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Articles by Bill Kellert
SLCA grabs your heart with theatrical staging of ‘Broadway Bound’
Neil Simon’s semi-autobiographical triplet of plays culminated with his entrance into the world of show business in “Broadway Bound.” Part comedy, part drama, this play tends to lean move heavily on the dramatic aspects of Simon’s life than his two previous shows “Brighton Beach Memoirs” and “Biloxi Blues.” Sand Lake Center for the Arts Circle Theatre Players has mounted this production with outstanding results.
Stop the press: Capital Rep presents The Last American Newspaper
It has become a somewhat universal story in the newspaper world. As the populace relies more on electronics to gather and disseminate the news, the world of print has become dated and, in many ways, passe. Which is an interesting comment to be made by someone who writes for a newspaper. While there certainly remains a spot for those looking to physically hold the printed word in their hands, that group is getting smaller and realistically aging out.
Warmth, laughter, a few tears open Curtain Call Theatre season
Fall is quickly nipping at the heels of summer. For many, it is a time of regret and of missed opportunities in the warmth of the summer sun. For others, particularly those involved with theater, it is a time of renewal. A time when theater companies roll out the start of their new season. Curtain Call starts its 35th season with a show guaranteed to bring a smile, laughs, and warmth to the fall chill that’s beginning to creep into the air.
'Breathing Time' will leave you breathless at Cohoes Music Hall
What happens when ordinary people living ordinary lives have the world blown apart by extraordinary events? Creative License explores that premise in Beau Willimon’s “Breathing Time,” currently at Cohoes Music Hall. Co-founder and co-artistic director Aaron Holbritter directs this gripping production which will invite gales of laughter, tears and gasps of terror as the unimaginable unfolds in 90 minutes.
SLOC’s Gothic thriller sets stage for next century in Schenectady
SCHENECTADY - To celebrate its 100th anniversary season, SLOC has curated an exciting and interesting variety of shows that showcase talent both onstage and off, and prove how they have endured for a century. SLOC opens its centennial season with the very dark and foreboding “Jekyll and Hyde.” Dr. Henry Jekyll feels there is a way to separate the good from the evil aspects of one’s personality.
‘Happy Days’ at Bridge Street - a master class in theatre
Written in 1961 by the late Irish playwright, poet and author Samuel Beckett, “Happy Days” is an exploration of the human condition. Winnie, a woman of indeterminate age but leaning toward her senior years, is encased up to her waist in sand. By the second act, she is up to her neck. No explanation is offered for her condition or why neither she nor her husband, Willie, do anything to extricate her from the predicament. Beckett is an acquired taste.
'Carole King Musical' a highlight of Mac-Haydn summer season
CHATHAM — “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” is more than just another jukebox musical; it follows the early life and career of songwriter Carole King. Written by Douglas McGrath, the show delivers the soundtrack of a generation — as well as being funny, moving and relatable. McGrath incorporated the early works of King, many written with her partner and first husband Gerry Goffin, as well as other notable tunes of the era.
At the theatre, a series of obsessions are brought to life
CATSKILL - Terrence McNally’s “The Lisbon Traviata” is a story of obsessions. The play, written nearly 40 years ago, is based on opera and relationships. Mendy is obsessed with opera. The focus of his obsession is the late Maria Callas and specifically a bootlegged recording of her performance of “La Traviata” in Lisbon. Mendy, a somewhat stereotypical gay man living in New York in the 1980s, inhabits a world crumbling under the terror of the AIDS epidemic.
'Georgia McBride' - funny moments and layered bits of psychology
PITTSFIELD, Mass. - Casey is an Elvis impersonator. He works at a second-rate bar in Panama City, Florida. But, Casey is in a bad way: he’s about to be evicted from his apartment, his wife is unexpectedly pregnant and he is about to become unemployed. Eddie, the owner of Cleo’s bar, decides to brings in a drag show to help boost sales. Fate steps in and offers Casey an opportunity to go from “The King” to a glitter-laden queen.
