Portland Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 10

BWW Review: ABBA Music, Great Dancing, Fabulous Costumes, Rotating Set! Broadway Rose's MAMMA MIA! Has 'Em All
by Krista Garver - July 06, 2018

MAMMA MIA! is a silly musical, but it's perfect fun for a carefree summer day....

BWW Review: Clackamas Repertory Theatre's Delightful SENSE & SENSIBILITY Delivers Jane Austen at Lightning Speed, Propelled by Gossip
by Krista Garver - July 04, 2018

Clackamas Rep's SENSE & SENSIBILITY features creative direction and a great cast for a delightfully fun time....

BWW Review: Beware of Office Workers Bearing Chainsaws: THE SECRETARIES at Profile Theatre
by Krista Garver - June 27, 2018

Remember the movie 9 to 5? Now picture it with chainsaws. Add in a very heavy dose of internalized sexism, and you'll come close to having THE SECRETARIES, written by the comedy troupe Five Lesbian Brothers, aka Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy, Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey, and Lisa Kron....

BWW Review: The Institute for Contemporary Performance Explores the Humor in Desperation in VERY POORLY INDEED
by Krista Garver - June 23, 2018

If you're up for something experimental and would like to see a new take on storytelling and performance from a group of up-and-coming theatre artists, check it VERY POORLY INDEED by the Institute of Contemporary Performance....

BWW Review: The Barricades Arise Once Again in Stirring National Tour of LES MISERABLES
by Krista Garver - June 21, 2018

The national tour of Cameron MacKintosh's revamped LES MIS hits it out of the park....

BWW Review: BROKEN BONE BATHTUB: A Quirky, Intimate Play That Will Restore Your Faith in Humanity
by Krista Garver - June 09, 2018

BROKEN BONE BATHTUB is based on Siobhan O'Loughlin's experience of breaking her hand in a bike accident. Whatever you may be feeling about the state of the world, or even your day, this award-winning solo piece will give you hope and you'll walk out a happier and more compassionate person than you w...

BWW Review: Portland Center Stage Season Ends on a Very High Note with LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR AND GRILL
by Krista Garver - June 08, 2018

Packed with great music and featuring an incredible performance by Deidrie Henry as Billie Holiday, LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR AND GRILL is an absolute must-see....

BWW Review: Artists Rep's I AND YOU is a Lesson in Poetry and Love
by Krista Garver - June 01, 2018

Lauren Gunderson's I AND YOU is a beautiful meditation on the universality of human experience and connection....

BWW Review: LEFT HOOK Looks at the Human Impact of Portland's Decades of Urban Renewal, at The Vanport Mosaic
by Krista Garver - May 29, 2018

Rich Rubin's LEFT HOOK is a powerful play about the displacement of Portland's African American community from Albina in the 1970s....

BWW Review: Fuse Theatre Ensemble Takes CABARET to a Whole New Level of Dark, Right Where It Belongs
by Krista Garver - May 23, 2018

Fuse Theatre Ensemble's CABARET, directed by Rusty Tennant, adds a few layers of pain and desperation. The result is a CABARET that makes a lot of sense, especially given the disturbing parallels between the play's setting and America today. It was fantastic....

BWW Review: Portland Playhouse Combines Award-Winning Director, Stellar Cast for Outstanding FENCES
by Krista Garver - May 14, 2018

Directed by Lou Bellamy and starring members of Penumbra Theatre, Portland Playhouse's FENCES is a must-see....

BWW Review: JOHN HUGHES HIGH: THE 1980's TEEN MUSICAL Makes Its Totally Rad Debut, Packed with Awesome Young Talent
by Krista Garver - May 09, 2018

JOHN HUGHES HIGH: THE 1980's TEEN MUSICAL, now getting its world premiere, is a most excellent tribute to the best decade ever, featuring a cast of incredibly talented young performers from Staged!...

BWW Review: Art Examines Power and Privilege in Shaking the Tree's SALT, a Multimedia Act of Resistance
by Krista Garver - May 04, 2018

SALT is a collection of installations (including performance pieces) about civil disobedience inspired by Mahatma Gandhi's Salt March speech. It's one of those unique events that makes the Portland theatre scene so dynamic....

