By The Associated Press Published: December 28, 2019 Logan • A northern Utah theater that recently underwent a major renovation and is showing classic favorites using modern technology. The makeover made possible with donations from the likes of Utah Jazz owner Gail Miller transformed a run-down movie house into a restored version of its art-deco grandeur. … Continued
By Ashtyn Asay staff writer Dec 23, 2019 It’s the Saturday before Christmas, and the Utah Theatre staff are preparing for the 6 p.m. movie. Popcorn is popping, and although there are still 45 minutes until showtime, a few patrons have already wandered in to buy tickets. The lobby is elegantly decorated with fresh wallpaper and glittering chandeliers, a product of the recently completed renovation … Continued
Written by Rod Boam December 2, 2019 LOGAN – Thousands of people were on hand to see Cache Valley’s own Highpoint Clydes, the reigning World Champions for a Clydesdale Six-Horse Hitch and Logan’s antique horse drawn fire engine carrying Santa Claus as they came through the Center Street Arch … Continued
Crafting your own musical stories offers a little bit of everything, arts supporters say, but kids admit it’s a lot of work. By Ellen Fagg Weist Act 1 The first rule of the Opera by Children program is that students, not the adults, do the work. Over one school year, students work with teachers and drama mentors to craft their own musical story. … Continued
By Charlie Schill • Sep 19, 2019 I have to confess that I’ve always unconsciously assumed that our Lyric Repertory Company and the Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre rank somehow below more prestigious theater programs like the Utah Shakespeare Festival. But I never had the opportunity or the inclination to test the validity of that impression until this past summer. … Continued
By Charlie Schill • Aug 1, 2019 If you loved The Barber of Seville during the 2018 Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre season – and who didn’t? – make a beeline for the final performance of the current production of The Marriage of Figaro. It’s another great comic opera with the same hilarious characters, equally beautiful music, thrilling performances and gorgeous costuming. … Continued
Posted by elizabeth | Jul 19, 2019 LOGAN — Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro—or for purists, Le Nozze Di Figaro—is a most glorious and joyful opera and about number five or six in the opera “top ten” of most performed operas in the world. The only reason it’s not number one is because it’s so difficult. Singing Mozart is a killer anyway, but the singers in the production of Figaro at Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre stare death in the face and laugh. … Continued
By CHARLIE SCHILL theatre critic Jul 19, 2019 “Master Class” is another wild card in the Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre’s 2019 season. Like the previous “Bravo, Caruso!,” this drama is an homage to one of the 20th century’s operatic superstars, the late Maria Callas. … Continued
July 18, 2019 By Elisabeth Spencer Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre in Logan, Utah, is known for the high-quality productions of classic musicals and operas they bring to the Ellen Eccles Theatre each summer. Few companies could be better-suited to produce West Side Story, the 1957 musical that broke barriers in its unique use of choreography and its revolutionary depiction of difficult racial themes. … Continued
By Charlie Schill • Jul 18, 2019 The Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre launched its 2019 main-stage offerings with a rousing production of Newsies, an old-fashioned, crowd-pleasing musical. … Continued
Posted: Jul 18, 2019 / 09:28 PM MDT CACHE VALLEY, Utah (ABC4Utah) – Cache Valley is your ticket to summer fun and Logan is a hotspot and no stranger to lights, camera and action. It’s time to pull back the curtains and let the spotlight hit Cache Valley. … Continued
1st Place Winner & Audience Favorite – Musical Theatre (Awarded a $2,000 cash prize) Méami Maszewski 1st Place Winner & Audience Favorite – Opera (Awarded a $2,000 cash prize) Rose-Antoinette Bellino FINALISTS Opera Finalists Rose-Antoinette Bellino Darren Lekeith Drone Marianthi Hatzis Steve Valenzuela Musical Theatre Finalists Benjamin Adams Pasqualino Beltempo Derek DeRoo Olivia LaBarge Méami … Continued
July 15, 2019 By Lindsey Kelstrom Lovers of Disney’s 1964 Mary Poppins starring Julie Andrews will love the nostalgia and tribute to the iconic character in Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre’s production of Mary Poppins playing at the Ellen Eccles Theatre in Logan, Utah this summer. … Continued
By CHARLIE SCHILL theatre critic Jul 13, 2019 The Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre launched its 2019 main-stage offerings with a rousting production of “Newsies,” an old-fashioned, crowd-pleasing musical. … Continued
