Tag Archives: Holly Gutshall

A DUAL CRITICS REVIEW The All Beaches Experimental Theatre is staging a play (March 17 – 31, 2019) with an unusual name which was written by Lee Blessing in 1985. “Eleemosynary” means “of or relating to charity” and is of special importance to the narrative, as that’s the word that Echo, the youngest of the characters, spells correctly to win the National Spelling Bee Competition. This thought-provoking script explores the vicissitudes of mother-daughter bonds among three generations of women. It is an intriguing study of the ties that bind mothers despite their strong personality differences. The action takes place on …

PLAYERS BY THE SEA THEATRE REVIEW Jacksonville Beach’s opened its 50th season on September 18, 2015 with a revival of the 1984 winner of six Tony Awards, “,” which will run through October 10. Reservations are highly recommended; call 904-249-0289 or visit theatrejax.org. When this play first hit Broadway in 1983, it was considered controversial as it is about a committed gay couple facing a family crisis when their son decides to marry. As far as we know, this production is only the second in North Florida; we recall it being staged at the some years ago. In view of …

BY BRADLEY AKERS, Associate Director at Players by the Sea ‘Another One Bites The Dust’ by plays. A man wearing glasses, a spotted dog suit, and a warm smile appears on the television screen to welcome people to his “weekly growl.” That man, dubbed the Amazing (but humble) , set out in 1980 to promote the exciting theatre here in Jacksonville to the community through public access television waves. Thirty-five years and thousands upon thousands of shows and reviews later, we celebrate the work of in harmonious howling. “Dick’s knowledge and love of theatre is simply unsurpassed,” says , longtime …

wrapped up its 49th season on August 15, 2015 at their playhouse in Jacksonville Beach, with their annual volunteer celebration and awards ceremony. The have attended a number of the celebrations, but this year’s full house audience seemed particularly lively and excited. The exuberance no doubt reflected Players very successful past season, and the anticipation of the big 50th Season opening in September. and were the Masters of Ceremony, with various actors tapped to present individual awards. A new feature was The Gold Brown Bag Awards, by long-time Players supporter and jack of all trades involving theatre, . She sketched …

in Jacksonville Beach opened “,” on June 5, 2015, for a three-weekend run through June 20. The play, which had over 600 Broadway performances, has received wide critical acclaim and garnered multiple Tony Awards, while playwright Tracy Letts was awarded the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for drama. is no stranger to North Florida audiences. Players has staged two of his plays, “” and “,” in past seasons; both were excellent and well-received by audiences.  Like many playwrights, Letts uses personal experiences for his work. If you read the Dramaturg notes in the program, you will learn, that yes, Mr. Letts had …

Players by the Sea’s motto for the last few seasons has been “Expect the Unexpected.” Players’ current production of “,” which opened May 8, 2015 and will run through May 23, certainly delivers on that promise. A dark musical comedy, it is challenging to the talented cast and director as well as to local theatergoers. The play, written by , with music composed by , debuted at the in Washington D.C. in 2012, where it played for almost three months. It moved to the Playwrights Horizons stage in New York City the following year for a brief run. This year, …