Monthly Matinee: The Season is Starting!

We’re finally about to really heat up the 2016-2017 theatre season and I’m excited to share with you some of the things I’m most looking forward to over the next couple of weeks.

First, I’ll see #theatrecompany’s production of THOM PAIN by Will Eno at Know Theatre Sunday night.  The show runs for just two performances and features the incredible Landon Hawkins in the title role.

This one man show is said to be a show about “nothing,” but if I know director A.C. Horton she’s found a way to pull everything out of the script and her actor.

The show will take place at Know Theatre.  Tickets and more information can be found here.  I’ll see it Sunday night.

Then on Wednesday, I’ll see the updated version of Trey Tatum’s piece, SLUT SHAMING.  Xavier University Theatre has an ambitious season ahead of them and this is just the start.  You may have seen this play at the Cincinnati Fringe Festival a few years ago; it’s back with an all new cast and I’m excited to see it again.  It is an important socially aware statement about how we treat people who experience trauma.  Tickets can be found here.  I’ll see it opening night.

Once September starts, things really heat up.  I’ll see four huge shows in a five-day period starting with Ensemble Theatre’s THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA MCBRIDE by Matthew Lopez.

Marketed as “Bruce Cromer in drag,” this show is much more than just a gimmick. I expect it to have a ton of heart – and what a tremendous cast including Darnell Pierre Benjamin, Michael Carr, Margaret Ivey, and Michael G. Bath.  Tickets and more information can be found here.  I’ll be there for opening night.

The next night, I head to Mt. Adams to see A PRAYER FOR OWEN MEANEY by Simon Bent adapted from the novel by John Irving.  This popular story about two boys and the tragedy that united them stars a mix of New York actors and locals.  The locals include Annie Fitzpatrick, Kate Wilford, Jared Joplin, and Tatum Hunter.  I am excited to see what director Blake Robison has in store for us with this epic drama.  I’ll see it on opening night, as well.  Tickets are available here.

On Friday night, September 9th, I’ll see Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett and adapted by Wendy Kesselman.  This year is the last for Cincy Shakes in their current home as they are building a fabulous new theatre in the heart of Over the Rhine just blocks from Know Theatre and Ensemble Theatre.

This production aligns with their vision of bringing classics to life as this popular book will transfer to the stage under the guidance of director Jeremy Dubin.  CSC does a great job with material like this and I’m excited to be there on opening night.

Tickets and more information can be found here.

Finally, the weekend will be capped off with perhaps the one I’m looking forward to the most.  SWEENEY TODD by Stephen Sondheim opens at Human Race Theatre on September 8th (I’ll see it on Sunday, 9/11).  I already got a design preview last week and that only fueled my fire for this masterpiece of musical theatre.  Jamie Cordes plays the title character while Rebecca Watson stars as Mrs. Lovett.  David McDonald is The Judge, Aaron Vega is The Beadle, and DJ Plunkett as Toby, Zack Steele, and Anthony, and Kimberly Hessler as Joanna are featured, as well.  Scott Stoney, who’s played the role twice before, is giving us an intimate and immersive experience for this terrifying and beautiful classic.  Get your tickets now before they sell out.

This is just the start of what I expect to be a dynamite theatre season.  Get out and see some shows . . . and I’ll see you at the theatre!