From perfect weather to ideals of peace and justice, the mythical era of “Camelot” represents many of humanity’s highest and deepest aspirations. No wonder the perennially popular Lerner & Loewe musical (based on the legend of King Arthur in T.H. White’s 1958 novel, “The Once and Future King”) won four Tonys at its Broadway debut in 1960. The show followed book writer and lyricist Alan Jay Lerner and music composer Frederick Loewe’s earlier smash hit, “My Fair Lady.” It also featured superstars Richard Burton and Julie Andrews, as Arthur and Guenevere, and Robert Goulet’s first Broadway role, as Lancelot.
As a short disclaimer, I must say I am very familiar with PPTOPA as I was the drama teacher at a nearby high school. I have witnessed strong family ties, business professionals, government electees, former students and friends support and perform there. I have also witnessed the evolution of its growth. Starting in its humble roots using community performers and retired professionals at Walter C. Young Community Center, PPTOPA has grown into a professional force at the Susan B. Katz River of Grass Theatre. It took 30 years to make this notable transition, a challenge and growth that is duly noted. I applaud its determination and perseverance.
After seeing a production of Lucy Prebble’s The Effectin Orlando earlier this year, I found myself unable to resist conducting my own little theatrical experiment when it popped up in South Florida at the Lake Worth Playhouse’s Stonzek Theatre. And I’m describing it that way because The Effect is a play about an experiment—specifically, a clinical trial of a powerful new antidepressant.
Moulin Rouge! has arrived at the Adrienne Arsht Center for a limited Miami run, playing the Ziff Ballet Opera House through Sunday, March 22, 2026, as part of the Broadway in Miami season. This show is a production that can coast on recognition, on title alone, on the audience’s affection for a beloved film, and the score that’s stitched together from songs they already know. Moulin Rouge!, directed by Alex Timbers, choreographed by Sonya Tayeh, and orchestrated by Justine Levine, is more than that. What makes this stage adaptation so exhilarating is that it consistently reaches for something larger than its format. At its best, it feels enormous and lush and wounded and alive.
This past Saturday, Zoetic Stage’s masterful production of Merrily We Roll Alongbrought me one step closer to realizing my personal dream of seeing every Stephen Sondheim musical. Famously, the show wasn’t initially one of the composer’s biggest hits and was in fact a rather notorious flop, closing after 44 previews and only 16 regular performances. Since then, though, Merrily has found somewhat more success, most recently in a major Broadway revival that took home four awards at last year’s Tony’s.
The “City That Never Sleeps” (aka “The Big Apple” aka New York City) is often seen by outsiders as a cold and impersonal concrete jungle. And it might be – for some new arrivals. But to those who’ve lived there for a while and put down roots, “mean streets” mean home, with all the warmth and connection of a small-town neighborhood. None more so than the creative dreamers who bask in the city’s energy while connecting with, and being supported by, like-minded artistic and/or financially strapped individuals who thrive in their particular slice of town.
In search of a little extra cheer this upcoming weekend? Look no further for the perfect remedy: Slow Burn Theatre Company’s entertaining, heartfelt, and utterly joyful production of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Under the expert direction of Patrick Fitzwater, the story takes theatergoers through a musical legend’s path to stardom, and the ups and downs she faces along the way. Did I mention that it’s set to quite the catchy soundtrack, too?
When Tim Davis, producing artistic director of New City Players (NCP) and director of Samuel D. Hunter’s raw and unsettling play, A CASE FOR THEEXISTENCE OF GOD, welcomed us to Island City Stage’s intimate blackbox in Wilton Manors, he praised the unique sense of “presence” and “community” that only happens in live theater. A once in a lifetime experience! Or as Davis put it: “Never again in human history will this group of people be here together, watching a play.”
After seeing understandably immense success on both Broadway and the West End, the Tony Award-winning play Good Night, Oscar is here in sunny South Florida, enjoying its run at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre. Equal parts laugh-out-loud funny and thought-provoking, this remarkable comedy-drama sheds light on a 20th-century icon. A gifted concert pianist, composer, and actor, Oscar Levant (Max Roll) also became famous for his talk show appearances, his acerbic wit and candid discussion of difficult topics resonating with many viewers. This is from where Good Night, Oscar, written by Doug Wright and directed here by Bill Fennelly, draws its main source of inspiration. Set in 1958, solely at NBC Television Studios in Burbank, the play follows a chaotic day in Levant’s life as he prepares to film an episode of The Tonight Show with Jack Paar. Creative prowess and enduring fame can too often come at a high cost—and is the price really worth it?
From February 20 to 22, 2026, Palm Beach Opera brought Georges Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers to the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, offering South Florida audiences the sweeping tale of friendship and forbidden love, directed by Kathleen Smith Belcher. Set on the shores of ancient Ceylon, the opera centers on Zurga (Joo Won Kang), leader of a community of pearl divers, and Nadir (Long Long), his long-estranged friend. Years earlier, the two men pledged to renounce their shared love for a mysterious woman in order to preserve their bond, a promise enshrined in the famed duet “Au fond du temple saint.” When Nadir returns and a veiled priestess named Leïla (Francesca Pia Vitale) arrives to pray for the divers’ safety, the past resurfaces with fury. Leïla is the very woman who once came between them. As Nadir and Leïla rekindle their love, they violate sacred vows to Zurga and this community, placing themselves at the mercy of the same rigid society with a leader torn between jealousy and loyalty.
