Pretty much everyone knows at this point that I love and adore the musical Daddy Long Legs. I enjoy it so much I’ve seen it 11 times since the pandemic including seeing it 5 times just this year. I love the build up of the romance between Jerusha and Jervis and how they both grow as people through the show, and the songs are musical perfection. With this love for the material, I knew I wanted to get down to see St George Musical Theatre’s production, and it did not disappoint. I was able to see all 4 performers (they alternated the roles during the run) and they all did a wonderful job. It was worth the trip!

First up on Friday night, I saw Heather Oram as Jerusha and Tim Merkley as Jervis. Then, the next day I saw Mattea Denney and Pierce Robison in those roles. The production is directed by Edwina Jones, and she keeps things simple and lets her cast shine. I do love when the directors of this musical allow for some kind of connection between the 2 like a mailbox or a bookcase where they set the letters down. They didn’t do anything like that here, but it’s fine without it, too.

The only major feedback I’d give is the directors have to be very careful in the portrayal of Jervis. The text makes it clear that he is a young man, which helps excuse his many weaknesses. That said, leaning into the jealousy (saying things like ‘over my dead body’), while funny, makes the character seem more controlling and less likable. It’s a nuance thing, but I would advise productions to be as understated in those scenes as possible and show the right amount of remorse with “I’m a Beast” and “Charity.”

I enjoyed both of the couples and was impressed with the chemistry they were able to build, particularly Denney and Robison. With the show being epistolary, it could be dry if that connection between them wasn’t as well done and believable. This performance was at the Main St Performing Arts Campus, and this is a beautiful stage and building. I didn’t mind seeing 2 shows there one bit.

Unfortunately, the run of Daddy Long Legs at SGMT has finished, but I encourage any readers to see this wonderful show if you have the chance. It will help you believe in love and the power of human connection like never before. Make sure you check out A Christmas Story at SGMT while you have the chance. Tickets can be purchased here.

Daddy Long Legs has music and lyrics by Paul Gordon with a book by John Caird based on the novel by Jean Webster. It premiered Off-Broadway in 2015.

Make sure to check out my interview with Paul Gordon

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.

I’ve said it many times before but the musical adaptation of the classic film A Christmas Story is underrated. While it won’t win over those that aren’t fans of the movie I find the songs to be very catchy and it manages to include every major event from the movie quite seamlessly. The new production of this musical at St George Musical Theatre captures this charm and makes for an ideal start to this year’s holiday season in Southern Utah.

Of course, this musical tells the story of young Ralphie Parker who’s greatest dream is to get a Red Ryder carbine action BB gun for Christmas. The problem is all the adults in his life are convinced he’ll ‘shoot his eye out’ if he’s given the gun. Most of us can relate to Ralphie and the big gift you were hoping to have for the holidays or a birthday. Plus there are bullies, pranks, daydreams and more that children of any era can connect with.

The cast at SGMT is led by Jake Dyas as Ralphie and he’s up for all the choreography and singing demands of the role. I also really enjoyed John Tanner as Old Man and Rachel Rose as Mother (I loved her rendition of “What a Mother Does” which is an underrated song from the show.) Roy Eckman grounds the story as the narrator Jean Shepherd which helps bring the audience back after the sillier scenes. The production is directed by Adam Mast and he has brought out the best of his cast and used the projections on the side wall to add to the storytelling (it’s theatre in the round so sets are challenging.)

Speaking of sets I do wish they had stretched out the house setpieces over the entire stage using all the platforms. As it is all of the house sets are crammed into one corner of the stage which kind of defeats the purpose of an immersive theatre in the round. I realize the other side of the stage is used for the department store and schoolyard so it becomes challenging. Nevertheless, most of the action did feel crammed into one corner of the stage.

I also didn’t love the decision to gender swap a bunch of the child roles. Randy, Flick, and Schwartz aren’t just girls playing boy roles but they are referred to by feminine pronouns and are female characters. Some of the scenes hit differently for girls rather than boys particularly the bullying scene. In addition, when Ralphie gets the bunny outfit he says Schwartz and Flick would give him grief, a statement that makes less sense if both characters are girls. If they have more girls auditioning just have them play boys rather than gender swapping but that’s just me.

Even so, I had a great time watching A Christmas Story at SGMT. It’s funny, full of heart and will make a great addition to your holiday festivities this year.

