Seattle Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 19

BWW Review: BOHEMIA Delights All the Senses
by Jay Irwin - January 21, 2018

Whether or not you actually drink the absinthe (and there is plenty of it flowing) the green fairies are out in full force at the latest venture from Opal Peachey and Mark Siano, Bohemia , currently playing at The Triple Door. Should you catch this eye-popping extravaganza (and you should) be prep...

BWW Review: Strawberry Theatre Workshop's Riveting FROST/NIXON a Must See
by Jay Irwin - January 19, 2018

Peter Morgan's brilliant look at the dissection of one of the most powerful men in the country by one whom many considered a joke, 'Frost/Nixon', is enough of an enticement to want to see Strawberry Theatre Workshop's current production. But then when you hear that director Greg Carter has cast the...

BWW Review: Seattle Rep's TWO TRAINS RUNNING Undercut with Quiet Strength
by Jay Irwin - January 18, 2018

The Seattle Rep, fortunately for all of us, has long held a special relationship with the works of August Wilson. They're one of the few theaters in the country to have done his entire Century Cycle sometimes premiering those plays as was the case with 'Two Trains Running' which they produced back ...

BWW Review: WET's STRAIGHT WHITE MEN Examines Privilege but Takes the Long Way Around
by Jay Irwin - January 14, 2018

As you enter the theater for Washington Ensemble Theatre's Straight White Men , currently playing at 12th Ave Arts, you are greeted with Hip Hop music with questionable lyrics amped up to the point that you can feel the bass in your filings. You're told at the outset of the show that the reason f...

BWW Review: Cross Gender TIMON OF ATHENS from Seattle Shakes' Drags with Little Stakes
by Jay Irwin - January 13, 2018

If you're going to put up Shakespeare (or any play really) with a different time or locale or, as is the case with the current Seattle Shakespeare Company production of Timon of Athens , with cross gender casting then have a reason for it. Have the shakeup mean something. With cross gender stuff,...

BWW Review: I Believe! THE BOOK OF MORMON at the Paramount Still Shines
by Jay Irwin - January 04, 2018

God's favorite musical is back! This is, I believe, the fourth time the tour of The Book of Mormon , that juggernaut musical from 2011 (the Hamilton of its day) from the warped minds of Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame and Robert Lopez who co-wrote Avenue Q (as well as that litt...

BWW Review: Seattle Public Theater's Noir CHRISTMASTOWN Successfully Threads Parody Needle
by Amelia Reynolds - December 14, 2017

Can a Christmas noir be both gripping and funny? Can it succeed at all? Well, we know it can, because Christmastown returns to Seattle Public Theater as the second half of their holiday double feature. Not only does director Kelly Kitchens avoid cheesiness (which something like this could so, so e...

BWW Review: DeLouRue's Exuberant Extravaganza HOMO FOR THE HOLIDAYS A Must See at Oddfellows
by Amelia Reynolds - December 12, 2017

It's the most wonderful time to be queer, sings BenDeLaCreme, drag queen of both local and international fame (you may remember her from RuPaul's Drag Race Season 6 and now Drag Race All Stars 3! ). Silly as that parody lyric may be, for many, seeing Homo for the Holidays makes this season trul...

BWW Review: Seattle Public Theater's THE FLIGHT BEFORE XMAS: Lighthearted Holiday Schadenfreude
by Amelia Reynolds - December 09, 2017

As part one of Seattle Public Theatre's featured holiday double-header, The Flight Before Xmas manifests many peoples' worst nightmare: being stuck in an airport terminal when you need or want desperately to get to the final destination. Thankfully, audiences can laugh at other people dealing with...

BWW Review: Wacky, Whimsical, Fun with Nordo's THE VIEW FROM SANTA'S LAP
by Jay Irwin - December 09, 2017

And I thought last year's offering from Caf Nordo and Scot Sgt. Rigsby Auguston was crazy. But Auguston has amped the wacky fun up to 12 now with their latest incarnation The View from Santa's Lap complete with delicious food, shadow puppet mermaids, and (dum dum dum) MURDER!...

BWW Review: Taproot Theatre's A CIVIL WAR CHRISTMAS: A Beautiful House, Divided
by Amelia Reynolds - December 08, 2017

A Civil War Christmas is a nice escape for folks that are getting a bit of a toothache from the glittery, schmaltzy, and sentimental Christmas plays foisted upon us this time of year. Written by Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Paula Vogel (for How I Learned to Drive ), A Civil War Christmas i...

BWW Review: Touring ELF: THE MUSICAL at The Paramount Looks the Part but Lacks the Heart
by Amelia Reynolds - December 07, 2017

A musical adaptation of the 2003 Christmas movie 'Elf' makes a lot of sense: the movie has all of the joy, sweetness, glitz, slapstick, and happily-ever-after for a crowd-pleasing production. This adaptation, now performing for a brief stint at The Paramount Theatre, stays loyal to the vast majority...

