Justin's Theatre Reviews

   Another theatrical season on Broadway has come and gone and with that, comes my favorite holiday, which is the American Theatre Wing's annual Tony Awards ceremony, honoring the countless people who have worked tirelessly on the new musicals, plays, and revivals that opened on Broadway each season. Although this was a very commercial Broadway season, with many of the shows that opened being based off of movies or other popular works, I loved this season so much so I knew was going to be thrilled no matter who won the awards....AND THRILLED I WAS.     The Band's Visit swept the Tony Awards, picking up 10 Tony Awards (including Best Musical), one for every single category in which they were nominated, except for Best Scenic Design (that award went to David Zinn for his colorful work on SpongeBob SquarePants ). Also picking up one of the biggest awards of the night was Once On This Island who won the award for Best Revival of a Musical.  Rounding out the awards on the musical

   Social media is a very fascinating feature of our every day lives. Although we may not realize it, it changes how we behave and treat other people. The show that is currently being produced by El Paso Kids-n-Co at the First Presbytarian church is a highly enjoyable show that is titled Anti-social , which is a series of vignettes written by Don Zoildis that outlines the authenticity of different forms of social media, such as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, MySpace (whomst?), and Pinterest. While the show isn't particularly layered, it is still a pleasurable show to watch for the interesting writing and fun performances coming from each member of the company. The show was cast very well, with the standouts being Jonathan Cantrell, Sidnee Coder, Lauren Cook, Jazmin Jimenez, Romanti-ezer Mata, Emily Medina, and Marianne Vacios. The performances of all of the people I just mentioned were appropriately funny, believable, and they shined in each role they had in every vignette. Direct

  One of the first shows I ever saw when I was a very small child was the Las Vegas production of Disney's long running theatrical masterpiece, The Lion King . Even though it had been such a long time since I had last seen the show, I always remembered how gorgeously done the show was. Now in its 21st year since premiering on Broadway, The Lion King has not been dethroned of being the most visually striking show in existence. Even though I knew what to expect when entering this show, I was still blown away by the sheer beauty and craftsmanship of the entire production.   Considering The Lion King is one of the most successful movies and musicals of all time, you know the story of Simba, Mufasa, Nala, and all of their friends. You don't need it to be explained to you. It is one of those stories that most people will witness at least once in their lifetime. It has been done in so many different countries, in so many different languages, and it is simply one of the most widely k