A Christmas Story: The Musical has music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul with a book by Joseph Robinette based on the book by Jean Shepherd and the 1983 film.

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I know most theatre critics are hesitant to critique youth or high school theatre. I get it can be tough to know what kind of feedback to give to young performers but it’s also important to encourage and support students when we have the opportunity to do so. Recently I saw a production of Clue: High School Edition at American Preparatory Academy: Draper 3 campus and it was a fun reminder of the many people who are still doing things right for our young people.

I’ve said it before but I think it’s a real shame when high school productions rely too much on visual effects and projections. This robs the students of the opportunity to make their sets, props, costumes and all the other aspects of the production. What I loved at Draper 3 is they are empowering the students to participate in all of these areas. They even make sure to point out in the program “costumes, set and props designed and built by D3 theatre production classes” This is so important because how does a student know if they like or excel at something if they never get a chance to try? I also love the innovative nature of the set they built for Clue with rolling platforms that allows rooms to roll on and off of the stage; thereby creating more rooms than the small black box theatre would normally allow.

I saw the Dagger version of the cast and all the teens did a great job hamming it up for the roles. I particularly enjoyed Christopher Jorgensen as Wadsworth and Savannah Anderson as Colonel Mustard. The production is directed with care by Erik McGinnis who has managed to get the most of out of each of his students,

Unfortunately this production of Clue has finished its run but I’m excited to be aware of Draper 3, and I hope to come back for their next performance- The Secret Garden in the spring

Clue is written by Sandy Rustin based on the 1985 film and the Hasbro board game.

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.

I don’t know about you all but I really enjoy history particularly American history and love any chance I get to learn about eras of our great country. That’s why I was very excited to get to see the new musical Suffs that is playing at Eccles with the current national tour and fortunately it did not disappoint. I highly recommend checking out this boisterous look at the many women who helped give women the right to vote in the United States.

One of my favorite parts of this musical is how it captures the variety of the personalities and approaches of the women who created the movement for the 19th amendment. Some were activists led by Alice Paul (Maya Keleher) who is of the protest and hunger strike variety where Carrie Chapman Catt (understudy Merrill Peiffer) is the let’s have tea and convince you of how great we are variety. Both have value and honestly as an old fogie myself I could often relate more to Catt’s methodology over Paul. They also include these different approaches and personalities with the Black women in the movement with varied approaches from Ida B Wells (Danyel Fulton) and Mary Church Terrell (Trisha Jeffrey) (Mary believes in ‘dignified agitation, Ida thinks that is futile and they must do more.) This variation in the characters and philosophies helps the show feel more authentic and less like you are watching historical propaganda (which can be a problem with some of these type of shows.)

Probably the performance that veers the most into caricature is the portrayal of Woodrow Wilson (Marissa Hecker) but honestly I was fine with that as he was one of our most deplorable presidents and doesn’t deserve many accolades in my opinion. I was surprised how early they got to the march but Suffs is similar to Hamilton in that it gives the full scope of Paul’s career even giving us an epilogue with her work in the 1970s and the young activist of that time (a nice full-circle moment for the character.)

Speaking of Hamilton there will be many who compare Suffs to that iconic show, and they wouldn’t be incorrect. It’s an obvious inspiration especially with the more contemporary-sounding songs like “Finish the Fight” but it does enough to stand on its own so it avoids feeling like just a female Hamilton. This national tour is directed by Leigh Silverman and all the technical elements help add to effectiveness of the strong character-work from the actors. I particularly enjoyed the lighting design by Lap Chi Chu and how it created a silhouette feel which was perfect for the turn of the century setting and added to the tense tone in certain scenes.

The costumes by Paul Tazewell are also terrific with each suffragette expressing their personality through their clothes some more ostentatious, some more riscay and showy, others more masculine depending on the character.

I was a little sad that the narrative leaves out some important voices especially Elizabeth Cady Stanton who’s speech The Solitude of Self is one of my favorites in American history. That said, I realize you can’t include everyone and it is a pretty stuffed show so that’s bound to happen. Still, one of the times they mentioned Susan B Anthony they could have talked about Stanton but oh well. Helen Keller would have been another person they could have depicted as she was a suffragette and a fighter for disability awareness as well.

The national tour of Suffs would be a great show to integrate into a home school curriculum or to just educate teens about American history (there is a song with profanity but they will just have to deal with it!) Like I said, I highly recommend taking any children 10 and up and enjoying it together. It is playing through November 16th and tickets can be purchased here.

