Recent Reviews
Review: The Odd Couple by The City Theatre Company
by David Glen Robinson
Published on March 24, 2014
Putting together a theatre season boils down to nothing but choices, and for eight years Austin's City Theatre has created worlds of delight for theatergoers. Earlier this season the company gave us the uproarious Steel Magnolias by Robert Harling, as evergreen as Christmas and Hanukkah, and The Whipping Man by Matthew Lopez, a drama that taught us that every being seeks his own Promised Land. Neil Simon’s The Odd Couple, City's current production, is famous …
Review: The Crapstall Street Boys by Trouble Puppet Theatre Company
by David Glen Robinson
Published on March 03, 2014
Trouble Puppet Theatre Company has stepped to the fore in current Austin theatre with its reprise of The Crapstall Street Boys. A shorter version of the concept played in 2012 in the Fronterafest Long Fringe festival. Lest anyone take a “been there, done that” attitude toward the new Crapstall, a reassurance: this fuller realization of the story is well worth a revisit. The Crapstall Street Boys centers on the misfortunes of You Lad, who opens …
Review: Wicked
by Michael Meigs
Published on February 22, 2014
The musical Wicked is certainly epic. It's in its tenth year on Broadway, with no signs of flagging. The 2014 touring company visits Austin for a three-week run only two years after the last tour date here. They'll depart for Cinncinnati and then they'll be back to Central Texas to perform at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio March 12 - 30. I saw Wicked in Chicago almost nine years ago and enjoyed it greatly. …
Review: Circle the Wagons by The Exchange Artists
by David Glen Robinson
Published on February 18, 2014
Circle the Wagons is now playing through March 3rd in eight cars and one red pickup truck in the parking lot of Hyde Park Christian Church on 45th Street in central Austin. This one is pretty close to unique for stage presentations, and in keeping with Exchange Artists’ reputation, the quality of each of the five-minute playlets performed in eight vehicles is exceptional. Five playwrights produced the work for Exchange Artists, and Content Love Knowles …
Review: Tartuffe by Mary Moody Northen Theatre
by Michael Meigs
Published on February 18, 2014
Have you discovered the Mary Moody Northen Theatre at St. Edward's University yet? It's probably the best-kept open theatre secret in town. For decades the university's theatre department has brought Equity actors to work with their undergraduates. Early on the department brought those pros in from either the East Coast or the Left Coast, and results could be colorful and unpredictable. In recent years, and certainly over the last decade, the St. Ed's teachers have …
Review: The Whipping Man by The City Theatre Company
by David Glen Robinson
Published on February 17, 2014
Matthew Lopez’s esteemed play The Whipping Man takes on race, America’s central issue from Appomattox until now. The participation of Jewish Americans in slavery and emancipation puts a wry and tragic twist on it all. Director Stacy Glazer and Production Designer Andy Berkovsky deserve commendation from the git-go for their boldness in addressing issues that have been with us for millennia. The competent cast worked very hard to make this beast roar. Here’s the thing: …