Hi theatre friends! I hope you are having a great Thanksgiving week and enjoying great local theatre wherever you might be. Lately I have been posting full reviews for most of the productions I’ve been seeing, which I am very grateful for but I have had 4 shows I’ve attended as a patron in the last month that I’d like to update you all on. Let me know if you’ve seen any of these shows and what you thought of them.

A Christmas Story: The Musical- Centerpoint Legacy Theatre, Centerville

As I’ve said many times I find this musical adaptation of A Christmas Story to be very underrated and I always enjoy a chance to see it especially at Centerpoint. They did it in 2021 and I adored it then and this new production is just as outstanding. Every element is impeccably made and executed. The stage is dominated by 3 large sets (set designer Josh Roberts) that are double sided making them work for multiple settings like the school and department store. The costumes (designer Stephanie Colyar) are period accurate with attention to small details like shoes and hats. The acting and singing is all great. I don’t know what more you could ask for a community theatre production that sells tickets for under $30.

It’s a real treasure for Northern Utah to have a place like Centerpoint and to see shows like A Christmas Story. This production is directed by Shelby Ferrin, and I saw the MWF cast with Lindsey Stephens being the standout as Mother. I absolutely loved her rendition of “What a Mother Does.” A Christmas Story is playing through December 20th and tickets can be purchased here.

Pride and Prejudice- Centerpoint Legacy Theatre, Centerville

Also at Centerpoint Legacy in their Second Stage is Pride and Prejudice. This is the adaptation penned by Melissa Leilani Larson, which is very popular here in Utah and for good reasons because it is excellent. I actually interviewed Melissa about the adaptation here. In fact, it’s so popular this production has completely sold out during it’s whole run! I saw the MWF cast and I am hopeful I can find a way of seeing the TThS cast but I may not be able to! I bet they are regretting not doing this on the big stage with this amazing response. They even added 6 additional shows and they sold out immediately. I love how much we love Jane Austen in Utah!

I’m so happy for Centerpoint because this is a wonderful production of this play. I loved all of the cast I did see and again the attention to detail is outstanding. Everything from the costumes to the accents is thought out and well executed. I even loved the projections which surrounded the actors (it’s a black box stage) and made the experience feel more immersive. For example, when Lizzie is at Pemberley we see the grand house all around us and when Jane travels to Netherfield in the rain we are surrounded by video of Regency rain. Everything is directed by Brighton Sloan with set and projections by Josh Roberts. They do have a standby list each day that I am going to try and get on for TThS but you can find more information here.

She Loves Me- BYU Theatre, Provo

Another musical I absolutely love is She Loves Me. I could never tire of seeing it and was thrilled when I saw that my alma mater BYU was putting it on. This is the classic Parfumerie story about 2 people who fall in love over letters while hating each other in real life. It’s a complete charmer of a show and they did a phenomenal job at BYU.

First of all the George and Amalia (Austin Zimmerman and Elena Shill respectively) had incredible chemistry with both being especially funny at the argumentative sequences. The whole cast was great and I love how director Geoffrey Reynolds worked in dance into so many scenes and paid attention to little details like making the shop sequences feel lived in with shoppers walking by interacting with the cast. I honestly walked away without any notes. Unfortunately the run has finished for the show but you can find out more about BYU OnStage here. Also Lehi Arts has a production of She Loves Me coming up in just a few weeks which I can’t wait for. You can find out more about that production here.

Steel Magnolias- On Pitch Performing Arts, Layton

Lately I’ve realized how much I enjoy seeing a good play. In fact, sometimes I prefer for community theaters to do straight plays because there are so many fewer parts to master than a musical. Steel Magnolias makes particular sense for community theatre because it is a play for all women and that’s usually the bedrock of most community theatre. I also love any chance I have to get up to OPPA in Layton because they nurture talent in a way that’s special and unique. This production of Steel Magnolias was in their black box Creator’s Stage and it is definitely rough around the edges but that’s what I liked about it.

I saw the TThS cast and was especially impressed by Heidi Williams as Shelby (she captured a young innocence needed for the character) and Sarah Casper as Ouiser (she actually had a frog in her throat that day which was perfect for the character!) The production is directed by Kennedy Miller and the set design by Peter Davis convincingly captures Truvy’s salon. Steel Magnolias is one of those plays that’s hard to screw up and they certainly don’t here. It is playing through December 6th and tickets can be purchased here.

I would recommend all 4 of the shows I logged today. A Christmas Story: The Musical features music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul with a book by Joseph Robinette based on the 1983 film script by Jean Shepherd and his book. It first premiered on Broadway in 2012. Pride and Prejudice is based on the novel by Jane Austen and adapted by Melissa Leilani Larson. She Loves Me has music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick with a book by Joe Masteroff. It is based on the Parfumerie play by Miklos Laszlo and first premiered on Broadway in 1963. Steel Magnolias is a play by Robert Harling and first premiered on Off-Broadway in 1987 with its Broadway debut in 2005.

These logged shows I usually 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.