Stephen Mercantel News

When the ghosts of their past are unleashed, the residents of an exclusive retirement community must come to terms with lost love, triumphs, fears, and the choices that haunt and connect us all. This moving new play by award-winning local playwright Cyndi Williams, reminds us that the most important moments of our lives are often the ones that defy explanation.

Honesty may be the best policy, but it's not the most fun one. Thank God 16th century playwright Pierre Corneille and modern day playwright David Ives have an affinity for the truth-challenged. Ives's modern take on Corneille's classic French comedy The Liar is an exhilarating and side-splitting mix of the old and new, and Austin Playhouse's production of it reminds us just how exceptional the Austin theater community is.

When the ghosts of their past are unleashed, the residents of an exclusive retirement community must come to terms with lost love, triumphs, fears, and the choices that haunt and connect us all. This moving new play by award-winning local playwright Cyndi Williams, reminds us that the most important moments of our lives are often the ones that defy explanation.

Austin Playhouse presents The Liar by David Ives, directed by Don Toner. The show will run tonight, February 7th - March 9th, 2014.

Austin Playhouse presents The Liar by David Ives, directed by Don Toner. The show will run February 7th - March 9th, 2014.

There's nothing like a good murder mystery, and writer Agatha Christie certainly made a career out of them. But while Christie penned 66 detective novels and several plays, I stop short of calling her an expert at the mystery genre. While mystery depends on surprises, Christie often uses conventional devices, and that's the only problem with Austin Playhouse's otherwise stellar production of And Then There Were None. While the company gives it their all, there's a lingering feeling that you've seen this before.

Ten strangers, each with a dark secret, are summoned to the island mansion of an eccentric millionaire, but when the guests arrive their host is nowhere to be found. Lured away and isolated from everything but each other, the guests soon find they are haunted by more than just the shadows of their past. One by one the guests reveal their guilty secrets, and one by one...they begin to die. Who's the murderous culprit? And who will be next? An all-star cast brings this classic murder-mystery to life!

Ten strangers, each with a dark secret, are summoned to the island mansion of an eccentric millionaire, but when the guests arrive their host is nowhere to be found. Lured away and isolated from everything but each other, the guests soon find they are haunted by more than just the shadows of their past. One by one the guests reveal their guilty secrets, and one by one...they begin to die. Who's the murderous culprit? And who will be next? An all-star cast brings this classic murder-mystery to life!

Austin Playhouse will open its 2013-14 season with Man of La Mancha next month, beginning tonight, September 6. The production will run through October 6, 2013, and play Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m.

Austin Playhouse opens its 14th Season of professional theatre with the five time Tony Award winning musical, MAN OF LA MANCHA, and BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Austin Playhouse will open its 2013-14 season with Man of La Mancha next month, beginning September 6. The production will run through October 6, 2013, and play Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 5 p.m.

Doctuh Mistuh Productions has announced its upcoming production, REEFER MADNESS, THE MUSICAL. The production will be directed by Michael McKelvey (B. Iden Payne Award, Sweeney Todd and Assassins) with set design by Joe Carpenter (Mary Moody Northen Theatre), costumes by Glenda Barnes (B. Iden Payne Award, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson), and lighting design by Sam Chesney.

Doctuh Mistuh Productions has announced its upcoming production, REEFER MADNESS, THE MUSICAL. The production will be directed by Michael McKelvey (B. Iden Payne Award, Sweeney Todd and Assassins) with set design by Joe Carpenter (Mary Moody Northen Theatre), costumes by Glenda Barnes (B. Iden Payne Award, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson), and lighting design by Sam Chesney.

Capital T Theatre presents Exit, Pursued by a Bear by Lauren Gunderson, directed by Mark Pickell and starring Joey Hood, Molly Karrasch, Stephen Mercantel and Indigo Rael, August 16-September 8, 2012.

Nan is finally fed up with her abusive husband Kyle and is going to make a run for it but not until she's duct taped him to a recliner, covered him in honey and invited the neighborhood bear in for a snack. But before she leaves, Nan is going to act out all of Kyle's wrongdoings in front of him with a little help from her best friend Simon (acting as her emotional -- and actual -- cheerleader) and a stripper named Sweetheart (whose stage name is Bunny). Lauren Gunderson's gut-busting, outrageous revenge comedy is about dreams, healing, and the simple joy of duct-taping a dickhead to the living room chair.