Recent Reviews
Review: Side Show by Trinity Street Players
by Michael Meigs
Published on October 18, 2018
The real appeal of the piece is the Side Show cast, which is a rich candy box of Austin musical theatre performers exulting in the pieces by Bill Russell and composer Henry Krieger.
Theatre art is always a time machine of sorts, and the Trinity Street Players give us a lens into at least four eras: the early 20th century of tawdry sideshows, higher toned vaudeville, and pre-Code motion pictures; the mid-1990's when Bill Russell's musical about the conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton surprised and intrigued New York theatre; 2014 when the show was reworked and revived successfully; and our own world of 2018, where the diversity …
Review: Toc Toc by Pedemonte Productions
by Michael Meigs
Published on October 08, 2018
TOC TOC, extensively and artfully marketed to Austin's Spanish-speaking public, sparkles and captivates. Producer Alex Pedemonte is the spark plug of the action, and Monica Fossi captures our hearts.
The cordial collaboration between Alex Pedemonte and Austin’s Scottish Rite Theatre delivers a lively, funny evening that’s valuable both as amusement and as a look into the sense of humor of Spanish-speaking urban audiences. The 2005 comedy Toc Toc by Frenchman Laurent Baffié was translated into Spanish by Julián Quintilla in 2010, and it’s become a success that out-Simons Neil Simon. Toc Toc is still running in Madrid, with more that 1500 performances to date; …
Review: "Some Humans Were Harmed in the Making of this Show" by En Route Productions
by Justin M. West
Published on September 28, 2018
The final act of this brilliant piece shifts the tone from farcical to poignant -- jarring, but the pacing is spot on. What began as an absurdist, avant-garde comedy very quickly becomes far more serious and thoughtful, and we’re left feeling regretful for ever having laughed in the first place.
I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I just saw a show that billed itself as a "drag, puppetry, self-help testimony play inspired by the 1903 public execution of Topsy the elephant" and emphatically replied. I didn’t even know who Topsy was. Surely, I thought, good or bad, this show is guaranteed to entertain. Right? "*some humans were harmed in the making of this show," written by CB Goodman and presented by En Route Productions, …
Review: Your Mother's Copy of the Kama Sutra by Present Company Theatre
by David Glen Robinson
Published on September 25, 2018
Kirk Lynn's bold new play offers a message transcending generations and putting us in touch with our authentic selves. It deserves heightened attention and a better venue. Leads Judd Farris and Amber Quick are dueling torches of fury.
Present Company has just mounted the regional premiere of the latest play by the Rude Mechs’ Kirk Lynn, Your Mother’s Copy of the Kama Sutra. Alexandra Bassiakou Shaw directs. The show is up currently at The Museum of Human Achievement (MoHA) on the east side. The play is an adults-only exploration of generational change in sex and sexuality in the millennial world, but one restricted to the urban upper middle class. Anyone expecting a universalizing …
Review: Black Dog by Bottle Alley Theatre Company
by Justin M. West
Published on September 14, 2018
BLACK DOG's running themes are abuse and social anxiety. Attachment and retribution. The bonds of love and friendship, and the deepest caverns of human depravity. Through lengthy monologues and thoughtful abstractions, the audience is forced to ask... why?
Bottle Alley, brainchild of local playwright Chris Fontanes, is nothing if not offbeat. If you're in the mood to dress to the nines and buy your trophy wife a $9 plastic cup half-filled with some shitty Merlot or another, this is not the theatre company for you. However, if you desire something original, risky, and challenging, and you don't mind using bug spray before watching a show in a creepy ass barn filled with shit …
Review: Monroe by Austin Playhouse
by David Glen Robinson
Published on September 12, 2018
Dr. Lisa Thompson's MONROE with its sharp script gives life to a dark period in our recent history, filling it with hope, struggle, drama, and humor. Monroe gives us a privileged, authentic look at lives hitherto unrevealed.
Once again, Austin is privileged to host a world premiere play, Monroe by Lisa B. Thompson. The Monroe of the title is Monroe, in northeastern Louisiana. At the time of the play, 1946, Monroe and its surrounding parish held the dubious distinction for the period 1877-1950 of suffering the fifth highest number of lynchings in the United States And yes, this play is about that. As Playwright Thompson writes in the program notes: “…my …