“A Chorus Line,” “All Shook Up,” and “Rope” Top 2026 Connecticut Critics Circle Nominations

 

Goodspeed Musicals’ one singular sensation of  “A Chorus Line” and their high-energy jukebox musical “All Shook Up” lead the musical nominations for the 34^th annual Connecticut Critics Circle Awards.  The Hartford Stage production of the thriller “Rope” is the top-nominated play.

 

The awards event, which celebrates the best in professional theater in the state, will be held Monday, June 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Hartford Stage in downtown Hartford.  The event is free and open to the public.  Click here to reserve a ticket to the ceremony.

 

Both “A Chorus Line” and “All Shook Up” received 8 nods, including outstanding musical production and director.  “Rope” earned seven nominations, including outstanding play production and director.

 

Other outstanding play nominees are “All is Calm” – Playhouse on Park, “Circus Fire” – Theaterworks Hartford, “Death of a Salesman” – Hartford Stage, and “Rhinoceros” – Yale Repertory Theatre.

 

Also earning outstanding musical nods are “Annie “– Sharon Playhouse, “Waitress” – A.C.T. of CT, and “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” - Goodspeed Musicals.

 

Receiving the annual Tom Killen Award for lifetime achievement in Connecticut theater is Donna Lynn Hilton of Goodspeed Musicals..  She is the current Artistic Director and has been with the theater since 1988, where she has a significant record of developing and producing new musicals.

 

Receiving a special award is James Bundy, who is retiring as Artistic Director at the Yale Repertory Theatre.  Also receiving special awards are Rebecka Jones and Noble Shropshire for their continuous involvement with the Hartford Stage’s production of A Christmas Carol.

 

The complete nominees are:

 

Outstanding Production – Musical

A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Annie – Sharon Playhouse

Irving Berlin’s White Christmas - Goodspeed Musicals

Waitress – A.C.T. of CT

 

Outstanding Production - Play

All is Calm – Playhouse on Park

Circus Fire – Theaterworks Hartford

Death of a Salesman – Hartford Stage

Rhinoceros – Yale Repertory Theatre

Rope – Hartford Stage

 

Outstanding Actor in a play:

Peter Jacobson - Death of a Salesman – Hartford Stage

Tim DeKay  – The Counter – Theaterworks Hartford

Reg Rogers  – Rhinoceros – Yale Repertory Theatre

Daniel Neale – Rope - Hartford Stage

J. Quinton Johnson – Spunk - Yale Repertory Theatre

 

Outstanding Actress in a play:

Justis Bolding – The Counter – Theaterworks Hartford

Marianna Gailus - Hedda Gabler - Yale Repertory Theatre

Bernadette Sefic – Hurricane Diane – Hartford Stage

Christina Acosta Robinson – Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill – Ivoryton Playhouse

Sara Koviak – Your Name Means Dream – TheaterWorks Hartford

 

Outstanding Actor in a musical:

Trevor Martin – My Fair Lady – Ivoryton Playhouse

Ryan Mac – All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Clyde Alves – Irving Berlin’s White Christmas - Goodspeed Musicals

Justin Matthew Sargent – Jesus Christ Superstar – Goodspeed Musicals

Omar Lopez-Cepero – Irving Berlin’s White Christmas - Goodspeed Musicals

 

Outstanding Actress in a musical:

Kerstin Anderson – All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Avery Hope - Annie – Sharon Playhouse

Laura Renee Mehl - Little Mermaid – STONC

Abigail Sparrow – Waitress – A.C.T. of CT

 

Outstanding Director of a play:

Sasha Bratt - All is Calm – Playhouse on Park

Jared Mezzocchi – Circus Fire – Theaterworks Hartford

Rob Ruggiero – The Counter – Theaterworks Hartford

Liz Diamond – Rhinoceros – Yale Repertory Theatre

Melia Bensussen – Rope - Hartford Stage

 

Outstanding Director of a musical:

Rob Ruggiero - A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Daniel Goldstein – All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Arbender J. Robinson - Little Mermaid – STONC

