This review aired on KBAQ May 25, 2015

LEAST SUCCESSFUL BROADWAY MUSICALS AND SEEING BROADWAY THEATER

BROADWAY REVIEW THREE
“Something Rotten,” “Doctor Zhivago,” and “Gigi”
New York, NY

In this last of three looks at current Broadway shows, I will review three more musicals I saw including the amusing “Something Rotten” and two of the least successful musicals I saw, “Doctor Zhivago” and “Gigi.”  I will also wrap up my coverage with some general comments about attending Broadway theater.

“Something Rotten” is a hysterical musical dissecting the battle between Shakespeare and his chief playwrighting rival, Nick Bottom.  Watching Broadway veteran Brian d’Arcy James breeze through Nick … Continue Reading

This review aired on KBAQ May 21, 2015

SIX NEW BROADWAY MUSICALS – HOW GOOD ARE THEY?

BROADWAY REVIEW TWO
“The King and I,” “An American In Paris,” and “The Visit”
New York, NY

Earlier, I reviewed two plays I recently saw on Broadway.  Today, I’ll analyze three of the six musicals I enjoyed including an opulent “The King and I,” a masterful stage adaptation of the film musical “An American In Paris,” and “The Visit,” a depressing but musically brilliant 10-year-old show starring the radiant Broadway star, Chita Rivera.

If I had to single out the best of these musicals, it is the stunning “The … Continue Reading

This review aired on KBAQ May 18, 2015

BROADWAY THEATER IS AMAZING AND FULL OF UNEXPECTED SURPRISES

BROADWAY REVIEW ONE
“The Audience” and “It’s Only A Play”
New York, NY

Broadway theater is full of unexpected surprises and diverse choices.  Glitzy musicals perform throughout the theater district while plays bring contemporary folks to vibrant life.  Dark, foreboding musicals run near a new stage adaptation of a 1951 movie musical classic while a 10-year-old musical is finally making its Broadway debut as it launches a debate whether it’s about unrequited love or revenge as a once poor girl who is now the world’s richest woman returns … Continue Reading

This review aired on KBAQ May 11, 2015

“RAINBOW” PAINTS AN UNFLATTERING IMPRESSION OF SINGER JUDY GARLAND

“END OF THE RAINBOW”
Phoenix Theatre
Phoenix, AZ

Phoenix Theatre artistic director Michael Barnard worked hard to obtain the local rights to stage “End of the Rainbow,” a biographical expose of Judy Garland during her 1968 London comeback engagement just months before she committed suicide.  But the show is a bland look at this great entertainer and the production, including Jeannie Shubitz unsuccessful attempt to re-create the legendary singer, is disappointing.

We all know the awful situations that confronted Garland based on her bad handling by people who took … Continue Reading

This review aired on KBAQ May 4, 2015

ACTOR CRAFTS VIVID PORTRAIT OF ARTIST IN “A WEEKEND WITH PABLO PICASSO”

“A WEEKEND WITH PABLO PICASSO”
Arizona Theatre Company, Herberger Theater Center
Phoenix, AZ

It’s impossible not to be enraptured by actor/storyteller Herbert Siguenza (si gwen za) as he bounds about the stage with dynamic energy bringing artist Pablo Picasso to vibrant life in Arizona Theatre Company’s season closer, “A Weekend with Pablo Picasso.”

Siguenza doesn’t so much impersonate the late artist.  He interprets Picasso using the artist’s own words to showcase his artistic goals and aspirations.  Siguenza helps audiences understand how and why Picasso expressed his … Continue Reading