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New This Week:
The Monroe Actors Stage presents the drama An Inspector Calls Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 and Sundays at 2:30 p.m., April 13 - 22, in the Historic Capitol Theatre in downtown Waterloo, Illinois. For more information, visit www.masctheatre.org or call 618-939-7469.
My take: I won't be able to see this production, so this recommendation is based entirely on the fact that the play itself is a powerful indictment on the smugness and moral rot that can accompany material comfort. As such, it's as relevant now as when it was first performed in 1945, if not more so. An Inspector Calls neatly subverts the conventions of drawing-room drama to deliver a radical message which, sadly, still needs to be delivered today.
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| Jesus Christ Superstar Photo by Justin Been |
My take: Here's another one I'm recommending in advance purely on the strength of the material and on the track record of the producing company. Stray Dog has had quite a string of critical and commercial success lately with its seasons in general and in particular with its musicals. Last year's Ragtime (in which, to be fair, I performed) walked away with multiple St. Louis Theater Circle awards and sold-out houses. This production of Jesus Christ Superstar, which features some of the same stars as Ragtime, is already selling out as well. Hence the early inclusion.
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| New Jerusalem Photo by Eric Woolsey |
My take: I'm a sucker for this kind of intellectual drama, and New Jewish appears to be doing an impressive job with it. In her review for KDHX, Tina Farmer says that director Tim Ocel and his cast "work in unison to create a moving and effective show that allows history to reverberate with issues of contemporary concern...The impact of Spinoza's genius is still felt in our national conversation, and the captivating and sharply performed show contains enough story and dramatic tension to engage a broad audience."
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| Rosenkrantz and Guildernstern Are DeadPhoto by Ron James |
My take: Speaking of lively intellectual theatre, Stoppard's play is still a classic example of how to pour old wine into new bottles. It's "Shakespeare through the wrong end of the telescope" concept is brilliantly executed and always worth seeing. "The dizzying imagination of Tom Stoppard's razor-sharp mind," writes Mark Bretz at Ladue News, "is in evidence throughout this brisk, brilliant comedy currently being given a delightful rendering by St. Louis Shakespeare."
Held Over:
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| Cardboard Piano Photo by John Lamb |
My take: I'm on the play reading committee as well as the board of WEPG, and was a strong supporter of this play from the beginning. I first saw it at the Humana Festival of New American Plays at Actors Theatre of Louisville in 2016, where I was very impressed with the writing. In my review, I wrote that Cardboard Piano manages to balance the immediacy of it's "ripped from the headlines" story with a contemplation of deeper issues. As our own domestic political process plays out the conflict between a version of Christianity based on mercy and compassion vs. one based on anger and judgment, the issues in Cardboard Piano feel both immediate and timeless.
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| Hamilton |
My take: Yeah, like you need my encouragement to see this massive hit. Reviewing the Chicago production in 2016, I wrote that Hamilton is a flat-out brilliant piece of musical theatre that manages to be both educational and entertaining at the same time. In nations, as in nature, diversity is a source of strength. Hamilton is a reminder of that strength. We are, as JFK wrote in his book of the same name, "a nation of immigrants," so it's encouraging to note that, when we saw Hamilton, spontaneous applause burst out when Jefferson and Hamilton sang "immigrants: we get the job done."
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