Author Archives: Mark Edelman
Edelman: King’s Catalogue Makes a Great Musical
What would have happened if the great songwriters of the 1960s– those Brill Building denizens– hadn’t discovered Joe Turner and rock and roll? What if, instead of stoking the star-maker machinery behind the popular song, they’d followed Rodgers & Hammerstein, … Continue reading
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Edelman: Salute to ‘Graduation Goodbye” & Drew Dimmel
If you were in a rock band in KC, circa 1966, you knew (and envied) the Dimmel brothers… Drew Dimmel and his brother Doug were the core of The Classmen— the only group any of us knew who actually had a … Continue reading
Edelman: Cyndi? She Bop-ped the Uptown
Girls just want to have fun, right? Even at 63. That’s the message Cyndi Lauper delivered to a sold out house at the Uptown Theater last week. And KC couldn’t get enough. Sure, there was a political message interlaced with … Continue reading
Edelman: Puppet Possessed at Unicorn’s ‘Hand to God’
Once you get past the puppet sex — regular, oral and anal– playwright Robert Askins has a lot to say about faith, hope and charity in his hit Broadway play HAND TO GOD, now thru October 2 at the Unicorn … Continue reading
Edelman: Thought Provoking Theater Trumps This Summer’s Political Farce
Turn off the stage antics of the Republican presidential nominee for a night or two… Kansas City stages are offering up some serious, honest stories that will move you to tears It’s not theater of the absurd but theater to be … Continue reading
Edelman: KC Stages Offer Laughs When We Need ‘Em
ISIS, Sam Brownback, the water in Flint— there’s a lot out there to make us frown or get down… To the rescue come a pair of Kansas City’s best theaters, churning out laughter yuge-r than a Trump ego. Have fun with … Continue reading
Edelman: KC Rep Puts it All Together for Season Opener
Bit by bit.. putting it together… You have to wonder if Rep Artistic Director Eric Rosen didn’t lose more than a few night’s sleep over those lyrics. After all, he had to figure out a way to shoe-horn Stephen Sondheim‘s … Continue reading
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Tagged KC Rep, Mark Edelman, Nelson Atkins Museum, Sunday in the Park With George
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Edelman: KC Hits ‘Homer’ Out of the Park
Kyle Hatley gets all of it in one of the most bravura performances I’ve ever had the pleasure to witness at KC Rep… If you want to see what a “tour de force” looks and sounds like, don’t miss AN … Continue reading
Edelman: Life in the Slow Lane; UNICORN’S ‘Hands on a Hardbody’ Hits on All 4 Cylinders
For a touching taste of small town verities, you can queue up for David Cromer‘s celebrated production of OUR TOWN at the Rep… But for my money, the real action (or inaction) is at the Unicorn, where Cynthia Levin and company … Continue reading
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Tagged Cynthia Levin, Hands on a Hardbody, Mark Edelman, Missy Koonce, Unicorn Theater, UnicornTTheatre
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Edelman: No Pretender, Jackson Browne Keeps it Real @ The Uptown
A troubadour’s only as valuable as his songs, and Jackson Browne has a bank vault full of em… Armed with only his trusty ax – actually, 23 of them – and keyboard, Browne worked his way through what appeared to be … Continue reading
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Review: Shakespeare Fest Goes ‘Game of Thrones” in ‘Winter’s Tale’
A jealousy-mad king, psychotic fathers, petty thieves, abandoned daughter and secret lovers– no, it’s not Season 5 of “Game of Thrones” Even better, it’s Heart of America Shakespeare Festival‘s THE WINTER’S TALE, ably directed by Sid Garrett, now thru Sunday … Continue reading
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Tagged Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, Mark Edelman, The Winter's Tale
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Edelman: Mocking Musicals at the Quality Hill Playhouse
If you like your Broadway show tunes shaken and skewered, belly up to the Quality Hill Playhouse for a very clever, very funny little show with a mouthful of title called The Musical of Musicals.. The Musical… Yeah, it’s a … Continue reading
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Edelman: KC Rep’s “A Little More Alive” Hits the Right Notes
There’s a talented new voice to be heard at KC Rep‘s production of “A Little More Alive,” now thru May 11 at the Copaken Stage downtown… It belongs to Nick Blaemire, who penned the book, music and lyrics to this … Continue reading
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Edelman: Make Tracks to Clybourne Park at The Unicorn
Smart, funny, thought-provoking— you can’t spend a better night (or matinee) in Midtown than at that mythic neighborhood known as CLYBOURNE PARK (now thru December 29 at the Unicorn, 3820 Main)… The Unicorn Theatre does itself proud with its first … Continue reading
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Edelman: Little River Band, Brewer & Shipley Rock Uptown
If you thought creaky wooden chairs were the only things guys could rock past their 60s, you must have missed the goings-on at the Uptown Theater Saturday night, when the Little River Band played that fine room… Who knew these … Continue reading
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Edelman: Spinning Tree Theatre’s ‘AIN’T MISBEHAVIN’ a Hot Hit
Things may be turning chilly in Penn Valley Park… But Andy Parkhurst and Michael Grayman— the dudes behind newcomer Spinning Tree Theatre— are heating up one corner of that sylvan glade with the hot hits of AIN’T MISBEHAVIN (now thru … Continue reading
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Edelman: Bare Naked Ladies @ The Uptown 10/10/13
Leave it to four nice guys from up north, don’t you know, to show red and blue staters how to get along… Bare Naked Ladies at the Uptown was a classy lesson in rock and roll bonhomie (and a great … Continue reading
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Edelman: Rockers on Broadway — Bare Naked Ladies — Not Your Granny’s Matinee
With megahit WICKED coming to the Music Hall next week for three big weeks (Oct 9-27), it’s interesting to chart the ever-more intersecting lines between rock and Broadway… If you grew up on Rodgers & Hammerstein, watch out.WICKED, of course, … Continue reading
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Edelman: SMOKING HOT THEATER On Stage in KC This Fall
KC stages heat up with summer fading… Check out these must sees here in the Fall season : VENUS IN FUR now thru Sep 29 at the Unicorn. This Broadway menage a deux put actress Nina Arianda on the map … Continue reading
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