Central New York Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 10

BWW Review: MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET Comes to Life at the Central New York Playhouse
by Natasha Ashley - December 15, 2018

The Central New York Playhouse Holiday production for this season is the timeless classic Miracle on 34th Street under the direction of Bella Calabria. production, set in present day, is heartwarming, nostalgic, and, as per usual, demonstrates the devotion of the community theater performers to thei...

BWW Review: THE SOUND OF MUSIC Enchants at The Landmark Theatre
by Natasha Ashley - December 12, 2018

The latest touring production enchanting audiences at the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse, New York is none other than Rodgers and Hammerstein's Tony Award-winning 1959 musical The Sound of Music. Purely breathtaking and nostalgic, it, of course, features favorite and familiar musical numbers such as "...

BWW Review: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF at Rochester Broadway Theatre League
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - December 13, 2018

Fiddler on the Roof is one of the most iconic and memorable shows in the musical theatre cannon, having originated on Broadway over 50 years ago and seen scores of revivals, and a feature length film, in the intervening years. The production currently playing at Rochester's Auditorium Theatre until ...

BWW Review: A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS at the Redhouse is the Perfect Holiday Treat
by Natasha Ashley - December 10, 2018

Memories and tradition are a large part of the Holiday and watching Bill Mendez and Lee Mendelson's television special A Charlie Brown Christmas is certainly a Holiday tradition for many children and adults. The Redhouse Arts Center brings Eric Shaeffer's stage adaptation by (with special arrangemen...

BWW Review: A CHRISTMAS CAROL at Geva Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - December 06, 2018

It's that time of year again. Time for cookies and eggnog, wrapping presents and hanging mistletoe, the relentless barrage of 'Dominic the Donkey' and 'Santa, Baby'. Love them or hate them, the Christmas season is a time for traditions, and one tradition that helps nullify the dredge of office holid...

BWW Review: THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA MCBRIDE at JCC CenterStage Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - December 04, 2018

JCC Centerstage continues its 2018-2019 season with a play as unique and ambitious as its season opener (Becoming Dr. Ruth). The Legend of Georgie McBride, a Rochester-area premiere written in 2015 by Matthew Lopez, highlights the JCC's commitment to staging unique and diverse stories, as well as fe...

BWW Review: Syracuse City Ballet's Annual Tradition of THE NUTCRACKER at Crouse Hinds Theater
by Natasha Ashley - December 03, 2018

This past weekend the Syracuse City Ballet, the only professional ballet company serving the Central New York community, presented its annual festive and heartwarming production of The Nutcracker astutely directed and choreographed by Syracuse City Ballet founding Artistic Director Kathleen Rathbun....

BWW Review: Syracuse Stage and Syracuse University Department of Drama Bring Holiday Cheer with ELF THE MUSICAL
by Natasha Ashley - December 02, 2018

The Syracuse Stage and Syracuse University (SU) Department of Drama Holiday production is an annual tradition for many Central New Yorkers. This year, the family friendly holiday show Elf the Musical is the perfect start to the Holiday season. The production features fabulous SU drama students, loca...

BWW Review: IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE: A LIVE MUSICAL RADIO PLAY at Screen Plays
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - November 22, 2018

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BWW Review: LES MISERABLES at Rochester Broadway Theatre League
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - November 21, 2018

Les Miserables has been an audience favorite for nearly 40 years for all the reasons you would imagine: its memorable, emotionally impactful characters; the songs that stick in your head; the epic battle sequences; and its timeless themes of forgiveness, morality, and love. The touring production cu...

BWW Review: THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW at Blackfriars Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 29, 2018

Just in time for Halloween, Blackfriars Theatre is bringing Rochester the pinnacle leather-clad cult classic, possibly the only musical/science fiction/ horror/comedy in the theatre annals. Prepare to do the Time Warp, because The Rocky Horror Show has landed!...

BWW Review: BROADWAY TODAY at Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 27, 2018

This weekend the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra joins forces with three titans of the stage to bring you the sounds of Broadway with two performances of 'Broadway Today', in which Rochester's premiere symphony orchestra, led by charismatic maestro Jeff Tyzik and joined by Rick Faugno (Jersey Boys,...