Brian Feehan – My Fair Lady – Ivoryton Playhouse

Sara Brians – Waitress – A.C.T. of CT

 

Outstanding Choreography:

Parker Esse and Baayork Lee - A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Byron Easley – All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Robert Mintz - Singin’ in the Rain – Playhouse on Park

nicHi douglas – Spunk - Yale Repertory Theatre

Kelli Barclay – Irving Berlin’s White Christmas - Goodspeed Musicals

 

Outstanding Featured actor in a play:

Samuel H. Levine  – Death of a Salesman – Hartford Stage

Terrence Riggins  – Gem of the Ocean – Long Wharf Theatre

Kurt Fuller - Noises Off – Legacy Theatre

Jimmy Johansmeyer – Noises Off – Legacy Theatre

Alaman Diadhiou – Spunk - Yale Repertory Theatre

 

Outstanding Featured actress in a play:

Adrianne Krstansky – Death of a Salesman – Hartford Stage

Missy Dowse – Fox on the Fairway – Music Theatre of CT

Grace Porter – Gem of the Ocean – Long Wharf Theatre

Felicity Jones Latta – Hedda Gabler – Yale Repertory Theatre

Jeannette Baryardelle – Spunk - Yale Repertory Theatre

 

Outstanding Featured actor in a musical:

Diego Guevara - A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Jack Rasmussen – Almost Famous - A.C.T. of CT

Cory Candelet - Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – Ivoryton Playhouse

Scott Mikita – My Fair Lady – Ivoryton Playhouse

John Alejandro Jeffords – Waitress – A.C.T. of CT

 

Outstanding Featured actress in a musical:

Karli Dinardo - A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Mikaela Secada - A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Tess Marshall – Almost Famous – A.C.T. of CT

Jessica Crouch - All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Shaylen Harger – Waitress – A.C.T. of CT

 

Outstanding Ensemble – Casts of:

All is Calm – Playhouse on Park

Circus Fire - TheaterWorks Hartford

English – TheaterWorks Hartford

The Great Emu War – Goodspeed Musicals

The Mousetrap – Sharon Playhouse

 

Outstanding Set design:

Beowulf Boritt – All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Tijana Bjelajac – The Counter – Theaterworks Hartford

Christopher & Justin Swader – The Mousetrap – Sharon Playhouse

Riw Rakkulchon – Rope - Hartford Stage

David L. Arsenault – Irving Berlin’s White Christmas - Goodspeed Musicals

 

Outstanding Costume design:

Tilly Grimes - All Shook Up – Goodspeed Musicals

Jimmy Johansmeyer - The Baroness – Playhouse on Park

Risa Ando – Rope - Hartford Stage

Lyle Laize Qin - Hedda Gabler - Yale Repertory Theatre

Elizabeth Saylor – My Fair Lady – Ivoryton Playhouse

 

Outstanding Lighting design:

John Lasiter - A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Matthew Richards – Death of a Salesman – Hartford Stage

Mary Louise Geiger – Rope - Hartford Stage

Dalton Hamilton - Waitress - A.C.T. of CT

Kirk Bookman & Nathan W. Scheuer - Irving Berlin’s White Christmas – Goodspeed Musicals

 

Sound design:

Jay Hilton – A Chorus Line – Goodspeed Musicals

Darron L. West – Death of a Salesman – Hartford Stage

Joyce Ciesil - Hurricane Diane – Hartford Stage

Xi (Zoey) Lin – Rhinoceros – Yale Repertory Theatre

Jane Shaw - Rope – Hartford Stage

 

Projections:

Doaa Ouf – All is Calm – Playhouse on Park

Camilla Tassi – Almost Famous – A.C.T. of CT

Jared Mezzocchi - Circus Fire - TheaterWorks Hartford

Camilla Tassi – Dear Evan Hansen – A.C.T. of CT

Ke Xu – Rhinoceros – Yale Repertory Theatre

 

PLAYS (Number of Nominations)

