Max is traveling every week for work as a consultant. Her husband, Paul, works from home writing. He isn’t happy with all her travel which leads to him having an affair. Soon after this comes to light, they decide to make some big changes. He will become a minister and she will go to a homemaking school to learn how to be the best wife she can be.

Anna Ouyang Moench (Severance, Beef) has written a truly hilarious play. It expertly pokes fun at the homemaking school, which is based on a real place in Fort Worth, TX. This production is expertly done with a fantastic set and on point comedic timing that had the audience laughing uncontrollably!

Joe Edward Metcalfe (Southern Gothic, Recipe for Disaster) displays an impressive range of emotions as Paul. Brittany Burch (The Locusts) is excellent as Max being quite confused and out of place at the homemaking school. Kirsten Fitzgerald (Swing State, Mary Page Marlowe) is strong and powerful as the lead instructor at the school. Alexandra Chopson is so sweet and innocent as the enthusiastic student at the school. Adam Shalzi (Trouble in Mind) is perfectly awkward and funny as the husband to be.

Cost of a ticket: $50

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +

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Get tickets now for In Quietness at A Red Orchid Theatre through March 3^rd!

Quinn Delaney

In 1934, Anything Goes first debuted on Broadway. In 1962, there was a revival that added many of Cole Porter’s other songs. In 2012, there was US tour. And now, in January of 2024, the Porchlight Musical Theatre version opens!

Billy Crocker sneaks onto a ship in NYC bound for London. He is trying to win the heart of Hope, who is engaged to Lord Oakleigh. Reno Sweeney is in love with Billy. In addition to this love triangle, there are many more great storylines in this ensemble musical.

This production is very fun. Many of the songs become pop hits that even non theatre fans will recognize. The first of these is “I Get A Kick Out of You”, which was recorded by Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Michael Bublé, and many more. “I get no kick from champagne / Mere alcohol doesn’t thrill me at all / So tell me why should it be true / That I get a kick out of you”.

The next big hit is “Friendship”. This song wasn’t in the original musical, but it was added in the 1962 revival. Disney released a version with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy. “It’s friendship, friendship, just a perfect blendship / When other friendships are soon forgot, ours will still be hot.”

And then there is the title track, “Anything Goes” which has been recorded by many artists including Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga in 2014. “When mothers pack and leave poor father / Because thеy decide they’d rathеr be / Tennis pros / Anything goes!”

Megan Murphy (Spamalot) is a powerhouse as Reno Sweeney. Her voice is excellent and she fully commands the stage,  Jackson Evans (The Boys in the Band, Avenue Q) is absolutely hilarious as Lord Oakleigh, who may not be the best match for Hope. Steve McDonagh is so funny as Moonface Martin, the unassuming gangster who is teased for just being Public Enemy #13. Luke Nowakowski is great as Billy Crocker. Gabriel Solis and Ciara Hickey are absolutely hilarious as the mischievous kids running around the ship raising hell.

With a great cast and set, excellent music, and fantastic costumes, this is a production not to be missed!

See the program here.

Cost of a ticket: $73.50 (House Level Back)

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +

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Get tickets now for Anything Goes at The Ruth Page Center for the Arts through February 25^th!

Quinn Delaney

Jesse Cook takes the stage solo and jumps right into “Tempest” from his 1995 album of the same name. It’s a rocker and it’s immediately clear the audience is in for a great night of music.  

After playing this song, he talks about how on that first album, he played all the instruments himself. It was a lot of work. So, he decided to play with other musicians going forward. He brings out Marito Marques from Portugal to play percussion with him. They play “La Rumba D’el Jefe” from his 2009 album, The Rumba Foundation. They feed off each other’s energy in a great performance.

He then introduces Matt Sellick on guitar from Thunder Bay, Ontario in Canada. Later in the night, he tells the story about how they met. When Matt was 7 years old, he first heard Jesse Cook’s music and he told his mother that he wanted to learn to play that. So, he began taking guitar lessons. About 10 years later, Matt sends Jesse a recording of him playing. Jesse says it sounds like he plays the songs better than he can. So, he goes to Thunder Bay to kill him, just kidding he says. They do meet and play together and get along very well. Years later, when the guitar position in his band opens up, he invites Sellick to join and he accepts!

Cook then says they need to continue to fill out the sound and he brings out Dan Minchom on Bass Guitar. The now four piece band plays “Virtue” from the 2000 album, Free Fall. It’s very cool to see how the fullness of the music keeps building as they add musicians.  

To introduce the next band mate, Cook dives into the history of flamenco music. He talks about how Andalusia in Spain was under Moorish rule and that the capital was Baghdad. Then he brings out Fethi Najem on violin and mandole, who blends flamenco and Arabian music. They play “Baghdad”, which is also from his debut album.

