Romance. Tragedy. Primal Murder. The urge of revenge. This looks like a job for—
Well it isn’t Sherlock Holmes, that’s for sure! In a Christie? He would never!
Hercule Poirot, but of course! And ooh la la, ooh la la, ooh la la, does he have a case for you! Er— a show. Yes, that’s it! A show! Murder On The Orient Express, based on Agatha Christie’s novel of the same name and adapted to the stage by Ken Ludwig,
The impossible could not have happened, therefore the impossible must be possible in spite of appearances! That feels a little like any given week of theatre in the Baltimore area theatre scene! At any one time it feels impossibly like 100 shows are opening, closing, mid-run, in tech, or about to start rehearsals! So it’s no wonder that we found the second person ever to be featured in our “Local Limelight” series— Kelly Rardon, a well-known area performer for quite some time— at the start of her tech-week for the show she’s currently performing in,
A farm-boy from Telico. A waitress from Rowena. Gun-sling, song-singing, they’ll make you feel alive.
But only if you’ve got your tickets to see the at Just Off Broadway’s Bonnie & Clyde.
‘Cause ain’t nuthin’ rhyme with ‘Clyde & Bonnie!’
Serving as the Baltimore area premiere of the historical-gangster musical, Bonnie & Clyde offers a wicked alternative to the dozen or so production of Sweeney Todd happening in and around the area this autumn season.
What does a divorcee look like? Zsa Zsa Gabor? Megan Markle? Elizabeth Taylor? How about a 19-year-old groovy chic from Los Angeles slumming it in a New York City apartment in the 60’s? That one fits the bill for Butterflies Are Free the 1969 play by Leonard Gershe (not to be confused with the 1972 film-adaptation starring Goldie Hawn.) Directed by Jason Crawford, this romantic-dramady tells the story of Don Baker, a young man living in his first solo apartment in New York City after fleeing his overbearing mother’s house in favor of newfound freedom.
Three blind mice. Three blind mice. See how they— wait. No. That’s not quite right. That’s a different Christie. This is the one with the creepy little poem about how people get plucked off one by one…And Then There Were None. Currently appearing on Just Off-Broadway’s main stage, as a kickoff to their ‘return-to-live-in-person-theatre’ and the start of their 2022 season, JOB is presenting Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None,
17th
century poet Francis Quarles wrote, “Judge not the play before the play is
done.” Great advice for anyone seeing their umpteenth version of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,
especially if you are seeing Just Off Broadway’s latest offering. I don’t care how many times you’ve seen Joseph…, Director Tammy Oppel will show
you that you don’t know Joe! Oppel brings us a delightfully staged version of
the show unlike any that I have seen.
Roll on up for the price is down, come on in for this show’s in town— see with your eyes— what this company’s done— hear with your ears— as they sing as one. Won’t you go see— their Jesus Christ? Won’t you go hear their Jesus Christ? That’s Jesus Christ Superstar, the Andrew Lloyd Webber raging rock musical version of select sections of the new testament up to and including the crucifixion of Jesus.
Can you remember what you had for breakfast this morning? Do you recall what pair of shoes you wore out last Friday night? Or what you were doing three years ago on a Saturday afternoon? Most of us can’t. But on the morning of September 11, 2001— a Tuesday morning not quite 17 years in America’s past, everyone can remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when the news broke that planes had crashed into the twin towers.
Phone rings, door chimes, and in comes a charming and comical production of Company, Sondheim’s musical comedy, presented by Just-Off Broadway in Baltimore! Company, one of the first successful Broadway musicals written about adult themes and relationships, was the winner of 1971 Tony Awards for Best Book, Best Score, Best Lyrics, and Best Musical. The themes of bachelorhood, marriage, and how to form and maintain relationships are enduringly relevant more than three decades later.
What if it hasn’t been your day, your week, your month, or even your year? You’ve got friends who will be there for you! Right? What of those friends are just meddlesome, busybody, buttinski folk who can’t leave well enough alone and have to knit-pick at your problems to make them feel better about their own? In the east coast premiere of Reginald Rose’s Dear Friends, that recipe for disaster is exactly what’s brewing up in the Lambert’s Living Room.
Well you know what they say, if you don’t have anything nice to say about anybody— then come sit by me! Gossip is no longer reserved strictly for the southern peaches of Miss Truvy’s Beauty Shop in Chinquapin parish! And half of Rosedale will be giving their eye teeth to come and take a whack at this new play written by Baltimore local Davis Gable. Making its world premiere on the Just Off Broadway stage,
WINNER— noun. “someone or something that wins a contest, prize, etc. one that wins.” Just being here at Just Off Broadway’s production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee makes you a winner. W-I-N-N-E-R. Directed by Robin Emrick with Musical Direction by Patty DeLisle, this zany and adorable musical is family fun for everyone and shows the true pride and spirit of just what the Just Off Broadway company has to offer when it comes to their annual fall musical.
When family is involved there’s never a dull moment. Add death into the mixture and the calamity of chaos becomes an uproarious and heartfelt comedy about putting the ‘fun’ in dysfunctional. Just Off Broadway Baltimore presents their seventh production of Daddy’s Dyin’ Who’s got the Will this spring and it’s a hoot. Directed by Jason Crawford Samios-Uy, the laughs come rolling out of Lowake, Texas like tumbleweed scooting across the dessert at high noon.
Baltimore is a city full of charm and surprises. And one of the ever-present surprises is that just around the corner there is another theatre company popping up and doing something fascinating. Just Off Broadway Baltimore should be no exception to that intriguing surprise as they are a community theatre that falls under the heading of “for theatre people by theatre people.” Founded in 2011 and producing since 2012, the company is now opening their 7th production,