DOCTOR U provides the right prescription for laughs
SALT LAKE CITY – I tend to have mixed feelings about the Off Broadway Theater (OBT). They produce melodrama-type productions spoofing pop culture, much in the vein of another popular…
SEE HOW THEY RUN is worth a look
LINDON – I have a special place in my heart for little community theaters. There is something elemental that arises when the space can hold less than one hundred people,…
A FLEA IN HER EAR: a fascinating farce
SALT LAKE CITY – Chuck Jones, the animator behind the golden era of Warner Brothers cartoons, said, “Comedy is unusual people in real situations; farce is real people in unusual…
Script, set, and old ladies are strengths in ARSENIC AND OLD LACE
CENTERVILLE — Arsenic and Old Lace is one of those classic shows that has witty and crisp dialogue, a funny and outrageous plot, and can get the audience rooting for…
Lead actress and designers create a beautiful A PHILADELPHIA STORY
SALT LAKE CITY — I sat happily through the production of A Philadelphia Story, at the Pioneer Theater Company, making notes to later compose my review. I didn’t have to…
THE 39 STEPS leads to an adventure in laughs
WEST VALLEY CITY — Start with one arena stage, two straight backed chairs, three old fashioned steamer trunks, and four extremely versatile actors. Toss in a foley artist and a…
Orem Hale’s LEND ME A TENOR took some warming up
OREM — I love a good farce. With mistaken identities, slamming doors, running back and forth, and just a dash of innuendo, Ken Ludwig’s Lend Me a Tenor is a…
Laughing Matters’s WORST OF show is an uneven evening
PROVO — In everyone’s music collection there is an album or two labeled “greatest hits” or “best of.” These compilations are a great way for casual fans of a band…
Merry BIG FAT UTAH CHRISTMAS to me
MURRAY — Producing original melodramas since 1989, Desert Star has created their own recipe for success: the ragtime prelude and an audience sing along, the original script with plenty of…
Wasatch’s COMPLETE WORKS OF SHAKESPEARE is lethargic, flawed
SALT LAKE CITY — I’ll admit it. I was selfish when I saw that The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged) was on UTBA’s reviewing calendar again. I snatched up the…