Brian Sands

Roller Soul at Cafe Istanbul In my 2022 Year in Review column, I lamented that a certain “NOLA quirkiness” had been missing from the season just ended. If Intramural Theater’s CAVE restored some of that quirkiness to NOLA’s theater scene as 2023 began, then Roller Soul, seen last month at Cafe Istanbul, threw us big beads of delicious eccentricity just as Carnival kicked … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards February 22, 2023

Sistas the Musical at Teatro Wego! through February 12 If you want some entertainment this weekend but prefer to avoid Mardi Gras parades, head to JPAS’ Teatro Wego! in Westwego for Sistas the Musical. You won’t catch any beads or cups there, but you’re likely to have a good time. Set in St. Louis, Sistas introduces us to three Black sisters, the teenage daughter of one, … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards February 7, 2023

CAVE at The Backyard Ballroom through January 27 In my 2022 Year in Review column, I lamented that a certain “NOLA quirkiness” had been missing from the season just ended. Well, leave it to Intramural Theater, which once gave us a play about a young guy sexually involved with an air conditioner, to start the new year off with some of that quirkiness with its newest … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards January 24, 2023

The Wedding Party Experience at the Margaret Place Hotel through February 3 If you’re looking to enjoy a three-hour “dance party” in a beautiful Lower Garden District courtyard while savoring some yummy hors d'oeuvres and cocktails, then by all means check out The Wedding Party Experience at the Margaret Place Hotel, a new stylish venue. If, however, you want to partake … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards January 10, 2023

The Year in Review 2022 was bookended by two phenomenal productions. The first was the regional premiere of Twelfth Night, The Musical, a new (2018), buoyant adaptation of Shakespeare’s comedy by up’n’coming composer Shaina Taub. The second was an original, witty deconstruction with meta touches of Shrek The Musical that was far more enjoyable than that often plodding … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards December 27, 2022

Macbeth at The Fortress of Lushington All hail Dane Rhodes! Rhodes, a two-time Ambie Award-winner (in the same year no less!), has not been seen on local theater stages of late, in part because of the pandemic, in part because TV and films have been keeping him busy. Now looking trim, muscled and DILFy, he made a welcome return to our boards in Macbeth at the Fortress of … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards December 20, 2022

SIX at the Saenger Theatre through December 4 I had seen Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss’ SIX in London in 2019 and, between the British accents and over-amplification, had a hard time understanding most of the lyrics. I came out of the theater feeling like a guest at party where everyone else was having a great time except me. So, I’m happy to report that, having seen SIX’s … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards November 29, 2022

Curtain Up With the holidaze upon us, local theater shall be taking a backseat to family gatherings, bonfires on the levee (and other places), and seasonal festivities. Still, there are some shows coming up in December...and not all of them deal with Nutcrackers or Grinches! If you’re a fan of the Tudors--or any of today’s pop princesses--head over to the Saenger Theatre … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards November 15, 2022

The Family Line at the BK [Beauregard-Keyes] Historic House through November 20 Since 2018, Goat in the Road Productions (GRP) has presented a remarkable series of immersive plays in notable French Quarter edifices that entertain and enlighten about seminal moments in New Orleans history. If you enjoyed The Stranger Disease (2018) and The Uninvited (2020), as I did, you … [Read more...] about Trodding the Boards November 1, 2022