OK Art Scene and Hurd

After Shanita (Mariah Warren) has a meltdown, worried about the future for her and her baby, Dez (Aldan Olds) tries to reassure her in a scene from SKELETON CREW playing May 21-June 12 at Carpenter Square Theatre.

Carpenter Square Theatre is presenting “Skeleton Crew” by Dominique Morisseau through June 12, 2021.  Directed by Albert H. Bostick Jr. and starring four superb actors this performance details a slice of life in the city of Detroit during the economic downturn of 2008.  The automobile industry is in collapse and factory shutdowns are commonplace.  And of course, Detroit, the motor… Continue reading →

Rob May as Captain Shotover and Megan Billings as Ellie Dunn enjoy a brief quiet moment in the garden of Heartbreak House. Photo courtesy of J. Christine Lanning.

“Heartbreak House” is a convoluted play filled with typically English, rather un-inspirational characters symptomatic of the upper middle class.  This time period in English society reflects a certain decadence and comfort in the status quo.  The year is 1914 and the specter of the Great War about to begin hangs like a dark cloud over the landscape. The full title of the play is “Heartbreak House: A Fantasia in the… Continue reading →

Derek Kenney as Jack Manningham and Katy Hayes as Bella Manningham in Jewel Box Theatre’s “Gaslight” Photo courtesy of Jewel Box Theatre.

Jewel Box Theatre is presenting Patrick Hamilton’s “Gaslight” under the expert direction of Richard Lemin and a cast of five talented performers.  “Gaslight” is a play of suspense and intrigue with complicated characters and is often known as “Angel Street”  in USA theatrical circles. “Gaslight” is best known as the 1944 American film starring Ingrid Bergman, Joseph Cotton and Charles Boyer and earning an Oscar nomination for Angela Lansbury in her first film role.

The play… Continue reading →

                                                                  ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………by Scott Myers

     I had the pleasure of attending the opening night performance of “Nunsense” performed by Lyric Theatre at the Myriad Gardens Water Stage (complete with ducks enjoying the ambiance). One of the staples of OKC’s arts scene did a great job of getting the audience from the outer streets of the metropolis to the cozy confines of the performance venue with ease… Continue reading →

Taylor Reich as Lord Lovelace, and Kaylan Ferrell Lady Lovelace (Ada) disagree as Laurie Blankenship portraying Lady Byron, Ada’s mother looks on. Photo courtesy of Carpenter Square.

Lauren Gunderson is certainly one of the most interesting modern playwrights around.  Gunderson makes math romantic in “Ada and the Engine” currently showing at Carpenter Square Theatre.  Tom Cowley directs an impressive cast of four in this fascinating show.  The central character is Lady Augusta Ada Byron Lovelace.  She is a brilliant mathematician and makes her mark on the world during the early days of the Industrial Revolution in… Continue reading →

Denise Lee in “Pressure Makes Diamonds at Lyric Theatre. Photo courtesy of K. Talley Photography

Sixty years ago today Denise Lee came into the world.  No fool, she just came close enough to April Fools Day to have a great deal of humor alongside a great vocal talent.  She started out in 1961, a diamond in the rough, but at the 60^th anniversary of her birth, she shines brilliantly.  It is the pressure that creates the diamonds whether hidden deep in the ground or visibly glowing for all the world to see. Lee examines her… Continue reading →

The Westmoreland Family, From left, seated Morgan Brown as Bobby Westmoreland, perched behind is Crystal Barby as Kate Westmoreland. Standing is Taylor Lowell as Dayne Westmoreland and seated with a sulk is Elaina Price as Gracie Westmoreland.

Slowly but surely things are starting to return to some semblance of normal.  It’s a new and different normal, but traces of lives pre-pandemic are beginning to appear.  That is true of theatre.  Jewel Box Theatre has a long history presenting quality productions in Oklahoma City at 36^th and Walker Avenue.  After the First Christian Church had to… Continue reading →

Ed Spinelli as Tito Merelli and J. Christine Lanning as Maria Merelli in “A Comedy of Tenors” at Carpenter Square. Photo courtesy of Rhonda Clark, Artistic Director

Carpenter Square Theatre has a hit with “A Comedy of Tenors” by Ken Ludwig opening February 26 and running through March 20, 2021.  Many are familiar with “Lend Me A Tenor” Ken Ludwig’s award-winning play from 1986 and will appreciate revisiting these hysterical characters.  Rhonda Clark directs “A Comedy of Tenors” with an excellent cast and she develops a significant rapport with her actors.  This of course allows for chemistry… Continue reading →

Taylor Reich as Fabrice and Brian Mueller as Casimir discuss Oxtiern’s plot in “Oxtiern” at 3rd Act. Photo courtesy of Dakota Lee Bryant

The 3^rd Act Theatre Company is presenting “Oxtiern or The Misfortunes of Libertinage” by the infamous Marquis de Sade February 5 through 21.  Dakota Lee Bryant directs a cast of eight in this period piece done in modern costuming.  The choice to set the play is the present is interesting, especially as while the time is over 200 years in the past, the problems are still quite current, it is only perspective that has… Continue reading →