BWW Review: 5th Ave's HOLIDAY INN Hits All the Right Notes but Misses the Spark
by Jay Irwin - December 04, 2017

I should start, Dear Readers, by saying that I've been spoiled where the stage musical of Holiday Inn is concerned. Spoiled by the filmed version of the recent Broadway incarnation which captured every single ounce of Broadway magic you'd want. So, while the current production of this wonderful ...

BWW Review: A Few Qualms but HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE from Book-It is a Delight
by Jay Irwin - December 03, 2017

Book-It Repertory Theatre already routinely manages the difficult task of presenting literature in the Book-It style and making it flow and engage in a theatrical way, but apparently they felt this challenge wasn't enough for them as now they've attempted to add in music to that mix with their new a...

BWW Review: More Raucous Holiday Hilarity with HAM FOR THE HOLIDAYS: THE HAMCHURIAN CANDIDATE at ACT
by Jay Irwin - December 02, 2017

Most people have that thing every year that signals the beginning of the Holiday season; seeing the lights downtown, that first pumpkin spice whatever, or braving the crowds on Black Friday. For me, the Holidays don't really begin until I get to enjoy my favorite annual show from Seattle treasures ...

BWW Review: Azeotrope's Brilliantly Horrifying BUILDING THE WALL is a Must See!
by Jay Irwin - December 01, 2017

Lately friends have been asking me what shows I'm most looking forward to this holiday season. And while it's not a happy Christmas show I keep answering Building the Wall currently being offered from Azeotrope at 12th Avenue Arts. Then those friends look as me quizzically, I assume expecting so...

BWW Review: THE HUMANS at Seattle Rep is a Searing Slice of Life but in a Hurry to Leave
by Jay Irwin - November 30, 2017

Thanksgiving dinner is a tumultuous time for many of us as we attempt to spend an evening with our loved ones. Sure, we love our families but we don't always see eye to eye and as the wine flows and the turkey and yams fill our bellies, maybe our inhibitions and filters lower. That's the kind of d...

BWW Review: Big-Top Brouhaha with Teatro ZinZanni's Revived LOVE, CHAOS & DINNER
by Amelia Reynolds - November 16, 2017

Don't be fooled by the understated title: Teatro ZinZanni's Love, Chaos & Dinner is an entertainment extravaganza. Replicating the beloved environment from its former home, Love, Chaos & Dinner feels like a quintessential ZinZanni production, even for Teatro ZinZanni first-timers....

BWW Review: Decent Voices in Paramount's THE BODYGUARD but Not the Queen of the Night
by Jay Irwin - November 15, 2017

In the latest in the spate of movies turned musicals with no new music to speak of to turn up in Seattle, following in the trend of Dirty Dancing or the egregious Flashdance , we've now been offered up The Bodyguard . And while the current offering didn't live up, or should I say down, to the a...

BWW Review: Village's NEWSIES Brings Intimacy to the Big Splashy Musical
by Jay Irwin - November 10, 2017

Dear Readers, I won't bore you with the rehash of how I feel about the stage adaptation of Disney's Newsies from my disappointment of the restructuring of the story and songs from the movie, to the required suspension of disbelief that any of these dancers are young newsBOYS, to the fact that Jack...

BWW Review: Rich Talent, Poor Narrative in Wall Street Satire 63 TRILLION at West of Lenin
by Amelia Reynolds - November 07, 2017

Good satire needs two things: merciless mockery, and a compelling narrative. Sandbox Radio's farcical 63 Trillion nails the mockery, but focuses so much of its attention on cramming in as many double-entendres as possible that the narrative becomes secondary to the dick jokes....

BWW Review: Firepower Performances, No-Nonsense Storytelling with Theatre22's BURN THIS at 12th Ave Arts
by Amelia Reynolds - October 31, 2017

Whether it be platonic or romantic, everyone has been in a relationship with someone who makes no sense for them, or is unhealthy for them, or both. But at the time, it satisfied a need. It's a very specific kind of relationship that, if handled poorly by the director or the actors, will be glaringl...

BWW Review: ArtsWest's THE NANCE Spotlights a Shame in our History with Tragic Beauty and Humor
by Jay Irwin - October 31, 2017

Did you know, Dear Readers, that as recently as the 1930's, gay men could be arrested for meeting in public? Maybe? But did you also know that in New York it became just as unthinkable to portray a gay character on stage? Just one of those shameful points in our history that's beautifully illumin...

BWW Review: Showtunes' BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY Wows with Voices but Not Much Else
by Jay Irwin - October 31, 2017

I'm usually a sucker for a good sappy romance but I'll admit I missed the bandwagon where The Bridges of Madison County was concerned. I never saw the movie or read the book so any kind of name recognition or nostalgic feelings for a musical of this are lost on me and the show would have to exist...

BWW Review: Seattle Shakes' THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR Bribes Us with Delicious Cartoon Farce
by Jay Irwin - October 28, 2017

There's a certain hilarious show leaving Seattle and leaving a void in the comedy that we all desperately need in these tumultuous times. But luckily for us Seattle Shakespeare Company has just the thing to fill that void with their uproarious Russian farce The Government Inspector . A production...