BWW Review: THURGOOD at Geva Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 21, 2018

Rochester's Geva Theatre has followed its Wilson Stage season opener Hair with another production of weighty political significance. While Hair deals with the cultural and social impact of the hippy movement in the 19060's, Thurgood explores the life and legal/historical contributions of Thurgood Ma...

BWW Review: POSSESSING HARRIET an Intriguing World Premiere Play at Syracuse Stage
by Natasha Ashley - October 20, 2018

Syracuse Stage – Central New York's premier professional theatre in residence at Syracuse University – is bringing an intense world premiere play Possessing Harriet to its loyal audience base. The historical play, meticulously researched and written by award-winning local playwright and Syracuse Sta...

BWW Review: A BRONX TALE at Rochester Broadway Theatre League
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 19, 2018

If you've ever seen the movie or one-man-show version of A Bronx Tale you already know that it's a captivating, emotional story about a young working class man growing up during the doo-wop era of the 1960's who's torn between the opposing worlds of criminal life on the streets and the proverbial 's...

BWW Review: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF National Tour Previews at The Landmark Theatre
by Natasha Ashley - October 18, 2018

The US national tour of the classic musical Fiddler on the Roof has begun its short preview run at the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse, New York, kicking off the Famous Artists Broadway Theater Series: Broadway in Syracuse. The opening night performance of this familiar favorite was beautifully perform...

BWW Review: Syracuse University's Department of Drama Modernizes INTO THE WOODS
by Natasha Ashley - October 15, 2018

Over the weekend I had the absolute pleasure of seeing Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods reimagined at the Storch Theatre in the Syracuse Stage Complex. Director David Lowenstein brilliantly brings those fairy tale stories and characters to life as if they were written and created for present times....

BWW Review: KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN is a Web of Misses at The Central New York Playhouse
by Natasha Ashley - October 13, 2018

The Central New York Playhouse has earned a reputation for taking on some shows that are not often seen in the community theater realm and they typically do those productions well enough. There are usually enough positive elements that make it easy to overlook the negative ones. Unfortunately, in th...

BWW Review: A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE at MuCCC
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 12, 2018

Screen Plays, a unique gem within the Rochester theatre community, has brought to life one of the most iconic and ambitious works of the American theatre repertoire. Its famously heavy themes make it tough for any local theatre troupe to tackle, but the production currently playing at Rochester's Mu...

BWW Review: FORTUNE at Geva Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 11, 2018

Returning to Geva Theatre where her play Informed Consent premiered in 2014, Deborah Zoe Laufer brings us Fortune, a quirky love story that teaches us to leave our comfort zone and open ourselves up to others....

BWW Review: BECOMING DR. RUTH at JCC CenterStage Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - October 08, 2018

It wouldn't be odd to presume that a one-woman show about America's most famous sex therapist would be mostly about...well, sex. While sex and the role it plays in our lives is certainly a part of the story, Becoming Dr. Ruth, currently playing at JCC's CenterStage, is much deeper than that. It exam...

BWW Review: BEEHIVE is a Blast at The Merry-Go-Round Playhouse
by Natasha Ashley - September 30, 2018

Just like that the 2018 season ends at the Merry-Go-Round Playhouse in Auburn, New York - and it ends with the empowering and mesmerizing production of Larry Gallagher's Beehive: The 60s Musical. First off, I am not a fan of 'jukebox musicals,' but I guess there is always an exception and it is this...

BWW Review: HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH at Lyric Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - September 16, 2018

The Rochester Fringe Festival is one of Upstate New York's cultural beacons (along with its Jazz Festival, Park Ave Festival, and Gay Film Festival, among many others). Each year it features performers known and unknown, showcasing everything from improv theatre to modern dance, macabre storytelling...

BWW Review: NOISES OFF is a Perfectly on Point Production Full of Laughter at Syracuse Stage
by Natasha Ashley - September 15, 2018

Syracuse Stage's Artistic Director Robert Hupp once again provides local audiences with a perfectly paced, perfectly cast, and the perfect escape from the outside world theatrical experience. His production of Michael Frayn's hilarious farce Noises Off showcases the impeccable comedic skills of vete...

BWW Review: HAIR at Geva Theatre
by Colin Fleming-Stumpf - September 10, 2018

'An all-engrossing, captivating theatrical experience that you surely won't forget.'...