Rope – 7

Death of a Salesman – 6

Rhinoceros – 5

All is Calm – 4

Circus Fire - 4

The Counter – 4

Spunk – 4

Hedda Gabler – 3

Gem of the Ocean – 2

Hurricane Diane – 2

The Mousetrap – 2

Noises Off - 2

The Baroness – 1

English – 1

Fox on the Fairway – 1

The Great Emu War – 1

Lady Day in Emerson’s Bar & Grill – 1

Your Name Means Dream – 1

 

MUSICALS (Number of Nominations)

A Chorus Line – 8

All Shook Up - 8

Irving Berlin’s White Christmas - 6

Waitress - 6

My Fair Lady – 4

Almost Famous – 3

Annie – 2

Little Mermaid – 2

Dear Evan Hansen – 1

Jesus Christ Superstar – 1

Joseph and the Amazing – 1

Singin’ in the Rain - 1

 

 

 

 

Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill - Ivoryton Playhouse

For a successful staging of the play with music, Lady Day in Emerson’s Bar & Grill, the show needs an actress who can not only sing with emotion and depth, but also be able to act.  Fortunately, the Ivoryton Playhouse’s production of Lady Day has the superb talents of Christina Acosta Robinson as the legendary singer Billie Holiday.

Christina Acosta Robinson and the cast of Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill.

Ms. Robinson possesses a marvelous singing voice that conveys Ms. Holiday’s sheer joy for singing as well as the pain she experienced throughout her short life.  The actress’s mannerisms and body language add detail and nuance to the role.  

 

The setting for the drama is supposed to be a rundown bar in Philadelphia, a city we learn she has a love/hate relationship with.  Scenic and Lighting Design Marcus Abbott has transformed the Ivoryton stage to a low-wattage venue, but the set could have, in effect, emphasized a less spiffed-up establishment, creating a plainer and shabbier bar.

Christina Acosta Robinson in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill.

In the show, which features the character of Billie Holiday center stage for all but a few minutes, we find the once-in-demand singer at the tail end of her storied career.  This is one of her last performances before her death at 44.  Throughout the 90-minute, intermission-less performance, she sings over a dozen songs accompanied by piano player/companion Jimmy Powers (Manny Houston), a bass player (Eneji Alungbe), and drummer (Jocelyn Pleasant).  Mr. Houston also serves as Holiday’s not-always-accommodating foil.  Their bantering shows his love and respect for the performer, but also the caretaking approach he needs to keep the jazz singer on track. 

 

In between the musical selections, there is a continuous stream of off-color, funny, but also sad ramblings centering on her relationships with a number of individuals from her past, including her husbands and mother.  Ms. Holiday smokes and consumes glass after glass of alcohol.  They poignantly provide a window into the troubled personal life of the legendary singer. By the end of the show, she can barely stand, an intoxicated shell of a once proud and influential jazz singer.

Manny Houston Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill.

Playwright Lanie Robertson smartly centers his work around the songs associated with and beloved by Billie Holiday.  Most of the dialogue before and after the songs is mere snippets of her pioneering career and rollercoaster life.  The show would have benefitted from more of the lively tales, raucously and entertainingly recounted by the performer, such as her story of searching for a women’s bathroom at an all-white, posh restaurant the Artie Shaw band ate at.

 

Director Todd Underwood has successfully crafted an intimate nightspot, continuously positioning Ms. Robinson around the small staging area, giving the production an openness to what could have been a very static show.  The Director also skillfully injects a balance between the playfulness of the character and her slow disintegration.

 

Lady Day in Emerson’s Bar & Grill, playing at the Ivoryton Playhouse through May 31.  Click here for dates and times of performances.

 

 

Dear Evan Hansen - A.C.T. of CT

The musical Dear Evan Hansen has always been an emotionally powerful show that, even though it debuted on Broadway ten years ago, is still highly relevant today as mental health has become such a critical issue for many high school students. 

 

Evan Hansen is an extremely anxious high school student, on medication and seeing a therapist for his debilitating condition.  He has no friends and, for all intents and purposes, is invisible to his peers.  He is alone, until a classmate commits suicide. Through an escalating series of lies, fueled by unceasing and insatiable social media networks, his stature and presence begin to change with unanticipated and distressing results.

