Miami Theater Reviews

BWW Review: IN THE HEIGHTS Finds Second Home in Miami

It seems an obvious choice for Miami to produce one of the first regional productions of In The Heights, a musical centered around Latin culture in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. Theatre is meant to be relatable and hold up a mirror to its audience and, after feeling the electricity on opening night, the line between actor and audience was barely discernable. (more...)

BWW Reviews: ROCK OF AGES Entertains 80's Fans

Headbanging music and a story derived from a Journey song circa 1981, Rock of Ages is not your typical Broadway musical, yet it's full of energy. If you lived through the 80's era while spending hours playing top hits from groups like Styx, Journey, Bon Jovi, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Poison and Europa, this is the show for you. (more...)

BWW Reviews: 'REAL MEN' Find Musical Masculinity at Actors' Playhouse

Paul Louis and Nick Santa Maria, creators and writers of "Real Men Sing Show Tunes…And Play with Puppets," find a way to appeal to both sexes with clever rhymes, well-timed skits and the occasional shocking curveball. (more...)

BWW Reviews: THE DONKEY SHOW is a Swinging Good Time at The Arsht Center

An infectious blend of Miami heat and Studio 54 spice, "The Donkey Show" brings the 70s alive by way of an over-the-top, rollicking disco extravaganza. (more...)

LA CAGE AUX FOLLES A Joyous Revival I Loved It

Jerry Herman who provided the glorious scores for HELLO, DOLLY! and MAME, wrote the score for LA CAGE including what are probably two of the best theater songs of the second half of the twentieth century. "A Little More Mascara", sung by Zaza the star drag queen of La Cage as he transforms into a she, is just about as grand a show tune as one will find. "I Am What I Am", also sung by Zaza is a powerhouse of pride, love of self and is an exercise in teaching us how to bring the house down at the end of act one. (more...)

KATHLEEN TURNER Genius Glows In HIGH

There is much to be said about a play that kept me thinking for hours. Indeed, HIGH kept me and my theater going companion arguing about the play for well over an hour. For HIGH is a play which works on many levels. Often, it is not easy to tell who is truly good and truly bad, as well as raising and perhaps answering some questions about the Catholic Church. However, unquestionably, HIGH serves as a platform for great actors. Great actors working their craft are onstage in HIGH at the Parker Playhouse, great actors to say the least. (more...)

BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL Long May He Fly!

BILLY ELLIOT THE MUSICAL, the Tony Winning show has soared into the Broward Center for too brief a stay. Based on the film BILLY ELLIOT, this musical is about dreams, acceptance, and winning against the struggles life may throw our way. BILLY ELLIOT is often reminiscent of A CHORUS LINE, and that is an awesome show to be reminiscent of. (more...)

BWW FLORIDA Review JERSEY BOYS One Of The Greatest Musicals You Will Ever See

JERSEY BOYS did it again. Ruined a good night's sleep, that's what it did. For this musical, based on the life and careers of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons is thrilling, masterful, and certainly unforgettable. I tossed and I turned remembering magical pieces of stage craft, goose bump inducing performances and everything else that makes up this Tony winning Best Musical; indeed one of the best musicals of all time. (more...)

SHREK THE MUSICAL A Family Treat An Ogre Could Love

SHREK THE MUSICAL arrived at the Arsht Center last night, and should certainly be a fine outing for the kids and those who are kids at heart. (more...)

HAIR - An Explosion Of Joy, Beauty, Life, Freedom, And Hippies

HAIR first played on Broadway in the 60s and it was, without question, one of my very favorite musicals. I saw it three times. I recall that the then New York Times critic Clive Barnes was quoted as saying 'If you Have One Musical To See, Make it HAIR.' His quote was pretty close to that, anyway. I don't think I agreed with Mr. Barnes then, but HAIR is surely a joyous musical, full of memorable songs, and a 'tribe' of performers you simply want to be part of. (more...)

'Jersey Boys' An Electric Powerhouse Of Thrills

This Tony winning Best Musical, simply gets everything right. I would never have imagined that the story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons, would bring together a creative team that would helm a theatrical landmark. After this show, I will certainly never think of juke box musicals as something to fear. Greatness can happen in juke box musicals, and it is on display in JERSEY BOYS. (more...)

WEST SIDE STORY - A Pulse Pounding Musical Masterpiece

WEST SIDE STORY was a landmark work when it premiered some fifty odd years ago. There had been ‘serious' musicals before; SHOW BOAT from decades earlier was certainly not a musical comedy. I do believe WEST SIDE STORY was the first successful musical driven by dance. How intoxicating those dance sequences in WEST SIDE STORY remain all these decades later. The dance in WEST SIDE STORY is from the genius of Jerome Robbins. If we are to believe some sources, including the show's original Anita, Chita Rivera, the ‘shark' dances were done by Robbins' assistant, Peter Gennaro. (more...)

Donna McKechnie MY MUSICAL COMEDY LIFE - A Triumphant Mesmerizing Journey

Wow. Tonight Donna McKechnie held court in front of the audience at the PlayGround Theatre and none of us will ever be quite the same again. Of course, she gave our goose bumps, goose bumps. Yet so much more happened. (more...)

