Utah Shakespeare Festival 2026

I spent this last weekend with my sister Marilyn at the Utah Shakespeare Festival and we had so much fun!  We look forward to this trip all year (we bought our tickets on Black Friday) and it was the perfect way to end the summer (we definitely enjoyed the cooler temperatures).

Our first show on Friday afternoon was She Loves Me in the Randall Jones Theatre.  This delightful musical features two bickering clerks in a 1930s perfumery in Budapest who unknowingly fall in love with each other as anonymous pen pals.  I really loved the elaborate set!  The exterior of Maraczek's Parfumerie sits in front of a beautiful projection showing the city of Budapest and revolves to reveal the interior of the shop which is filled with large display cabinets.  Several backdrops are cleverly used to transform the shop into the Cafe Imperiale and Amalia's apartment.  The choreography for "Sounds While Selling," "A Romantic Atmosphere," and "Twelve Days to Christmas" is so fun and chaotic (Marilyn is very reserved and she laughed out loud during these scenes).  Finally, the entire cast is outstanding but I was especially impressed by the leads Ali Ewoldt and Matt Koenig because they both have beautiful voices and tremendous chemistry.  Her rendition of "Will He Like Me?" is a highlight for me because she is so vulnerable and his exuberant performance of "She Loves Me" brought the house down!

Friday night we saw Hamlet in the Englestad Theatre and it was incredible!  This is my favorite Shakespeare play (and was my favorite piece of literature to teach) and it tells the tragic story of a Danish prince who is urged to avenge the death of his father.  I loved so many things about this particular interpretation.  The play begins with the ghost of Hamlet's father dramatically emerging from the grave and he is omnipresent throughout.  We also see the ghosts of Rosencrantz, Guildenstern, Polonius, and Ophelia at various times before they appear with the ghosts of Gertrude, Claudius, Leartes, and Hamlet to surround Horatio.  This is incredibly powerful because it makes the consequences of the King's murder very visible and I especially loved that they implore Horatio to swear to remember their story because it echoes the first scene between the ghost and Hamlet (I got goosebumps during this final moment).  I loved the choice to move Hamlet's soliloquy to after he kills Polonius because it gives more emotional weight to his words (he even cries afterwards).  I loved the way that Ophelia is portrayed because she is stronger than I've ever seen her, particularly a scene with Hamlet after her father's death, and Kathryn Tkel is brilliant in the role.  Walter Kmiec's performance is also amazing and I loved his interpretation of Hamlet as a young man overwhelmed by circumstances, particularly in a scene where the entire court circles around him.  Finally, I loved the dramatic set with large windows that are skewed and lose panes as the play progresses (it is intriguing to me that there is something rotten in Denmark before the action even begins).  I was blown away by the festival's production of Hamlet in 2019 and this one is very different but equally brilliant!

The next show on Saturday afternoon was Something Rotten in the Randall Jones Theatre.  This follows two struggling playwrights during the Renaissance who try to outshine William Shakespeare by writing the first musical.  I absolutely love all of the references to musical theatre in "A Musical" and "Make an Omelette" and I love that every production adds something new.  This version includes highly amusing visual references to Dear Evan Hansen and Newsies but I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed that these two numbers didn't feature more pizzazz with the choreography and costumes. I also have to admit that I didn't care for Brian Gonzales as Nostradamus or Jason Rexx as Nigel Bottom.  However, Pascal Pastrana is hilarious as the rock star Shakespeare (his codpiece is spectacular) and I loved his over the top performances of "Will Power" and "Hard to Be the Bard," especially his interactions with his groupies.  I also really enjoyed Matt Koenig as Nick Bottom because he has a beautiful voice and his versions of "Man, I Hate Shakespeare" and "Bottom's Gonna Be on Top" are a lot of fun.  Finally, I liked the clever but simple set because it features an Elizabethan theatre that is transformed into to other locations by rotating panels and flashing LED lights.  I enjoyed this but it was underwhelming compared to other productions I've seen (it didn't help that there were many students in the audience who screamed at the top of their lungs at the end of every number).

 Our final show was Twelfth Night in the Engelstad Theatre Saturday night.  When twins are separated during a shipwreck, chaos ensues when they become involved in a love triangle and are mistaken for each other.  I thoroughly enjoyed all of the physical comedy in this show, especially when Sir Toby Belch, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Maria hide to observe the officious steward Malvolio read a letter they have forged to get back at him for spoiling their fun, when Malvolio appears smiling with yellow stockings and cross garters (I laughed so hard I couldn't breathe during this scene), and when Sir Andrew challenges Cesario to a duel.  I also loved all of the scenes involving the jester Feste, especially when he improvises a song for a member of the audience.  The staging of the shipwreck is quite spectacular and I was very impressed with Caitlin Wise's aerial performance on silks.  I loved Kayland Jordan's performance as Olivia because her facial expressions are so funny, especially when Sebastian and Viola appear together for the first time, and, of course, I loved Rodney Lizcano because he really hams it up as Malvolio.  Finally, the period costumes are very beautiful as are the projections used for Illyria.