Agatha Christie's 'Black Coffee' serves up murder, fun
AVERILL PARK - Agatha Christie’s first play, the rarely produced “Black Coffee,” stages at the Sand Lake Center for the Arts through Aug. 16. Initially produced in 1930 as a delightful way to help one forget the summer heat and humidity, director Brooke Hutchins has opted to tackle the charming and witty Christie piece that follows the exploits of her renowned detective Hercule Poirot, as he delves into solving another drawing room murder.
Kick off your Sunday shoes with ‘Footloose’ at Cohoes Music Hall
COHOES — “Footloose” is once again dancing its way into our hearts. Thanks to the talent at Cohoes Music Hall via Playhouse Stage, we are transported to the ultraconservative middle-of-nowhere 1980s town of Bomont, where dancing has been outlawed. High school senior Ren McCormack finds himself set down in the town with his recently divorced mother Ethel, living with Ethel’s sister and her husband.
A love story for generations stages at Berkshire Theatre
STOCKBRIGE, Mass. — William is a dentist, Margaret a librarian. The couple emigrated to America from England in their late 20s to build a life. Inspired by T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” Abi Morgan’s “Lovesong” looks at the lives of Margaret and William. The play stages at the Berkshire Theater Group’s Unicorn Theatre in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, through Aug. 29. After buying a home, William and Margaret settle in to create a lifetime of memories.
Stop the presses, Mac-Haydn does it again with Disney’s “Newsies”
CHATHAM - It is summer 1899 and New York World publisher Joseph Pulitzer is upset over declining circulation. He decides to increase what the newspaper is charging newsboys to buy the paper and peddle them on the streets. The increase from 50 to 60 cents per hundred papers sends the “newsies” into a frenzy. The newsies are a group of predominantly homeless and orphaned children barely making enough money to get food. They decide to do something about their outrage.
Fort Salem’s 'Jagged Little Pill' lives up to its name
On the surface, they are the ideal upper-middle-class Connecticut family. Mom writes the annual Christmas newsletter touting the family’s achievements. While recovering from a car accident, however, she neglects to mention she has developed an addiction to opioids. Dad, meanwhile, is a success in the finance world — but happens to be addicted to online pornography. Son Nick is accepted as an early decision to Harvard, but after watching a sexual assault, he initially opts to do nothing to help.
Voices soar in season-opening 'Oklahoma!' at Glimmerglass
COOPERSTOWN — Nestled in the bucolic setting of the Leatherstocking Region on the edge of Otsego Lake is the home of the world-renowned Glimmerglass Opera Festival. Now in its 51st season, Glimmerglass is concentrating this year on American evolution, in recognition and celebration of the country’s 250th anniversary.
At theREP: “Mystic Pizza” serves up tasty production of fun
ALBANY — “Mystic Pizza” is a relatively new musical and is based on the 1988 Julia Roberts movie of the same name. Set in Mystic, Connecticut, the show focuses on the lives of three waitresses at the Mystic Pizza Restaurant. The major difference between the movie and the play is the show has become a jukebox musical of hit songs from the 1980s. What makes this show rise above many others of the same genre is “Mystic Pizza” works.
How far can you push before they push back in a ‘Rebel Town’?
GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. - In the story of the infamous 1773 Boston Tea Party, the taxing actions of the British Parliament’s Tea Act resulted in one of the final straws that broke the colonists’ backs and led to the beginnings of the American Revolution. How far can you push a people before they push back?
Theater review: Mac-Haydn’s 'Secret Garden' yields bounty of captivating performances
Mac-Haydn’s summer season continues to bloom with its latest presentation, “The Secret Garden,” based on the Francis Hodgson Burnett novel of the same name, with book and lyrics by Marsha Norman and music by Lucy Simon. Mary Lennox, a 10-year-old English girl, was raised in India when she was orphaned due to a cholera outbreak. Mary is sent to Yorkshire, England, to live with an uncle she never met in a land she never knew.
Theater review: Barrington Stage presents theatrical world premiere
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — To be a part of a theater audience is always exciting. But a world premiere brings even more cachet. Barrington Stage Company offered the first of several world premieres this season with the staging of Keelay Gipson’s semi-autobiographical “Estate Sale.” The play’s premise is one to which many of us can relate: An only child returns home to sort out and dispose of the contents of his late parents — as well as the memories attached to them.
