Alice in Wonderland

A straight-up, well-executed adaptation of Lewis Carroll's book from City Theatre

"...life. The play follows the episodic structure of the books. Alice moves through the world, encountering ever madder crews...."

Sept. 5, 2008 Arts Review by Hannah Kenah

'Cynthia Camlin: Extremities'; 'Marianne Green: Silence and Sound'

These two exhibits celebrate natural wonders exquisitely with expert technique

"...go, but Earth abides," as George Stewart and the Book of Ecclesiastes so lyrically remind us; and with "Earth,"..."

Aug. 22, 2008 Arts Review by Wayne Alan Brenner

Passion at Play

Though at times exciting, this program lacked American Repertory Ensemble's usual spark of artistic fusion

"...Speed Dial, Justin's setting of Michael Torke's driving "Telephone Book" – an odd choice for a ballet, as its..."

Aug. 1, 2008 Arts Review by Michael Kellerman

Disney's Beauty and the Beast

The 50th Zilker Summer Musical not only brings the animated musical to charming life, it deepens our appreciation of home

"...castle of the Beast, the "provincial life" that the book-loving girl disdained in the musical's opening number begins to..."

July 11, 2008 Arts Review by Robert Faires

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

Austin Playhouse's production of this early Sondheim musical features some strong work, but it also feels dated and safe

"...true that this is a Stephen Sondheim musical (with book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart), but it's not..."

June 13, 2008 Arts Review by Elizabeth Cobbe

Lance Letscher: 'Industry and Design'

Throughout his latest group of collages, Letscher is always exploring how we work through ideas and emotions

"...the current, almost stair-step difference between paper background and book-cover foreground, the materiality of Letscher's media is more noticeable...."

June 13, 2008 Arts Review by Nikki Moore

Assassins

The debut of UT's Musical Theatre Pilot Project is a visual treat, well performed, and with plenty of fun moments

"...the rest has been gobbled up in our history books by words like "assassinated" or "attempt." Composer-lyricist Sondheim and..."

April 18, 2008 Arts Review by Avimaan Syam

Speeding Motorcycle

In that tenuous space where heartbreaking loneliness meets relentless hope lives this beautiful, strange Daniel Johnston rock opera

"...a blanket and a picnic basket and a chord book all with just two human hands. The show is..."

March 7, 2008 Arts Review by Hannah Kenah

FronteraFest Short Fringe Week Two

Wednesday's show offered plenty of pleasant surprises in the form of good laughs and provocative moments

"...luck with a night of Short Fringe, remember to book your tickets in advance; these shows have been selling..."

Feb. 1, 2008 Arts Review by Avimaan Syam

'Jorge Macchi: The Anatomy of Melancholy'

This Argentinean artist's work may not grab you immediately, but its understated lyricism will linger

"...Take Buenos Aires Tour, an artist book produced in collaboration with the writer María Negroni and..."

Jan. 11, 2008 Arts Review by Amanda Douberley

Ashes, Ashes

In UT's staging of this postapocalyptic fairy tale, we can't help be sucked into the magic of the infinite hole

"...(a comical Leslie Chastain) and the villainess character History Book (a stern Chibbi Orduña) have been elevated so that..."

Nov. 9, 2007 Arts Review by Patti Hadad

YLA 12: Embracing Chaos

Despite some enjoyable work by this year's Young Latino Artists, the show overall isn't impressive

"...Hart Benton's murals are called to mind, but in book format; they tap into Mesoamerican codices. Even in the..."

Nov. 9, 2007 Arts Review by Salvador Castillo

Mr. Marmalade

Capital T Theatre Company brings a brightness to Noah Haidle's Mr. Marmalade that keeps the whole affair surprisingly light

"...black marks and shaded in pastels, recalls a cheery coloring-book illustration. And Tiny Robinson's Lucy seems just like the..."

Aug. 24, 2007 Arts Review by Robert Faires

My Favorite Year

The Zilker Summer Musical production of My Favorite Year triumphed over the recent storms and occasionally over the show's weak material

"...Tough luck, that. Joseph Dougherty's book is a mishmash of clichéd characters and situations. If..."

July 13, 2007 Arts Review by Barry Pineo

Parallel Lives: The Kathy and Mo Show

Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney's Parallel Lives was a cult classic in the Eighties, but in the City Theatre production, it still feels fresh

"...her best friend? While Fletcher smacks her gums, Stogner starts teenybopper fast-talking, spitting high-pitched words like a machine gun...."

July 6, 2007 Arts Review by Patti Hadad

Ruddigore, or The Witches Curse

With Ruddigore, the Gilbert & Sullivan Society of Austin has provided a welcome opportunity to experience one of the less seen works of the G&S canon performed with aplomb

"...virtue resides in a blind, rigorous adherence to a book of etiquette; the blushing hero brags loudly and repeatedly..."

