Into the Woods (review)
It's been a Sondheim-palooza in the past year since the legendary Broadway composer passed at the age of 91. In addition to his musicals...
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Jake Lewis
- Dec 31, 2022
- 3 min
A Strange Loop (review)
It feels somewhat inappropriate for me -- a straight, white guy -- to critique the new musical A Strange Loop (which won the Tony and...
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Jake Lewis
- Nov 12, 2022
- 2 min
November play of the month: DETROIT by Lisa D'Amour
I read a lot of plays, not only for pleasure and storytelling but also because i'm always on the lookout for potential future Jakespeare...
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Jake Lewis
- Oct 26, 2022
- 4 min
Don't forget the lyrics!
Picture it: You've grown up listening to the cast album of a musical, memorizing every word and vocal inflection to be heard, and then a...
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Jake Lewis
- Oct 10, 2022
- 3 min
Is Broadway over the overture?
Take a look at almost any musical written in the past decade, and you'll notice that the overture -- that instrumental "settling music"...
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Jake Lewis
- Jul 19, 2022
- 3 min
Closing the curtain on virtual theatre -- for now
In just a few weeks, Jakespeare Virtual Theatre Company will cease operations for the foreseeable future. I made this difficult decision...
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Jake Lewis
- Jun 17, 2022
- 3 min
The curious case of Jason Robert Brown
In my mind, Stephen Sondheim and Jason Robert Brown are the two most interesting Broadway composers of all time. That doesn't mean, mind...
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Jake Lewis
- Jun 10, 2022
- 4 min
What community theatre is and isn't...
One thing I've been hugely surprised by since starting my own theatre group is how many people do not seem to understand what "community...
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Jake Lewis
- Jun 5, 2022
- 6 min
Are movie-musicals a thing of the past?
(Editor's note: A "movie-musical" refers to a film based on a work that was originally produced for the stage, as opposed to one written...
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Jake Lewis
- May 31, 2022
- 3 min
Must the show go on?
I can't imagine a worse feeling in theatre than letting down your castmates, crew, and audience. But that is likely the emotion coursing...
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Jake Lewis
- May 18, 2022
- 5 min
My theatre role model
When I was eight years old, my mother signed me up from a summer theatre workshop at our local civic league downtown; she knew I was a...
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Jake Lewis
- May 1, 2022
- 4 min
The rent is too damn high!
In my family, talking about money was never a taboo subject as I came to discover is the norm in many other households. The idea of...
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Jake Lewis
- Mar 19, 2022
- 4 min
To NOT be continued: sequels to plays and musicals
I think it's pretty safe to say that theatre is the only place where sequels never work. Think about it: Can you name one sequel -- or,...
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Jake Lewis
- Feb 23, 2022
- 4 min
Don't yuck somebody's yum
I recently had a conversation with a new theatre friend about what their favorite musical(s) is/are, and I said something that I...
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Jake Lewis
- Feb 12, 2022
- 4 min
How did you fall in love with theatre?
When I first tell people I meet that I love theatre (and musicals in particular), they always ask me the same question: How did you first...
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Jake Lewis
- Jan 14, 2022
- 4 min
Actor shortages and under-representation
Ever since I began doing theatre around the age of 10, I never had any problem getting cast in shows. At the time, it made me think that...
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Jake Lewis
- Dec 20, 2021
- 3 min
Christmas plays that aren't done every year
It's the same every year: theatre companies often producing plays (and sometimes musicals) that are Christmas-themed. You'll likely find...
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Jake Lewis
- Dec 3, 2021
- 3 min
How to write a one-minute play
Attention spans being what they are these days (short), one-minute plays are the latest fad in theatrical performances. Covering an...
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Jake Lewis
- Nov 19, 2021
- 2 min
The hallmarks of choosing a good virtual play
Are you thinking of producing a virtual play, but you don't know what show would translate well to the Zoom (or any other streaming...
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Jake Lewis
- Nov 2, 2021
- 3 min
The plays and musicals that are done to death
Nothing against them, but if I never have to see Grease! or It's A Wonderful Life: The Radio Play again, it'll still be too soon. In...
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