BY HAYLEY WILSON New Playwright, Unexpected Venue, and an Emphasis on Play First Take Co.’s next theatrical venture in Knoxville is more of an adventure, blending the beloved tabletop roleplaying game Dungeons & Dragons with deep emotional introspection. Director…
Review: ‘The Harvest’ at Clarence Brown Theatre’s Lab Theatre — Seeking Stability During Times of Change
Faith can be a safe haven for many of us, providing answers to life’s tough questions and a community to lean on. But just as often as it offers such answers, it can provoke just as many questions. This questioning is at the heart of Samuel D. Hunter’s 2016 play ‘The Harvest’, where a young man wrestles with the death of his father, his broken family, his faith, and his sexuality. ‘The Harvest’ runs through Nov. 9 at the Clarence Brown Theatre Lab Theatre.
Review: Theatre Knoxville Downtown’s ‘The Birds’ — Horror Waiting in the Wings
In the spirit of spooky season, Theatre Knoxville Downtown offers a little fright of their own with their latest production, ‘The Birds’. While those of us might be most familiar with Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 film, playwright Conor McPherson’s ‘The Birds’ (2009) is yet another adaptation of British author Daphne du Maurier’s popular 1952 short story of the same name.
Review: TKD’s ‘Laughter on the 23rd Floor’: A Battle of Wits
When life feels hard, comedy can be a balm to the soul and even a force for change. That’s what Neil Simon’s 1993 play, ‘Laughter on the 23rd Floor’, now in a production at Theatre Knoxville Downtown, reminds us of.
‘The Business of Smiles’ Follows Knoxville Children’s Theatre to New Site
BY HAYLEY WILSON I sat down with Knoxville Children’s Theatre Executive Director Sien Moon to discuss KCT’s move into their new forever home at The Foundry on the Fair Site at 747 Worlds Fair Park Drive. When I asked…
Review: Knoxville Theatre Club’s ‘Cat on a Hot Tin Roof’ a Force of Nature
Director JP Schuffman and Knoxville Theatre Club brings us an absolutely stunning production of Southern playwright Tennessee Williams’s 1955 Pulitzer Prize-winning Cat on a Hot Tin Roof that attests to the tenacity of the human spirit in the face of futility, death, and anguish: “there’s nothing more determined than a cat on a hot tin roof.”
Renascent Productions and First Take Co.’s ‘I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change’: Love, Sex, and Funny Business
By Hayley Wilson
‘I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change’ ran for three performances at the Clayton Center for the Arts on Maryville College campus. However, its short run was no indicator of its appeal: opening night was a full house, and the laughter that filled the auditorium was palpable. This production had a little something for everyone, because at its heart, I Love You is about our desire for human connection—and the many opportunities we have to thwart or complicate that desire for connection.
Review: ‘Harvey’ at TKD — Chasing the White Rabbit
Maybe some of you have that one friend that no one else seems to understand. No matter how many introductions you make to a variety of different people, your other friends just don’t seem to “get” this person. That’s the case with poor Elwood P. Dowd and his dear friend that no one seems to see. Director Jill Stapleton Bergeron introduces us to this unlucky friend in TKD’s production of Mary Chase’s 1953 play Harvey that keeps both actors and audiences on their toes and at their wit’s end.
Review: Theatre Roulette at TKD’s ‘Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind’
BY HAYLEY WILSON If you thought the process of memorizing lines for an entire play is a testament to the mental acuity of actors, get ready to experience the ultimate test of on-stage stamina with TKD’s production of Too…
River & Rail Finds “Forever Home” along Magnolia Avenue
BY HAYLEY WILSON For over 10 years, River & Rail Theatre has been a fixture in the Knoxville arts community, bringing together both local and national talent to tell stories about our city, its people, and its history. Their…
