Megan Diehl

Review: ‘A Christmas Carol’ at McCarter Theatre Center

A snowy Princeton afternoon may be the most festive of conditions in which to see the great McCarter Theatre holiday tradition of A Christmas Carol. Add to that a host of Dickensian characters...

Review: ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ at Bristol Riverside Theatre

“We are the slightest bit bizarre” may be quite an understatement when describing some of the delightfully strange tweens competing in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, now playing at...

Review: ‘Red Velvet’ at Lantern Theater Company

A scarlet curtain lines the stage of the Theatre Royal in Covent Garden, London with a controversy lurking on either side. Outside, angry Londoners flood the streets protesting the 1833 Slavery...

Review: ‘The New and Improved Stages of Grief’ at Act II Playhouse

Inevitably, we will each encounter some kind of experience with death as we grow, and although it may be one of our greatest shared experiences, grieving is still a personal process. A mixture of...

Review: ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at Arden Theatre Company

In 1998, Arden Theatre Company opened their F. Otto Haas Stage with a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Widely considered one of William Shakespeare’s lightest and most accessible plays,...

Review: ‘Broadway Up Close: Vanessa Williams’ at the Kimmel Center

Continuing the exciting season of Broadway Up Close concerts on Saturday at the Kimmel Center, Seth Rudetsky hosted Broadway and recording star Vanessa Williams for an evening of her career highlights...

Review: ‘I Will Not Go Gently’ at Act II Playhouse

An aging rock star struggles to stay relevant, or perhaps struggles whether or not to care at all whether she is still relevant, in the Act II Playhouse remounting of 1812 Productions’ one-woman...

Review: ‘Broadway Up Close: Matthew Morrison’ at the Kimmel Center

Beginning a new season of Broadway Up Close concerts on Saturday at the The Kimmel Center, Seth Rudetsky hosted Broadway leading man and television’s favorite choir teacher, Matthew Morrison, for an...

Review: ‘This Wonderful Life’ at Act II Playhouse

“Merry Christmas, you wonderful old Building and Loan!” For so many, the holiday season just isn’t complete without the images of Jimmy Stewart running through the streets of Bedford Falls bidding an...

Review: ‘Mauritius’ at Act II Playhouse in Ambler, PA

It’s much ado about two small slips of paper in Act II Playhouse’s astute production of Mauritius, Theresa Rebeck’s thriller based on the intense world of stamp collecting. Despite the inherent...

Review: ‘Disgraced’ at McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, NJ

It is sometimes difficult to imagine what theater might be able to further contribute to an already contentious national conversation about tolerance and devisiveness in America. An unconventional...

Review: ‘The Plough and the Stars’ from the Abbey Theatre at Annenberg Center in Philadelphia, PA.

An adventurous new take on Sean O’Casey’s The Plough and the Stars brings a fragile yet startling version of the Irish classic to the Annenberg Center stage courtesy of the Abbey Theatre in Dublin....

Review: ‘Turandot’ at Opera Philadelphia in Philadelphia, PA.

Danger and darkness lurk around every corner of Opera Philadelphia’s stunning new production of Turandot, a co-production with Minnesota Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Utah Opera, and...

Review: ‘Bathing in Moonlight’ at McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, NJ

Bathing in Moonlight opens subtly with the hum of gentle organ music, a stained glass window looming high above, and Father Monroe (Raúl Méndez) warmly greeting his congregation as he takes center...

Review: ‘South Pacific’ at Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, PA

The hunger for optimism is never in short supply these days. Walnut Street Theatre brings life to an American classic in their current production of South Pacific under the direction of Charles...

Review: ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ at Hedgerow Theatre Company in Rose Valley, PA

Spooky moors, haunting noises in the night, one or two mysterious deaths, and a fabled homicidal hound make for a cozy evening of suspense in the The Hound of the Baskervilles. Adapted by Brock D....

Review: ‘The Summer Club’ at the Arden Theatre Company in Philadelphia

Until now, The Summer Club has been a swinging, snappy treat enjoyed almost exclusively by Cape May and other Jersey Shore towns. After two summers of hot nights on the beach, The Summer Club and it’s...

Review: ‘Chapter Two’ at Montgomery Theater in Souderton, PA

There’s more to enjoy than simple comedy in Montgomery Theater’s production of Neil Simon’s Chapter Two. Directed by Artistic Director Tom Quinn, this heartfelt tale of a widower and a divorcee set up...

Kelli O’Hara in ‘Seth Rudetsky’s Broadway Concert Series’ at the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia

Closing out their Concert Series Season on Tuesday, the Kimmel Center welcomed Kelli O’Hara, one of Broadway’s brightest stars, to the Merriam stage along with Seth Rudetsky for a conversation with a...

Review: ‘Man of La Mancha’ at Bristol Riverside Theatre in Bristol, PA

Perhaps one of the most popular and perennial favorites from a golden age of American musical theatre, Man of La Mancha (with book by Dale Wasserman, lyrics by Joe Darion, and music by Mitch Leigh),...

Season Preview: 2016-2017 Broadway Philadelphia Lineup at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia

Each year, the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts brings the highest quality of Broadway’s offerings to Philadelphia for local audiences to enjoy. Their recently announced 2016-2017 Broadway...

Review: ‘A Single Shard’ at People’s Light in Malvern, PA

How does a plain pile of clay become a work of art? The courage of an artist to create something out of nothing infuses the recent regional premiere of A Single Shard, now playing at People’s Light in...

Review: Kristine Fraelich at the Arden Cabaret Series at the Arden Theatre Company in Philadelphia

“It is terrifying.” More often than not, the actor’s relationship to their audience involves three parties; the audience, the actor, and their character. Guarded by learned lines and blocking, an...

Review: ‘Forever Plaid’ at Montgomery Theater in Souderton, PA

Equipped with a catalog of familiar tunes and the indelible spirit of yesteryear, the eternal charm of Forever Plaid shines in a delightful new production at Montgomery Theater. Under the direction...

Review: ‘Cocktail Hour: The Show’ at Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, PA

Traditional ballet gets the “shaken, not stirred” treatment in Cocktail Hour: The Show, a unique piece produced and performed by New York company Ballets with a Twist, and presented by Bucks County...

Review: ‘He Who Gets Slapped’ at Philadelphia Artists’ Collective in Philadelphia

The delicate danger of the Big Top mixes with a resonant sadness in Philadelphia Artists’ Collective’s circus-themed production of Leonid Andreyev’s He Who Gets Slapped. In partnership with the...

Review: ‘Beautiful: The Carole King Musical’ at The Academy of Music in Philadelphia

Packed with unforgettable music and a flashy presentation, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, now playing at the Academy of Music presented by Kimmel Center’s Broadway Philadelphia, crafts the...

Review: ‘The Mousetrap’ at McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton, NJ

The queen of mystery, Agatha Christie, is alive and well in a new production of one of her most famous stories, The Mousetrap, now playing at McCarter Theatre Center. Directed by Adam Immerwahr, her...

Review: ‘Driving Miss Daisy’ at Act II Playhouse in Ambler, PA

An enchanting version of the familiar tale, Act II Playhouse’s Driving Miss Daisy serves up a delightful cast and a pleasant story that both challenges and charms. Originally written in 1987, Alfred...

Review: ‘One Night Only’: Sutton Foster at the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia

Though she may boast two Tony Awards, a resume full of magnificent leading ladies, and starring roles on two recent television series, Sutton Foster becomes refreshingly low-key in her acclaimed solo...

Review: ‘Jerry Blavat: Salute to Street Corner Harmony’ at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia

It’s easy to see that Philadelphia native Jerry Blavat loves bringing his favorite music back to town, and in turn the city of Philadelphia loves to welcome back one of its own. Blavat’s Salute to...

Review: ‘Lobby Hero’ at Theatre Horizon in Norristown, PA

A complex new production of Lobby Hero at Theatre Horizon takes an exacting look at just how delicate an instrument a moral compass can be. The setting is a commonplace lobby of a Manhattan apartment...

Review: ‘Sense and Sensibility’ at People’s Light in Malvern, PA

Taking a step back into the world of Jane Austen always promises a rainbow of young ladies in high-waisted dresses, men laced up in crisp white ties, and a cornucopia of ponderings on love, money, and...

Review: ‘Exit Strategy’ at Philadelphia Theatre Company in Philadelphia, PA

Hope and destruction come to a crossroads in Exit Strategy, an East coast premiere in association with Primary Stages now playing at Philadelphia Theatre Company. Although the setting of Ike Holter’s...

Review: ‘The Language Archive’ at Bristol Riverside Theatre in Bristol, PA

“I love you.” This simple, universal concept becomes one of the most multi-faceted phrases in all languages in Bristol Riverside Theatre’s recent production of Julia Cho’s The Language Archive. What...

Review: ‘On the Road Again’ at Act II Playhouse in Ambler, PA

On a damp, drizzly night in January, it’s hard to fight the impulse to want to jump on a plane in pursuit of a warmer, sunnier locale. Fortunately, On the Road Again, a world premiere now playing at...

Review: ‘The Hard Problem’ at The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia, PA

The head and the heart endeavor to coexist in the Wilma Theater’s latest production of Tom Stoppard’s newest work, The Hard Problem. Rich with provocative questions and challenging to the notions of...

‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat’ at the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia

For a musical with such humble beginnings, the recent tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat now playing at the Merriam Theater in Philadelphia, shows no signs of its unassuming origins...

‘It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play’ at Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, PA

As far as enchanting holiday entertainment is considered, It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play at Bucks County Playhouse may just be the warm mug of cocoa you’re looking for this time of year. A...