Theatre in Utah Valley:

Best Comedy:

Tartuffe. Currently being performed at BYU. The best way to describe this performance is to just tell you that the audience was literally screaming in laughter. The characters and set looked like cartoons. The actors brought life to the already great text-- they moved, they sang, they were wonderfully dramatic. And there were many flirtatious growls going about. And an accordion. The show closes February 6.


Best Drama:

Death of a Salesman. Of course, this was a touring company. I've never seen anything like it at BYU, and I'm grateful to have studied theatre for a year to recognize the methods they were using in the performance. It is quite a depressing play, and this was brought out by their switches between 'reality' and circus-like flashbacks. Also, half the characters were household appliances being controlled by a puppeteer. Crazy. And crazy cool.



Best Musical:

Children of Eden. I laughed, I cried, I bought the original Broadway cast soundtrack, and I cry when I listen to it. And the cast wore tie-dyed shirts and khaki shorts. It was obviously also performed at BYU in the 1990's (or 1980's?), and the director was the stage manager for that previous performance.


Best Mixed Media Performance:

Nosferatu. It was performed at Utah Valley University around Halloween 2008. They recreated the silent film with live actors and a camera crew on stage, and projected it to a screen with clips of the original film placed in. It was a really awesome event. Nosferatu was directed by Chris Clark, who was also the director for Pericles (see above).

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Well, there you have it. A list of a few of my favorite performances over the past little while that I've lived here. I know I'm forgetting some wonderful productions, such as the adaptation of Berenice that was performed last year. But the point is, there are some really cool things going on around town. I'm proud to be a part of it, and I am delighted to support my friends in their artistic endeavors!