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Whether you've seen Little Shop of Horrors or not, it is so much a part of our pop culture that it is difficult not to have some preconceived ideas when you hear the title. Thankfully, Tacoma Little Theatre's production of the musical by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken lives up
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Oh my gosh, you guys! Tacoma Musical Playhouse's version of Legally Blonde the Musical totally hits their stage with mixed success. Amidst the humor there are some (preferably) forgettable tunes and themes in this vapid tale of Elle Woods' pursuit to win back her ex-boyfriend, Warner. The original production of
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It's difficult to say which members of the audience had a better time at Olympia Family Theater's production of The Somewhat True Tale of Robin Hood. Written by Mary Lynn Dobson, the play follows the basic Robin Hood plot but with the addition of some creative license has been described
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Families are complicated. Many times we are closest to those we choose to share our burdens rather than the people biology have given us for family. The bonds between parent and child are influenced by so much more than the desire to be close. The Joy Luck Club at Tacoma
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Many theater companies search for the perfect formula to fill their seats and ensure a successful season. Often this leads to the overproduction of a few staple scripts. Thankfully, Tacoma Little Theatre's Second Stage goes a different route. If they were using a formula, this is what it would be:
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Everyone likes a good joke and being in on the joke is certainly better than BEING the joke. Well, usually. Certainly, people that take themselves too seriously are a drag and theater people who take themselves too seriously are often insufferable. Thankfully, Tacoma Musical Playhouse not only likes a good
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The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson has been around since the early 1970s and has been performed by countless elementary, middle, and high schools, church groups and community theaters. The first stage production was by the Seattle Children's Theatre in 1982 and a TV version starring Loretta Swit
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According to the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary Twelfth Night is "the evening of the fifth of January, ... the eve of the Epiphany, formerly the last day of the Christmas festivities and observed as a time of merrymaking." Medieval and Tudor England celebrated Twelfth Night as the end of a
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It's not very often that a production smacks you upside the head with the sudden realization that you aren't merely seeing a good play but, instead, are seeing a fantastic play. Tacoma Little Theatre's production of Lucille Fletcher's play Night Watch accomplishes just that. While it has been around for
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Tacoma Musical Playhouse opens its season with the stunningly sexy Chicago. Sex, murder, lies, cheating and double crossing never looked so good. Vixen Velma Kelly and doe-eyed Roxie Hart find themselves in prison, working angles for lawyer Billy Flynn to keep them from hanging and get them released. After seeing the
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Having never seen Andrew Lloyd Webber's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, I was not fully prepared for the experience at Tacoma Musical Playhouse. Webber's second musical started as a 15-minute cantata and, over time, expanded to the current hour and a half production (including intermission). Set in a museum,
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Nostalgia is usually a sure bet, which is what Tacoma Musical Playhouse was banking on when it got the rights to Happy Days, A New Musical by Garry Marshall and Paul Williams. Based on the TV show, the stage production brings back all the main characters, Ritchie, Mr. and Mrs.
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Tacoma Musical Playhouse sets sail with an all-male cast in a musical based on Kipling's Captains Courageous and the classic 1937 film of the same name. Music by Frederick Freyer; book and lyrics by Patrick Cook. Under the heading of Tacoma Children's Musical Theater, TMP produces a play suitable for
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Tacoma Little Theatre is known for putting on consistently good productions. TLT chooses a variety of plays that appeal to a wide audience. The theater's current production, Someone Who'll Watch Over Me, is one of the few TLT productions intended for a mature audience. Rated R for "explicit language and
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Tacoma Children's Musical Theater at Tacoma Musical Playhouse has the golden ticket for a musical for all ages. The stage version of Willy Wonka hits town, formatted for children. At an hour and a half (including intermission), it's the perfect length for young children. The play is recommended for ages
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Neil Simon has been called the "world's most successful playwright," and he has the Academy Award and Tony nominations to back it up. Whether dramatic or comedic, Simon's writing strikes a chord with people everywhere. To the delight of its audience, Tacoma Little Theatre is currently running Simon's California Suite. Set
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According to the Merriam Webster online dictionary, Xanadu is an idyllic, exotic or luxurious place. How that translates into a roller disco is a question best answered by early-1980s pop stars and Tacoma Musical Playhouse. The musical Xanadu, on stage at TMP through Feb. 12, is based on the Universal
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Piers Chater Robinson's Peter Pan is adapted from the play by J.M. Barrie. The story strikes a chord with kids who don't want to grow up, as well as adults who wish they were responsibility-free like children. Or people who just wish they could fly. Having only experienced Disney's version
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Going into Trinity Presbyterian Church to see the original play, Java Tacoma: Episode 38, by local (Federal Way) author Curtis B. Swanson, almost seems like the set up or start of a joke. "So this preacher, writer and actor walk into a bar ..." Instead, patrons walked into the fellowship
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Tacoma Musical Playhouse saved its most visually stunning production to close out the season. Cats opened to a packed house and earned a standing ovation from the majority of the patrons, despite some sound difficulties. Cats is based on T.S. Eliot's collection of poems Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats and