No, No, Nanette, an original Roaring ‘20s musical complete with a flight of flappers, lots of dancers, a bevy of retro melodies and a plot that gallops with romance, frivolity and laughter delivered by a multi-talented, high-energy cast has just hit the stage at the Wick Theater in Boca Raton.
Broward Center for the Performing Arts is currently hosting a live, interactive sleuthing experience of the iconic murder-mystery board game, “Clue.” The game takes place at a series of historic and business landmarks in downtown Fort Lauderdale. An imaginative, outdoor, audience-led version of a touring show, CLUE: A Walking Mystery (produced by Right Angle Entertainment and designed by award-winning interactive entertainment company The Wild Optimists, under license with Hasbro) first opened to two successful runs in Chicago, followed by Boston. You might recall last season’s popular staging of “Clue: A New Comedy” at Broward Center. Making our area an ideal choice for the IRL (In Real Life) game play version’s first southern stop (Tampa’s next). It’s all happening now through April 6.
Are you in search of a captivating classic that perfectly blends comedy, romance, and suspense? Are you ready to tap your feet to catchy tunes and immerse yourself in the fast-paced world of 20th-century Manhattan? Well, you’re in luck—Guys and Dolls is the latest installment in the Maltz Jupiter Theatre’s season. This beloved musical, originally based on short stories and characters created in the 1920s and 30s by Damon Runyon, has enjoyed multiple Broadway and West End revivals since its initial debut in 1950 and 1953 respectively, as well as an award-winning 1955 film adaptation. With a book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, and under the expert direction of Al Blackstone, the show tells two overlapping love stories.
You can always count on Thinking Cap Theatre (TCT) to discover that special gem of a new play (or unearth an ancient classic) and gift it to South Florida with a uniquely creative and entertaining production. This time it’s ALL THE NATALIE PORTMANS, a newplay by C.A. Johnson that generated positive buzz at its Off-Broadway debut at MCC Theater in 2020, only to be abruptly shut down by the pandemic. But just like all those great Natalie Portman roles resurrected by Johnson’s protagonist for inspiration, you can’t keep a great play from finding its audience.
An absolute stunner of a stage musical, Broadway Across America has the best show of all South Florida’s theater seasons with Disney’s The Lion King. On stage for the majority of March at the Broward Center, running from Friday, March 7th, until Sunday, March 30th, The Lion King is a live-adaptation of the animated movie famous around the world, and while maintaining true to its source material, the practical effects of this production are unlike anything I’ve ever seen; the best I’ve ever seen. Anyone who is a fan of the animated movie and its sequels, or the live-action versions, should absolutely see this show and witness the Pridelands for themselves.
As long as you have a healthy sense of humor and high tolerance for perverted and profanity-spouting puppets, you should prepare to have a pretty great time at Avenue Q. To introduce the uninitiated to the basic premise of this Tony-winning best musical—imagine an R-rated version of Sesame Street that aims to impart mature lessons on adult audiences in much the same style the beloved children’s show teaches ABCS and such to a younger crowd.
Touted as “The Worlds #1 Musical” (in earnings and ongoing popularity), the six Tony Award-winning (including Best Musical) “nothing else like it” theatrical extravaganza that is Disney’sTHE LION KING returns to Broward Center for an extended run through March 30. And continues to draw enthusiastic crowds of all ages – from first-time-at-the-theater kids (a popular, parental-choice rite of passage) to repeat Disney- and “Lion King”-obsessed fans.
If you think you know all about witches, think again! You’re about meet 250-year-young Angelina Max, a force of nature who can screw up like a human, exact revenge like a witch, but is also funny, loving and kind. And about to sing and dance her way into your heart.
Musicals-made-from-movies-made-from-books is a popular, winning formula drawing audiences from print, from film, from lovers of musicals – as well as “none of the above.” By the time a book- and/or movie-based musical hits Broadway, it tends to have a well-established fan base, eager for more. There will always be purists who claim one must read the book first or are emotionally tied to the movie. Coming from someone who’s experienced all three – in no particular order – I say there’s no one right or wrong way to enjoy a great musical. Nothing compares to the buzz and anticipation felt by a live audience when the curtain rises. Where personal issues are put aside and we can all sit entranced, together, for a few magical hours of drama, comedy and, especially, wondrous music and songs!
Arts Ballet of Florida Theatre showcases the famed ballets “Romeo & Juliet” by Russian composer Sergey Prokofiev and “Bolero” by French composer Maurice Ravel as highlights to their upcoming Program III; titled “Dancing Prokofiev and Ravel: A Celebration of Ballet’s Timeless Composers” taking place on Saturday, March 1 at 7:30 p.m.and Sunday, March 2 at 3 p.m. at Aventura Arts & Cultural Center in Aventura.
