Category Archives: Theater

World Made of Steel, Made of Stone: Flashdance the Musical

Posted on October 1, 2013 by allisonlcarter

The ’80s were unquestionably the age of the great dancing movies. You had Footloose, Dirty Dancing and, of course, Flashdance. You can easily remember these because Footloose is the one with Kevin Bacon, Dirty Dancing is the one with Patrick Swayze and Flashdance is the one with the bucket of … Continue reading →

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We’ll Find a New Way of Living: West Side Story

Posted on June 4, 2013 by allisonlcarter

Spoiler alert: West Side Story is a tragedy. No matter how many times you see it, no matter how badly you want it to end differently, everyone is really pretty terrible. Time and again there are opportunities to prevent the tragedies, and … Continue reading →

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American Idiot: Part Performance Art, Part Music Video, All Loud

Posted on April 2, 2013 by allisonlcarter

The original American Idiot album was written by alt band Green Day in 2004. Ubiquitous songs like “Holiday,” “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” and the eponymous “American Idiot” formed a kind of backdrop to my junior and senior years of high school. I … Continue reading →

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By the Power You Are Healed: Sister Act

Posted on February 26, 2013 by allisonlcarter

For the past two days, I’ve been fighting a cold that’s left my head afog and my nose asnot. I strongly considered ditching not just Sister Act, but this whole day. I wanted to curl under the covers with a box … Continue reading →

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Tight Harmonies, Tight Stories in Jersey Boys

Posted on January 9, 2013 by allisonlcarter

I first saw Jersey Boys when it came to Indy a few years ago. When people asked me about it, I would answer that it was a good show–for a jukebox musical. This sub-genre of musicals relies on the work of a … Continue reading →

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Billy Elliot: Let the Boy Dance!

Posted on November 13, 2012 by allisonlcarter

There is a moment in Billy Elliot when 11-year-old Billy dances with the man he could become. There are a lot of ifs to get through before he can become that man. If his father lets him audition for the Royal Ballet. … Continue reading →

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Indy Fringe: The Fabulous Problemas and SimpliCity

Posted on August 24, 2012 by allisonlcarter

There are lots of different ways to approach Fringe. Some people meticulously plan out out their schedule with spreadsheets and charts. Others blindly walk into a theater and take whatever is set before them. Usually, I fall somewhere in the … Continue reading →

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On Criticism

Posted on August 23, 2012 by allisonlcarter

Tonight, I had my first push back as a critic. After walking out of the Fringe production of Creatures of the Night, I tweeted: Creatures of the Night was fine. That’s the only word I’ve got. Fine. No real reaction. … Continue reading →

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Indy Fringe: Don’t Cross the Streams and Creatures of the Night

Posted on August 23, 2012 by allisonlcarter

Whew. Another crazy day of theater. Let’s get to it, shall we? First up was DON’T CROSS THE STREAMS: The Cease and Desist Musical on the main stage of Theatre on the Square. This is a confectionery of a musical, pure and simple. … Continue reading →

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Indy Fringe: facebook me, G-D, I Am Peter Pan

Posted on August 22, 2012 by allisonlcarter

After a day’s hiatus, it was good to be back at the Fringe tonight. I’m still a rookie at this whole Fringe thing–I only went to two shows last year, both in the same night–so I’m not yet familiar with … Continue reading →

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