Articles Tagged With: Laurie Brandon

Shining Like The Top of The Chrysler Building: Annie at Compass Rose Theater

Reviews September 25, 2025 Chris Pence

author: Chris Pence

Admit it, you had “Tomorrow” running through your head from the second you read the title. And who wouldn’t? It’s such an ebullient anthem to optimism (try saying that three times fast)! Producer Barbara Webber and Compass Rose Theater reignite inspiration, determination, and optimism with Annie, the classic tale of the little redheaded girl that has been stealing Americans’ hearts since 1924.

Based on characters from Harold Gray’s Little Orphan Annie comic strip,

Love, Loss, and What I Wore at Spotlighters Theatre

Reviews May 26, 2018 Amanda N. Gunther

It was a white dress with pink floral patterns all over it, A-frame and 50’s vintage style cut with a singular crinoline layer that peaked out from the bottom. I wore it with a pink hat dotted in flowers and pearls, the hat that my partner calls “…that flower bucket on your head…” I got the dress in Vegas, at a retro-chic wannabe vintage shop called Rockin’ Betty’s over in the Arts District— that’s off the strip— on the last Sunday of our family trip there.

Origin of the Species at The Strand Theatre

Reviews November 10, 2017 Amanda N. Gunther

Archeology is not a science, but an art. It is the art of knowing where to look and what to look for and going to find it. Put on your Doctor Jones hat and join the archeological excursion for extraordinary women’s theatre this fall as The Strand Theatre delves into the ancient past with Bryony Lavory’s Origin of the Species. Directed by Erin Riley, this thought-provoking tale puts a new spin on history and how we as humans,

Spring Awakening at Spotlighters Theatre

Reviews July 11, 2017 Amanda N. Gunther

11 July and the question is shame. Will you feel shame if you don’t go and see Spring Awakening at The Audrey Herman Spotlighters Theatre this summer? The answer is yes. Shame is a product of education, but do not remain ignorant to this impressively evocative and intimate piece of highly charged sensual musical theatre. Directed by Jillian Bauersfeld with Musical Direction by Michael W. Tan, this gripping and moving musical drama traverses the controversial plains of adolescence blossoming into maturity despite the deliberate ignorance engrained from the religious and parental rule that governs the time.

Review: Les Liaisons Dangereuses at Spotlighters Theatre

Reviews May 31, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

Love is something you use, not something you fall into. Though should you choose to use your love of theatre to fall into one of the 68 seats inside The Audrey Herman Spotlighters Theatre between now and the 19th of June you may just fall in love with what’s on the stage. Swordplay— of two distinctive varieties, once of which includes actual rapiers— scandal, sin; all of these delicious morsels are yours for the taking if you dare the three-hour theatrical endeavor that is Les Liaisons Dangereuses.