author: Andrew Worthington
Life is a cabaret, old chum. Come to the cabaret! In the heart of downtown Havre de Grace, MD, Rogue Swan Theatre company is presenting an impressive, though startling, rendition of the Kander and Ebb masterpiece, Cabaret. The cast and creative team have created a fabulous production filled with incredible music, impressive dancing, gritty storytelling, and a message that is needed now more than ever. Director Lilli Burril-Gordon,
Some people ainât made for small town life. And everybody is entitled to their own trouble. Of course, thereâs layers and layers of nonsense whenever you come near the human raceâ and if our present day societal existence isnât proving that one, I donât know what is. But small town life, whether youâre meant for it or not, whether youâve got your troubles with it or not, has come to Church Circle in that little black-box-in-the-square of Annapolis because Colonial Players is kicking off their 78th season with Thornton Wilderâs American chestnut,
Do you know what I do when Iâm sitting in a darkened theatre waiting for a show to start? Iâm mostly wondering why the lights have gone down if the show hasnât actually started. Though it sounds like me and âMan in Chairâ of The Drowsy Chaperone infamy, have some similar thoughts. Like âplease, God, let it be a good show. And if not a good one, at least let it be short.â And let me tell you,
You are hereâ at the start of a moment:
9:37am Tuesday September 11th 2001. The buzzer-bell that should have dismissed second period at Western School of Technology & Environmental Sciences, is two minutes late and instead, the voice of Principal Don Weglein comes on the intercom, excusing the interruption to classes, to state that two planes have crashed into The World Trade Center, classes are to be dismissed in an orderly fashion, and all students are to proceed to their next class or the cafeteria for lunch period,
This was just a moment in the woodsâ again, please!
165 minutes, give or take an intermission, to be semi exact, and theyâll do it again for 2,475 more minutes over the course of the next three weekends. Give or take, as I chose theatre and the arts not math and numbers. But whichever of your minutes you have to spare over the next several weekends, give them to The Maryland Ensemble Theatre by going to see their production of Into The Woods.
Everything must end eventually. Now Iâm asking you to trust me. When I say go see Maybe Happy Ending, I mean do it. The Tony Award-winning musical (six wins including Best Musical, with book & music by Will Aronson and book & lyrics by Hue Park) launches its National Tour debut from Baltimoreâs Hippodrome Theatre and is playing through September 19th, 2026. Heartfelt, evocative, gripping, and gorgeous, this striking new musical, directed by Michael Arden,
author: Andrew Worthington
Opening night! Itâs opening night! *jazz hands*
The opening night of Phoenix Festival Theatreâs The Producers was met with a standing ovation from a packed house after hours of laughter and impressive performances. The cast, crew, and production team, including director John Desmone, music director Jarrett Rettman, and choreographer Leslie Perry, have a hit on their hands with a production that pays homage to the iconic performances of the 1967 Mel Brooks film,
âLook sameâŚnot same thingâŚâ a repeated phrase in the first several minutes of Ins Choiâs Kimâs Convenience, the opening bid to Everyman Theatreâs 2026/2027 season. A perfectly humorous, deeply heartfelt, earnest exploration of family dynamic, expectations and dysfunction, this brilliant performance, as directed by Cara Hinh (in co-production with Indiana Repertory Theatre and Portland Center Stage) will tickle the funny bone, warm the heart, draw a tear or two to the eye,
Be vigitant! And if you have legsâ you will come! To the final production of the 2026 Frederick Shakespeare Festivalâ Ardeo Theatre Companyâs Much Ado About Nothing! Set in the bodacious and totally rad 1980s, this hilarious Shakespearean comedy is directed by Aaron Angello and features a mostly repertory cast from the FSF first main-stage show of 2026, Henry IV Part 1. Witty, humorous, heartfelt, and above all fun,
Raise your strength, raise your spirit, raise it so the angels can hear it! Raise some heat! Raise some Cain! Raise it to a higher plane! And The Long Green Valley Players are RAISING IT!!! Not only have they raised themselves up like Lazarus after a good double-decade hiatus, but they are raising up the joyâ the spiritâ and their voices at St. Johnâs this summer with their reboot-inaugural production of Sister Act.
