One of the toughest assignments for a writer is to review the previous year. It’s never fair, or even accurate.
Since I don’t see everything that is offered, it is unfair to call anything “best.” And, in truth, there are shows that were enjoyable to see, but it would be wrong to label them best.
A good example is “The Lion in Winter” at Bridge Street Theatre in Catskill. It was a fine production and I’m sure the majority of people who saw it, loved it. I liked it too, but found many problems with supporting roles. And I missed most of their other shows.
Bridge Street is one of my favorite theater companies, because of their choice of plays and the quality with which they are presented. But Bridge Street is not on this year’s list. As I said, this list is not definitive. It’s completely subjective.
In an effort to be fair, I use two categories. Professional shows that work under Actors‘ Equity contracts and local shows that might include an Equity actor but do not adhere to all their rules.
For the Equity shows, Proctors had a very good year. By far the best experience at the Schenectady venue was “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Their productions of “Come From Away,” “Dear Evan Hansen” and an understudy-filled production of “My Fair Lady” provided a wide variety of impressive theater.
Capital Repertory Theatre in Albany had a couple of winners as well. “The True,” a work about Albany politics was excellent. Perhaps their most exciting show was the well-acted and visually inventive “The Fly”. ”Jersey Boys” was great summer fun, just as “The Wizard of Oz” was a holiday delight.
Summer theater also offered many reasons to travel to the Berkshires. “A Little Night Music”, one of Sondheim’s toughest musicals, was brilliantly produced at Barrington Stage Company.
Another superior show at Barrington Stage was Samuel Beckett’s existentialist drama “Waiting for Godot.”
Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, MA offered a three person work, “The Approach,” which featured superior acting by a trio of female actors.
Performances and direction had to be spot on because what was unsaid was as important as what was said.
In Glens Falls, Adirondack Theatre Festival scored with “The Chinese Lady,” another fascinating small drama.
On the local non-Equity level there were also a lot of excellent shows. Park Playhouse, which produces in Albany’s Washington Park in the summer and as Playhouse Stage Company which worked at Cohoes Music Hall the rest of the year had one heck of a year.
Their summer musical “Head Over Heels,” an unknown gender-bending work was pure delight. Their January COVID-spoiled “Bright Star” was a charmer and the gritty Sondheim musical “Assassins” was one of the best shows of the year.
Actually, the Cohoes Music Hall, under the management of Playhouse Stage has been the venue of 2022. Creative License, a relatively new theater company dedicated to new offbeat work, is the resident drama company in the space.
They offered a terrific version of the unusual play “The Flick,” a work in which nothing seems to happen over its three hour length. It was neither tedious or exciting – but it was memorable. They also offered a very good production of “God of Carnage” earlier in the year.
Home Made Theater in Saratoga produced a very impressive production of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.”
It’s an extremely tech-dependent show presented in a technically-wanting space. The company should be proud how it conquered difficult material within its challenging limits.
On the topic of challenging, Harbinger Theatre in Albany is raising the bar. They do regional premieres of socially relevant plays.
Their production of “Andy and the Orphans” was an example of their dedication to material not otherwise done in the area.
It’s the uplifting story of people coming to realize the true capabilities of a person with Down‘s Syndrome. Played with charm and skill by actor Tom Mooney, born with Down’s Syndrome, made the message in the play even more vivid.
Staying on the topic of challenging, Troy Foundry Theatre, a company with many homes, always pushes the audience to the limit. Personally, I am not fond of their original works, but I always admire the actors’ commitment to the material.
To have some idea of their aesthetics, their most accessible piece offered was a night of dark, Samuel Beckett’s plays. It was a night of demanding material that was well-done.
The year saw a lot of Beckett’s plays. Since he writes about the world being incomprehensible and uncertain it’s no surprise that theater looks to his writings in time of COVID.
Indeed, another one of his plays was also given an enlightening production at Russell Sage College. “Happy Days” was about a woman buried to her neck in sand - yet saw life in an optimistic way.
I see theater in 2022 as the same thing. It’s important to realize that all this excellent and abundant theater was produced under harsh conditions.
I not only honor the work theater companies produced in 2022; I salute their endurance and their resilience.
Bob Goepfert is theater reviewer for the Troy Record.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
