In the updated, slimmer, far more terse version of Morag Shepherd’s two-hander My Brother Was A Vampire, only occasional wisps of the crisp, tart and sardonic banter between Callum and his sister Skye from the earlier version remain. Played by actors Tyler Fox and Ariana Farber who are considerably older than the two actors who … Read more
Starting its second decade, the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival will feature 23 shows, many from outstanding indie theater companies in three venues, during the event which will run from July 24 to Aug. 3, in downtown Salt Lake City. The event will take place at the main hall and the black box at the … Read more
No question: ticket sales are vital for any performing arts organizations. No creative work is complete until the audience is brought into the mix. It is the lifeblood of the artistic experience. But, the arts also constitute the same realities of business and economics that any other sector of society must contend with in order … Read more
Just one weekend remains in Meanwhile Park’s world premiere production run of two one-act plays: Andrea Berting’s Red Devil and Nathan Johnson’s Vacation. Only limited availability remains for tickets. The production runs through July 20. Meanwhile Park, which is near the Herman Franks Dog Park, opens at 8:30 p.m. on performance nights, and the shows … Read more
The splendid Meanwhile Park outdoor theatrical venue will be the site for its first double-bill premiere, featuring one-act plays by Andrea Berting of Chicago (Red Devil) and Nathan Johnson (Vacation). This is the third consecutive summer for a world premiere at Meanwhile Park. Both plays were selected by a jury for the Meanwhile Park Playwright … Read more
EDITOR’S NOTE: For preview coverage of the 49th Utah Arts Festival, which runs June 19-22, The Utah Review is presenting individual or group profiles of artists, performers, entertainers and some newcomers to the event. Visitors will also see the first significant change of the last 15 years in the festival map. There are several new … Read more
In Deborah Zoe Laufer’s Be Here Now, the character of Bari epitomizes what an academic diet heavy in post-structuralist theory with oversized portions of Barthes, Derrida and Foucault can do in wreaking havoc on one’s psyche. However, as much as Bari wants to flex her intellectual prowess in the study of nihilism, she is at … Read more
It has been a banner year for musicals in Pioneer Theatre Company’s (PTC) 63rd season. There were the exuberant cavalcade of pop music excellence in Jersey Boys, roof-raising performances in Beautiful, The Carole King Musical and while not a musical per se, the two-hander Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins was … Read more
Normally this critic does not review student productions but in the curious case of a 2008 musical that has enjoyed an incredible rejuvenation post-pandemic in colleges and universities across the country, thanks to a TikTok video that went viral in 2022, it seemed appropriate to make an exception. Judging by the reactions of the packed … Read more
Looking at current news headlines, one would struggle to find a scintilla of evidence to make a case for the existence of God. The extant American realities are visibly ugly and demoralizing but we also can hope that in countless inconspicuous spaces, there is still fertile ground for human connection, decency, conscience and spiritual intelligence. … Read more