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    Theater Critic Picks

    Dallas-Fort Worth theater critics applaud 2019-20's resilient shining stars

    Lindsey Wilson
    Sep 10, 2020 | 9:00 am

    Critics are famous for not agreeing with each other, but there's one thing the Dallas-Fort Worth Critics Forum unanimously decided (via Zoom): This was one very strange year.

     

    So far in 2020, COVID-19 has devastated the arts. However, it also provided theater companies the opportunity to get really, really creative in how they present productions. Since the Critics Forum's season runs from September 1-August 31, that means we had about six months of "normal" theatergoing before the coronavirus hit.

     

    With that in mind, the list that follows takes into account the strange times we're all living in. Some productions were able to be recorded and broadcast, one was conceived as a drive-in experience, and several were presented traditionally back when we could all gather safely in the same room (remember what that was like?).

     

    Not everyone's picks made it through the voting process, which needed either more than 50 percent of the votes or a unanimous decision if only two or three critics had seen the production. Look for personal favorites not included here to pop up in critics' end-of-year lists (though some also appear on my most memorable moments of 2019 list).

     

    Without further ado, here are the awards:

     

     Outstanding director

     
       
    •  Jeffrey Colangelo and Kwame David Lilly, Everything Will Be Fine, Prism Movement Theater
    •  
    •  Marianne Galloway, The Lifespan of a Fact, Stage West
    •  
    •  Sorany Gutiérrez, Villa, Teatro Dallas
    •  
    •  Tina Parker, a love offering, Kitchen Dog Theater
    •  
    •  Susan Sargeant, Two by Beckett: Footfalls and Not I, WingSpan Theatre Company
    •  
    •  Illana Stein, Hans & Sophie, Amphibian Stage
    •  
    •  Kara-Lynn Vaeni, The Children, Stage West and Noises Off, Theatre Three
    •  
    •  James Vasquez, In the Heights, Dallas Theater Center
    •  
    •  Ashley H. White, Lizzie, Imprint Theatreworks
    •  
     

     Outstanding performance by an actor

     
       
    •  Bill Bolender, Mrs. Haggardly, Ochre House Theatre
    •  
    •  Michael Federico, Noises Off, Theatre Three and Romeo and Juliet, Fair Assembly
    •  
    •  McClendon “Mickey” Giles, Mlima’s Tale, Second Thought Theatre
    •  
    •  Bob Hess, The Children, Stage West and I Am My Own Wife, WaterTower Theatre
    •  
    •  Sean Hudock, Hans & Sophie, Amphibian Stage
    •  
    •  Nick Leos, The Bippy Bobby Boo Show, Danielle Georgiou Dance Group in partnership with Theatre Three
    •  
    •  Justin Locklear, The Bippy Bobby Boo Show, Danielle Georgiou Dance Group in partnership with Theatre Three
    •  
    •  Tadeo Martinez, Noises Off, Theatre Three
    •  
    •  Zander Pryor, Andi Boi, Dallas Children’s Theater
    •  
    •  Christopher Llewyn Ramirez, In the Heights, Dallas Theater Center
    •  
     

     Outstanding performance by an actress

     
       
    •  Devin Berg, Lizzie, Imprint Theatreworks
    •  
    •  Rhonda Boutté, a love offering, Kitchen Dog Theater
    •  
    •  Rebekah Brockman, Hans & Sophie, Amphibian Stage
    •  
    •  Stephanie Cleghorn Jasso, Queen of Basel, Kitchen Dog Theater and Madame Bovary, Undermain Theatre
    •  
    •  Jennifer Kuenzer, Footfalls, WingSpan Theatre Company
    •  
    •  Kelsey Milbourn, Ada and the Engine, Stage West; Everything Will Be Fine, Prism Movement Company; and The Thanksgiving Play, Undermain Theatre
    •  
    •  Susan Sargeant, Not I, WingSpan Theatre Company
    •  
    •  Jaquai Wade Pearson, Romeo and Juliet, Fair Assembly
    •  
    •  Catherine Whiteman, Dot, Soul Rep Theatre Company
    •  
     

     Outstanding performance by an ensemble cast

     
       
    •  Everything Will Be Fine, Prism Movement Theater
    •  
    •  In the Heights, Dallas Theater Center
    •  
    •  Lizzie, Imprint Theatreworks
    •  
    •  Mrs. Haggardly, Ochre House Theatre
    •  
    •  Noises Off, Theatre Three
    •  
    •  Playwrights in the Newsroom, AT&T Performing Arts Center Elevator Project
    •  
    •  The Children, Stage West
    •  
    •  Villa, Teatro Dallas
    •  
     

     Outstanding design or creative contribution

     
       
    •  Sara Bollinger, Devan Bell, Rachel Francis, Gilbert Glenn, Bree Hill, and Rebecca Lowrey, music performance, Lizzie, Imprint Theatreworks
    •  
    •  Nick Brethauer, set design, Villa, Teatro Dallas, and set design, Two by Beckett, WingSpan Theatre Company
    •  
    •  Design team, Hans & Sophie, Amphibian Stage
    •  
    •  Design team, Red Chariot, Undermain Theatre
    •  
    •  Tara Houston, set design, Swimming While Drowning, Cara Mía Theatre Company
    •  
    •  Rebecca Lowrey, music direction, Lizzie, Imprint Theatreworks
    •  
    •  Nigel Newton, original music and music performance, Mlima’s Tale, Second Thought Theatre
    •  
    •  Jeffrey Schmidt, set design, Noises Off, Theatre Three
    •  
    •  Will Turbyne, set design, The Children, Stage West
    •  
    •  Jessie Wallace, costume design, Lizzie, Imprint Theatreworks
    •  
    •  Mason York, sound design, Mlima’s Tale, Second Thought Theatre
    •  
     

     Outstanding new play or musical

     
       
    •  Alabaster, Audrey Cefaly, Kitchen Dog Theater (National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere)
    •  
    •  Andi Boi, Bruce R. Coleman, Dallas Children’s Theater (co-produced with Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and in partnership with First Unitarian Church of Dallas)
    •  
    •  Everything Will Be Fine, Zoe Kerr, Prism Movement Theater
    •  
    •  Hans & Sophie, Deborah Yarchun, Sean Hudock, and Illana Stein, Amphibian Stage
    •  
    •  a love offering, Jonathan Norton, Kitchen Dog Theater
    •  
    •  Mrs. Haggardly, Matthew Posey, Ochre House Theater
    •  
     

     Outstanding touring production

     
       
    •  The Band’s Visit, AT&T Performing Arts Center and Dallas Summer Musicals
    •  
    •  Come from Away, Dallas Summer Musicals
    •  
    •  Once on This Island, AT&T Performing Arts Center
    •  
     

     Special citations

     

    To Amphibian Stage and artistic director Kathleen Culebro for their years-long commitment to the well-being of North Texas veterans and their families through the nationally recognized DE-CRUIT program founded by actor-veteran Stephan Wolfert. Using acting, stage work, and other tools from the theater arts, DE-CRUIT group classes (and now online sessions) "treat trauma through Shakespeare and science" — and give veterans the life skills and self-awareness they need to begin the work of recovery, and to reconnect with the community around them.

     

    To Amy Stevenson for founding and hosting Mama’s Party, a live music staple in DFW since 2006. The cabaret has regularly showcased up-and-coming talent, established professionals, tour casts, and local favorites, occasionally with a fundraising component, and even transitioned to online during the pandemic.

     

    The primitive paintings of animals in Kitchen Dog Theater’s Alabaster lining the set helped create an authentic atmosphere for this play about a reclusive amateur folk artist whose work is made on shards of wood caused by a tornado that devastated her family. The paintings were a group project of the cast, crew, and friends.

     

    For many theatergoers, Prism Movement Theater’s drive-in show Everything Will Be Fine was our first live performance after the pandemic began. With a deeply present nonverbal narrative and beautiful choreography, the out-of-the-box play (performed at two venues in Dallas, and currently in Fort Worth) filled our hearts with the hope and magic that only live performance can bring.

     

    To Jeffrey Schmidt, artistic director of Theatre Three, for filming the play The Immigrant with a technique no other theater company has used during the pandemic: The actors were filmed separately in front of a green screen at the theater, using social distancing and masks when other cast and crew members were in the space, and for creating the scenic illustrations and fusing it together for a seamless digital performance.

     

    To Isa Zhanbolot, Brandon Coleman, and the teams from Grob Technologies, Inc., and Dev-Team, Inc. that created the 3-D animation and augmented reality app used at the end of Bruce R. Coleman’s play Andi Boi at Dallas Children’s Theater, allowing the audience to play along with a fictional game played by the teenagers in the story.

