1) Ground Floor Theatre’s Falsettos Technically a 2024 show, but it happened right after last year’s Top 10s issue, and it sure deserves a spot at the top. This show earned the unique honor of making me fall in love with musicals again. I thought I’d moved on, but this score, this talent, this sheer […]
Cat McCarrey
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A Tale of Two Tunas
Howdy y’all. I’m Cat McCarrey, and I’m a Tuna virgin. My lack of experience with the fictional “third smallest town in Texas” could be generational or regional. Either way, the four-play sagas of that tiny town, written in the Eighties and Nineties by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, and Ed Howard, were complete unknowns until my […]
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Sob Through the Holidays With Parade
Ground Floor Theatre’s annual Christmas counter-programming kicks off December with an impeccable downer. The show may be called Parade, but the only thing marching before you is a cavalcade of horrors. It presents the true story of Leo Frank (Jacob Rosenbaum), a Jewish man falsely accused of murdering 13 year-old Mary Phagan (Brooklynn Nickel) in […]
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Different Stages’ Classic Christie Adaptation
I grew up down the street from a local community theatre. I never did as many productions as I wanted to – there’s a reason I write about theatre instead – but the atmosphere of the building is ingrained in my mind. I can close my eyes and summon the shadows of the backstage wings, […]
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Roman Intrigue in Your Face
One thing you’ll always be able to say about Walking Shadow Shakespeare: They positively reverberate the joy of the Bard. In their current show, a wildly economical mash-up of Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra that combines both plays into a tidy two-and-a-half-hour runtime, editor and director Steph Crugnola shares her pure love for these […]
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Travis Baldree Serves Up Cozy Fantasy & Connection
Author Travis Baldree’s coming back to Texas, and he’s bringing the latest installment of his bestselling cozy fantasy series with him. After enchanting crowds with 2022 debut novel Legends & Lattes and its 2023 sequel, Bookshops & Bonedust, the former Texan/current PNW-er became synonymous with this specific fantasy subgenre – the poster child for creating […]
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Open-Hearted Outsiders
Texas is big sky country. It’s the first thing I reveled in after fleeing from the Pacific Northwest’s oppressive cloud coverage. Driving into town, gazing at the sunset’s deep purples and oranges in the rearview mirror. Walking in the red-streaked dawn, or tracking storms that actually move across blue skies. Even now, I thrill at […]
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Much Ado Has Much To Do
I first reviewed the Baron’s Men a year ago, delighting in their Romeo and Juliet. The play was great! But I was deeply, irrevocably smitten with the venue. The Curtain Theatre, a space dedicated to Elizabethan and Jacobean performance art, stole my heart. It’s not a period-perfect re-creation of the Globe, but it came close […]
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The Wistful World of Tennessee Williams
Summer and Smoke, Filigree Theatre’s season seven opener, has all of Tennessee Williams’ greatest hits: religious angst, sexual angst, and heavy doses of angsty angst, all set against a sweltering summer setting. It’s an interesting production choice for the onset of fall. But just like the cool evenings or rain showers that offer relief as […]
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Lots of Arts and Culture Events to Chew Over This Weekend
Film, art, beer, and other recommended festive gatherings to keep you busy
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Music on the Trail, Coffee Talk, a Plant Swap, and More Events
Your weekdays are spoken for with these recommended things to do
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Museum Day, Drag Fest, and Some Vibes in Our Recommended Events
The weekend has no shortage of arty things to do