Suffs has music lyrics and a book by Shaina Taub and it first premiered off-Broadway at The Public Theater in 2022 and then on Broadway in 2024. It won Tony Awards for best book and best score for Taub.

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Watching the new play Tiny Beautiful Things at Pygmalion Theatre I couldn’t help but wonder- are advice columns still relevant in 2025? In a world where it seems like we get unending counsel from strangers about how to live our lives is the idea of writing one for advice appealing? Also the whole idea of crafting one’s problems in a letter format seems archaic. Aren’t we more likely to post a tiktok rant than write a letter? I realize the book this play is based on is a compilation of a self-help column called Dear Sugar but even that was published in 2012 and tiktok wasn’t even invented then so the question stands.

Anyway, let’s assume advice columns still exist the letters in Tiny Beautiful Things feel relevant and authentic (probably because they are in fact from actual letters.) At Pygmalion “Dear Sugar” columnist is portrayed by Tamara Howell who also directs the piece. She has a warm yet tough persona that works well for the part. It’s a tricky role because a lot of the time she’s staring at a computer but she makes it work. In fact, the entire cast has nice chemistry together. Even though they don’t really interact except through the letters to Sugar it still has a family feel to the group which keeps it from feeling too repetitive. I particularly enjoyed Matt Bennett’s work as he had some of the more emotional letters, and we don’t see men emoting as often in plays like this which I appreciated.

The production is kept simple in the black box space at the Rose Wagner downtown. Most of the space is Sugar’s home with four columns with the words from the letters on them. This lack of distraction helps the audience focus on the characters and the correspondence between them and Sugar.

I do wonder if Tiny Beautiful Things might have been better as a one act because I did start to get a little sleepy after a while. Not everything needs to be a 90 minute play after all.

Still this is a very touching play that just about anyone can relate with. It is playing through Nov 22nd and tickets can be purchased here.

Tiny Beautiful Things is based on the book by Cheryl Strayed and adapted for the stage by Nia Vardalos. The Dear Sugar column ran from 2010-2012. It debuted Off-Broadway in 2016

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.

I wasn’t a big fan of fantasy stories as a kid. I preferred something like Little Women over The Lord of the Rings for example. The one exception to this rule was author Roald Dahl. His mixture of whimsy and realism really worked for me and I was a big fan of books like The Witches, Matilda, and the underrated George’s Marvelous Medicine. I had heard about the new adaptation of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when it opened on Broadway back in 2017 so I was excited to see it on opening night at The Ruth in Pleasant Grove. Like Matilda I have mixed feelings on the show itself but they did a terrific job with this production.

This version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory has 4 songs from the beloved film starring Gene Wilder with songs by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. These are “The Candyman,” “Golden Ticket, “Oompa Loompa” and “Pure Imagination” which are not surprisingly by far the strongest songs of the night. The book follows the novel fairly accurately and gives us act 1 leading up to the factory and Act 2 inside with the kids on the tour with Wonka. For me at least I far more enjoyed Act 1 over Act 2. You’d think everything in the factory would be magical but it really was quite a slog for one major reason- very little Charlie.

For most of Act 2 Charlie is sidelined to allow each of the other ticket winners to have their demise within the factory. I really was not a fan of how they modernized all of the kids and am mystified anyone thought it was a good idea to give them such cringe updates. For example, they have Violet be an influencer singing “The Queen of Pop” (because she likes bubble gum get it…) Where’s the whimsy, the charm in any of that? Mike Teavee was always a smart-allick but in this he’s cynical cliched gen z child who can’t be impressed by anything with an insufferable alcoholic mother. They made Veruca a Russian ballet dancer for some reason and give her a bizarre song called “Veruca’s Nutcracker: Sweet” (get it sweet instead of suite…)

In contrast, when the narrative would get back to Charlie and his hopes and dreams I was charmed again. His plucky spirit and hope is so much better than what they decided to do with the other ticket winners. There’s a lot more of Charlie in Act 1 so I enjoyed that much more.

As far as the production at The Ruth goes director Rob Moffat has brought together many elements to make a memorable impression on stage. The lighting by Renee Fowler has an 80s pop feel that kept surprising me (the stage is surrounded by panels of light that changed depending on the section of the factory.) They also add to the whimsy with a topsy turvy set designed by Carter Thompson. I particularly enjoyed Charlie’s house and the candy store in Act 1 although I thought all of the sets could have been a little larger and filled up the stage more fully. This would have added to the immersion but they are impressive sets.