I always love coming to the Utah Shakespeare Festival, especially with my sister, and this trip was wonderful.  The festival continues with Hamlet, Twelfth Night, Troilus and Cressida, and See How They Run through September 5 and Something Rotten, She Loves Me, The Book Club Play, and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein though October 3 (go here for tickets).

Note:  The month of August began and ended with theatre road trips with my sisters!

Water for Elephants at the Eccles

Last night I went to the Broadway touring production of Water for Elephants at the Eccles (it was the last show of the 2025-2026 season). I loved the book by Sara Gruen and I liked the movie starring Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, and Christoph Waltz so I was eager to see where the stage adaptation would land. After losing his parents in a car accident and his childhood home to foreclosure, Jacob Jankowski (Zachary Keller) is forced to drop out of veterinary school and hops a train going anywhere in Depression-era America. It turns out that the train belongs to the Benzini Brothers Circus and he is reluctantly put to work as a laborer. However, his knowledge of animals soon comes in handy and he is asked to care for an ailing horse named Silver Star, who he cannot save, and then a stubborn elephant named Rosie. August Rackinger (Connor Sullivan), the cruel and sadistic ringmaster, wants Rosie to become the new star attraction but Jacob falls in love with his wife Marlena (Helen Krushinski) as they train the elephant together. August eventually abuses both Rosie and Marlena but, before Jacob can intervene to save Marlena, Rosie uses the bullhook that August beat her with to kill him during a stampede (because an elephant never forgets). The narrative is told through flashbacks by an older Jacob (Robert Tully) who escapes from his assisted living home to join the circus again. I have to admit that when I first heard about this adaptation I wondered if the story was strong enough to warrant a musical treatment and, unfortunately, the answer is no in my opinion. The script is definitely the weakest link because the plot of the book (which is mostly internal dialogue) is simplified and Jacob is the only character that has any development or backstory.  There are also several subplots that are introduced and then quickly abandoned. In addition, the songs are not particularly memorable (I struggled to remember any of the titles while writing this). Having said that, everyone in the cast does an incredible job with all of the musical numbers. Keller and Krushinski, especially, have beautiful voices and their renditions of "Silver Stars" and "Easy," respectively, are highlights of the show. They both also give a moving performance of "Wild." Sullivan has an imposing stature and his powerful versions of "The Lion Has Got No Teeth" and "You've Got Nothing" are quite menacing and emphasize August's volatile nature. Shoutouts also go to Javier Garcia as Camel, Tyler West as Walter, Grant Huneycutt as Wade, and Ruby Gibbs as Barbara because they each take advantage of their moment to shine. However, the insanely talented acrobats, jugglers, contortionists, and aerialists (Nancy Luna, Yves Artieres, Fran Alvarez Jara, Ella Huestis, Serafina Walker, and John Neurohr) are absolutely spectacular and make this show worth the price of admission. All of the circus acts are visually stunning and I was especially impressed by a breathtaking aerial performance on white silks by Artieres, who portrays the horse Silver Star, in the number "Easy" (this actually brought tears to my eyes). The colorful costumes, lighting design, and projections create a circus-like atmosphere and the metal set pieces used to represent the train cars are very clever. Finally, the puppets used for the menagerie of animals are very striking. I was a bit disappointed with the puppet for Rosie in the first act because you can only see parts of her or just her shadow but then she is revealed in her entirety in a show-stopping moment (literally because it ends the first act) after Jacob and Marlena are able to communicate with her and I loved this choice once I realized what it meant! I also loved that the puppeteers are dressed in nondescript coveralls when Rosie is training but in sequins when she is performing. There are flaws but I highly recommend this for the performances and the spectacle. It runs at the Eccles Theatre through August 30 and tickets may be purchased here.

Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma

I loved I Saw the TV Glow so I was very eager to see Jane Schoenbrun's latest movie, Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, and I finally had the opportunity last night.  The Camp Miasma horror franchise has become stale after too many sub-par sequels so Kris Williams (Hannah Einbinder), a well-regarded indie filmmaker, has been hired to reboot it.  She is a huge fan of the series and wants to involve Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson), the actress who played the "final girl" in the original movie, in the new production.  Billy lives at the remote camp where the first movie was filmed and has become a virtual recluse but Kris tracks her down and visits her.  She explains to Billy that she was hired to fix the problematic transphobic premise of the movies for a modern audience because she is a queer filmmaker so she wants to explore a different perspective on identity.  Billy believes that she is over-intellectualizing the horror genre and that she should simply let it be a visceral experience.  The two of them eventually watch the first movie together (insert the plots of Friday the 13th and Sleepaway Camp with a killer known as Little Death into the movie within a movie) and Kris tells her that she has always been fascinated by the look in Billy's eye during the sex scene.  She reveals that it was at that moment her character found sexual release because she was about to be killed.  Billy initiates sex but Kris rebuffs her and confesses that she has never enjoyed it because she has some kind of mental block.  Billy suggests that she is, once again, over-intellectualizing it and that they should reenact the pivotal sex scene so she can become the main character and feel the terror before Little Death kills her.  Mayhem ensues!  I really enjoyed this, especially the idea that the movies you love shape who you are, but I do think that it belabors the central metaphor (it is definitely not subtle) and I started to feel like everything is a metaphor for sex (the candy, the metal vent worn by the killer, the weapon used by the killer, the winter setting which changes to spring, etc.).  I loved that the movie within a movie is basically a parody of slasher film tropes (the use of "A Long December" by Counting Crows made me laugh out loud) with kills that are hilariously over the top and full of sexual imagery.  Finally, Anderson is so entertaining to watch because she fully commits to the role (I laughed at the suggestion that Billy is channeling Norma Desmond from Sunset Boulevard).  I had a lot of fun seeing this late at night with a big crowd and I think it might become a cult classic!

Union County

The second movie in my double feature at the Broadway last night was Union County and I really appreciated the humane and honest portrayal of addiction but I found the observational approach to be a bit slow and remote.  Cody Parsons (Will Poulter) is an addict who is in a mandated recovery program along with his foster brother Jack (Noah Centineo).  He is barely hanging on as he struggles to attend required drug tests, support groups, and court appearances while living in his car and working a menial job at a lumber mill.  After a relapse which lands him in jail and Jack in rehab, he recommits to the program with the help of his counselor Annette (Annette Deao) and a fellow addict named Anna (Elise Kibler).  He begins taking the meetings seriously and has a breakthrough which leads to a reconciliation with his sister Katrina (Emily Meade).  However, a tragedy threatens his hard-won sobriety.  This features performances from people who are actually involved with the Adult Recovery Court in Ohio, including Deao, a social worker, Kevin T. Braig, a judge, as well as addicts who tell their own recovery stories in the court and support group scenes.  This (along with shooting locations in central Ohio and austere cinematography) gives the narrative an authenticity that is palpable and I was impressed by how seamless their performances are with those of the actors. Centineo is a live wire and Poulter is a coiled spring who telegraphs all of the pain and guilt Cody is feeling through facial expressions and physicality rather than dialogue.  It is a powerful and empathetic performance that does much to destigmatize addiction but the long silences sometimes become tiresome (my mind wandered at times) and there are a few scenes that require a bit more context.  This is a movie that I admire more than I love but I still recommend it.

Late Fame

Last night I had another double feature at the Broadway beginning with Late Fame.  I was intrigued by the trailer and I found it very charming.  Ed Saxberger (Willem Dafoe) was once a member of the bohemian art scene in the 1970s and even had a volume of poetry titled Way Past Go published but he now works at the U.S. Postal Service and spends his evenings playing pool with a group of working class men at a local bar.  One evening he is approached by a wealthy and pretentious young man named Meyers (Edmund Donovan) who tells him that he and his artistic friends, who call themselves the Enthusiasm Society, have recently discovered his poetry and would love to have him join their group.  He grows to love how much they fawn over him, especially an exotic and mysterious actress named Gloria (Greta Lee), and this gives him a renewed passion for the arts.  However, even though he is very well-received at a poetry reading organized on his behalf by the group, he eventually realizes that he no longer belongs in this milieu and that Meyers and his friends are mere dilettantes.  The portrayal of the Enthusiasm Society is often very humorous and I especially enjoyed seeing Meyers' apartment because, even though he professes a disdain for contemporary culture, it is sleek and modern and filled with every technological advance (I laughed out when it was revealed).  I also enjoyed the juxtaposition between real artists, embodied by Ed and Gloria, and the poseurs, represented by Meyers and his group, who use them for authenticity.  The cinematography evokes the NYC of a bygone era, particularly a sequence in which Ed wanders the city looking for inspiration for a new poem, and I love that the members of the Enthusiasm Society dress like Victorian-era dandies.  Finally, Dafoe gives a grounded and effortless performance as a man who ultimately discovers that he is living a romanticized version of his past but Lee steals every scene she is in as the flamboyant Gloria, especially when she performs "Surabaya Johnny" at a club.  This is a sometimes funny and sometimes melancholy character study and I really enjoyed it.  Definitely seek it out.