All stories by Andrea Simakis on BroadwayStars

Thursday, February 11, 2016

'If/Then' at Playhouse Square, a musical about a woman's dual lives, puts on airs that don't fly in flyover country by Andrea Simakis

"If/Then" feels like a live cocktail party in a high-rise bar somewhere in Manhattan where snide jokes about flyover states win you another round.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:11PM

None Too Fragile Theater's off-kilter satire 'Pure Shock Value' lives up to its title with relish by Andrea Simakis

The high-octane offender "Pure Shock Value" begins with Ethan (a game Brian Kenneth Armour) on a couch, his hand furiously moving under a ratty throw covering his lap. He isn't wat…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 12:37AM
Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Great Lakes Theater to open its 2016-17 season with 'My Fair Lady' and 'Twelfth Night' in repertory by Andrea Simakis

Though Cleveland's classic theater company had been eyeing "My Fair Lady" for years, the rights to the Tony-winning smash have long been unavailable in anticipation of a Broadway r…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 04:12AM

'In the Heights' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Feb. 8: On the Boards. by Andrea Simakis

Before there was "Hamilton," Lin-Manuel Miranda's hip-hop history of the American founding father, there was his Tony-winning smash "In the Heights," opening Friday at th…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 04:12AM
Wednesday, February 3, 2016

'The Mountaintop' at Cleveland Play House imagines King's last night on Earth by Andrea Simakis

In the thrilling two-hander, Ro Boddie and Angel Moore bring Preacher King and the mysterious maid Camae to life with a crackling, sexual tension.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 06:07AM
Tuesday, February 2, 2016
Sunday, January 31, 2016

David Bowie's wildly inventive musical 'Lazarus' was a powerful, moving experience just days after his death by Andrea Simakis

After two intermissionless hours, I didn't want to leave; I wanted to see it again, that very night, to decipher more clues and drink in just what Hall was talking about - that potent sense …

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:14PM
Tuesday, January 26, 2016

The cast of 'The Realistic Joneses' at Dobama Theatre revels in language games at the speed of life by Andrea Simakis

Will Eno's "The Realistic Joneses" is high, absurdist art that also dares to be entertaining.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 07:00AM

'The Mountaintop' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Jan. 25: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

Katori Hall's "The Mountaintop" imagines the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s last night on Earth.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 07:00AM
Thursday, January 21, 2016

Broadway star, BW alum Ciara Renee earns her wings as Hawkgirl in 'DC's Legends of Tomorrow' on the CW by Andrea Simakis

Thursday night, rising star Ciara Renee will literally - well, with the help of some eye-poppin' CGI - take flight as Hawkgirl in the hotly anticipated new series "DC's Legends of Tomor…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 02:03PM
Monday, January 18, 2016

Little Shop of Ho-hum: the camp classic loses its fizz in Cleveland Play House redux by Andrea Simakis

Why does "Little Shop" 2016 at the Cleveland Play House feel flat and uninspired much of the time? Maybe it's because it isn't content to shah boop its way into our ears and hearts…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 03:44PM

'The Realistic Joneses' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Jan. 18: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

Catch the regional premiere of "The Realistic Joneses" by Will Eno," the playwright dubbed "a Samuel Beckett for the Jon Stewart generation" by The New York Times.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 01:40PM
Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Cleveland Play House, Cleveland Orchestra collaboration with Pulitzer-winning playwright set for April by Andrea Simakis

"The Good Peaches" tells the story of Aurora, a young girl tasked with delivering a wedding dress to a queen. But a violent storm knocks her off-course and into an adventure beyond…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 12:41PM
Monday, January 11, 2016

'Annie' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Jan. 11: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

"Annie," Audrey II and Doc Frankenstein storm into Cleveland theaters this week.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 08:00PM
Monday, December 28, 2015

'Elf' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Dec. 28: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

Still feeling that Christmas spirit after Christmas? Buddy the "Elf" brings holiday cheer (and spaghetti-with-maple-syrup) to Playhouse Square this week.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 08:38PM
Wednesday, December 23, 2015

10 top-shelf productions on Cleveland stages: Year in Review 2015 by Andrea Simakis

'A Gent's Guide,' 'The Crucible' and 'The Secret Garden' among the top productions of 2015

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 03:47PM
Saturday, December 19, 2015

Lauded Cleveland scenic designer Richard Gould dead at 86 (obituary) by Andrea Simakis

A Play House legend, Gould is remembered by managing director Kevin Moore as "a kind and generous soul."

