The Ladies Man is a romp that induces loads of laughs at Actors’ Summit, despite the fact that the French farce’s supporting characters are doing most of the comedy work.
Canton musician in ‘STOMP’
By Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer Playing percussion has always been such a big part of Elec Simon’s life, it was a natural leap when the former University of Akron student snagged a coveted spot in the international percussion sensation STOMP back in 2002. The Canton resident, a sophomore and a UA football player…
Symphony adds second day to opera
In tango’s embrace
By Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer Tango Buenos Aires will bring the sensuality and passion of closely entwined bodies and limbs to the E.J. Thomas Hall stage Tuesday with Fire and Passion of Tango, presented by Tuesday Musical Association. The company features 10 dancers, with a program that promises intrigue and romance as lead…
Tribute in dance
By Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer The Cuyahoga Valley Youth Ballet will continue to celebrate its 35th season with the reprisal of a ballet the late founder Nan Klinger helped choose just before her death, as well as a lively new ballet honoring Klinger’s larger-than-life personality. Performances Saturday and March 13 at the Akron…
‘Shrek’ star wins favor stooping to new lows
Angst springs to life in E.J. Thomas hall show
By Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer Teenage angst will take center stage at E.J. Thomas Hall Wednesday with a one-night performance of Spring Awakening, the groundbreaking rock musical that explores both the thrill and terror of burgeoning adolescent sexuality. This searing story is set in 1891 Germany, but it’s far from staid. It celebrates…
Blossom Festival aims to draw the young
The Cleveland Orchestra’s new focus on drawing more youth to its performances will kick into high gear with the 2011 Blossom Festival season, where young people under 18 may now receive free tickets on the lawn or pavilion.
Show merges church, theater
Ever since Terrence Spivey performed in a dramatization of God’s Trombones in college, the spiritual arts experience has stuck with him. It was the early 1980s, and Clarence Lee Turner, Spivey’s mentor at Prairie View A&M University in Texas, had adapted the piece for the stage from James Weldon Johnson’s 1927 poetic classic. Now Spivey,…
Lippman School putting on unique ‘Wizard of Oz’ show tonight
Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer The Lippman School is putting its unique stamp on the musical The Wizard of Oz, or Eretz Ootz, which is Hebrew for Land of Oz. The entire student body, kindergarten through eighth grade, will offer the show and pre-performance dinner at 5:30 p.m. today. The dialogue will be in…
‘Becky’s New Car’ steers crazy course
Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer Becky’s New Car starts out as a zippy little comedy but turns into a darker dramedy that takes audiences on a wild ride at Actors’ Summit in Akron. The play premiered at Seattle’s A Contemporary Theatre (ACT) in 2008, commissioned by Seattle resident Charles Staadecker as a birthday gift…
Stage Notes: Akron alive with variety of arts events
Kerry Clawson Beacon Journal staff writer Last weekend was so jam-packed with arts events in Akron, there wasn’t enough time for me to take them all in. My 9-year-old daughter and I started the weekend with our first visit to the FUZE! concert series at the Akron Art Museum, enjoying the trio Three Part Invention.…