I absolutely loved Flynn Mitchell as Charlie and he had a nice chemistry with Taylor Morris as Wonka. Morris gets the right mixture of kindness and mischievousness that you need for the character. All of the other ticket winners do a good job with their roles even if I wasn’t a big fan of the choices the book writers made for them. I did think it was really weird they cast some of the kids with adults and some with children. Usually in musicals if they have adults playing kids it’s consistent (like in Spelling Bee or You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown.) It’s a little jarring to have it switch back and forth.

If you are a fan of Roald Dahl, the novel and the Gene Wilder film I recommend getting tickets for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at The Ruth. It’s not a perfect show but I did enjoy Charlie and Wonka and visually it’s an exciting production. It might be fun to see it and then compare it to the movie with your kids. Ask them what aspects they like in each. If you do get to see it let me know what you think. Plus, it might be a nice break from holiday fare on the stage as it plays through December 31st. Tickets can be purchased here.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory features music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman with lyrics by Scott Wittman and a book by David Greig with additional songs from Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. Based on the novel by Roald Dahl and the film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory directed by Mel Stewart. It premiered in the West End in 2013 and on Broadway in 2017 where it ran for 9 months.

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.

Outside of Les Miserables I don’t know if there is a musical that has more classically beautiful songs than The Secret Garden. I have my critiques of the show but it truly has some gorgeous melodies and lyrics and I always am grateful for any chance I have to see it, community theatre or professional. This weekend a wonderful version is playing at Bluffdale Arts and it is definitely worthy of your time.

This production of The Secret Garden is directed by Charity Checketts and Andrea Taylor and before everything began they talked about their personal connection with the piece and they dedicated the performance to the memory of their friends who had “How I Could I Ever Know?” played at their funeral. I love this intimate moment with the directors and audience and giving us some insight into their perspective and emotional state as directors. I wish more companies did this.

In truth the entire production felt intimate and personal which is a hard thing to pull off in the giant Hidden Valley Middle School auditorium. Even Melodee Turner’s performance as Mary felt nuanced and deep where especially at the start sometimes it is all brattiness without the softness to bring home her deep loss and pain. The whole cast is great including Barton Sloan as Archibald Craven and Mattie Curtis as Lily. They of course kept with Bluffdale’s tradition of massive casts including a large children’s ensemble. I’m not a big fan of the “Wick” song but using the kids to symbolize the hidden potential of the garden was very cute and effective.

The costumes by a large team of talented individuals is truly outstanding. You do not expect to have professional quality costumes at an arts council production like this. I love how not only are they intricate with period-accurate details but they are done in a beige color palate which when together look like a sepia-toned turn of the century photograph. What an incredible and immersive detail for a production like this! I also love the sets with 3 moving doorways that flipped around to create different spaces, and they also have a 2-story platform that allows for actors to be singing on different levels. For example, you might have Mary and Collin on the ground level and Albert and Rose on the higher level. This keeps the audiences attention when on its own it’s a musical that can feel a little bloated and tedious.

The main struggles of The Secret Garden at Bluffdale Arts are in the sound department. The microphones gave the actors a lot of issues which is frustrating but not uncommon in a large school auditorium like the one they had to work with. It’s a bummer when that happens, but they pushed forward and that’s what matters most. Even with a few hiccups this production is a magical experience I highly recommend. It is playing through November 10th and tickets can be purchased here.

The Secret Garden has music by Lucy Simon and lyrics and book by Marsha Norman. It is based on the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett and first premiered on Broadway in 1991 where it ran for 2 years.

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.

I’m not sure why but in the last few years mysteries have gotten increasingly popular both on stage and on the big screen. While there are certainly some good ones I must admit it is not my favorite genre. I often find the cases to be obvious and the clue-solving of the detective to be poorly done. However, if I am going to enjoy a mystery I’m more likely to like it if it doesn’t take itself too seriously and is funny. The more a production can camp it up with the mystery the more likely it is going to appeal to me. Fortunately the new production of Murdered to Death at The Empress Theatre delivers on the laughs making it a fun night of community theatre everyone will enjoy.

One of the things that drives me crazy, particularly about Agatha Christie mysteries, is when the author hasn’t built up the clues well so the detective ends up with a long exposition dump in the final scenes explaining how he or she knows the bad guy committed the crime. It’s just not very satisfying and makes the earlier scenes collecting clues quite tedious and hard to get through.