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 01:05PM
Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Faye Hargate displays flashes of true talent in 'Feefer Rising,' but the one-woman show leaves her up in the air by Andrea Simakis

Despite the cheekiness of its vulva-shaped set, "Feefer Rising" is, for the most part, grindingly earnest, which makes it about as fun as a pelvic exam.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:56PM
Monday, December 14, 2015

'A Christmas Cabaret' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Dec. 14: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

Sleigh bells are ringing -- and crooners are singing -- at Cleveland's area theaters.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 12:59PM
Saturday, December 12, 2015

Ho-ho-huh? 'Kris Kringle the musical' at Olmsted Performing Arts will rain on your Christmas parade by Andrea Simakis

Sold as an original Christmas musical with an eye on a New York run, "Kris Kringle" has Broadway aspirations with "Waiting for Guffman" execution.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 03:55PM
Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Dobama's 'Peter and the Starcatcher' a beguiling trip powered by ingenuity and imagination by Andrea Simakis

In Dobama's "Peter and the Starcatcher," 13 actors perform more than 100 roles, jumping in and out of well-honed dialects and characters with a light-footed nimbleness and somethin…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:05PM
Monday, December 7, 2015

Cirque Du Soleil to fly into Cleveland's Wolstein Center in April 2016 by Andrea Simakis

Cirque Du Soleil is coming to Cleveland State University's Wolstein Center April 27 for seven performances only.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 07:27PM
Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Dobama Theatre making a list, checking it twice, for holiday production of 'Peter and the Starcatcher' by Andrea Simakis

When you buy a ticket to "Peter and the Starcatcher," the endlessly inventive prequel to Peter Pan opening at Dobama Theatre on Friday, Dec. 4, you'll want to make sure that along …

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:10PM
Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Cleveland Public Theatre pulls plug on Big Box 2016; construction delays are cause by Andrea Simakis

Executive artistic director Raymond Bobgan sent participating artists an email last week telling them the series, originally slated to run for four weeks this spring, wouldn't go on as plann…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 10:16PM
Monday, November 30, 2015

'The Wizard of Oz' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Nov. 30: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

"The Wizard of Oz" and seven other shows open this week as Cleveland gears up to celebrate the holidays with a whirlwind of offerings onstage.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 07:26PM
Saturday, November 28, 2015

Broadway's top dog wrangler, Bill Berloni, brings Toto to town for 'The Wizard of Oz' in Playhouse Square by Andrea Simakis

Bill Berloni's dogs have co-starred with the likes of Helen Mirren as Queen Elizabeth II in "The Audience," played sidekick to Elle Woods in "Legally Blonde" and chased t…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 03:59PM
Friday, November 27, 2015

Creators of 'Kris Kringle the Musical' to stage world premiere in Northeast Ohio, with hearts set on Broadway by Andrea Simakis

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Among the theatrical chestnuts raining down on the calendar this holiday season is something new - "Kris Kringle," a musical making its pre-Broadway debut in the …

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:44AM
Wednesday, November 25, 2015

From 'Christmas Carols' to cabarets to 'Kris Kringle,' Cleveland stages come alive at the holidays by Andrea Simakis

At some of Northeast Ohio's professional theaters, the holidays enter with all the traditional trimmings: the "Christmas Story" leg lamp, Tiny Tim's crutch. But "holiday show&…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 07:37PM
Thursday, November 12, 2015

Noted black playwright decries Kent State decision to cast white actor as MLK by Andrea Simakis

"Kent State had broken a world record; it was the first 'Mountaintop' production to make King white," playwright Katori Hall wrote in her essay posted on the website TheRoot.com.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 08:45AM
Monday, November 9, 2015

'Ages of the Moon' headlines Cleveland theater openings for the week of Nov. 9: On the Boards by Andrea Simakis

Sam Shepard's "Ages of the Moon" opens at Ensemble Theatre Friday.

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 05:05PM
Saturday, November 7, 2015

Winning performances add heat, light and laughter to 'The Call,' Tanya Barfield's adoption drama at Dobama by Andrea Simakis

Tanya Barfield is a smart, funny playwright with a gift for spinning current, global events into the stuff of living-room drama. And in "The Call," she doesn't let anyone - white o…

SOURCE: Cleveland.com at 09:55AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic