This week, two productions at the Tennessee Williams Festival join the list along with a hit musical at the Fox.
New This Week:
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| Come From Away |
The Fabulous Fox Theatre presents the musical
Come From Away opening on Tuesday, May 14, at 7:30 pm and running through May 26. "The New York Times Critics' Pick takes you into the heart of the remarkable true story of 7,000 stranded passengers and the small town in Newfoundland that welcomed them. Cultures clashed and nerves ran high, but uneasiness turned into trust, music soared into the night, and gratitude grew into enduring friendships." The Fabulous Fox Theatre in on N. Grand in Grand Center. For more information:
fabulousfox.com.
My take: Some musicals are hits despite their books. Come From Away is a hit largely
because of its tightly constructed and emotionally powerful book. With book, music, and lyrics by the team of Irene Sankoff and David Hein--whose charming
My Mother's Lesbian Jewish Wiccan Wedding got such
a wonderful production at New Jewish Theatre four years ago--
Come From Away never fails to entertain, delight, and move.
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A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur
Photo by Peter Wochniak |
The Tennessee Williams Festival presents
A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur Saturdays and Sundays at 1 and 5 pm through May 19. "Four eccentric and unforgettable women fry chicken, plan a picnic to Creve Coeur Lake, and cope with loneliness and lost dreams in an efficiency apartment on Enright Avenue in the Central West End circa the mid-1930s. Williams gives us more laughs than usual, but no less poetry or poignancy. Williams believed that growing up in St. Louis was essential to the shape of his work. A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur is one of his few plays set here, and was the inspiration behind TV's "The Golden Girls." Featuring an all-female cast, A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur will be directed by Kari Ely." Performances take place at the Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square in Grand Center. For more information:
twstl.org.
My take: The Tennessee Williams Festival has had an admirable history of imaginative productions, and this one appears to be in keeping with that history. In
her review for KDHX calls this "a funny, well-acted comedy that will likely leave you in good spirits."
At Ladue News, Mark Bretz agree. "Delightful performances by a quartet of actresses under the loving direction of Kari Ely," he writes, "make this seldom-performed little gem by Tennessee Williams a rewarding encounter at the Tennessee Williams Festival St. Louis".
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Night of the Iguana
Photo by Peter Wochniak |
The Tennessee Williams Festival St. Louis presents
Night of the Iguana Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:30 pm and Sundays at 3 pm through May 19. "The steamy and startling Iguana is one of the most richly textured and dramatically satisfying plays written by Williams. At its center is Shannon, a pastor who has lost his flock, has lost his religion, and has-at the very least- misplaced his sanity and sense of decency. He takes refuge at a rundown resort owned by the lusty and busty Maxine, where they are soon joined by the beautifully refined but repressed Hannah, in the company of Nonno, her nonagenarian grandfather. These two may be scam artists, but they are artists all the same; as such, they offer some brief hope of redemption." Performances take place at the Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square in Grand Center. For more information:
twstl.org.
My take: Speaking of the festival, Steve Callahan
at KDHX calls this an "outstanding production...led by a stellar performance by James Butz as Shannon." It's a show packed with great work,"
writes Ann Lemmons Pollack. "Tim Ocel directed, clearly using a clear vision of what this ought to be, and he's delivered in spades."
Night of the Iguana is one of Williams's stronger scripts, and it looks like the festival is doing it up right.
Held Over:
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Death Tax
Photo by Jill Ritter Photography |
Mustard Seed Theatre presents
Death Tax by Lucas Hnath Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 2 pm through May 19. "As Maxine nears the end of her life she is certain of three things: Death, Taxes and the Greed of her daughter who wants her to die quickly. A desperate nurse vows to keep her alive, but at what cost? Darkly comic, the play explores morality and forgiveness." Performances take place at the Fontbonne Fine Arts Theatre, 6800 Wydown Blvd. For more information, call (314) 719-8060 or visit the web site at
www.mustardseedtheatre.com.
My take: When I saw the world premiere of this play at the Humana Festival back in 2012,
I wrote that it had a dramatic power that couldn't be denied, demonstrating forcibly the corrupting effects of money and power—and, for that matter, of want and powerlessness. Lucas Hnath's play raises disturbing questions: as medical science advances, will we become a race divided between those who can purchase virtual immortality and those who can't? And what will that mean?
Death Tax suggests the answers might not be pleasant. I won't get to see this production until next week, but I'm going to recommend it anyway based on my admiration for Hnath's work as a playwright and on the quality Mustard Seed's work in general.
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