Colin Fleming-Stumpf - Page 7

Just in time for Halloween, Blackfriars Theatre is bringing Rochester the pinnacle leather-clad cult classic, possibly the only musical/science fiction/ horror/comedy in the theatre annals. Prepare to do the Time Warp, because The Rocky Horror Show has landed!

This weekend the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra joins forces with three titans of the stage to bring you the sounds of Broadway with two performances of 'Broadway Today', in which Rochester's premiere symphony orchestra, led by charismatic maestro Jeff Tyzik and joined by Rick Faugno (Jersey Boys, Godspeed), Leah Horowitz (Fiddler on the Roof, Thoroughly Modern Millie) and Mamie Parris (School of Rock, Cats) bring you show tunes old and new, from My Fair Lady and Sound Pacific to Les Miserables and Wicked.

Rochester's Geva Theatre has followed its Wilson Stage season opener Hair with another production of weighty political significance. While Hair deals with the cultural and social impact of the hippy movement in the 19060's, Thurgood explores the life and legal/historical contributions of Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American to sit on the United States Supreme Court. These top-quality productions highlight Geva's commitment to not only entertain its audience, but to educate, inform, and enrich as well.

If you've ever seen the movie or one-man-show version of A Bronx Tale you already know that it's a captivating, emotional story about a young working class man growing up during the doo-wop era of the 1960's who's torn between the opposing worlds of criminal life on the streets and the proverbial 'straight and narrow.' The musical adaptation of the story, featuring music by Alan Menken and a book by Chazz Palminteri (who wrote the one-man-show and starred in the both the play and feature film) pairs the emotional complexity of the film with spirited, high-energy song and dance numbers that make for a truly entertaining night at the theatre.

Screen Plays, a unique gem within the Rochester theatre community, has brought to life one of the most iconic and ambitious works of the American theatre repertoire. Its famously heavy themes make it tough for any local theatre troupe to tackle, but the production currently playing at Rochester's Multi-Use Community Cultural Center (MuCCC) is dynamic, well-staged, and impressively acted.

Returning to Geva Theatre where her play Informed Consent premiered in 2014, Deborah Zoe Laufer brings us Fortune, a quirky love story that teaches us to leave our comfort zone and open ourselves up to others.

It wouldn't be odd to presume that a one-woman show about America's most famous sex therapist would be mostly about...well, sex. While sex and the role it plays in our lives is certainly a part of the story, Becoming Dr. Ruth, currently playing at JCC's CenterStage, is much deeper than that. It examines history, religion, family, love, loss, intimacy, and the many forces that shaped the life and career of Dr. Ruth Westheimer, the German-born, Jewish immigrant who survived the Holocaust and went on to become a pop culture icon, media personality, and author.

The Rochester Fringe Festival is one of Upstate New York's cultural beacons (along with its Jazz Festival, Park Ave Festival, and Gay Film Festival, among many others). Each year it features performers known and unknown, showcasing everything from improv theatre to modern dance, macabre storytelling to interactive variety shows. That diversity and embracing of the bizarre makes the Fringe Festival the perfect venue to showcase OFC Creation's production of 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch', the 1998 cult classic by John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask.

'An all-engrossing, captivating theatrical experience that you surely won't forget.'

An exotic, transporting production.

It's not always easy to find a night (or in this case, afternoon) at the theatre that's fun, entertaining, and appropriate for the whole family. Fortunately for you the Rochester Association of Performing Arts (RAPA) is presenting its production of the iconic story 'Charlotte's Web', based on the classic children's story by E.B White, until August 19th.