Reviews for Classic Theatre of San Antonio Performances
Review: Bus Stop by Classic Theatre of San Antonio
by Kurt Gardner
Published on May 14, 2017
The Classic’s production, directed by Kelly Hilliard Roush, does well by the playwright’s words, and the ensemble cast works together beautifully
Human relationships can develop in a number of different ways, as demonstrated by the cross-section of characters that populate William Inge’s Bus Stop, now playing at San Antonio’s Classic Theatre. Passengers on a westbound bus find themselves delayed by a blizzard which has closed the highway. They find refuge at Grace’s Diner, a greasy spoon located some 40 miles outside of Kansas City. There’s Cherie (Alison Bridget Chambers), a self-styled “chanteuse” who dreams of …
Review: The Tempest by Classic Theatre of San Antonio
by Kurt Gardner
Published on February 23, 2017
The Bard's comic drama gets the royal treatment in the Classic Theatre's new production.
“We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.” Considered by scholars to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote entirely on his own, The Tempest is also one of his best-loved works. Typical of the Bard, the plot combines dramatic elements with comedy, but here the blending of genres is more successful than in his “problem plays.” Mark McCarver’s production, now playing at …
Review: The Santaland Diaries by Classic Theatre of San Antonio
by Kurt Gardner
Published on December 11, 2016
Playwright David Sedaris sketches a wealth of universally familiar characters that John Stillwaggon nimbly brings to life, shifting accents and attitudes in his various portrayals.
If you’re a discerning adult looking for a break from all the saccharine sweetness that comes with the holiday season, go to San Antonio’s Classic Theatre to see The Santaland Diaries. Written by acclaimed humorist David Sedaris, this one-act solo show hilariously and irreverently recounts his experiences working as an elf at Macy’s Herald Square one December. Co-directed by Kelly and Burt Roush, the Classic’s production stars a well-cast John Stillwaggon as Sedaris surrogate Crumpet the Elf. His …
Review: The School for Scandal by Classic Theatre of San Antonio
by Kurt Gardner
Published on November 11, 2016
'Rambunctious' is clearly the best word to describe the Classic Theatre's hilarious production of Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s 1777 comedy of manners, complete with cell phones and selfies.
When one thinks of a play written nearly 250 years ago, the last adjective to come to mind would be rambunctious, but that’s clearly the best word to describe the hilarious production of Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s 1777 comedy of manners The School for Scandal, now playing at the Classic Theatre. You’ve never met a nastier group of backbiting gossip mongerers than this lot. As a matter of fact, one character is literally named Backbite — …
Review: Marriage Play by Edward Albee, Classic Theatre of San Antonio
by Kurt Gardner
Published on October 10, 2016
Catherine Babbitt and Andrew Thornton are marvelous as the troubled couple. Director Tim Hedgepeth wisely strips the staging down to the essentials. Tony Ciaravino’s fight choreography, so startling, is terrific.
The late, great playwright Edward Albee certainly loved his games. In his most famous work, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, the characters spent an entire night (and early morning) playing them. In his seldom-seen two-character piece from 1987, Marriage Play, the protagonists also seem to be playing at something. Jack (Andrew Thornton) comes home to Gillian (Catherine Babbitt), his wife of 30 years, and calmly announces that he’s leaving her. She greets the news with eye-rolling …
Review: Lunt and Fontanne: The Celestials of Broadway by Classic Theatre of San Antonio
by Kurt Gardner
Published on July 22, 2016
Lang and Murphy are marvelous as the titular couple, as well as the other characters they morph into as the need arises by means of simple onstage costume changes. Lang delivers a particularly amusing Brando.
Prior to making its New York premiere at the New York Fringe Festival this coming August, Lunt and Fontanne: The Celestials of Broadway is making a welcome — if brief — stop at the Classic Theatre in San Antonio. Real-life acting couple Mark E. Lang and Alison Murphy play Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, another real-life acting couple who took Broadway by storm in the early years of the last century, even getting a theater named …