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Thursday, June 14, 2018

Theater Thursday - Disaster! and Half Time

We were given free tickets to Disaster! for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own.



What: Disaster! A Musical

Where: Kelsey Theatre
            1200 Old Trenton Rd.
            West Windsor, NJ

Who: Teens and Up

When: Fridays & Saturday 8:00 PM
           Sunday 2:00 PM
           Through June 17


Me - Disaster! was a spoof of disaster movies. I have wanted to see it since it was on Broadway. I was very excited that I finally got to see it. It was worth the wait! It was really funny. There were a lot of different characters. They had their own stories and they interacted with each other too. The characters were really amusing.The songs were all from the 70s because that's when disaster movies were from. I have never really seen a disaster movie, and I don't really have any interest in them. I had never heard most of the music either. I liked the show though and the music too. Kelsey Theater's  production of the show was well acted. The singing voices were good too. All in all, I would recommend seeing this show before it closes.


Mom - Disaster! is hilarious spoof of 70s disaster movies. Even if you don't like disaster movies, you can still enjoy this funny show full of comical characters like a nun with a gambling addiction and a women who can't stop her uncontrollable inappropriate outburts among others. It is not not a good show for young children, however, due to some of the language and subject matter. The soundtrack is made up of cheesy 70s songs like Knock on Wood, Hot Stuff, Mockingbird and Feelings. It's great to hear some of them again. Others not so much. Be warned, however, if you go just for the soundtrack, many of the songs are not sung all the way through in the show. Kelsey Theater does a nice job with the show. Many of the performers have appeared in other shows with Kelsey including some of the most talented performers to ever grace the Kelsey stage including Jennifer Fischer, who plays Mariann here, and Haley Shmalbach who plays Sister Mary Downy. Young Nicholas Bendetti who plays the dual roles of twins, Ben and Lisa and often has to switch between them in an instant is also a particular standout in the show. From start to finish, this show is just a ton of fun.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit http://www.kelseyatmccc.org/Disaster.shtml
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We were given free tickets to Half Time for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own.



What: Half Time

Where: Papermill Playhouse
             22 Brookside Drive
             Milburn, NJ

Who:Teens and Up

When: Through July 1, 2018






Mom's view: Half Time addresses a group of people who often get short shrift in entertainment (and elsewhere) no not women, no not people of color, but people of a certain age. Even when you see older characters in a show (especially a musical) when they take their stage make up off lots of times you realize they are a lot younger than their characters. However, Half Time is a show about people of  a certain age and the characters are played by people of a certain age and that's refreshing. This based on a true story show is about a group of women (and one man) age 60 and older who are recruited to form a dance troup to perform in the half time show of a professional basketball game. The cast includes some beloved well known actors including Georgia Engel of Mary Tyler Movie fame; Donna McKecknie, the original Cassie in A Chorus Line; Andre De Shields, the original Wiz in the musical of the same name; and Lillas White, a Tony winner for The Life. It would not be enough just to trot  out these performers for old times sake. However, in addition to showing that they still have the talents that have always had, they show some new talents in this show including the ability to dance hip hop and Georgia Engel's ability to rap. Even a show full of talented performers strutting their stuff would not be enough without a good story and some nice songs. This one has plenty of both. The story is both sweet and funny. It is filled with some real deep emotional moments and still has a lot of laughs too. It is a not a good show for young children due to some language and subject matter. However, if you are of a certain age (13 and up), you will probably have a good time if you go see Half Time.




For more information or to purchase tickets, visit https://papermill.org/show/half-time/.

And that's our view. Tune in tomorrow for Funtivity Friday.

Photo credits: All Half Time production photos by Jerry Dalia

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