Inside the sadness there is joy; a powerful and universally true statement, no matter what your situation may be. And The Notebook is steeped deeply in both sadness and joy. Now touring Broadway at The National in Washington DC through the end of August, this tragically beautiful storyâ with music and lyrics by Ingrid Michaelson and book by Bekah Brunstetter, based on the novel by Nicolas Sparksâ has a lot of really exquisite moments woven throughout and features some incredibly talented performers to narrate that tale.
Define normal. Because normal is an illusion, whatâs normal for the spider is a calamity of for the fly! And what really is normalâ a family? A secret? A ring? Sounds like youâre in for the least normal night of your lifeâŚor maybe the most normal if you go to the theatre every night like certain people do. Me. Iâm the certain people. Buckle up, theatergoers, youâre in for anything but normal when it comes to spending one kooky night (or afternoon,
I will live in thy heart, die in thy lap, and be buried in thy eyesâ and moreover, I will go with thee toâ the black box at Tatem Arts to crash a rehearsal? Bet Shakespeare didnât see that one coming! And neither, perhaps did the fantastic fourâ Beatrice, Benedick, Claudio, and Heroâ as they were beset upon by me for a romping jaunt of a round-robin interview! In a TheatreBloom sit down exclusive, weâve picked the brains of Shakespeareâs living finestâŚGillian Shelly,
Certainly everywhere is somewhere. And after all, isnât it more important to know whether there will be weather than what the weather will be? Or am I perhaps conflating Norton Juster and upcoming playwright Elliot Kashner. The latter, I think. Though his current new work, The Inn, appearing at The Audrey Herman Spotlighters Theatre as a part of the summer 2026 Baltimore Playwrights Festival offering, doesâ to my mindâ transport me to my first encounter with NPCs.
No matter what happens, itâs always important to believe in something! A very important lesson that Snow White is teaching us as Stand Up ForâŚTheatre had to believe in that age old adage of âThe Show Must Go On!â Faced with thunderbolts and lightning (very, very frightening!) and a mini sprinkled downpouring deluge of rainâŚthe poor companyâs opening night was very nearly fraught with cancellation! BUT! They believe! In the miracles of making it happen,
Love is an open door! Love is putting someone elseâs needs before yours. Disneyâs Frozen was a game-changer in redefining what an act of true love really could be; so many Disney fairytale animated features (and subsequent Broadway musicals) depended on the princess finding her prince and true loveâs first kiss. And while thereâs a total side-plot component in Frozen, this wintery-wonderland-fairytale musical is all about the love of family.
RedâŚyellowâŚgreenâŚbrownâŚscarletâŚblackâŚdonât tempt me. I know all 29 colors by heartâ Sara Bosworth of Lansdowne Middle School ensured that every kid in that production could say, sing, spell, and recite in order the colors of Josephâs coat in the spring of 1998. Iâve been married to this production for almost as many years as the coat has colors. And seeing my umpteenth production from church basements to national touring houses and everywhere in-betweenâ Joseph &
The very essence of romance is uncertainty! Will they? Wonât they? Is it a Happily-Ever-After? Join The Endangered Species Theatre Project as they embark down the well-worn theatrical path of Oscar Wildeâs The Importance of Being Earnest this summer as a part of the Frederick Shakespeare Festival. Co-Directed by Christine Mosere and Kayla Swain, thereâs some giddiness abound in this indoor-festival production.
Part of this productionâs challenge is the overall pacing,
Of these two things I am certain; all else is confusion:
Itâs thrilleritis-malignus at its finest!