In the encore, they play “Mario Takes A Walk” from his 1996 album, Gravity. This is his most popular track on Spotify with over 6.7 million streams. The audience is blown away and responds with a huge applause afterwards. Jesse Cook has truly assembled a superb band full of very talented musicians and it makes for a fantastic evening of music.

See a recent setlist here.

Cost of a ticket: $65 and up

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It +

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Quinn Delaney

Gabe Mollica enters the stage very casually and thanks everyone for coming. He goes on to talk about the history on the show Off-Broadway. He was originally scheduled to do just eight shows, but they ended up extending it to 80 shows. A producer from This American Life attended one of the shows which led to Gabe and his show being featured in Episode 810.

Gabe made a great friend in college named Tim. They did everything together including taking classes and talking about musical theatre. Tim invited Gabe to join him as a counselor at a summer camp for children with disabilities. At the camp, he met Kate, and they began dating. The story flows very well and the audience is at full attention waiting to hear what happens next. He includes pictures and also audio clips from the This American Life show.

During the story, Gabe adds in many funny jokes and observational humor. For example, he talks about how male friendships are mostly shoulder to shoulder. He means that they are usually side by side while doing an activity, like watching a show. On the other hand, female relationships are mostly face to face, as in the other person is the activity.

Mollica is a great storyteller and he blends in the comedy fantastically to his story in the same style as Mike Birbiglia. In time, he could surely become just as famous as Mike as well.

Cost of a ticket: $46

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It

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Follow Gabe on Instagram here.

Quinn Delaney

Now in it’s 29^th year, The Charleston Christmas Special has become quite a tradition. Here are the highlights of this very jolly show:

The hosts, Brad and Jennifer Moranz, with their very corny comedy.

The fantastic dancers who had different outfits for every song.

“Santa Baby”, in which they brought a volunteer on stage and sang the song to him. They put a blindfold on him, and switch out the woman that was dancing next to him with two middle aged men.

The ventriloquist whose puppet sang a parody version of “Be Our Guest” about Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeeir.

The wide variety of musical genres including country, religious, and rock!

See the full cast list here.

Cost of a ticket: $51.70 (Main Floor Back)
PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It –
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Get tickets now for The Charleston Christmas Special through December 23^rd!

Quinn Delaney

In 1843, Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol.  The following year, eight theatre companies had put on productions. In 1978, Charleston On Stage first produced the play at The Dock Street Theatre. In 1988, Bill Murray starred in Scrooged. And now, Charleston On Stage begins its 2023 run!

Charleston On Stage has continually updated the play to make it feel fresh. This current production is much more funny, light-hearted, and kid friendly than it was originally. It is quite less darkly Dickensian. The actors singing Christmas songs liven it up a lot.

The set is very impressive. The main set of Scrooge’s bedroom often slides away to reveal another great setting. Also impressive is the flying around the stage by the ghosts. Add to that the fantastic costumes, excellent use of fog, the cast giving it their all, and it’s clear this production has been perfected over the years.

In the end, the audience is full of smiles and full of Christmas spirit. It remains a fantastic tale of redemption and a great Charleston tradition.

Cost of a ticket: $74.75

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Get tickets now for A Christmas Carol through December 22^nd!

Quinn Delaney

Live from Laurel Canyon is a beautiful show that bridges music and storytelling. It evokes a sense of nostalgia as the performers educate and entertain the audience taking them down memory lane of American Folk Rock. 

They begin with “California Dreamin’” by The Mama’s and The Papa’s.

“All the leaves are brown (all the leaves are brown)
And the sky is grey (and the sky is grey)
I’ve been for a walk (I’ve been for a walk)
On a winter’s day (on a winter’s day)
I’d be safe and warm (I’d be safe and warm)
If I was in L.A. (if I was in L.A.)
California dreamin’ (California dreamin’)
On such a winter’s day.”

This song perfectly captures the feeling of being in a cold winter climate and wishing to be in southern California. It could definitely also apply to Florida, where this concert is taking place tonight. The track perfectly sets the audience in the right mood for the evening.

Midway into their set, the lead singer tells a story about Graham Nash. After playing a concert with The Hollies, Nash goes to Laurel Canyon to jam with Crosby and Stills. With so many artists living in the area, jam sessions like these were common. Nash soon decides to leave his band and his marriage and move into the house where this jam occurred. The show tonight is full of these great origin stories followed by the band playing the song mentioned. They include stories about The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, The Doors, James Taylor, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, America, and more.

They end the night with “Hotel California” by The Eagles.

“Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place (such a lovely place)
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year (any time of year)
You can find it here”

This is such an iconic song and it’s a great way to close out a night about music from the Golden State.

Cost of a ticket: $50

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It

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Check out their upcoming show list here.

Quinn Delaney

“I love hiking. You know, going outside and walking in a forest or on a mountain and maybe dying!” “Ya, I love it too. Especially burying my own shit in the woods.” Cut to two broadcasters. “This is Fox News and we have to put an end to hiking. It’s ruining lives! One lady lost her entire family to a bear attack while hiking. It must be stopped!” Cut to MSNBC. “Hiking must be allowed. It is great for exercise and appreciating nature! It must be allowed to continue!” This a great example of a hilarious scene created by the suggestion of hiking from the audience that shows the cast’s great improv chops.

C.J. Tuor (filling in for Tim Metzler) is hilarious as the man pondering whether or not he could sleep with a woman who doesn’t share his moral values. Leila Gorstein is fantastic as this republic woman who has an eagle tattoo across her chest. Jordan Savusa (Great Altercations, Together at Last) is superb in his solo song about Covid. Brittani Yawn is great as the dancing Tik Tok girl. Claudia Martinez (Great Altercations) and Meghan Babbe (Great Altercations understudy) are exceptional as the Italian Chicago Tour Guides who say Chicago isn’t unsafe and describe what is scary about Texas (Ted Cruz) and Virginia (there are two of them).

Cost of a ticket: $56 (General Admission)

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Get tickets now for Oh, The Places You’ll Glow!

Quinn Delaney

A young intern is tasked with fact checking an essay over the weekend by his boss, the editor-in-chief. He sees this as a big opportunity for his career and he takes it very seriously. He quickly discovers that many of the facts are incorrect. When he brings this up to the author, he says that he slightly changed the numbers to make them sound better and to make them fit better into his essay. Eventually, the boss has to come and sort out all the discrepancies.

The playwrights (Jeremy Kareken & David Murrell and Gordon Farrell [based on the book by John D’Agata and Jim Fingal]) have written a very fast paced, funny, and invigorating story that has the audience at the edge of their seats. What are the true facts of the story? Will the boss publish half truths?

This story calls to mind to scandal surrounding Hasan Minaj It was revealed that he bent the truth in his stand up special. The key to the issue is realizing the context. If he were bending the truth on his news show, The Patriot Act, that would be out of line. But to alter the story for a stand up routine is perfectly fair. Who expects a comedian to only be telling true stories? Thus, the key to this play is the context of the magazine. Is it a factual news outlet, or is it one that allows some flexibility for dramatic storytelling?

Alex Benito Rodriguez (Botticelli in The Fire) is great as the enthusiastic and idealist intern. PJ Powers is fantastic as the author with artistic integrity and a skill for truth bending dramatic writing. Juliet Hart is superb as the editor who struggles to find a compromise between the two.

Cost of a ticket: $57

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Get tickets now for Lifespan of a Fact through December 23!

Quinn Delaney

A divorced woman is home on Christmas Eve. Whil she is drinking alone, she gets a voicemail from her ex saying he is getting married to the woman she met in rehab. She puts on a record, “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” by Elvis. She sings along to the lyrics:

“Are you lonesome tonight?
Do you miss me tonight?
Are you sorry we drifted apart?
Does your memory stray to a bright summer day
When I kissed you and called you sweetheart?

Do the chairs in your parlor seem empty and bare?
Do you gaze at your doorstep and picture me there?
Is your heart filled with pain, shall I come back again?
Tell me dear, are you lonesome tonight?”

Suddenly, the lights start to flash and they play the main theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey. A giant cloud of smoke comes from the hallway and Elvis enters! (Fun Fact: Craig Robinson entered to the same song just a month ago). He doesn’t know where he is, but he immediately begins to make himself comfortable by drinking, taking pills from her medicine closet, and ordering pizza. He also sings a few songs. One with an acoustic guitar, one on electric guitar, and another on the piano.

Terry Spencer Hesser (Islands Without Cars) has written a very funny and dramatic play about relationships, drinking, and loneliness. The production is excellent with a great set and very impressive projections that show outlines of characters that they interact with. It truly makes it feel much bigger than a two person show.

Brenda Barrie (Six Corners, United Flight 232) is superb as the lonely woman who is full of self pity at the start. Victor Holstein (Chicago PD) is fantastic as Elvis, who is full of joy and teachers her to love life again.

Cost of a ticket: $54.50

PlaylistHQ Economic Rating: Worth It

Rating Scale: Exceptional Value > Worth It > Half Price > Go for Free > Don’t Bother

Get tickets now for Christmas with Elvis through January 7^th!

Quinn Delaney