David Sumner News

As a self-proclaimed musical theater geek, I'll admit to some gaps in my geekdom and Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt's 1966 musical "I Do! I Do!" falls squarely into that gap. Before going to see the current production at Village Theatre I knew nothing about it. I don't even think I've heard the errant song from it off one of my many compilation albums. And now having seen it I'm more than happy to let it fall back into obscurity. With its paper thin, almost conflict free storyline, and songs that simply peter out into an air of forgetfulness, the only thing that saved the evening were the two people performing the show, Kendra Kassebaum and Peter Saide, but even they couldn't save this one.

An intimate and nostalgic musical chronicling 50 years of life and love, Village Theatre brings I Do! I Do!, a two-person Broadway classic created by the writing team behind The Fantasticks, to the stage beginning in January 2019. The story, which garnered seven Tony Award nominations in 1967, begins on the wedding day of Michael and Agnes and follows the perils and triumphs of marriage, children, arguments, and more.

Village Theatre closes out their season with the dynamic R&B spectacular Dreamgirls. With an extraordinary cast of vocal talents, slick costumes, and set designs custom built in Issaquah, Dreamgirls continues the theatre's path of raising the bar on production quality with each passing year. Audiences will be transported back to the 1960s as this award-winning musical offers a moving behind-the-scenes look of the entertainment business. 'I am so excited to be doing such an epic show with some of the most amazing people I've ever worked with,' says director, Steve Tomkins. 'The whole audition process was just wonderful, as each person came into the room and blew the roof off. I can't wait for opening night, because this cast is just going to send it through the roof again. They are truly outstanding.'

Spanning 28 theater companies and 59 productions, from the largest and most prominent to small, humble and innovative, the Gypsy Rose Lee Awards honor as much professional theater as we reviewers can cram into our year.

The 'large theater' productions of ACT Theatre's The Royale and The 5th Avenue Theatre's How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying take top honors and the 'small theater' productions of ArtsWest's Death of a Salesman and Washington Ensemble Theatre's The Things Are Against Us take top honors - for most category wins!?

Spanning 28 theater companies and 59 productions, from the largest and most prominent to small, humble and innovative, the Gypsy Rose Lee Awards honor as much professional theater as we reviewers can cram into our year.

'60s musical comedy confection HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING is all about climbing the corporate ladder by hook or (mostly) crook.

Nearly 80 high school students from across Washington State are gathering regularly in Downtown Seattle to mount a wickedly funny production of HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING, featuring an all student cast, orchestra and technical crew for four performances only at The 5th Avenue Theatre.

Nearly 80 high school students from across Washington State are gathering regularly in Downtown Seattle to mount a wickedly funny production of HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING, featuring an all student cast, orchestra and technical crew for four performances only at The 5th Avenue Theatre.

Dear Reader (It only seems appropriate to start this review off with that), sometimes a show comes along that feels like a no brainer. A show that's fairly bulletproof and if a theater does it well enough with enough pieces in place then it'll be a crowd pleaser. 'How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying' is one of those shows. You're bound to walk away from it with something you enjoyed. Which brings me to the current production at the 5th Avenue Theatre. They've managed to take this pleaser of a show so far beyond the bare minimum making this gem shine with so much brilliance that you may need sunglasses.

The uproariously funny satire on corporate ladder-climbing, HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING, starts rehearsals this week at The 5th Avenue Theatre. This Pulitzer Prize and multi-Tony Award-winning musical takes place in TV's Mad Men era, following window washer J. Pierrepont Finch's journey from mail room to the top of the World Wide Wicket Company, all with the help of a cunning guide book. A sharp-witted send-up of the corporate rat race that will keep audiences rolling in the aisles, HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING is gracing The 5th Avenue stage for the first time. Scroll down for a sneak peek at the cast!