What I liked about Murdered to Death is they make fun of that very thing. It’s funny when the Inspector Pratt drones on about who might have committed the crime and then someone will point out why that couldn’t be the case and he immediately backtracks. Of course, this is what Christie’s detectives would be doing in the regular mysteries, but we are supposed to accept it in her stories because they are the brilliant detectives on the case.

The production at The Empress is all about the acting with everything else kept rather simple. Everything is directed by Steph Johnson and she has gotten the best performance out of her actors as they could possibly give. They even all have the appropriate accents for the characters whether British or French.

My favorite dynamic of the play is the Jeeves and Wooster-like relationship between Constable Thompkins played by Jiji Dillon and the inane Inspector Pratt played by Paul Gibbs. At one point Pratt even shoots Thompkins in the leg and then she has to walk around with a hurt leg for the rest of the scenes and Dillon shows the frustration of working on this case with this foolish man well. Both Gibbs and Dillon are very funny together.

There are times when the narrative of Murdered to Death feels a little long and I start to get restless but a lot of that comes down to personal taste and my affinity for mysteries (it also takes forever to actually get to the murder or death mentioned in the title.) I still had a really good time with it and it’s nice to see something new in such a charming little theater. I often say I wish more theaters did straight plays instead of musicals. There are so many less moving pieces so they are more likely to master the material and that’s what they’ve done here at The Empress. It’s what we all want from a night of community theatre and it’s playing until Nov 15th. Tickets can be purchased here.

Murdered to Death is written by Peter Gorden and was first performed in 1993. It was written to be a spoof of Agatha Christie. Gordon actually wrote a trilogy of murder mystery spoofs centered around the Inspector Pratt who we are introduced to in this play.

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.

One aspect of Utah culture that might surprise foreigners is how much we love Halloween and all things spooky. This certainly is true amongst theatre-goers with all kinds of great shows to see that are perfect for this fright-filled time of year. New at West Valley Arts is a 4 part play called Nightfall which will be the perfect choice for someone who wants horror themed theatre with an Edgar Allen Poe approach.

Poe is of course the 19th century poet and author who wrote mysteries and Gothic influenced tales of suspense. In Nightfall writer Eric Coble takes 4 of Poe’s most famous stories and a cast of 6 acts them out for us to enjoy. The 4 stories are The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Tell-Tale Heart. I do think it helps the audience follow along with the segments better if they have some familiarity with the stories but I still enjoyed each story as a stand-alone gothic tale. My favorite was probably The Tell-Tale Heart perhaps because it was the last and I was more used to the style of the segments but also it is the most straightforward of the stories.

The cast is all great with them having to show a range of characters and emotions. Christian Johnston plays Poe, Armando Serrano as Usher, with Sofia Paredes-Kendrick standing out as the Raven. The production is directed by Rob Fernandez-Rosa and he really brings all the elements together well and uses the space more effectively than some of the other productions I’ve seen at WVA this year. The sound design by Kieran Morrison is very impressive particularly in The Tell-Tale Heart as the ticking of the clock and beat of the heart is so essential to the story. I also really enjoyed the costumes by Kelsey Nichols particularly for The Raven as they were 19th century period appropriate but had whimsy necessary to sell the characters.

I don’t know if there was a problem the night I attended because the intermission felt exorbitantly long, which I don’t know if there needs to be an intermission for such a short straight play to begin with. There were also a few technical glitches mostly with the microphones but nothing that hampered my enjoyment. Like I said, this experience will be more gratifying if the audience has some familiarity with the Poe stories so I would at least read the synopsis on the program before attending.

Other than that Nightfall is a fun dive into Victorian era spooky storytelling. The acting is great. It surrounds the viewer in the world of Poe’s stories which is a lot of fun. Nightfall is playing through November 1st and tickets can be purchased here. It’s honestly my 2nd favorite show I’ve seen at WVA this year after Hunchback. The production is rated PG-13 and viewer discretion is advised.

Nightfall is adapted by Eric Coble based on 4 tales by Edgar Allen Poe: The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Tell-Tale Heart.

If you enjoy my writing and would like me to review your production I’d love to. I also have a patreon which is a great way to support my shorter logs for shows I don’t get to review. I have some really fun perks like bonus episodes, patron polls and monthly Q&As with actors, directors and writers. Please take a look here.