Â
author: Jake Schwartz
When the whole world starts to turn into a musical, you need to think about the implications! And in Wildwood Summer Theatreâs production of Starkidâs The Guy Who Didnât Like Musicals, the implications are everywhere. As with any Starkid show, The Guy Who Didnât Like Musicals is vulgar, violent, crass, bloody, and full of content warnings. Yet it has developed a cult following,
author: Ryan J. Bordenski
Love is in the air, but so is deceit, mockery, adultery, the withholding of information, lies, andâŚuhâŚdental procedures? But donât worry; this is a comedy so everything will be funny and fine in the end, right?! Of course, I am talking about Return Engagements at Bowie Community Theatre. This farcical and comedic play by Bernard Slade tells the story of four unique and awkward couples who have separate chance encounters and trysts,
Everything I learned that gets me through the worst, I learned at my Mamaâs knee. And I invite her along plenty to come see musical theatre, out and about with me. And while she couldnât make it to the opening of Cockpit in Courtâs Footlooseâ my Mama says, it doesnât matter, if youâre a first-timer or you been there before, you better get your tickets to see that show, before they ainât got tickets no more!
End war before it ends you! Not something most of us thought would be resonating hard here in 2026. History doesnât repeat itself so much as it rhymes with itself. And you can feel that rhyming resonance in all too relevant way raging through the talent at Small Town Stars Theatre Companyâs production of Hair. Yes, that Hair, the one with the hippie-loving âbe-inâ and the nudity at the end of Act I.
Well itâs a hard, cold, tumble of a tourney, jumble of a journey to Urinetown! Actually, itâs a long drive, and itâs pretty hot outside, all the way up to Rising Sun for Urinetown. But my friends, I sayâ you have to run, freedom-run-freedom-run-awaaaaaayâ up there to go and see this fine production! Campy, humorous, creative, clever, with all sorts of piss-taking songs and a company 32 strong in that little black box of Street Lamp Community Theatre,
âChange doesnât come whispered in your ear; it comes as a hurricane.â There was more to that strikingly profound quote but at the risk of butchering Nikki Ann Hartmanâs beautiful phraseology, Iâll leave it there. It was one of several, one of many, one of more than a handful that really stuck with me while experiencing Doll Parts⌠a one{trans}-woman show at The Voxel in Baltimore City last night. A friend of mine likes to tease me about how I struggle with the difference between a couple,
Secrets are the enemies of passion! Speaking truth will get you through the day. Truth is not a thing that one should rationâ and believe me as I open up and saaaayâ
ActuallyâŚthey do a lot of the saying. Iâm just doing the asking. In this sit-down, round-robin TheatreBloom interview, weâve got seven Addamses and two Beinekes* talking all about their current experience of working on The Addams Family musical, opening on Sunday August 16th 2026 at Beth Tfiloh Community Theatre.
author: Wes Dennis
I approached The Colored Museum with deep skepticism. Too often shows that spotlight aspects of the black American experience leave me shaken and incensed: not in a truly powerful or earned way, but in a way that I find offensive and even insulting. A play that ends with the dramatic reveal that a black youth has been shot to death may serve as a gut punch to white audiences,
In this hot summer heat if you need someplace cool to goâ
Prepare yourself for a sensational show.
They put the âhellâ in hello, and youâre in for one hell of a ride
When you come see River Stone Theatre Companyâs production of Bonnie & Clyde.
Why? Well, âcause ainât nothinâ rhyme with Clyde & Bonnie. This rarely produced musical is currently appearing at the Opera House in Havre de Grace as River Stone Theatre Companyâs third main-stage show and is directed and choreographed by Lauren Hampton,
A one-[trans]-woman show about memory, becoming, and transitioning gender in later life. If that sounds like a show that has piqued your interests, then Doll Parts⌠appearing at The Voxel in Baltimore from July 21st through July 25th 2026 is the show for you. Written and performed by Nikki Ann Hartman (Founding Artistic Director of The Peopleâs Repertory Theatre Company) this new work will debut as a part of the summer residency program offered at The Voxel.
author: Chris Pence
The Sounds of Silence: Variations on Silence at Rapid Lemon Productions
âHello darkness, my old friend / I’ve come to talk with you again / Because a vision softly creeping / Left its seeds while I was sleeping / And the vision that was planted in my brain / Still remains / Within the sound of silence.â Is silence truly just the absence of sound, or something more?