Theatre Reviews

To Love Another Person Is To See The Face of God If you’re going to see one musical this year, this is it. Intensely powerful and aesthetically astounding from Prologue to Finale, Les Misérables is easily the best Broadway production in Jacksonville in 2019. This classic tale is so masterfully performed that you’ll be moved to tears time and again. Boubil & Schonberg’s Les Misérables opened Tuesday, January 22nd and runs through January 27, 2019 at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts. Based Victor Hugo’s 1862 novel, Les Misérables has been delighting audiences since its 1985 London debut and …

A DUAL CRITICS REVIEW St. Augustine’s Limelight Theatre opened “An Enemy of the People,” on January 11, which runs through February 3, 2019 on the Matuza Mainstage. The theatre is located at 11 Old Mission Avenue; ample free parking is available. Visit limelight-theatre.org or call 904-825-1164 for reservations. The play, written by Arthur Miller in 1950, is adapted from Henrik Ibsen’s classic drama, which was written in 1882. And although the original was written over a century ago, the themes remain relevant. How can you warn of danger when being pressured to remain silent? Protect your family from retaliation? Deal …

A DUAL CRITICS REVIEW The Alhambra Theatre opened its 2019 season with “Godspell,” which will be on stage through February 10th. The theatre is located at 12000 Beach Boulevard in Jacksonville, Florida. Visit alhambrajax.com or call 904-641-1212 for reservations. The musical, which has been around since the seventies, ran in New York for over five years. It became a popular choice for venues throughout the states and abroad; the Alhambra staged previous productions in 1985 and 1990. A 2012 revision changed the staging but kept the same wonderful songs. In case you were wondering, the title “Godspell” is an Old …

Jessica Crenshaw is terribly untalented. When the leading lady mysteriously dies during opening night of Robbin’ Hood of the Old West, the rest of the cast isn’t terribly upset…. Apart from the fact that a murder has occurred and they’re all suspects. It’s up to the Boston Police Department’s Lieutenant Frank Cioffi (played by ) to solve the crime. Believing the murderer is still in the building, he sequesters it and begins his investigation. Is the killer producer Carmen Bernstein (Laura Moussakhani) or her philandering husband, Sidney Bernstein (Mac McDonald)? Or perhaps one of the divorced songwriting team, Aaron Fox …

A DUAL CRITICS REVIEW   Theatre Jacksonville opened its first play of 2019 with Laure Gunderson’s “Silent Sky,” sponsored by Delores Barr Weaver’s Forever Event Fund.  It will run through January 27, 2019. The theatre is located at 2032 San Marco Boulevard, in Jacksonville, Florida. Visit theatrejax.com for additional information or call 904-396-4425 for reservations. “Silent Sky” is one of the most thought-provoking plays of the year. Good theatre has the responsibility to educate as well as to entertain, and the play is based on a historical character and her amazing accomplishments. “Silent Sky” is a history lesson shared so …

A Dual Critics Review The Museum of Contemporary Art of Jacksonville (MOCA) hosted the world premier performance of Jacksonville playwright ’s provocative MASS on December 15, 2018 at 233 North Laura Street in . The production will be on stage for two performances, on Sunday, December 15 at 1 pm and Friday, December 27 at 7 pm. For additional information and tickets, see their website. The title does not refer to the formal worship service of Catholicism. Rather, it’s a reference to pandemic mass shootings throughout our county. During 1949 – 2018, Americans have experienced 40 or more mass shootings …

The Beach’s Players by the Sea opened “Noises Off,” a comedy/farce by Michael Frayn on December 7, 2018; the production runs through December 23.  The theatre is located at 106 6th Street North in . For reservations call 904-249-0289 or visit playersbythesea.org. The play opened on Broadway in 1983 and ran for 553 performances. It was nominated for a Tony as Best Play and in 2016 received a Tony for Best Revival of a Play. It’s been staged in the North Florida area several times over the years and has always been a big hit. “Noises Off” is a play …

A DUAL CRITICS REVIEW The Alhambra Theatre opened its annual Christmas holiday show with the Jacksonville premier of “Elf – The Musical” on December 21, 2018, which will remain on stage through December 24. “Elf” came to life in a movie released in 2003 and was a big hit. A musical version debuted on Broadway in 2010, and has remained a popular seasonal show throughout the country. The play opens with Santa (), who has been using his iPad to keep his naughty and nice lists updated, deciding to relate the story of Buddy the Elf. Buddy is not really …

A  Dual Critics Review Douglas Anderson School of the Arts presented four performances of “My Fair Lady,” one of the best known and most beloved musicals of all time, during November 14 – 18, 2018. The musical, which premiered on Broadway in 1965, won six Tony Awards, which included the Best Musical award. The wonderful classic music and songs were likely unknown to most of the DASOTA students, as the last time it was produced on a local stage was almost ten years ago. The story is based on George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion” (written in 1912), with book and lyrics …

Energetic, engaging, and entertaining from the overture through the reprise, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The King and I opened Tuesday, November 13 at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts in Downtown Jacksonville. Offering a riveting and visually enthralling adventure, The King and I triumphantly inspires and delights young and old alike. The show runs from November 13-18, 2018. Based on the 1944 semi-biographical novel Anna and the King of Siam by Margaret Landon, The King and I is a familiar story that has appeared on the big screen numerous times over the decades. For many, the 1999 adaptation Anna and …