By Beki Pineda ALWAYS, PATSY CLINE – Written by Ted Swindley; Directed by Michael J. Duran and Alicia K. Meyers. Produced by BDT Stage (5501 Arapahoe) through May 20, 2018. Tickets available at 303-449-6000 or bdtstage.com. If Patsy Cline had avoided the plane crash that took her life at 30 in 1963, she would have been 85
By Beki Pineda SISTERS OF SWING – Written by Beth Gilliland and Bob Beverage; Directed by Nick Sugar. Produced by Town Hall Arts Center (2450 West Main, Littleton) through May 6, 2018. Tickets available at 303-794-2787 or townhallartscenter.org. A few years back, I spoke of the Andrews Sisters to a young actor. His response was, “Who are
By Beki Pineda ALADDIN – Music by Alan Menken; Lyrics by Howard Ashman, Tim Rice and Chad Beguelin; Book by Chad Beguelin; Directed by Casey Nicholaw. Presented by Denver Center Broadway (Buell Theatre, 14th and Curtis, Denver) through April 28, 2018. Tickets available at 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. Wowee – Wow – Wow!! What a spectacular three
By Beki Pineda WISDOM FROM EVERYTHING – Written by Mia McCullough; Directed by Seema Sueko. Produced by Local Theater Company (The Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut) through March 25, 2018. Tickets available at 303-444-7328 or thedairy.org. There appears to be nothing in Mia McCullough’s background that would prepare her to write this powerful multi-cultural story about the
By Beki Pineda SOMETHING’S AFOOT – Written by James McDonald, David Vos and Robert Gerlach; Directed by Bob Wells. Produced by Town Hall Arts Center (2450 West Main, Littleton) through March 25, 2018. Tickets available at 303-794-2787 or townhallartscenter.org. Devilishly fiendish things are definitely afoot at Town Hall. In a delightful mash-up of classic Agatha Christie’s complicated murder mysteries
By Beki Pineda AMERICAN MARIACHI – Written by Jose Cruz Gonzalez; Directed by James Vasquez. Produced by the Denver Center Theatre Company (14th and Curtis, Denver) through February 25, 2018. Tickets available at 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. Being married into an Hispanic family, I recognized many of the traditions addressed in this script. The care given to the elders, the
By Beki Pineda LADY DAY AT EMERSON’S BAR AND GRILL – Written by Lanie Robertson; Directed by Betty Hart. Produced by Vintage Theatre (1468 Dayton, Aurora) through February 18, 2018. Presented by Denver Center Cabaret (Garner Galleria Theatre, 14th and Curtis) March 5-April 23, 2018. Tickets available at 303-856-7830 or vintagetheatre.org or at 303-893-4100 or
By Beki Pineda FUN HOME – Book and Lyrics by Lisa Kron; Music by Jeanine Tesori; Directed by Len Matheo. Produced by Miners Alley Playhouse (1224 Washington, Golden) through March 4, 2018. Tickets available at 303-935-3044 or minersalley.com. More and more I’m convinced that smaller is better. While I greatly enjoyed the touring production of
By Beki Pineda GUARDS AT THE TAJ – Written by Rajiv Joseph; Directed by Stephen Weitz. Produced by Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company (Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut) through February 18, 2018. Tickets available at 303-444-7328 or thedairy.org. The first thing we have to resolve is that this is a work of fiction. There is no
By Beki Pineda THE KING AND I – Music by Richard Rodgers; Book and Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II; Directed by Bartlett Sher. Presented by Denver Center for the Performing Arts Broadway (Buell Theatre, 15th and Curtis, Denver) through January 14, 2018. Tickets available at 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. THE KING AND I was the fifth in a long string
By Beki Pineda FIRST DATE – Music and Lyrics by Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner; Book by Austin Winsberg; Directed by Ray Roderick. Produced by Denver Center for the Performing Arts Cabaret (performed at the Garner Galleria Theater, 15th and Curtis, Denver) through April 22nd, 2018. Tickets available through 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. What happens when three theatre nerds get
Cloud watching in Boulder County can be summed up in one word: spectacular. Two of our more unique clouds were featured on a 2003 sheet of stamps.
By Beki Pineda RED – Written by John Logan; Directed by Craig Bond. Presented by Vintage Theatre (1468 Dayton, Aurora) through January 7, 2018. Tickets available at 303-856-7830 or vintagetheatre.com. John Logan, the playwright, has had a prolific and varied writing career. Starting with plays about the famed Leopold and Loeb case (NEVER THE SINNER) and the Lindbergh
By Beki Pineda WAITRESS – Music and Lyrics by Sara Bareilles; Book by Jessie Nelson; Directed by Diane Paulus. Presented by the Denver Center for the Performing Arts Broadway (Buell Theater, 15th and Curtis, Denver) through December 31, 2017. Tickets available at 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. You’ve all seen the same commercials for this musical that I have on TV, so
By Beki Pineda ANNIE. Written by Thomas Meehan; music by Charles Strouse; lyrics by Martin Charnin; directed by Alicia K. Meyers. Produced by BDT Stage (5501 Arapahoe) through February 24, 2018. Tickets available at 303-449-6000 or bdtstage.com. During my recent visit to BDT, I learned that they are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year, opening their season with
By Beki Pineda SMOKEFALL. Written by Noah Haidle; directed by Rachel Rogers. Produced by Benchmark Theatre (performed at the Buntport Theater, 717 Lipan St., Denver) through December 23, 2017. Tickets available at 720-946-1388 or benchmarktheatre.com. Benchmark Theatre productions certainly engender post-show conversations. Their first show, THE NETHER, involved enough optical allusions and sideways glances into forbidden territory to cause
By Beki Pineda THE SANTALAND DIARIES – Written by David Sedaris; Directed by Stephen Weitz. Produced by Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company (performed at the Jones Theater at the Denver Center, Speer and Arapahoe, Denver) through December 27, 2017. Tickets available at 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. As part of the Off Center Productions program at the Denver Center, BETC brings
By Beki Pineda EVERY CHRISTMAS STORY EVER TOLD (AND THEN SOME!) – Written by Michael Carleton, Jim Fitzgerald, and John K. Alvarez; Directed by Rebecca Remaly. Presented by Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company (Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut) through December 24th, 2017. Tickets available at 303-440-7826 or thedairy.org. How I wish I had seen this show
By Beki Pineda RESOLUTIONS – Written by Josh Hartwell; Directed by Missy Moore. Presented by the Edge Theater Company (1560 Teller, Lakewood) through December 31, 2017. Tickets available at 303-232-0363 or www.theedgetheater.com. The evening starts off casually enough. Two old friends have arrived for an annual gathering at her beautiful condo in Vail. Fulfilling a long held holiday
By Beki Pineda A CHRISTMAS CAROL. Written by Charles Dickens; directed by Melissa Rain Anderson. Produced by the Denver Center Theatre Company (14th and Curtis, Denver) through Dec. 24. Tickets available at 303-893-4100 or denvercenter.org. It had been so long since I had seen the “real” CHRISTMAS CAROL that I began to feel like Scrooge himself. And
