Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News
In the midst of a pandemic including the surge of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, numerous theater organizations across the Miami Valley returned full scale during the 2021-2022 season which was nothing short of a feat.
Over the past 12 months, performing and supporting theater became a delicate balance of closely monitoring COVID-19 cases and growing accustomed to mask-wearing for actors and audience. But even though the arts landscape was forced to adjust to situations beyond its control, including a handful of COVID outbreaks among productions leading to abrupt cancellations, troupes nonetheless beckoned theatergoers, literally at one point, to leave their troubles outside. From professional and collegiate stages to community theaters, a variety of outstanding shows showcased an impressive array of actors, directors, designers, and musicians.
However, not all companies were able to rebound. The Nerve, a professional, millennial-centric troupe specializing in an edgy, off-Broadway vibe, folded in June. Even so, their final season brought poignant drama (“The Dream of the Burning Boy”) and hearty laughs (“Friend Art”).
Also notable on professional stages: Dayton Live provided a terrific Premier Health Broadway Series bolstered by the knockout local premiere of “Hamilton” (all 16 performances went on as scheduled in spite of the pandemic and a winter storm) and an exquisite “Fiddler on the Roof”; The Human Race Theatre Company said farewell to retiring artistic director Kevin Moore and hello to incoming artistic director Emily N. Wells while simultaneously producing the kooky “Airness,” compelling gender-identity drama “Everything That’s Beautiful,” charming “My 80-Year-Old Boyfriend” starring dynamic triple threat Charissa Bertels, and wonderfully nostalgic “Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help”; La Comedia Dinner Theatre excelled with “Disney’s The Little Mermaid” and “Phantom”; Clark State Performing Arts Center presented splendid tours of “Hairspray” and “Waitress”; and freshly rebranded TheatreLab Dayton, formerly Dare to Defy Productions, pulled out the stops with a fascinating, intimate, riveting and gender-bending “Cabaret” that deserves a return engagement.
In addition, Wright State University scored with a joyous “Mamma Mia!,” an outside-the-box, thrillingly danced “Sweet Charity” featuring a Broadway-ready Tassy Kirbas, and a visceral production of Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning socioeconomic drama “Sweat.” Also notable across campuses: Miami University’s lovely, gorgeously sung “The Light in the Piazza”; Sinclair Community College’s whimsical “The Lightning Thief”; Clark State College’s lively “Something Rotten!,”; and the University of Dayton’s immersive “Laced,” a timely look at the LGBTQ+ community.