By CHARLIE SCHILL theatre critic Jul 13, 2019 If you’re shopping for family-friendly, child-oriented summer entertainment, look no further than the Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre’s ongoing production of the musical fantasy “Mary Poppins.” … Continued
By CHARLIE SCHILL theatre critic Jul 12, 2019 When performing one of the greatest works in the whole canon of American musical theater, the quality bar is naturally set sky-high. The Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre’s ongoing production of the classic “West Side Story” easily vaults that bar and continues into the heavens. … Continued
By Kevin Opsahl staff writer Jul 11, 2019 If a ghoulish-looking being named Count Orlok believes you have a “lovely neck,” you might be in trouble. … Continued
Posted by Marcee Ludlow | Jul 11, 2019 LOGAN — I’ve been a fan of Newsies and Alan Menken’s music since the movie version came out when I was kid. I’ve performed many of the songs, and I love the story and its characters. But then what kid isn’t enticed by the story of independent newsboys fighting and winning against oppressive adults? Although more recent in my esteem, the Broadway version with lyrics by Jack Feldmen and book by Harvey Fierstein is also a tremendous work. The Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre produced a show that thrilled this fan and honored the original. … Continued
Posted by Marcee Ludlow | Jul 10, 2019 LOGAN — Leave it to Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim to take a challenging story like Romeo and Juliet and drop it into the West Side of New York, thus adding new difficult dynamics of economics, immigration, race, and crazy difficult music. The Utah Festival Opera Company picked up the gauntlet and produced an electrifying West Side Story that dazzled with amazing vocals, great choreography, solid dancing, stunning visuals, and poignant acting. … Continued
By Charlie Schill • Jul 11, 2019 When performing one of the greatest works in the whole canon of American musical theater, the quality bar is naturally set sky-high. The Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre’s ongoing production of the classic West Side Story easily vaults that bar and continues into the heavens. … Continued
By Deseret News Jul 10, 2019, 9:30am MDT Jay Wamsley LOGAN — Familiarity breeds appreciation, rather than contempt, in this year’s lineup of highly recognizable musical theater and opera offerings from the Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre Company. … Continued
Written by Megan Bowen July 9, 2019 NORTH LOGAN – When Abigail Edwards was cast to play Belle in Beauty in the Beast at Green Canyon High School earlier this year, it was a dream role. When she was nominated for Utah’s Best Actress for the Utah High School Musical Theatre Awards (UHSMTA) because of that role, it would take her on an unforgettable adventure. … Continued
Posted by elizabeth | Jul 9, 2019 LOGAN — To say that playwright Terrence McNally is a stalwart of the American theatre would be a gross understatement. Critic Rex Reed describes McNally as “one of the greatest contemporary playwrights the theater world has yet produced.” And Mr. Reed is correct. … Continued
July 8, 2019 By Debbie Ditton The audience was buzzing in anticipation as the first ever performance of Disney’s Newsies The Musical got ready to open at the Ellen Eccles Theatre in downtown Logan, Utah. Having seen the show on Broadway, and the touring company in Salt Lake City, I was nervous – yet hopeful – that Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre’s production would equal my expectations. As soon as I heard the astounding orchestra (conducted by James M. Bankhead), saw the breathtaking set … Continued
July 6, 2019 By Benedicte Dansie The Marriage of Figaro performed at the Ellen Eccles Theatre as part of the Utah Opera Festival & Musical Theatre in Logan, Utah is an absolutely enchanting performance full of poignant realism and side splitting humor. The show, though composed of a full four acts, swept past in a delight making the three-hour show feel like a breeze. … Continued
By Scott D. Pierce Published: July 5, 2019 When Ethan Kelso was 8 years old, his adoptive mother asked him where he had learned to sing. He told her, “‘In the darkness.’” … Continued
Written by Craig Hislop July 2, 2019 Michael Ballam calls this summer’s Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre season the biggest and best ever. … Continued
By CHARLIE SCHILL theatre critic Jun 29, 2019 Given gifted performers and inspired direction, an intimate small-cast play can still have a big dramatic impact. Local audiences were treated to a perfect example of that theatrical lesson when the Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre recently debuted the drama “Bravo, Caruso!” … Continued