June 15, 2007 Arts Review by Iris Brooks

Jennifer Balkan: Her New Work

In her new work, Austin artist Jennifer Balkan takes up certain surrealist painters' penchant for self-portraiture and dense symbolism, with intriguing results

"...experiencing firsthand artworks previously available to her only in books. Since then, Balkan has had a slew of shows..."

May 18, 2007 Arts Review by Amanda Douberley

Trash Anthems

Each of the seven short plays written by Dan Dietz in Shrewd Productions' Trash Anthems unfolds like a gift being opened, full of surprising scenarios and sympathetic characters

"...tonight. Unluckily, his plans are foiled by a mistaken triple-booking of the hotel room. Enter the luckiest woman in..."

May 11, 2007 Arts Review by Hannah Kenah

Moonlight and Magnolias

With its quick tempo, rapid-fire jokes, and backstage look at Gone With the Wind, Austin Playhouse's Moonlight and Magnolias is accessible, short, and extremely entertaining theatre

"...that neither of these two professionals have read the book. So Selznick, veering wildly from nebbishy to overbearing, and..."

May 4, 2007 Arts Review by Iris Brooks

Big River

TexARTS' Big River, its first foray into full-scale musical production, was more than impressive; it was energetic, entertaining, and joyous

"...slave. Back in the mid-Eighties, this epic musical, with book by William Hauptman and music and lyrics by Roger..."

Jan. 12, 2007 Arts Review by Barry Pineo

Kneeling Down at Noon

The Mary Moody Northen Theatre's Kneeling Down at Noon is a thoughtful and deeply humane drama that considers the way Islam informs the lives and actions of various characters

"...the threat of such loss ever pressing on their hearts, like a dagger's point that might be thrust in..."

Nov. 17, 2006 Arts Review by Robert Faires

Parade

'Parade' is an ambitious musical for a university theatre department, but the entire company presenting it at St. Edward's is impressively in tune with Alfred Uhry and Jason Robert Brown's retelling of the Leo Frank case

"...But composer/lyricist Jason Robert Brown and book writer Alfred Uhry take pains to show a confluence..."

Oct. 6, 2006 Arts Review by Robert Faires

An Arabian Midsummer Night's Dream

An Arabian Midsummer Night's Dream doesn't do justice to Shakespeare's comedy, but the goodwill, visual splendor, and flashes of magic in Tongue and Groove Theatre's show can transport you halfway 'round the world

"...removed from the sultans and sand dunes of The Book of One Thousand and One Nights. And yet, when..."

July 28, 2006 Arts Review by Robert Faires

Tape & Float: Kurt Mueller and Rebecca Ward

With its second exhibit, The Donkey Show moves away from the spectacular toward something a little closer to home, or at least to Home Depot: Rebecca Ward works with masking tape, and Kurt Mueller's supplies are straight from the paint aisles

"...thank heavens for Home Depot and three-step home renovation books. As popular lingo shifted its focus from the inherently..."

July 14, 2006 Arts Review by Nikki Moore

Durang/Durang

In the St. Edward's University production of Christopher Durang's redundantly titled 'Durang/Durang,' canonized American plays transform into comedic farce

"...In his book The Haunted Stage (2003), Marvin Carlson writes, "Parody is..."

April 7, 2006 Arts Review by Heather Barfield Cole

FronteraFest Short Fringe

With FronteraFest 2006 in full swing, the January 27 Short Fringe program offered an assortment of theatrical ingenuity, frivolity, and tenderness

"...movie theatre. Downstage, a narrator held an oversized illustrated book. She stopped the action at opportunities with potential to..."

Feb. 3, 2006 Arts Review by Heather Barfield Cole

Two Into War

Different Stages' pairing of Naomi Wallace's 'The Retreating World' and Fraser Grace's 'Gifts of War' offers solo portraits of two victims of war, staged with sensitive simplicity

"...effects of the sanctions through the touchstone of a book on birds. As played by Ben Wolfe, Ali is..."

Feb. 3, 2006 Arts Review by Barry Pineo

Border Radio: The Big Jukebox in the Sky

'Border Radio: The Big Jukebox in the Sky' was as eclectic as the border radio culture it re-created, but one couldn't avoid feeling overstuffed by evening's end

"...Following the format of the book Border Radio (by Bill Crawford and Gene Fowler, who..."

Sept. 23, 2005 Arts Review by Belinda Acosta

Ennio, the One-Man All-Star Living Cartoon

The Austin debut of Italian performer Ennio Marchetto was something of a disappointment, but his energetic display did provide 70 minutes of mindless fun

"...colorful, Ennio's costume cutouts used clever folding and pop-up book techniques that enabled him to switch quickly from one..."

Sept. 16, 2005 Arts Review by Belinda Acosta

Tina Medina's Pochismas

Review of Tina Medina's 'Pochismas' at Women & Their Work

"...Other influences include Aztec codices and comic book art, which Medina skillfully blends in several pieces, bringing..."

Aug. 12, 2005 Arts Review by Belinda Acosta

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