Hi friends! This month I had the opportunity to attend The Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City. I was attending as a patron not as a critic so I am not reviewing what I saw there but I did cover them on my podcast.

I attended the festival with my friend Jacks and went with the Utah Theatre Lovers group which is a wonderful organization I highly recommend following on facebook and attending their events. We covered the whole experience on the OnStage Blog podcast episode you can see above (and on all the podcast platforms here)

Here’s a few quick thoughts about each of the shows I saw:

The Importance of Being Earnest

First up we had The Importance of Being Earnest written by Oscar Wilde and directed by Rodney Lizcano. The strength of this production is Sarah Shippobotham as Lady Bracknell (I really loved her in Steel Magnolias as well.) The costumes by Bill Black are also outstanding. That said this isn’t my favorite play. I’ve seen it a few times and I just don’t find it that funny and when I’m not laughing at a comedy I find it tedious. This was particularly true for this showing as I was tired after a long drive and struggled to pay attention. (Really the first day was hard for me but that’s on me not the performers.)

Macbeth

Next we had Macbeth and even though I was over-heated and not feeling well this was a really fun take on the classic Scottish drama! What particularly stood out is them including Hecate, the Greek goddess of magic and witchcraft which is usually cut out of the show. Not only is she included but it’s quite the spectacle with a giant bird apparatus that takes up most of the stage. This was so impressive that at times Macbeth and Lady Macbeth felt like a bit of an afterthought but it is still definitely fresh and innovative. Director John DiAntonio.

Steel Magnolias

The following morning I was better rested and we started the day with Steel Magnolias. I love this play and I saw a wonderful version of it earlier this year see review here. This is also an outstanding production and my favorite play I saw at the festival. The play is written by Robert Harling and directed by Melissa Maxwell and it lives and breathes on the chemistry of the women and them being able to play believable friends, which this cast does in spades. I particularly loved Olivia D. Dawson as M’Lynn and her final speech is devastating. If you have a chance to see Steel Magnolias take it. It’s such a good play.

Antony & Cleopatra

Our second Shakespearean play is the rarely performed Antony & Cleopatra. This is directed by Carolyn Howarth and I like that she leaned into the campy elements of the story. This is not a girl power take on Cleopatra, which some in our group were annoyed by but I didn’t mind it. there are times where the narrative can get a little confusing- probably because they had to cut a lot of the play to make it manageable but it still was sold with enough panache to have a good time with. Kathryn Tkel and Geoffrey Kent make for a convincing Harlequin-esque version of our leading couple. It’s campy fun.

Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise

Our final day of the festival started with a black box play called Dear Jack, Dear Louise which is a fictionalized account of how writer Ken Ludwig’s parents met writing letters in World War II. The lead couple are played by couple-in-real-life John DiAntonio and Caitlin Wise which I think helps them to be able to have chemistry despite never meeting until the end of the show. Everything is very cleverly staged by director Michael Perlman so that the 2 never make eye contact despite sharing a small stage together but they still manage to interact together. The only thing I wish I had was a few lines about how they were matched as pen pals to get begin with but this type of romantic play is totally up my alley and I loved it.

As You Like It

The final show of our trip (we didn’t see A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder which I wasn’t too sad about because I’ve seen that show many times and I think it is just ok) was As You Like It. It’s a Shakespeare I think I had seen once before but am not overly familiar with like I am Macbeth or Twelfth Night. Overall I enjoyed it but it is not as funny as I thought it was going to be. In a lot of ways it reminded me of A Midsummer’s Night Dream. Both are about love and magic that happens in a forest and both have about the same level of humor. The only bummer for me about this production is the big wrestling match that everyone was excited about I couldn’t see well because of where the actors are placed. They basically blocked my view of the big spectacle moment of the show! Director Beth Lopes needs to consider the sightlines of the audience especially because those actors could have easily been further back on the stage. Still, the ensemble is very strong led by Kayland Jordan as Rosalind. The Orlando played by Gabriel W Elmore is exactly what you want for a leading man role like Orlando.

So that’s the festival. If you got to attend this year let me know what you got to see and what you enjoyed. They have an incredible line-up planned for next year so hopefully I will be able to get back down there. It’s always a highlight of my theatrical year.

These logged shows I pay for out of pocket, and I’d love to do that as much as possible. If you have a show you’d like me to take a look at and write a full review let me know. I also have my patreon which is a great way to support what I do and get some really fun perks. Find out more here.