'The Zionists' – a family storm rages on Barrington Stage
PITTSFIELD, Mass. - Barrington Stage Company has gone out on an artistic limb with the staging of S. Asher Gelman’s “The Zionists: A Family Storm.” The company’s second play of the summer is perhaps one of the most polarizing shows the company has produced. That is not in any way meant as a pejorative statement, rather a positive one. It is incredibly exciting when theater not only entertains, but also force one to think.
'9 to 5' could benefit from some overtime
CHATHAM - A musical based on the classic 1980 movie “9 to 5” stages at Chatham’s Mac-Haydn Theatre through July 5. The original movie featured three co-workers working for an obnoxious sexist, egotistical, bigoted boss and starred Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dabney Coleman. The musical was written by Patricia Resnick with music and lyrics by Dolly Parton. Mac-Haydn Theatre has chosen “9 to 5” as the second show of the season and with it appears to have hit a speed bump.
'The American Five': Berkshire Theatre Group’s summer smash
No one achieves fame or success, or makes a difference in the world, in a vacuum. The success one attains is due in part to the people with whom they choose to surround themselves. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the greatest leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement. “The American Five,” staging its regional premiere at Berkshire Theatre Group’s Unicorn Theatre, explores King’s life and the people who helped get him to the mountain top.
Hubbard Hall's 'Sunday in the Park with George' offers glorious time spent on the banks of the Seine
“Sunday in the Park with George” is a tribute to art, music and theater. The Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, written by James Lapine with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, is at Hubbard Hall in Cambridge through Sunday. As one of Sondheim’s most unique works, the presentation offers a collection of some of his most beautiful music.
Hubbard Hall's 'Sunday in the Park with George' offers glorious time spent on the banks of the Seine
“Sunday in the Park with George” is a tribute to art, music and theater. The Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, written by James Lapine with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, is at Hubbard Hall in Cambridge through Sunday. As one of Sondheim’s most unique works, the presentation offers a collection of some of his most beautiful music.
Some dreams come true, others shatter in 'Ladies Day' at Troy
TROY — Amanda Whittington’s “Ladies Day” hones in on the lives of four women working in a fishery on the docks of Hull, England. The four ladies work filleting the fish and getting them ready to be be shipped out to various stores. The four have become friends by virtue of standing on the line together for many years. Pearl is about to retire and has decided she wants one adventure before she departs.
'Addams Family Musicall' stages at Mac-Haydn Theatre
CHATHAM — Mac-Haydn Theatre, Columbia County’s quintessential summer stock company, has kicked off its 2026 season with a wonderfully produced lighthearted summer fare. Marshall Brickman’s and Rick Elice’s adaptation of the classic comedy “The Addams Family Musical” has set up its hauntingly funny home in Chatham. Whether one knows the Addams family from the New Yorker magazine cartoon, the 1960s sitcom or the 1990s movie, the show adds music, joy and fun to the family’s iconic history.
Ghent Playhouse’s 'Dirty Blonde' could use a new dye job
Ghent Playhouse winds up their 2025-26 season with Claudia Shear’s “Dirty Blonde.” a three-hander with the actors each playing a multitude of roles. The play revolves around Mae West and two of her fans who explore their relationship with West as well as a budding relationship with one another. The story bounces across timelines from the early 1900’s when West was starting out, through her years of stardom and to the year 2000.
‘Wedding Band’ offers a world still filled with problems
Although “Wedding Band” was written by the late playwright Alice Childress in the 1960s — during the height of Martin Luther King Jr.’s prominence and while struggles for racial equality were coming to a head — Childress interestingly opted to set the story of this similar struggle for equality in 1918 South Carolina. “Wedding Band” centers on Julia Augustine, a Black woman who has moved into a small home owned by Fanny Johnson.
Steamer No.10’s 'Chicago' razzle-dazzling us all
Steamer No. 10 has chosen to put together their most ambitious production to date: “Chicago.” The 1975 Broadway musical boasts its 1996 revival as the longest-running musical revival and the longest-running American musical in Broadway history. With music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb, and book by Ebb and Bob Fosse, the show is set in the jazz age in crime ridden Chicago.
