Recent Reviews
Review: Smokey Joe's Cafe by Tex-Arts
by Brian Paul Scipione
Published on February 19, 2018
Smokey Joe’s Café is a must-see for anyone who is a fan of the music of the fifties and sixties -- or anyone in need of a rollicking good time!
Pop music has evolved throughout the years but in one of is earliest incarnations it was constrained by an approximate three-minute song limit. Music historians point out that the reason for this is because a 45 record could only hold that much music, so in order to get your song on the radio you had to, in the words of Billy Joel “cut it down to 3:05.” Many songwriters of the time took this …
Review: School of Rock by touring company
by Brian Paul Scipione
Published on February 17, 2018
School of Rock is cast pitch perfect, and it's a refreshing break to see a show that is all about having fun and sticking it to the man.
“It’s called growing up, you should try it.” So, says Patty to Dewey Finn, an out of work rock and roll singer and guitarist. Dewey’s just been fired from his last band and has been sponging of Patty’s boyfriend Ned Schneebly, his old, loyal friend and former bandmate. Dewey is at rock bottom, so he does what’s only natural for him: he tries to find a way to sink lower. This he does by stealing …
Review: Esther, a new musical by SoundBeacon Entertainment
by Michael Meigs
Published on February 17, 2018
Newly founded SoundBeacon Entertainment took on this big project in ambitious style and with a good understanding of how to market it. Expect to hear more from them before long.
Austin's new production company SoundBeacon Entertainment took over the Kleberg, Zach Theatre's mid-sized stage, for a one-night oratorio presentation of Esther, A New Musical, a work by board members Glenna Bowman and Matthew Shead along with pianist-composer Thomas Azar. The fourteen-member local cast was led by Austin favorites Ryan Smith in the title role and tall, well-mannered and mellifluous Matthew Redden, aptly cast as King Xerxes. Other faces were equally familiar from Austin's musical …
Review: The Seagull by Austin Shakespeare
by Michael Meigs
Published on February 15, 2018
Moral: Great thoughts, particularly those of Art (with a capital "A") that would make Existence meaningful sink like deadweight, leaving us with yearnings that carry us along through life like rafts of shipwrecked timber.
Entertainment site TimeOut Austin ran an interview with director Ann Ciccolella under the title "'The Seagull' Takes Flight at Austin Shakespeare." Written no doubt with the best of intentions and presumably without the advice of interviewer Andrew J. Friedenthal, that heading was one of terrible, unintended irony. Chekhov would have appreciated it. Because the titular seagull of Chekhov's first major success as a playwright doesn't fly at all. It's a dead bird, shot down …
Review #1 of 2: THE FATHER by Jarrott Productions
by Brian Paul Scipione
Published on February 13, 2018
The audience was so wowed at the show that I attended that they were still holding their breath during the beginning of the curtain call, taking a beat themselves to fully process what they had just seen. And understandably so.
Travelling to a new place can be nerve-wracking. Certainly, it’s the worth the adventure and the thrill of seeing new things and meeting new people, but there’s always an underlining sense of unease. That is why hotels are so important in our culture, just as the village inn was thousands of years ago. No matter how your day goes--exhausting walks, strange foods, the not-quite-perfect communication with the locals--you can retreat to your hotel room. It is …
Review #2 of 2: The Father by Jarrott Productions
by Michael Meigs
Published on February 13, 2018
Director Rick Roemer and the cast create an engrossing, complex story unfolded, almost literally, in compelling rhythm. David Jarrott's performance as the beleaguered father will stay with you for a long time.
No novice to theatre, David Jarrott established his eponymous stage company in 2015 to produce Freud's Last Session with himself in the title role. Nothing wrong with that; there's a long and honorable tradition of actor-entrepreneurs gathering companies about them as they select dramatic works they can star in. Jarrott's done a good job of it, too, in choosing works that are smart and intelligent (adjectives that are not exact synonyms), recruiting really gifted talent, …