The Bodyguard, the Musical at the New Orleans Jazz Market through August 27 About seven years ago, the Anthony Bean Community Theater (ABCT) was asked to leave its longtime home on Carrollton Avenue as the church that rented space to them wanted to start using its auditorium hall for other purposes. After a brief search, ABCT thought it had found a new home, a … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards August 8, 2023
Trodding the Boards July 25, 2023
Romeo and Juliet at Tulane’s Lupin Theater through July 30 In trying to review the New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane’s (NOSF) current production of Romeo and Juliet, to use the lingo of today, “It’s complicated.” First of all, it’s a good solid production without a weak link in the cast, similar to NOSF’s Twelfth Night earlier this year. A 2-for-2 NOSF season … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards July 25, 2023
Trodding the Boards July 11, 2023
Critics’ Choice Gay Appreciation Award On behalf of Tony Leggio and myself, I am pleased to announce the nominees for the Critics’ Choice Award that will be presented as part of the 33rd Gay Appreciation Awards (GAA). They are: The Baltimore Waltz produced by Fat Squirrel Big Freedia with the LPO presented by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra Little Shop of … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards July 11, 2023
Trodding the Boards June 27, 2023
New in New York If you’re heading up to New York for July 4th, or any other time this summer, I wish I could recommend a bunch of new theatrical offerings for you to enjoy. Alas, that is not the case (and more on that later). What has blossomed, in many cases just since I was last up there in April, is a plethora of worthy exhibits at museums throughout Manhattan. If you … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards June 27, 2023
Trodding the Boards June 13, 2023
The Baltimore Waltz at Gallier Hall’s Ty Tracy Theatre through June 22 I know I saw The Baltimore Waltz when it was done at the CAC in the 1990s. I just can’t remember who directed or acted in it or much else about the production (googling didn’t help). Just that it left me kinda cold. I don’t think that will happen with Fat Squirrel’s production of Paula Vogel’s dramedy, … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards June 13, 2023
Trodding the Boards May 28, 2023
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at Le Petit through June 4 Comparisons are odious. That said, after I saw The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time on Broadway in 2014, I described it as “a wondrous coming of age show about an autistic/math genius teenager” and encouraged "everyone" to go see it. I had a more muted response to the Curious … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards May 28, 2023
Trodding the Boards May 16, 2023
Where the Suga Still Sweet (thru May 21) and The Defiance of Dandelions (thru June 17) at the André Cailloux Center for Performing Arts It's rare to go to a performance of a new play in New Orleans or even New York or, for that matter, just about anywhere these days, and find yourself on the edge of your seat, waiting to find out what will happen next. Rarer still, when the … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards May 16, 2023
Trodding the Boards May 2, 2023
How I Learned What I Learned at Le Petit through May 7 If you’ve enjoyed such plays as Fences, The Piano Lesson or Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and want to learn what went into their creation and, more broadly, what forces shaped playwright August Wilson, head to Le Petit for How I Learned What I Learned, Wilson’s memoir in monologue written and originally performed by the late … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards May 2, 2023
Trodding the Boards April 18, 2023
Big Freedia Live With the LPO at the Orpheum Theater Scheduling challenges caused me to attend the dress rehearsal for Big Freedia Live With the LPO so it would be unfair to write a full review of the show. Let’s just say it was a great idea to bring together these two beloved New Orleans cultural ambassadors who combined for a fabulous evening in which each one’s talents … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards April 18, 2023
Trodding the Boards April 4, 2023
Drapetomania: A Negro Carol at the André Cailloux Center through April 30 No Dream Deferred (NDD) is a community-anchored theater production company, founded in 2016. It presented its first show, Tarell Alvin McCraney's In the Red & Brown Water, at the Beaubourg Theatre in the CBD in the fall of 2019. Its second presentation was to have been Robert O’Hara’s Bootycandy; … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards April 4, 2023
