children of all ages. FreeFall Stage is bringing the classic story to life on stage with an adaptation by Joseph Robinette. Director DeeDee Eldridge is at the helm of this proje...
Review: CRUMBS FROM THE TABLE OF JOY Plays at Celebration Arts
by Courtney Symes - November 02, 2024
When I heard that Celebration Arts was performing a Lynn Nottage play, I knew I had to be there. My first experience with her work was last year seeing Clyde’s at Capital Stage. I was struck by the characters and how they interacted with each other. They were all multi-faceted and so human, filled w...
Review: ROGUES Premieres at The Stage At Burke Junction
by Courtney Symes - October 30, 2024
The numbers vary by source, but over fifty million Americans care for an elderly or disabled family member. Many do so while holding other jobs and receiving no respite. It’s a topic that all of us can relate to in some way. Local playwright Charlotte Higgins, nationally recognized for her other wor...
Review: POTUS Gets My Vote at Big Idea Theatre
by Courtney Symes - October 28, 2024
When a show opens with what is widely considered one of the most offensive words in the English language, I’m hooked. Selina Fillinger’s POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive does just that. This Tony Award-nominated work is a genius feminist farce brought to...