Category Archives: Community

Come fly with “Peter Pan” in Red Bank NJ

Phoenix Productions’ “Peter Pan” is the first Count Basie Theatre show following the announcement of the venue’s ambitious expansion plans. Uplifted (literally and figuratively) by Jennifer Townsend’s captivating performance, the transformation has begun…from the inside. Townsend is in her mid-twenties. … Continue reading

Blog, Community, Regional

No need to fear this “Virginia Woolf”

The last community or student production of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” I saw was at Brookdale Community College in 1995. Since then, a Regional and two Broadway revivals (2005 and ’12), but none by locals. Lately, Edward Albee’s scalding … Continue reading

Blog, Community, Regional

Shakespeare tees off: “Twelfth Night” at Holmdel

Holmdel Theatre Company’s 2000 “Twelfth Night” was as good a local Shakespeare as I’d seen. Holmdel’s current production of the same play doesn’t reach that level, but it is not for lack of effort or imagination. The cast includes several … Continue reading

Blog, Community, Regional

Attractive opposites: ‘Skippyjon’ and ‘Skin Flick’

THEATREWORKS USA is a treasure. Their imaginative shows for young audiences, presented annually at the Lortel Theatre in NYC, are accessible to all, regardless of socio-economic status. In other words, they’re free. This year’s is “Skippyjon Jones Snow What,” adapted … Continue reading

Blog, Community, NY Theater, Off Broadway, Regional

“Mary Poppins”: Supercalifragilistic…(you know the rest)

Who was that man walking along Monmouth Street in Red Bank at 11PM last Friday singing Supercalifragilistic… and eliciting smirks from the smokers outside Buona Sera? Well, if you must know, it was me, and it wasn’t just the song … Continue reading

Blog, Community, Regional

Math not for dummies: “Proof” in Holmdel

Holmdel Theatre Company’s performance space is the quintessential “black box”. For the uninitiated, the reference is not to flight recorders so much in the recent news. Theatrical black boxes are four-wall, flat-floor areas that can be configured any-which-way, depending upon … Continue reading

Blog, Community, Professional, Regional