SATE’s Eighth Annual Aphra Behn Festival was presented on April 5, 6, and 7 at The Chapel. The company assembled an interesting evening of short new plays.
SATE established the Festival in 2017 to provide growth opportunities for women interested in directing and writing for theater. The Festival now includes transgender and non-binary artists.
Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s Dark Matters is probably best known for its paranormal elements. I will remember it for family dynamics that were compellingly depicted in the recent staging by the West End Players Guild.
The title of Don’t Wait for the Marlboro Man tells us not to wait even though the setting is a hospital waiting room. The intriguing drama by Olivier Garofalo is receiving its American premiere from Upstream Theater in an excellent production directed by Philip Boehm, who translated the play from the original German.
The Fox Theatre is once again hosting The Book of Mormon, the 2011 Tony Award–winning musical with book, music, and lyrics by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone. The show is as outrageous and delightful as ever in its third national tour.
For the fifth time in its 39 seasons, St. Louis Shakespeare is mounting Hamlet. The current production is well conceived by director Patrick Siler and well executed by the cast and the production team.
The Whale is totally absorbing and profoundly moving in the outstanding production by St. Louis Actors’ Studio. The 2022 film of the same name was based on the play. The 2022 film of the same name was based on the play.
Stray Dog Theatre takes note of what its audience likes. Last year, the company’s production of Saturday Night Fever was a hit. Following up on that success, Stray Dog is now presenting Xanadu, another musical based on a film rooted in the disco era.