Who hasn’t heard of Cirque du Soleil at this point? Let’s face it; they’re so “in” they’re almost “out.” But have you seen a Cirque show? Chances are that unless you’ve made a pilgrimage outside of our state the answer is “no.” That’s because Cirque du Soleil has never graced Hampton Roads with their presence. Now, thanks to an all new “arena tour,” the Cirque experience is accessible to thousands more fans. By adjusting stage size and production materials it is now possible to take the larger than life Cirque experience and ship it all around North America, stopping in several more cities for a week at a time as compared to the usual hassle of erecting Cirque’s trademark blue and gold tent village.

Long Day's Journey Into Night is a dramatic play in four acts by Eugene O'Neill, widely considered to be his masterwork - the autobiographical representations of O'Neill himself, his older brother, and their parents. The play was first published in 1956, and although his written instructions had stipulated that it not be made public until 25 years after his death, in 1956  his third wife, Carlotta arranged for this autobiographical masterpiece to be published, and produced on stage to tremendous critical acclaim, winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1957. The Generic Theatre has mounted this production, under the direction of Linda Marley Smith and I personally feel that their version of Long Day’s Journey Into Night, albeit “long”, (running 3 hours), is definitely a trip worth taking.

Kids’ Paw Performing Arts Workshop runs a summer camp where children (rising first graders to high school students) participate in mounting a production.  This year Kids’ Paw mounted Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber.  If one can only imagine about forty students learning an entire hour and a half musical in six hours a day for ten days, it causes my head to hurt.  These students deserve nothing but applause.  Ten days to learn an entire musical from auditions to performance, music, spoken dialogue and staging.  One might think this is impossible but Kathi-Lee and Rocco who run Kids’ Paw believe differently.  Better yet, they prove it. 

Fame – The Musical is based on the award-winning 1980 movie by Alan Parker; conceived and developed by David De Silva.  The story is based on De Silva’s fascination with the New York High School for Performing Arts, and follows a group of vibrant, multi-ethnic, energetic, young people pursuing their dreams of “fame”, along with the teachers who remind them that it’s going to take “Hard Work” (the opening sequence). While I thoroughly enjoyed particular elements of the show, I couldn’t help but feel that overall,  Hurrah Players' version of this piece, under the direction of Dustin Elsea, needed just a little… “More Work”. 

Now, maybe it was a result of stilted dialog (I mean real people just don’t talk that way), minimalist direction (so spare as to be invisible), or performances that ranged from way over the top to practically phoned in, but something rendered Source Theatre's production of Lee Blessing’s Two Rooms impenetrable if not downright unbelievable. Two Rooms, as presented, failed to come off the floor from lights up.

Peninsula Community Theatre opened Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat on July 27, 2007. As many may know this is Andrew Lloyd Weber’s first show and is often a hit with communities across the country. A simple biblical story set to music originally as a one act for a small school in England. The show then developed into much more than ever anticipated. PCT’s production is enjoyable but, though I attended the final dress rehearsal rather than a paid performance, I still wouldn’t necessarily use the word “amazing”. 

Greater Tuna is the first in a trilogy of comedic plays each set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas, the "third-smallest" town in the state. The trilogy was written by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, and Ed Howard. The plays are described as being an affectionate comment on small-town, Southern life and attitudes but also a withering satire of same; and under the direction of Jeanette Rainey, who makes her directing debut with this production; this Greater Tuna reels you in from the start, and keeps you on the line for the duration of the show.

The only way I could have salvaged any enjoyment of the prose hurled at me in the Workshop Theatre Group production of Owen McCafferty’s Mojo Mickybo, was to have arrived armed with a low brow Irish slang dictionary, a flashlight and the desire to work in the dark.

CORE Theatre Company presented their second production for their new company which began last summer - The Yellow Wallpaper which was adapted by CORE Theatre and performed at the Stables Theatre across from O.D.U. It was wonderful to see something so fresh and new in concept for the area.  Finally someone who does something abstract, cerebral and better yet... effective.

Pet Sounds may have been one of the greatest theatrical events that Hampton Roads has had in the last year.  This production was created by Bruce Hanson and Students from Granby High School and performed at 40^th St. Stage.  Now many may ask, “why was it not performed at Granby High School?”  Well simply put, subject matter.  That was a call made by the Principal at Granby High School and a good one at that.

Poquoson Island Players opened their season closer last week with Taking Leave by Nagle Jackson.  This show is different from a normal season closer for PIPs and an unusual choice of show.  Many when they go to a PIPs production expect a musical, a comedy or a mystery, maybe even a drama. But how about a show dealing with something that is hitting close to home for many people all over the country… Alzheimer’s.

When I first read this show, Colored Girls who have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow in Enuf, being described as a “choreopoem”, I misread it as “chloroform”. Then I got my head on straight, looked up root words, and realized that the show I was planning to see was basically a collection of poems and monologues interpreted with a combination of music, acting and dance – all based on the lives and issues of African American women. But wait! Other ethnicities welcome! Especially in this particular version.

I was not familiar with KidsPAW nor with Theatrix when I was asked to review Disney's High School Musical. The reason why is that they are a newish group that has decided to expand their programming quality and content to, as their program states, "create an atmosphere where each child can experience genuine love and acceptance while using their God-given talents." They wish to make this happen by "providing productions that are edifying, relevant, and poignant for the community." So, as I quickly surmised at the middle school in which they were performing, it's going to be another rag-tag group of kids loosely thrown together into a show that really only shows off the leads. I was very pleasantly proven wrong.