On the surface, the story behind playwright Larry Gelbart’s (who is most well-known for creating the television series “M.A.S.H.) two act comedy “Better Late”, running now through November 30 at Empire Stage in Ft. Lauderdale, is about how husband Lee (played by actor Geoff Freitag) and wife Nora (Patti Gardner) have to cope with having a new resident in their home, Nora’s ex-husband Julian (Peter W. Galman) on a temporary basis.
Aristotle’s quote, “No great mind has ever existed without a touch of madness,” seems right on the mark for Man of La Mancha, a story conceived by Miguel de Cervantes. What drives mankind to reach greatness: power, determination, perhaps even madness?
Miguel de Cervantes wrote Don Quixote in two parts: the first in 1605 and the second part in 1615.It is important to understand some background material to put the play in its proper perspective.
Cirque du Soleil’s ‘Twas the Night Before…, presented as part of the Kravis on Broadway series, arrives with all the trimmings one expects from a holiday spectacle. It is festive, colorful, family friendly, and polished in a quintessential one would expect from a world-renowned troupe like Cirque. Yet beneath the glitter, the show’s story is loosely sketched that, if you were to strip away every bauble related to Christmas, replace it with Alice in Wonderland or any other whimsical world, and very little would change. Whether this is a virtue or a missed opportunity depends entirely on what you want from your holiday outing.
From the moment I set foot on Florida Atlantic University’s campus, I knew Monday, November 17 was going to be an unforgettable night. After all, for one glittering evening, the University Theatre was home to South Florida’s version of Broadway’s Tony Awards, the Carbonell Awards. This marked the 48th year of South Florida’s Theater & Arts Honors, and to make things even more exciting, this ceremony was the first to be held in Palm Beach County since 1997. Named for acclaimed sculptor Manuel Carbonell, who designed the bronze and marble award that is given to the winners, the Carbonell Awards aim to recognize excellent theater in the region, spanning Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties. Their mission is to “foster the artistic growth of professional theater in South Florida by celebrating the excellence and diversity of our theater artists, providing educational scholarships, and building audience appreciation and civic pride by highlighting achievements of our theater community.” Needless to say, this awards ceremony was a beautiful encapsulation of that mission!
What happens when you get a group of our most talented local divas together in a musical that’s notorious for skewering the very genre that made their name? You get a mind-blowing explosion of show-stopper applause moments, that’s what, in a show that couldn’t get any better if it tried.
Most of the highly experienced, award-winning actors that Island City Stage’s artistic director Andy Rogow assembled for his 14th season opener, RUTHLESS! The Musical, have performed together before. So they’re old hats at tapping into extra creative energy from one another. And I could sense them having the time of their lives when they let it all rip – reaching for a personal vocal best when they burst into song. Winning still more “energy” and applause from their audience.
Lake Worth Playhouse’s production of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town leans into the melancholy that makes the play endure. It is not sad in a showy or theatrical way. Instead, it captures the quiet desperation of the masses, the accumulation of moments that Frankenstein a life. This staging understands that Wilder meant the play to be honest. What emerges here is a gently depressing but deeply humane portrait of love, time, and loss. It succeeds because it lets the world of Grover’s Corners be as bare or full as a memory.
One thing is for certain: Kimberly Akimbo is unlike any musical you’ve ever seen before. Family secrets, vibrant (and, sometimes, quite possibly toxic) personalities, anagrams, and check fraud schemes abound…yet while its plotlines are unique, the show’s message is truly universal. At the heart of the story lies high schooler Kimberly Levaco (Ann Morrison), a young girl growing up in 1999 New Jersey with a rare, unnamed genetic condition that causes her to age four to five times as fast as usual. Kimberly longs for connection, belonging—and maybe even a trip to Six Flags Great Adventure. Still, it isn’t so easy for Kim to follow her dreams when she’s also dealing with parents (Brandon Springman and Laura Woyasz) who wish she were someone different, along with the impending arrival of a baby sister who could be the “normal” child they’ve always wanted, an aunt (Sarah Lynn Marion) who’s trying to rope Kim and her friends into her criminal plans, a crush on Seth (Marcus Phillips), her project partner from biology class—and the project itself, where he’s managed to convince her to present on her disease. Can Kim truly make the most out of life when not even time might be on her side?
Puppet shows for adults, anyone? You bet! Just ask Broward Centerfor the PerformingArts whose Au-ReneTheater has been taken over by puppets of late. And not just any puppets – realistic-looking animals usually found in zoos – life size, often ferocious or regal, sometimes friendly and kind. Still, I wouldn’t rush to introduce them to the Sesame Street set.
Anthony Nunziata, the popular Brooklyn-born, Nashville-based singer-songwriter and frequent performer at clubs throughout Palm Beach County and South Florida, has released a new Christmas album and will celebrate the classic musical assemblage with a 17-city holiday tour — including a show Dec. 2 at Café Centro in West Palm Beach and Dec. 20 at Sunshine Cathedral in Fort Lauderdale.
If there was ever a musical that managed to be both gut-busting and heartbreaking in the same breath, Kimberly Akimbo is it. Now playing at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach, this Tony Award–winning gem tells the story of Kimberly, an optimistic, dreaming teenager despite her rare genetic condition that causes her to age four times faster than normal. As she navigates this marked life, having a 50-year-old body as a 16-year-old, she tackles a first love and dysfunctional family dynamics headfirst. Kimberly’s story becomes a poignant meditation on time, mortality, and the beauty of simply being alive.