BWW Review: Portland Center Stage's MAJOR BARBARA is Pretty, but Dusty
by Krista Garver - April 30, 2018

MAJOR BARBARA tackles the age-old question of how best to help someone: Do you give them a fish or a job fishing? It's an interesting play to be putting on right now, but I think the material -- and the audience -- would have benefitted from a slightly less dusty, even if that meant less opulent, pr...

BWW Review: In Revisiting the Troubles of Ireland's Past, Corrib Theatre's QUIETLY Provides a Warning for Our Future
by Krista Garver - April 24, 2018

One summer day in 1974 in a pub in Belfast, Ian and Jimmy's lives changed forever. Now, at age 52, the men arrange to meet in the same pub where a horrific event occurred. After 36 years, can they see each other as anything but enemies? Is any amount of forgiveness possible? These are the questions ...

BWW Review: You'll Fall to Pieces for ALWAYS...PATSY CLINE, at Broadway Rose
by Krista Garver - April 23, 2018

ALWAYS...PATSY CLINE is more than a vehicle for Cline's classic music. It's a funny, touching account of the night a superfan's dream came true and a reminder of the magic that can happen when we get up the courage to reach out to another human being....

BWW Review: Personal, Political, Powerful: DeLanna Studi's AND SO WE WALKED, at Portland Center Stage
by Krista Garver - April 16, 2018

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BWW Review: Imago Theatre's LA BELLE: LOST IN THE WORLD OF THE AUTOMATON Overflows with Creativity
by Krista Garver - April 13, 2018

LA BELLE: LOST IN THE WORLD OF THE AUTOMATON can hardly be called a play. It is a play, but also so much more - it's also a musical, a puppet show, a clown act, a dance performance, a visual art installation, and an automated wonder....

BWW Review: Good Intentions Lead You Know Where in Scathing Comedy THE THANKSGIVING PLAY, at Artists Rep
by Krista Garver - April 12, 2018

THE THANKSGIVING PLAY, which is having its world premiere at Artists Rep, soundly skewers a group of white well-meaning liberals for being so focused on not giving offense that they can't do anything meaningful at all. It's funny, biting, and often much closer to the truth than it's comfortable to a...

BWW Review: Courtney Freed Channels Freddie Mercury in Dazzling DON'T STOP ME NOW
by Krista Garver - April 05, 2018

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BWW Review: THE MERMAID HOUR Explores the Complexities of Parenting a Transgender Child, at Milagro Theatre
by Krista Garver - April 01, 2018

THE MERMAID HOUR is part of a National New Play Network rolling world premiere. The first production opened a few weeks ago in Tucson, AZ, and Milagro's production will be followed by one in Charlotte, NC, and a musical version in Minneapolis, MN....

BWW Review: Give in to Wonder at THE MAGIC PLAY, at Portland Center Stage
by Krista Garver - March 16, 2018

Andrew Hinderaker's THE MAGIC PLAY, now running at Portland Center Stage, combines some truly impressive sleight of hand with achingly raw emotion into a show that is the antidote to cynicism and could touch even the most jaded of hearts....

BWW Review: BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY Exposes the Complexities of Being Human, at Artists Rep
by Krista Garver - March 15, 2018

BETWEEN RIVERSIDE AND CRAZY is a fascinating look at the complexity of being human and the even greater complexity of forming relationships with other complex humans....

BWW Review: SCARLET Puts a Modern Bent on a Tragically Timeless Story, at Portland Playhouse
by Krista Garver - March 14, 2018

There were zero dry eyes and two standing ovations (one during the show) at opening night of SCARLET, Michelle Horgen's excellent new musical adaptation of Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic novel The Scarlet Letter....

BWW Review: Shaking the Tree's MACBETH, Full of Sound and Fury, Signifies Plenty
by Krista Garver - March 06, 2018

Shaking the Tree's MACBETH is full of terrifying demons and shadows. Director Samantha Van Der Merwe uses cross-gender casting to explore the theme of what it means to be a man....