Kenny Lee and the cast of Dear Evan Hansen.

 

The book by Steven Levenson is an emotional rollercoaster of impassioned scenes and straightforward honesty that connects to today’s teenagers.  The story can sometimes be agonizing to watch as the characters try to negotiate the new landscape that is developing, changing, and spiraling out of control all at once.  But Dear Evan Hansen is not just about angst and crisis.  It also focuses on a multitude of relationships that are spawned and changed from the events on stage.

 

The score by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul is heartfelt with penetrating lyrics that explore the inner turmoil Evan is going through as he confronts a new reality.  The songs can be raucous with an in-your-face impact.  They are playful, with a serious undertone.  And there are tender ballads that reach to the depths of the character’s souls as well as reveal the agony individuals feel upon the death of a son.

Kenny Lee, Gil Brady, Heather Ayers, and Olivia Foght of Dear Evan Hansen.

 

Kenny Lee stars as Evan Hansen who, as directed by Scott Schwartz, is inexplicably overly apprehensive with nervous tics, and fixations like constantly pulling on his polo shirt.  While the character is supposed to be tense and susceptible to panic attacks, the portrayal is too over-the-top, which yields an imbalance to the production.  Lee, however, like the rest of the cast, does have a wonderful voice that successfully convey the struggles he is facing.

 

Josh Hoyt, Amaya White, and Kenny Lee of Dear Evan Hansen.

The other members of the cast are superb.  Olivia Foght, a recent graduate of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, is outstanding as Zoe, the sister of the deceased student.  The young actress deftly projects a lost innocence and whirlwind of emotions as she tries to make sense of the sudden change in her family dynamics and personal life.  Heather Ayers, as Cynthia Murphy, and Gil Brady as Larry Murphy, parents of the departed son, are terrific.  Their grief, confusion, and inner family turmoil strikes a chord with the audience. 

 

Kenny Lee and members of the cast of Dear Evan Hansen.

Maya Evans, as Evan’s mother Heidi, aptly and poignantly portray a mother frustrated and panicked over a son she cannot reach.  Erik Houck as Connor Murphy, the high school student who suddenly passes away, gives a marvelously layered performance in life and death. Josh Hoyt as Evan’s “relationship friend,” Jared Kleinman, provides a good dose of comic relief to off-set the weighty mood of the show.  Amaya White provides an exuberant performance as high school classmate, Alana Beck, a student not unlike Evan Hansen who yearns to be seen and recognized. 

Erik Houck, Josh Hoyt, and Kenny Lee of Dear Evan Hansen.

 

Except for the misstep with the character of Evan Hansen, Director Scott Schwartz proficiently guides the production from its inauspicious beginnings through to its cathartic ending.  He intelligently allows the material to unfold naturally without calling undue attention to the series of events that are unfurling onstage.  Schwartz skillfully incorporates the three mini-sets by Scenic Designers Christopher and Justin Swader into the show and nimbly integrates Camilla Tassi’s video projections of the social media maelstrom through pulsating, ever-changing window treatments.  Lighting Designer Charlie Morrison and Sound Designer Shannon Slaton effectively add to the hive of activity that enhances the dramatic tension of the musical.

 

Dear Evan Hansen, playing at A.C.T. of CT through June 21.  Click here for dates, times, and ticket information.

 

Gotta Dance - Off-Broadway

On of my most striking memories from the New York stage was back in 1978 when The American Dance Machine presented a non-stop series of showstoppers from past Broadway musicals, which included Brigadoon, Cabaret, Desstry Rides Again, Half a Sixpence, and No No Nanette.  The company, founded by Lee Theodore, described its purpose to be “a living archive of Broadway Theatre Dance.”  Upon her death in 1987, the organization ceased.  However, in February 2012, Nikki Feirt Atkins founded American Dance Machine for the 21st Century in order to continue and advance the legacy of the late Lee Theodore.

