aiken

I saw the show last week and thought it was the funniest show i had seen in years. so much going on at the same time it was hard to keep track. my wife thought it was too frenetic but that is the reason i liked it. So much so i am taking 3 friends and going again and sitting in the front row so i will not miss what i did before. the cast even the smallest part is perfect. The timing is great yet it is so complicated, i am amazed they carry it off although it is so long, and over three acts. but i loved every minute of it. i see why it is such a popular show for the local theaters to put on. lots of cast required, funnier than hell, and beautifully complicated to carry out. great stuff.

as i said in another preview, well done and acted. our first time at Stone Cottage and we thought it a great venue.

and i must agree wickersham was a fantastic actor, funny and an idiot at the start and then scheming and vengeful at the end, and my wife thought he had a great body.

John XII is a brilliant ensemble play about a forgotten period in history which I saw on its opening night, flawlessly done. The actors are uniformally perfect, the play written in a style that allows the history of the events to be put in context. My wife and I really loved this play. The actors pull you right into the action and events, Hancock as John is slick as the manipulator and yet ambiguous, Wickersham as Adalbert is beautifully addlebrained as a lover then bitter in revenge ( his seduction by John is a fun scene), Swanner an oily bulletheaded gossip and enemy (and source of all history's info on John), Adams an effective sexy outraged lover, Hinson a very impressive Otto (be really looked the part), and Hathaway a perfect scheming Berengarius (he reminds me of a Dr. House). Loved them all. The ending was very effective. I strongly recommend this play.

I saw TCL on the opening night in the back of the 3rd balcony and then 2 days later in the orchestra much closer to see the difference in a show that is so intimate. From the balcony the show was outstanding. I had seen the original show in New York many years ago and this show is remarkable. It shows that people in the orginal production worked in putting this on. Up close you could see the facial expressions better than from the balcony but the show was still effective, the quintisential broadway musical. This worked so well in being backstage, no one who has seen it could ever see a musical without thinking about what occurs backstage with the dancers of the chorus. i took a friend who is Saudi Arabian and had never seen a musical, he was blown away seeing an icon of musical theater. Although the amateurs in regional theater do a great job in the metroplex theaters to see so many Broadway veterans doing such amazing singing, dancing and acting is a great experience.The entire cast is perfect. The show is perfect. the only complaint was that when the single big spot is on the center of the stage and the mirrored wall is seen the reflection is terrifically blinding to the 3rd balcony seats. i hope they fix that. A great experience not to be missed.

I had seen the King and I of course with Yul Brynner on film and he almost ruined it for anyone else you feel sometimes because he was so charismatic but they try. But Nemmers was powerful and sings and dances! I saw him as Titus Andronicus at Kitchen Dog a few weeks ago where he was very effective. But here he is in a musical! Outstanding. Luann Aronson was perfect as Anna, what a great voice. Adrian Li Donni as Lun Tha and Ya Han Chang as Lady Thiang, Jung Eun Kim as Tuptim were each impressive singers in their own right. Not a weak singer in the cast. And the Uncle Tom’s Cabin show they put on for the British. I always loved it. But wow. They did it wonderfully. To me a highlight. It could drive you to tears they did it so beautifully. 3+ hours of an enchanting experience. They recreated Broadway in every way. Congratulations to all for creating a gem.

I love WS and R&J especially. When I went with 3 others to Romeo and Juliet I had not been to the TCU theater in many years ( i taught there in the 70's) but was aware of their quality shows and students. I took a Saudi Arabian friend who had never been to a play let alone Shakespeare, another who has never seen a R&J play and my wife who thinks the Elisabethan English is too hard to understand. And i was hoping for a good R&J. And then we saw it was the complete R&J, i do not think i have ever seen that. But over 3 hours! My companions were aghast, how would we survive?! Then we saw it. We experienced it. MY SA friend was awed by the play and wants to come back for more; my other friend cried at the ending, and my wife stayed enchanted for all 3+ hours of it. So many talented actors. The show seemed too short! The acting by all was magnificent. Perfect. The sword play perfect. R&J were as they should be, 2 immature 13-15 year olds, over the top emotionally (not bad over the top, but appropriate histronics for the story) precipitating all the tragedy that follows. Each production of R&J spins if a different way. The TCU spin was perfect. I saw all the bawdy humor that exists in WS work for the audiences of his day which i rarely ever see or hear. The show was a relevation and all the cast and crew should be proud. I will make sure I (we) go to future shows at TCU.