Raleigh Theater Reviews

BWW Reviews: SISTER ACT Lifts Spirits in Durham

The lauded film-turned-hit-Broadway-musical Sister Act has come to town and is playing at the Durham Performing Arts Center. The show has everything from crime drama to nun choreography. It's fun for the whole family. (more...)

BWW Reviews: Raleigh Natives Shine in NC Theatre's THE DROWSY CHAPERONE

It's an old-fashioned musical - with a twist. NC Theatre's current production is the 2006 Broadway musical, The Drowsy Chaperone, subtitled, 'A Musical Within a Comedy.' The show's premise is that the narrator, named simply Man in Chair, guides the audience through his favorite show album (on vinyl, of course), the fictitious 1928 The Drowsy Chaperone. In a tongue-in-cheek look at the musical comedies of Broadway in the 1920s, the Man in Chair provides modern-day commentary on the things that make such shows at once laughable and wonderful. The show-within-the-show tells of a star, Janet Van Der Graaff, about to give up life on stage for marriage. Of course, no classic musical would be complete without its own off-the-wall subplots. The Drowsy Chaperone includes everything from a spit-take obsessed butler/hostess pair to pun-loving gangsters disguised as bakers, as well as Van Der Graaff's chaperone who has her own romantic entanglements with the hopelessly clumsy Adolfo. The premise is what makes this show work - the modern-day lens creates a show which is accessible without sacrificing on humor. (more...)

BWW Reviews: Fabulous and Heartwarming, PRISCILLA Takes on Durham

Durham just got a whole lot more glittery! (more...)

BWW Reviews: SPELLING BEE Gets Big Laughs in Downtown Raleigh

The current production at Hot Summer Nights | Theatre Raleigh, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee follows a group of kids (played by adults) as they navigate the fiercely competitive pre-teen spelling circuit. As the young characters compete for the top prize (a trip to Washington, DC to compete in nationals), they deal with social pressures, family tension, rampant hormones, and more. Don't let the plaid jumpers and pink overalls fool you - though this show is about kids, it's certainly for adults. The writing provides a grown-up's perspective on the chaos of pre-adolescence as the contestants proclaim that life is 'Pandemonium.' Audience members get in on the action as well, as several volunteers become contestants in the bee. Folks who are game for anything and don't mind some good-natured humor aimed their way should absolutely try their hand at the bee. (more...)

BWW Reviews: UNIVERSES' SPRING TRAINING Brings New Perspective to Chapel Hill

Closing out the 2012-2013 season at PlayMakers Repertory Company is the world premeire of Spring Training, a commissioned work by UNIVERSES, as a part of their prc2 line-up. UNIVERSES is a group of performers who create original work using a blend of performance styles, including vocal percussion, spoken poetry, music, and prose (and much more) to create dynamic new theater. Spring Training was inspired by Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, and deals with coming of age in America. (more...)

BWW Reviews: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST is Jolly Fun in Raleigh

The cast is truly an ensemble, but as Algernon Moncrieff, Gus Allen anchors the play with poise and consistency. Though the British accents aren't perfect, the actors seem to enjoy their work, and that translates to the audience. Though written over 100 years ago, the acting and directing prove that Wilde's work is still comically relevant and makes an entirely enjoyable evening of theater. (more...)

BWW Reviews: RUINED Brings Africa to the Triangle

Burning Coal Theatre Company's ambitious production of Ruined tells of the lives of women in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Amid a conflict which has no clearly defined 'good guys,' the women have little reprieve from the violence and well-established culture of sexual abuse. In a world where children are handed automatic weapons, no one is safe. The story follows Mama Nadi as she runs her own business, which is half bar and half brothel. Mama takes in women to work for her in the brothel, and it can be argued that the women are significantly safer there with Mama Nadi, since they cannot return to their villages and have no way of protecting themselves or earning income elsewhere. Making her own way as a single woman in war-torn Africa, Mama Nadi is rare. Three women who work for her, Josephine, Salima, and Sophie, are featured in the story. Mama takes a big risk by taking in Sophie, a girl who is 'ruined.' The meaning of 'ruined' is not explicitly evident, but it's clear that it devastatingly awful. Mama Nadi's is a somewhat neutral place, as men from both sides of the conflict patronize the establishment. Mama is no-nonsense, and maintains a strict 'leave your bullets at the bar' policy. (more...)

BWW Reviews: Relevant and Masterful CABARET at PlayMakers Rep

PlayMakers Repertory Company in Chapel Hill is currently staging a production of Kander and Ebb's 1967 Tony Award-winning best musical Cabaret that is racy, dazzling, and thought-provoking. Starting and ending on two very different trains, and set largely in the Kit Kat Klub nightclub and in a boarding house, Cabaret features many characters of uncertain goals, ambiguous sexuality, and real heart, who are, whether they are willing to admit it or not, facing real danger with the rise of the Nazi Party looming. Though perhaps existing on society's fringe, the show is a real testament to the average German and their inability (or even refusal) to believe that something truly terrible could be brewing in their own nation. Interestingly enough, the story is largely told through the story of a Brit, Sally Bowles (played to perfection by Lisa Brescia), and an American, her lover Cliff Bradshaw (the undeniably charming John Dreher), as they provide a sort of outsider's perspective on how people reacted to the decline of Weimar Germany and the rise of Nazism. Hosted by the club's Emcee, played by Taylor Mac, the show goes from glitzy dance numbers to heartfelt ballads and back again as it navigates through one of the most tenuous times in the history of the Western world. (more...)

BWW Reviews: TIGERS BE STILL is Quirky Fun in Raleigh

The Actors Comedy Lab and Raleigh Little Theatre present playwright Kim Rosenstock's Tigers Be Still, a dark but hilarious tale of depression, grief, and escaped zoo animals. Presented in Raleigh Little Theatre's Gaddy Goodwin Teaching Theatre, Tigers Be Still is the simple enough story of a young woman, Sherry, trying to get her life back together as she starts her job as a middle school art teacher with a side gig as an art therapist. Oh, and it also happens that a tiger has escaped from the local zoo. (more...)

BWW Reviews: THE INNOCENTS is a Strong Debut for Common Wealth Endeavors

The theater scene in the Triangle is thriving, and a brand new theater company is jumping into the mix. There are so many wonderful voices bringing live theater to the area, and this one fits right in. Common Wealth Endeavors opened its debut season (which has been coined a 'beta test' of sorts) with the US premiere of young Canadian playwright Daniel Karasik's The Innocents. (more...)

BWW Reviews: Little Green Pig Brings Absurdism to the Triangle with DERKLÖWNSCHPANKENEFFEKT

The Little Green Pig Theatrical Concern is staging two pieces from the canon of the Theatre of the Absurd, both by Polish playwright S?awomir Mro?ek. Out at Sea and Striptease together create a night of theater titled derklownschpankeneffekt. Each of the two plays, approximately forty minutes apiece, is quite different. One features three men stuck on a raft far out to sea, and the other features two men (who may or may not be the same man, it's hard to tell) trapped in a room after encountering one another, at the mercy of a giant hand who wants their clothes. (more...)

BWW Reviews: ANYTHING GOES is a Hit in Durham

The 2011 Tony Award-winning Best Revival has docked in Durham and brings honest-to-goodness Broadway talent to the Triangle. Anything Goes is tap dancing its way into the hearts of audiences who are eager to see a traditional musical get new life. (more...)

BWW Review: One-Actor Show NOCTURNE Keeps Momentum with Mortall Coile and Burning Coal

One-actor shows are such a specific kind of challenge - how does one actor keep up the momentum? How does one actor keep the show lively and engaging? How does one actor memorize over an hour and a half of text? I certainly don't know the answers to any of those questions, but luckily actor Jesse R. Gephart and director Dana Marks have got it all figured out. (more...)

BWW Reviews: CLYBOURNE PARK Tackles Big Issues in Chapel Hill

PlayMakers Repertory Company is unafraid to tackle big issues, issues that are polarizing, issues which make audiences uncomfortable. The magic of PlayMakers is their ability to tackle those issues while showing their respect for the intelligence of the audience and trusting audiences to understand the value of taking risks in the theater. This has never been so true as with Clybourne Park. (more...)

BWW Reviews: MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT Brings the Funny to Raleigh

The winner of the 2005 Tony Award for Best Musical, Monty Python's Spamalot is has taken up residence in Raleigh, presented by NC Theatre and Broadway Series South. It is playing through Sunday at the Raleigh Memorial Auditorium in the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts. (more...)

BWW Reviews: MARY POPPINS Flies into Durham

The world's best nanny has just flown into Durham, and has taken up residence at the Durham Performing Arts Center for one week only. (more...)

BWW Reviews: PlayMakers Rep's A RAISIN IN THE SUN Brings 1950s Chicago to the Triangle

PlayMakers Repertory Company in Chapel Hill is currently showing Lorraine Hansberry's 1959 play A Raisin in the Sun, playing in rotating repertory with Bruce Norris's sequel-of-sorts, Clybourne Park. In some ways a period piece, and in some ways shockingly current, A Raisin in the Sun is a gutsy look at race in America, from a voice and perspective that had gone largely silenced until the play's original production. (more...)

BWW Reviews: BUS STOP Brings Small-Town Charm to Raleigh

Bus Stop, written in 1955 by William Inge, and currently playing at Raleigh Little Theatre, tells the story of a Kansas country diner which, as the title implies, doubles as a bus stop, in the middle of a snow storm that strands several travelers. The travelers come from all walks of life, and include two cowboys, a night club singer, and a professor with a drinking habit and a proclivity for teenage girls. Add to the mix the diner owner, the bus driver, a high school-age waitress, and the town sheriff, and things really get interesting. The plot lines range from a cowboy trying to re-light the spark of a romance gone south to the bus driver's less-than-perfect ruse to secretly get the diner owner alone upstairs. Moments in the show run the spectrum of serious to comedic, but manage to achieve some real humanity along the way. The show is written in the style one would expect from a 1950s play - a little too polished, but loveable nonetheless. (more...)

BWW Reviews: GOOD Stirs Up Intrigue in Downtown Raleigh

Currently playing at the Burning Coal Theatre Company is Good, the WWII-era period play which follows an unlikely Nazi leader from writing novels all the way to supervising Auschwitz. (more...)

BWW Reviews: New Musical NERDS Takes on Raleigh

The new musical comedy, NERDS, is trying to make its way to Broadway, and it's starting out right here in Raleigh. This is a great opportunity for the Triangle theater community, and the show is absolutely worth a trip downtown. (more...)

BWW Reviews: On the Way to Broadway, JEKYLL & HYDE Comes to Durham

Jekyll & Hyde is hitting Broadway this spring, but it's making a pit-stop right here in the Triangle on the way. It's a rare and fun chance to see a show before it opens on the Great White Way. Top that off with three show-stopping stars, and it amounts to a theatrical experience you won't want to miss. (more...)

BWW Reviews: Keeping With Tradition at Raleigh Little Theatre's CINDERELLA

Raleigh Little Theatre's production of Cinderella is absolutely kid-friendly. It's my opinion that kids need theater early and often. So, why not let your kids dress up as Cinderella or Prince Charming and experience theater that is accessible for them? Your kid may even get to try on a glass slipper. (more...)

BWW Reviews: MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET Brings Legends to Life in Durham

Put on your blue suede shoes and head down to the Durham Performing Arts Center for a fun-filled evening of rock and roll legends. Million Dollar Quartet tells of the historic night, December 4, 1956, when four legends happened to be in the recording studio at Sun Records at the same time: Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Elvis Presley, and Johnny Cash. (more...)

BWW Reviews: Burning Coal's AS YOU LIKE IT

This winter, the Burning Coal Theatre Company in Raleigh offers a respite from the cold and into the forest of Arden with As You Like It. The play is a Shakespeare comedy first published in 1623, and follows would-be lovers Rosalind and Orlando into the forest of Arden after being banished from court. Rosalind and her cousin Celia are disguised - Rosalind as a man named Ganymede and Celia as a poor woman named Aliena. The forest is filled with more than its fair share of disguise and shenanigans as the characters therein try to navigate the confusing path to love and happiness. (more...)

BWW Reviews: AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY is a Win for Hot Summer Nights | Theatre Raleigh

If you think your family is crazy, just wait until you meet the Westons. The Weston family is the center of Tracy Letts' emotionally-charged Pulitzer Prize-winning drama August: Osage County, currently in performance at the Fletcher Opera Theatre at the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts, helmed by Hot Summer Nights | Theatre Raleigh. (more...)