 

This has culminated in a new Off-Broadway production entitled Gotta Dance.  As with the original show, almost 50 years ago, dance numbers from a variety of shows by a who’s who of choreographic greats are featured.  This time around, movie musicals, such as Singin’ in the Rain, are part of the program.  Choreographers represented include Gene Kelly, Stanley Donen, Michael Bennett, Jerome Robbins, Susan Stroman, and Bob Fosse.  While many great dance routines are packed into the 90-miute, intermissionless show - A Chorus Line, Gypsy, West Side Story – I was disappointed there were not enough top tier production numbers from other outstanding musicals.  For instance, what about post 1978 shows such as The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, 42^nd Street, The Tap Dance Kid, Me and My Girl, Newsies as opposed to Contact, Smokey Joe’s Café, or a tame “Sweet Georgia Brown” from Bubbling Brown Sugar?

 

The performers are first-rate, with some a bit more polished than others.  Ms. Atkins and multiple Tony nominated choreographer Randy Skinner direct the non-stop series of dance routines with care and skill.  While I do quibble about some aspects of the production, it is still a highly entertaining presentation, especially for dance aficionados.

Gotta Dance, playing Off-Broadway at the comfortable and spacious Stage 42.  Click here for dates, times, and ticket information.

Circus Fire - Theaterworks Hartford

The world premiere of Circus Fire, the latest production by Theaterworks Hartford, is a captivating, multimedia production chronicling the July 1944 Hartford Circus Fire, one of the deadliest blazes in U.S. history.  The show has been moved from the theater’s home on Pearl Street to the historic First Company Governor’s Foot Guard building at 159 High Street in downtown Hartford.  The show is performed in-the-round, with audience members seated in “bigtop” bleachers.  Playwright Jacques Lamarre has delved into a huge repository of historical and public documents, newspaper articles, court records and books on the subject to fashion a gripping narrative.  

Godfrey L. Simmons in Circus Fire.  Photo by Curtis Brown.

The play starts innocently enough.  A family – mother, father, and teenage daughter – are looking for the Circus Fire monument in Hartford.  A friendly neighbor shows them the spot, which is covered for repairs.  They peel back the tarp to take a look – I got goosebumps at this moment – and the circus begins.  Lamarre has broken the 90-minute, intermission-less show into three parts – denizens of Hartford preparing for arrival of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, the performance, and the horrific aftermath.  Intertwined in these storylines is an investigator (a penetrating Godfrey L. Simmons, Jr.) seeking answers to the cause of the inferno, which took 167 lives and injured hundreds.  The actors and actresses – the largest cast in Theaterworks history – comes in from various entry points around the circular stage, performing multiple roles in front of the audience and in the catwalks high above the stage.   Added to the whirlwind of movement are large, vivid projections on the walls and ceiling of the building, which provide real-time footage of the events including the build-up to the tragedy and the fire itself.

Members of the cast in Circus Fire.  Photo by Curtis Brown.

Playwright Jacques Lamarre, Director Jared Mezzocchi, and Theaterworks Artistic Director are listed as having conceived the show.  All provide critical components to make Circus Fire such a riveting and spellbinding production.  Mezzocchi has superbly taken all the creative aspects of the show – Brian Prather’s restrained, but powerful Set Design, Rob Denton’s illumtinating Lighting Design, and Lindsay Jones’ Original Music and pulsating Sound Design – as well as his own Multimedia Experience and fashioned a vibrant, heart-stopping play that should not be missed.

 

Mike Boland in Circus Fire.  Photo by Curtis Brown.

The acting corps is tremendous as they portray so many characters from everyday housewives to ordinary circus workers to flummoxed politicians.  Out of the 12 performers, three need to singled out - Mike Boland, who is notable as a circus employee as well as Emmett the Clown; Godfrey Simmons, Jr., who in addition to his role as the investigator, makes a convincing ringmaster; and Janelle Anne Robinson, who enlivens so many characters, but most touchingly as a worker at the makeshift city morgue.

 

Godfrey L. Simmons and members of the cast in Circus Fire.  Photo by Curtis Brown.

Circus Fire, playing at the First Company Governor’s Foot Guard building at 159 High Street in downtown Hartford through May 31.  An event not to be missed.  Click here for dates, times, and ticket information.

 

Jesus Christ Superstar - Goodspeed Opera House

The Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical Jesus Christ Superstar, is the one true show that is the director’s perogative.  The sung through musical has no book, which allows the director total freedom on how to tell the story of the last week of Jesus's life, focusing on the conflict between Jesus and Judas.  I have seen many versions of the rock opera, and no two have been vaguely alike.

Justin Matthew Sargent and the cast of Goodspeed's Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Diane Sobolewski.

For the current Goodspeed Opera House’s production, Director Tatiana Pandiani, who has teamed up with Choreographer Amy Campbell, have presented a minimalistic staging where modern dance and movement are at the fore.  The focus is on the performers and the score, in my opinion, the best from the team of Webber and Rice.  The musical numbers carry on the tradition set by the musical Hair in 1968, mixing rock anthems with tender ballads (Hair was still running on Broadway when Jesus Christ Superstar opened).  Interestingly, Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar shared the same Director, Tom O’Horgan. 

Austin Lesch with Justin Matthew Sargent, Thabitha Moruthane, Stephanie Zaharis and Kathy Liu in Goodspeed's Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Meredith Longo.

The songs, under the spirited leadership of Music Director Adam Souza, move the story forward, while also defining the main character’s motives and feelings.  Jay Hilton’s deft Sound Design ensures the songs are strikingly rendered.  The best numbers include "Heaven on Their Minds," "Everything's Alright," "I Don't Know How to Love Him," "King Herod's Song," and a wildly entertaining rendition of "Superstar."  

Stephanie Zaharis with Justin Matthew Sargent in Goodspeed's Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Meredith Longo.

Ms. Pandiani helms the show with good pacing – the lights went up ending Act I in what seemed like a very short time.  Devising a set for Jesus Christ Superstar, which is suitable without being overwhelming, is a tricky balancing act for a Director.  For this production, she incorporates Riccardo Hernández’s scenic design of drawn curtains, boldly lit by Cha See’s continuously changing color scheme.  While simple in execution, the set occasionally comes across as too bare.  Sand across the stage – built out over the pit to allow more space for the actors – is effective in the impression it gives of the Mideast setting. 

Justin Matthew Sargent and the cast of Goodspeed's Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Diane Sobolewski.

The choreography by Amy Campbell is at times moving, thought-provoking, but also curious.  The same can be said of Costume Designer Siena Zoë Allen’s mixture of fashionably hip wear by Jesus and members of his flock and the more formal black and gold robes of the priests and other authoritarian rulers.

 

The cast is uniformly strong.  Justin Matthew Sargent is spot-on with his portrayal of Jesus.  At times, low-key and nurturing, he is not immune to bouts of anger and disillusionment.  Austin Lesch imbues the character of Judas Iscariot with a well-balanced blend of internal torment and doubt as he becomes involved with the ultimate betrayal.  His voice, steeped in a true rock tradition, resonates quite loudly through the Goodspeed theater.

Austin Lesch and the cast of Goodspeed's Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Diane Sobolewski.

I have always found the role of Mary Magdalene to get lost amidst the turmoil of the show, but Stephanie Zaharis, petite in stature, possesses a forceful presence that enables her character to resonate within the turbulent times.  Jamari Darling provides a comedic touch to the character of Caiaphas which, while often funny, later in the show comes across as a disconnect to the sharp reality as Jesus is captured and put to death.

Nicolette Antonia Shin brings a highly theatrical portrayal to the role of King Herod.  While her show-stopping number – “King Herod’s Song” – is suitably over-the-top, it comes across as too kitschy.

 

Justin Matthew Sargent and the cast of Goodspeed's Jesus Christ Superstar. Photo by Meredith Longo.

 

Jesus Christ Superstar, playing at the Goodspeed Opera House through June 7.  Click here for dates, times, and ticket information.