Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)

What could be more appropriate in this year, which leads up to a presidential election, than to examine the political hacks who run the campaigns.  Voilá,  for the start of its 36th season, Ensemble Theatre has chosen Beau  Willimon’s 2008 drama, FARRAGUT NORTH, which examines the lust for power among political hacks.

The play is very loosely based on Willimon’s experiences with Howard …more…

Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)

Book buyers spend an estimated $1.08 billion dollars each year purchasing romance novels.  Since 1972 when Avon printed Kathleen Woodiwiss’s “The Flame And The Flower,” supposedly the first U.S. published book of that genre, almost 55% of all paperbacks sold in the U.S. have centered on romantic relationships with optimistic endings, whose covers usually feature a handsome buff man saving a helpless …more…

Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)
I consider OUR TOWN, which is now being performed at Blank Canvas, to be one of the greatest plays of the 20th century. It not only won the Pulitzer Prize in 1938, it has become one of the most performed and studied plays in the English language.  It, along with Arthur Miller’s DEATH OF A SALESMAN, Eugene O’Neil’s LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO …more…

Roy Berko

(Cleveland Critics Circle, American Theatre Critics Association)

Though the weather is still warm, soon the leaves will be turning and the Fall 2015 theatre season will be upon us.  Here’s a list of some of the offerings from September through December.

You can track my reviews on http://www.royberko.info, or contact me to get on my direct review list.  You can see a synopsis of the local reviewers’ capsule comments about the …more…

Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association, Cleveland Critics Circle)

The farcical yet message-loaded “Hairspray” is the type of musical that in a bad production falls flat, but in a good production leaves the audience energized and dancing in the aisles.  Fortunately the must see production at Porthouse Theatre is dynamic, creative, full of joy!

The stage musical based on the 1988 John Walters movie with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott …more…

Roy Berko

Jackie Maxwell, the Shaw Festival’s Artistic Director, states, “I have always found that theatre is at its best when the audience spans several generations – a guarantee that the story being told on stage is being taken in and reacted to in a variety of ways, enriching the experience for all.”

Maxwell’s belief is well-developed in the Shaw Festival’s 2015 season.  “Peter and the Starcatcher” is a magical adventure for …more…