     

     Participating critics

     

     Lindsey Wilson, CultureMap and Arts & Culture Texas
     Cristee Cook, Dallas Art Beat
     Janice L. Franklin, TheaterJones
     Jan Farrington, TheaterJones
     Martha Heimberg, Dallas Weekly and TheaterJones
     Arnold Wayne Jones, Dallas Voice
     Mark Lowry, TheaterJones
     Manny Mendoza, Dallas Morning News
     Jill Sweeney, TheaterJones

     

    Dallas-Fort Worth Theater Critics Forum is an organization of professional, paid critics that recognizes outstanding theatrical contributions in North Texas. Members see 40 or more productions per season (Sept. 1-Aug. 31) and are not practicing theater artists.

    Devin Berg starred as the titular Lizzie in Imprint Theatreworks' spectular production.

    Devin Berg in Lizzie at Imprint Theatreworks
      
    Photo by Jason Anderson
    Devin Berg starred as the titular Lizzie in Imprint Theatreworks' spectular production.
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    Theater Critic Picks

    From Wilde to 'The Wiz': 8 unmissable July shows in North Texas

    Lindsey Wilson
    Jul 2, 2025 | 10:18 am
    Second Thought Theatre presents Your Wife’s Dead Body
    Photo courtesy of Second Thought Theatre
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    Your instinct during the summer might be to hide out in an air-conditioned theater, and there are plenty of options to do exactly this month. But we would be remiss if we didn't remind you about a North Texas tradition: Shakespeare under the stars. Pack a picnic, bring a blanket, and watch The Bard (and this year Oscar Wilde) at Samuell-Grand Amphitheater with Shakespeare Dallas. Both shows opened in June, but continue through most of July.

    Here are eight shows local shows, listed in order of start date:

    The Importance of Being Earnest
    Shakespeare Dallas, through July 18 extended to July 26
    This witty romantic comedy by Oscar Wilde, first performed in 1895, tells the story of two men who assume the identities of a fictional man named Ernest. This leads them to each fall in love and encounter an assortment of comical problems along the way.

    Othello
    Shakespeare Dallas, through July 20
    In this Shakespearean tragedy, Othello is at the peak of his powers: not only Venice's greatest general but also husband to the noble and beautiful Desdemona. But he does not know that in passing over his servant Iago for promotion, he has created a deadly but brilliant enemy. This production is set in an alternate-history version of the 1990s in which the Venetian empire is the predominant political, military, and economic power.

    King Kirby
    American Chronicle Theatre Co., July 4-12
    This is the story of Jack "King of Comics" Kirby. The play follows him from the tough Jewish ghetto of Hell’s Kitchen in New York, to the harrowing battlefields of Normandy during WWII, to tense Senate hearings in the 1950s. Watch as he creates some of the most iconic heroes in pop culture: Captain America, Thor, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, Iron Man, the New Gods, and countless others.

    Your Wife’s Dead Body
    Second Thought Theatre, July 9-26
    Written by Second Though Theatre artistic associate Jenny Ledel in her playwriting premiere, the play takes place in the near future, as Jane takes advantage of a new AI technology that would extend her lifespan ... even if she's not around to see it for herself.

    The Wiz
    Broadway at the Bass, July 15-20
    This all-new production of the groundbreaking, Tony Award-winning musical returns “home” in an all-new pre-Broadway tour, the first one in 40 years. The groundbreaking twist on The Wizard of Oz changed the face of Broadway, from its iconic score packed with soul, gospel, rock, and finger-snapping '70s funk to its stirring tale of Dorothy’s journey to find her place in a contemporary world.

    Noises Off
    Mainstage Irving-Las Colinas, July 18-August 2
    This play-within-a-play captures a touring theater troupe’s production of Nothing On in three stages: dress rehearsal, the opening performance, and a performance towards the end of a debilitating run. Playwright Michael Frayn gives a window into the inner workings of theatre behind-the-scenes, progressing from flubbed lines and missed cues in the dress rehearsal to mounting friction between cast members in the final performance.

    Everybody's Talking About Jamie
    Uptown Players, July 18-August 3
    Inspired by true events, this musical tells the inspiring story of Jamie New, a 16-year-old boy from Sheffield who dreams of becoming a drag queen. His loving mom showers him with endless support but it's not all rainbows for Jamie as his deadbeat dad and some ignorant school kids attempt to rain on his sensational aspirations.

    Shucked
    Broadway at the Bass, July 29-August 3
    This Tony Award-winning musical comedy features a book by Tony Award winner Robert Horn, a score by the Grammy Award-winning songwriting team of Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, and direction by Tony Award winner Jack O’Brien. The corn-fed, corn-bred American musical is sure to satisfy an appetite for great musical theater.

    broadway at the bassmusicalsnational tourplayssecond thought theatreuptown playersshakespeare under starsshakespeare in the parktheater
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