'Monsters of the American Cinema' explores real-life monsters
When are the lines blurred between reality and fiction? At what point do the monsters on the big screen become the monsters in our lives? Such are the questions viewers are drawn to in Christian St. Croix’s new play “Monsters of the American Cinema,” currently making its regional premiere at Bridge Street Theatre in Catskill. Remy, a Black gay man has inherited a drive-in movie theatre in Santee, California from his late husband.
The Outsiders: coming-of-age story in 1960s Oklahoma plays Schenectady
SCHENECTADY - A coming-of-age story set in Tulsa Oklahoma in 1967 is the newest Broadway transplant to land on the stage at Proctors in Schenectady. The show with book by Adam Rapp and Justin Levine, music and lyrics by Levine, Jonathan Clay, and Zach Chance is interesting and has many redeeming features, but the general plot is a remix of countless other shows that preceded it. “Cry Baby,” “West Side Story,” “Grease” and even visions of “Hairspray” all come to mind. Did we truly need another?
Curtain Call's 'Good Night, Oscar' adds mini concert as bonus
LATHAM - Oscar Levant was an American pianist, composer, conductor, actor and personality. Known as equal parts prodigy and storyteller, he also struggled with mental illness. Curtain Call Theatre is tackling this infrequently produced show with very satisfying results. CCT’s veteran actor and director, Barbara Maggio, has picked a cast perfectly suited for their roles. Eric-jon Tasker is Max Weinbaum, the nephew of network studio head Bob Sarnoff, and hired as a family favor.
Schenectady Civic Players’ 'Steel Magnolias' blooms on stage
SCHENECTADY - Schenectady Civic Players are tackling the old theatrical chestnut, “Steel Magnolias.” The moving, somewhat soapy play combines comedy and tragedy and focuses on a true ensemble cast. The play revolves around the women - fragile as flowers yet with constitutions of steel - and their relationships. What makes the production work so well is director Kelly Sienkiewicz’s ability to get each of the actors deliver their lines and speak as real people.
'Oliver!' actor steadies nerves ahead of opening night
Well, here we are, in the homestretch. As I write this, there are just three more rehearsals before performances begin. It’s hard to believe that all the nerves, anxiousness — driving crazy all my friends, family, work cohorts and particularly director Brady over the past seven or eight weeks — has come down to this. To quote a line from the musical “Jekyll and Hyde”: “This is the moment, this is the time, when the moment and the momentum are in rhyme.” Apparently, there’s no turning back.
Take 3 — Behind the scenes of Carpe Diem Theatre's upcoming 'Oliver!'
BALLSTON SPA — So, we have rounded the curve and I am still hanging on. We are now just two weeks from the performances. On Monday, we shifted from our rehearsal space to the actual Round Lake Auditorium, our home, until the final curtain. Panic has been replaced by — dare I admit it — a sense of excitement, a feeling that it might happen and I might actually enjoy the moments ahead. The pieces of the puzzle are falling slowly into place.
Talented case boosts Fort Salem's 'Bridges of Madison County'
SALEM - It begins in 1965. Francesca, an Italian war bride is living in Winterset, Iowa. Married for nearly 20 years and raising a son and daughter, she says goodbye as her husband Bud and the two children as they set off to the national 4-H fair to learn whether the steer that their daughter Carolyn raised will win the blue ribbon. Based on Robert James Waller’s 1992 novel, with book by Marsha Norman and music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown, the musical is a story of love and choices.
Harbinger Theatre opens season with a one-man tour de force
SCHENECTADY — Harbinger Theatre’s latest production invites you into the world — and the brilliance — of one Thomas Lanier Williams.
Following along on reviewer's journey to 'Oliver!' opening night
BALLSTON SPA — Well, we made it through the first full week of rehearsals — and I managed to survive intact. It’s hard to believe that after all the drama behind the drama (at least on my end), things are finally getting underway. I had forgotten — or at least chosen to let go of — the myriad small details that go into getting productions off the ground. Meetings with the costumer for measurements. Thoughts on the character (how I see him and how she sees him). Input from the director.
Theater review, 'Cry Baby' a bawdy delight at Cohoes Music Hall
It’s 1954 in Baltimore, Maryland. We are at an anti-polio picnic, celebrating the vaccine and honoring the polio poster child, a young teen in an iron lung. The polio plague is simply the setup for the conduit of the outrageous antics of two rival groups, the conservative, clean-cut square kids and the leather-clad, inked rebels.
Sand Lake Center's '1776' leaves no doubt as to American independence- Theater Review
As America gears up to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its independence from Great Britain, the theater world appears to be dusting off its patriotic colors to join the party. Perhaps the most well-known musical is “1776,” whose book by Peter Stone, and music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards, has seen great success since it first appeared on Broadway back in 1969.
Curtain Call's 'The Shark is Broken' looks behind the making of 'Jaws'
The show behind the show — or in this case, the story behind the movie — can often be just as if not more interesting than the project to which it is connected. Many, particularly those of a certain age, might argue that “Jaws” created a genre in filmmaking that helped redefine a generation of movies. The story behind that film may in fact be fodder enough for a story of its own.
Stephen Sondheim tribute presented by the Bunbury Players through Sunday in Clifton Park
CLIFTON PARK - Bunbury Players “Good Thing Going' - a tribute to Stephen Sondheim is an engaging 75 minutes of the music of the master of the American Musical Theatre. Drawing off the vast songbook of the eight-time Tony award winner’s music and lyrics, Director Garrett West has pulled from all areas of Sondheim’s professional life. Presented with no dialogue, the cast of 12 tears through 21 of the maestro’s works.
Schenectady Civic's 'The Seafarer' navigates stormy waters
SCHENECTADY — “The Seafarer” by playwright Conor McPherson is a complex, layered story of family, success, failure, relationships, alcoholism and much more. Under the direction of Tony Pallone, the production is the latest from Schenectady Civic Playhouse. The tale is set outside Dublin in Baldoyle, located on the coast of the Irish Sea, on Christmas Eve in the not-too-distant past.
Review: Proctors 'The Sound of Music' brings new light to a familiar tale
SCHENECTADY — The sounds of music are filling Proctors these days with a refreshing take on a storied classic. Nearly 70 years after it made history on the Broadway stage, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “The Sound of Music” continues to charm audiences around the world.
SLOC’s 'Man of La Mancha' an impossible dream come true
SCHENECTADY — Journey back in time to the 1600s and the Spanish Inquisition, to a dungeon prison where failed tax collector, actor and author Miguel De Cervantes has been imprisoned along with his servant. Cervantes transforms himself and his servant into Don Quixote, an errant knight, a dreamer, storyteller and journeyman, and his servant becomes his faithful companion, Sancho Panza.
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Review: Broadway and 'Glee' star Matthew Morrison sparkles at UPH
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Universal Preservation Hall played host to Broadway and “Glee” star Matthew Morrison last week in his one-man production “Show Up.” And show up he did, in a somewhat atypical 90-minute song-and-chat fest. Morrison is touring the country until his return to Broadway for a three-week run in the Bobby Darrin jukebox immersive production “Just in Time,” where he will step in to fill the gap between Jonathan Groff and Jeremy Jordan.
Take a jump into the fun at Fort Salem’s 'Ripcord'
SALEM — Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire’s prodigious career has flourished as he has gone from “Rabbit Hole” to “Kimberly-Akimbo.” Along the journey came the delightful comedy “Ripcord.” It’s the story of two women “forced” to room together in an assisted-living facility. The problem is, one of the women, Abby, does not want a roommate and has chased away every one the facility has put in with her.
Curtain Call Theatre’s 'Da Vinci Code' deciphers mystery of the ages
COLONIE — Curtain Call Theatre has once again stretched its wings by mounting a production outside its comfort zone. The play has for Curtain Call a large cast, with 11 actors performing 16 roles, and the show is set in multiple locations — a departure from the company’s usual single-set productions. Tackling this juggernaut is director Cindy Bates, who steps into the helm for the 23rd time at the theater.
Confetti Stage’s 'The Lion in Winter' takes family dysfunction to an art form
ALBANY — It’s a typical Christmas gathering with a wealthy dysfunctional family. Dad and Mom don’t get along, yet they still love one another. Mom lives in a different wing of the house, dad has his paramour living in the house, mom doesn’t care. The three sons are all at each other’s throats over who should take over the family business. Mom has one favorite, Dad another, and the middle child is pretty much left in the cold.
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