LES MIZ National Tour A Monumental Production

The 25th Anniversary Tour of the Tony winning Les Miserables opened last night at the Broward Center and I am here to report that it is the best time at Les Miz I have ever had. (more...)

ROCK OF AGES The Most Joyous Rock Musical In Years!

I was prepared to have difficulty sitting through ROCK OF AGES, the musical that opened at the Broward Center Tuesday night. Hard rock is not 'my thing,' and I had heard this show described as a celebration of 1980s rock music and also as being 'Mamma Mia' for dudes. Thank the theatrical gods, they got it right. (more...)

'Disney's Beauty And The Beast' A Shockingly Cheap And Dismal Production

A show such as 'Beauty And The Beast' cannot be done with sets and costumes that seem to have been bought from the local party supply store. Nor can it employ performers who do not yet have their Equity cards. Going 'on the cheap' can be okay for some shows. Not for this one. Not for a stage adaptation of the only animated film ever nominated for a Best Picture Oscar (prior to animated films getting their own category, that is.) (more...)

DREAMGIRLS An Unforgettable Electrifying Musical Masterpiece

DREAMGIRLS is why show business was born. Let's not mince words. It you don't have tickets to see DREAMGIRLS at the Arsht Center, stop reading this review and get your tickets now. I forgive you. There are words that can't be found to describe the abundance of gifts from the theatrical gods that is DREAMGIRLS. (more...)

'The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein' -- Tacky, Tired, Tuneless Transylvania

Mel Brooks has taken a giant tumble off the mountaintop on which he stood following the success of THE PRODUCERS. To think about it, THE PRODUCERS revealed itself not to be one of the greats as soon as Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick departed. Performers mean an awful lot in a Broadway musical. It seems the Brooks machine is willing to trade gifted star performers (they got to be stars for a reason, you know) for a more immediate return of profit. Seems to be unwise for them, and certainly not a reason for the audience to rejoice. But, on to the show. (more...)

BABALU: Celebrating The Music Of Desi Arnaz

BABALU was a fine night at the theater. I am not positive yet if it is a revue, a nightclub act, or a Broadway musical trying to find its way. Filled with the music of Desi Arnaz, and a few others, this show is a love letter from Lucie Arnaz to her much adored father, Desi. She talks a lot about her father, sings and dances to music from his career and spends the performance as a charming host. Lucie looks beautiful, and her singing is wonderful. She appears to be having a fine time, and certainly wants the audience to have a great time. (more...)

Shout It From The Rooftops MARY POPPINS Is Magnificent!

I had a most difficult time falling asleep last night. It was one of those nights when something kept going over and over in my mind, preventing sleep from happening. As a creature of the theater, I get most excited by a show that gives me goose bumps and keeps me riveted from beginning to end. Disney and Cameron Mackintosh have teamed to bring us a stage version of MARY POPPINS. Last night, MARY POPPINS opened at the Broward Center. It is a 'Jolly Holiday' for me to tell you, MARY POPPINS is one of the greatest musicals in years. (more...)

SPRING AWAKENING A Burst of Rock, Pop, Youth, And Sex

This show does things that your traditional musical does not do. That is where I begin to be perplexed. SPRING AWAKENING has what we might term traditional Broadway songs, including ballads and tuneful melodies. This is where Duncan Sheik on music and Steven Sater on lyrics certainly let us down. It also has some of the most exciting, and fetching rock songs or ‘indie rock' ever presented on a Broadway stage. This is where Sheik and Sater make SPRING AWAKENING a rock concert with theatrical surroundings. Or, perhaps they made a theatrical show and infused it with a rock concert sensibility. (more...)

'IN THE HEIGHTS' Tony Winning Slice Of Life Musical

I promise you that I wanted to love IN THE HEIGHTS. A few minutes into the show, I would have settled for just not disliking it. I am here to report that despite winning the Tony Award for Best Musical, IN THE HEIGHTS never reaches the heights it sets out for. (more...)

WICKED: This Is the One That Will Run Forever

My mom is residing in an assisted living facility in the Northeast. To this day she often reminds me of a time seemingly implanted on her forever. Her father took her to a movie. He took her to see THE WIZARD OF OZ starring Judy Garland when Mom was nine years old. While sitting in the theater he told her to 'watch, watch now' as Dorothy opened the door to her house, and revealed the Land of Oz A land of colors, at which point the film turned from black and white to color. Mom often wears a ruby slippers pin and has spread her special connection with the film to many, even to folks outside the family. WICKED, of course, has some connections to the MGM film. However, it is based on a novel which dared to actually put a twist on many events portrayed in the classic film. (more...)

'700 Sundays' - Bravo Billy Crystal!

I never imagined that a one man play starring and written by the comedian Billy Crystal, would make me cry more than any other play I have ever seen. It was magic last night as '700 Sundays' opened at the Arscht Center. Within moments of its beginning, Mr. Crystal had us all in the palm of his hand. Heck, I believe he has all in attendance wishing they were part of his family or had at least grown up with him. (more...)

'Legally Blonde The Musical' - This One's For The Girls

This musical version of the popular Reese Witherspoon film is pure pink bubblegum. Unfortunately, the gum never pops. (more...)