Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, August, 2003 “Our state fair is a great state fairDon’t miss it, don’t even be lateBet you dollars to doughnuts that our state fairIs the best state fair in our state.”– Oscar Hammerstein II Even the staunchest of fans of Hammerstein would have to admit…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, August, 2003 Like millions of young girls, Frances Hodgson Burnett was one of my favorite authors when I was growing up. I confess that I vastly preferred the plucky Sara Crewe of A Little Princess (1905) to the sour Mary Lennox of The Secret Garden (1911) but in my adult years…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, July, 2003 The Mac-Haydn is offering up a cheerful, likeable, and oddly uneven production of Hello Dolly! Basically, the leading ladies are great and the leading men are miscast. Since this is a show about a woman, told very much from a woman’s point of view, things…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, July, 2003 Your curmudgeonly critic confesses that she is not a country music fan, nor is she a fan of these “tribute” shows that are all the rage at the moment. But even though country music isn’t my favorite genre, there is no mistaking a…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, July, 2003 WOW! Wowie-wow-wow! Whatta show! What a load of silly fun! Go! Buy tickets NOW, I tell you! There is no plot to Sugar Babies, no moral, no uplifting moments. Just songs and dance, laughs and fun, all for you. That’s what it says on…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, June, 2003 Let’s get this out of the way right up front. This is a musical about a whorehouse. If you have overwhelming moral, legal, religious, or ethical concerns about the issue of prostitution, this is not the show for you. I am not saying…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, June, 2003 This is one of those head-scratchers. Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller wrote tons of fabulous rock ‘n’ roll songs in the 1950’s and 1960’s – the kind of songs that make you want to get up and dance. And the Mac-Haydn has a…
Reviewed by Gail M. Burns, May, 2003 My fourteen-year-old son Brandon was my date last Thursday for the opening of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Mac-Haydn. He is not under the same restrictions I am to keep professionally quiet and reserved throughout the show, and his comments were as…
