One night Bianca Del Rio was performing in storied Carnegie Hall. The next night she was in Pittsburgh at a venue with folding chairs. But rather than complaining, Roy Haylock, Bianca’s alter ego, said in a recent interview, “It keeps me real.” Recalling her sold-out evening on NYC’s 57th Street and 7th Avenue, Haylock stated “It’s insane on so many levels. Being a little … [Read more...] about Wembley Arena! Carnegie Hall! NOLA at the Orpheum!
Trodding the Boards October 22, 2019
The Sound of Music at Jefferson Performing Arts Center through Oct. 27 The Sound of Music??? “Been there, done that, seen the movie version,” you might respond. In these topsy-turvy times, however, a trip out to Metairie for JPAS’ highly satisfying revival of this enduring classic might be a welcome respite from the daily headlines. In case you’ve been in the desert … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards October 22, 2019
Trodding the Boards October 8, 2019
Gilded at the Marigny Opera House The Marigny Opera House fielded a full house for the recent world premiere of Gilded. That so many people would come out for a 45-minute song cycle on a Sunday evening following a Saints game was heartening indeed. With music by Tucker Fuller set to a text by Megan Levad, Gilded is inspired by the wandering lieder of the … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards October 8, 2019
Trodding the Boards August 27, 2019
5 Women Wearing the Same Dress at Playmakers Theater through Sept. 8 (on floor) Jaci Rai Guidry, Amy Schneida, (on bed) Erin Kate Young, Kathryn Merris Scott and Janie McNulty in 5 Women Wearing the Same Dress To the lesbians, gay men and straight folks who want to avoid the magnificent takeover of the French Quarter and environs known as Southern Decadence, I have … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards August 27, 2019
Trodding the Boards August 13, 2019
100 Years of Women in Blues at Teatro Wego! through August 25 Dorian Rush in 100 Years of Women in Blues (photo by Josh Frederick) It only seems like a 100 years since Dorian Rush has graced our local stages. So it’s a treat to have her back in her new solo show 100 Years of Women in Blues which delivers just what it promises, a marvelous overview of the women who were … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards August 13, 2019
Trodding the Boards July 30, 2019
Hamlet at Tulane’s Lupin Theater Seven years ago, I ended my appraisal of the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane’s (SFT) production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead with the observation “Patrick Bowen, son of Danny [Bowen, the play’s director] and currently a high school student, was very good as Hamlet in his scenes with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Might … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards July 30, 2019
Trodding the Boards July 30, 2019
Patrick Bowen and Sheldon Mba in Hamlet Hamlet at Tulane’s Lupin Theater Seven years ago, I ended my appraisal of the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane’s (SFT) production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead with the observation “Patrick Bowen, son of Danny [Bowen, the play’s director] and currently a high school student, was very good as Hamlet in his scenes … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards July 30, 2019
Trodding the Boards July 16, 2019
Rich Arnold and Dody Piper in She Loves Me (photo by Michael Palumbo) She Loves Me at Tulane’s Dixon Hall I wish we had a different occupant in the White House. I wish Hurricane Barry had not caused all the ruckus he did. And I wish Tulane’s Summer Lyric Theatre’s (SLT) production of She Loves Me had a longer run as this delightful and utterly captivating musical, … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards July 16, 2019
Trodding the Boards July 2, 2019
1776 at Playmakers Theater thru July 7 When 1776 opened on Broadway in 1969, it was a turbulent time. Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy had been assassinated less than a year earlier. The Vietnam War was raging. Nixon had just been inaugurated that January. A musical dramedy about the signing of the Declaration of Independence did … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards July 2, 2019
Everybody’s Talking About Bianca
Roy Haylock in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie Surreal. That’s how it felt sitting in one of the most historic West End theaters and watching New Orleans’ own Roy Haylock perform in a hit musical. And when he entered in drag and got huge applause from the adoring sold-out house--even more surreal. Anyone who remembers when Bianca Del Rio hosted Drag Bingo at Oz … [Read more...] about Everybody’s Talking About Bianca