By Kevin Opsahl staff writer Jun 27, 2019 Incoming Utah State University freshman Abigail Edwards knows the feeling of having the spotlight on her when she’s performing in front of an audience, whether its in an auditorium at Green Canyon High School or the in the Big Apple. … Continued
Leigh Scheps | June 25, 2019 The winners of the 2019 Jimmy Awards are 18-year-olds Ekele Ukegbu of Elmont, New York, and Ethan Kelso of Logan, Utah. Each went home with a $25,000 scholarship. The competition, also known as the High School Musical Theatre Awards, celebrates the best high school performers from around the country. … Continued
Tuesday, June 25, 2019 TIMES SQUARE, Manhattan (WABC) — The nation’s best high school musical theater students from around the country made their Broadway debuts Monday night and two students walked away big winners. Of the 86 nominees who competed in The Jimmy Awards, Ethan Kelso won the award for Best Performance by an Actor and New York’s own Ekele Ukegbu won the award for Best Performance by an Actress. … Continued
Posted by Sara Claverie | Jun 24, 2019 LOGAN — Bravo, Caruso! is the beginning of the summer Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre experience happening in northern Utah. This two-man opera directed by Vanessa Ballam has much less singing than storytelling as it takes place in the famous Caruso’s dressing room. … Continued
By Charlie Schill • Jun 13, 2019 The Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre’s fireworks will begin right after the 4th of July this year. That’s appropriate because festival impresario Michael Ballam has surprises in store for all of us in the weeks ahead. … Continued
Written by Eric Frandsen May 21, 2019 Hundreds of high school performing arts students gathered at the Eccles Theatre in Salt Lake City Saturday, competing in the Utah High School Musical Theatre Awards. Some students from Green Canyon and Mountain Crest high schools came away as winners. In fact, Green Canyon High School’s Abigail Edwards was recognized as the Best Actress. … Continued
by BWW News Desk May. 20, 2019 Two Utah high school performers are on their way to New York City after winning the award for Best Actress and Best Actor in the ninth annual Utah High School Musical Theatre Awards held in the Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City May 18. Abigail Edwards from Green Canyon High School in North Logan won for her role as Belle in “Beauty and the Beast” and Ethan Kelso from Salt Lake School for the Performing Arts won for his portrayal of Will Bloom in “Big Fish.” … Continued
By Cristy Meiners May 20, 2019, 2:00pm MDT SALT LAKE CITY — It’s fitting that one of the two Utah high school musical theater students on their way to New York to compete in a national competition would portray a character who sings, “I want adventure in the great wide somewhere.” … Continued
Posted: May 20, 2019 / 07:11 PM MDT SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4 News) – Utah Festival announced the 2019 Utah High School Musical Theatre Awards Winners Saturday night at Eccles Theater. Hundreds of students from two dozen high schools around Utah gathered at the event to celebrate their achievements, talents, and dedication to the performing arts. … Continued
Written by Shannon Martindale May 16, 2019 The Cache County Council reviewed recommendations Tuesday night for the RAPZ and Restaurant Tax awards for the coming year. “As in year’s past,” according to Council Chair Karl Ward, “the requests are nearly double what the funds available are. It’s very difficult to be able to make the decision as to where to place those funds.” … Continued
Written by Rod Boam May 6, 2019 The second graders at Bear River Charter School held an opera, written and performed by them, in the school gym … Continued
Utah Festival Opera & Musical Theatre is saddend by the passing of Jo Loesser on Sunday, April 28. “She believed in us from the very beginning. She took a big risk with us producing GREENWILLOW in ’97 and always made us (me) a part in every important event related to Frank. I will miss her … Continued
By Irma Mora staff writer Mar 14, 2019 Mountain Crest High School students and parents were treated to an opera produced by the Life Skills students last week. With the help from professionals from Opera by Children, 20 special education students went through the process of creating the theme and plot, writing the opera, writing the song and performing for their peers and parents … Continued
Written by Rod Boam February 25, 2019 The repurposed Utah Theater is more than a restoration project, it is a modern engineering masterpiece. The project took a rundown movie house and made it a state of the art theater complex that has multiple uses. … Continued
Written by Rod Boam February 14, 2019 Brigham City values its history, and as a result boasts two museums. Both are headed up by Kaia Michaelis, who serves as the Director and Curator/Historian for the Brigham City Museum of Art & History and … Continued