Theatre Tuesdays

Hi friends! I clearly have gotten behind on my theatre logs. I did review the amazing Somethin Rotten from Midvale Arts for UTBA here. Then I went to Christmas Con so that was super fun and I have been keeping up my Theatre Tuesdays over on my channel (make sure you are subscribed!) Above you can see the Tonys recap with Marc Bonanni who was actually at the ceremony!

Then today I had actress Caitlin Olsen on the pod for Theatre Tuesdays. She performed as Elle Woods in Legally Blonde at OPPA in 2022 and really inspired me. I now wills see anything she performs in and it was so much fun to get to know her better.

Theatre recap

So I saw 5 shows over this last long weekend I’d like to update my readers on. All were wonderful experiences and I feel so fortunate to live in a state that gives me such incredible theatrical opportunities.

HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAl- murray city arts

There are some shows that are just a joy to watch and I’d say High School Musical is one of those. It’s bubbly and energetic and a ton of fun. This version was done at the Murray Ampitheatre and it’s where I have seen amazing shows like Shrek: The Musical and Little Women. As is appropriate most of the cast is teens or young adults and they had a wonderful chemistry and were up for all the choreography and singing. My friend Amber Kacherian played Ms Darbus with a lot of humor and even came out and chatted with the audience. It was also very impressive they had a full band for a small community show like this. Unfortunately they had tons of microphone issues which I know they were very frustrated with. Still, I had a blast with this show and recommend checking out their future shows Cinderella and Seussical. More information here.

WAIT UNTIL DARK- HOPEBOX THEATRE (SILVER CAST)

Hopebox Theatre in Kaysville has quickly become one of my favorite local venues. I love the mission of the theatre in helping a cancer patient with each show but have also found the quality of the productions to be uniformly excellent. Fortunately Wait Until Dark was no exception. I love the movie with Audrey Hepburn and have seen the play one time before at Hale Center Theatre a few years ago. The first half can be a bit dry as they build up all the details of Suzy’s life and her vision abilities (the world’s greatest blind woman.) Then it all pays off in the second act when her life becomes threatened. Jillian Joy is outstanding as Suzy and Spencer Mack is chilling as Mr Roat. The production design is also outstanding- really capturing a 1960’s apartment and creating a completely dark atmosphere when it is needed. I appreciate they took a risk at Hopebox doing this show and it is playing until July 1st so go out and support it here. You won’t see a better version of this play even on Broadway.

KINKY BOOTS- THE ZIEGFELD THEATRE

Before their production of Kinky Boots started at Ziegfeld in Ogden they received an unwarranted amount of attention from trolls online upset they were putting on a drag queen show and that they offered a ‘student night’, which they do for all their shows! I definitely wanted to make sure to support them after such a ridiculous outcry (if you don’t want to see it folks don’t go!) and I was very pleased to see a full house!

This was my first time seeing Kinky Boots and for the most part I really enjoyed it. I did find the book to be a little uneven especially in the 2nd act when Charlie gets uncharacteristically angry and that seemed to come out of nowhere. But aside from that the show has a very positive message and “Raise You Up” is the stand out song. I was most impressed with Sydney Lorraine Vance as Lauren. I loved her singing voice and she rocked the fashion so well. Awesome. Andre-MarQuis Mitchell was also strong as Lola. The production design was all excellent and the whole experience was life affirming and wonderful. It closes this weekend but can get tickets here.

FOOTLOOSE- KENSINGTON THEATRE

I must admit that Footloose is not my favorite Broadway musical. Some of the songs are fun but the story of this entire town banning dance is a little silly for my taste. Nevertheless, I love Kensington Theatre (so underrated) and wanted to support them, so I went out and saw it Monday night. I’m glad I did. Not only was the production value outstanding with professional quality sound and a dramatic bridge set but all the performances were excellent. I particularly enjoyed Lucas Morley as Ren, Isaac Butler as Willard and Elizabeth Birkner as Rusty. I challenge anyone to find a more competently produced version of this show than the one you can see at Kensington. They even have a live band to accompany the show, which makes a world of difference. The show plays until the 6/26 and you can get your tickets here.

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