Podcast: Colorado theatre summer showcase

A look-ahead to the shows popping up around the state for summer, plus the week’s Top 10 Colorado Headliners

In this episode of the OnStage Colorado Podcast, hosts Alex Miller and Toni Tresca run down some of the latest Colorado theatre news, take a look at what’s ahead for the summer season around the state and also dive into the week’s Top 10 Colorado Headliners. This week’s list:

Come From Away, Arvada Center, through May 10

Ballet Masterworks, Colorado Ballet at Ellie Caulkins Opera House, Denver Center, April 10-18

Romeo & Juliet, ENT Center, Colorado Springs, April 9-May 3

White, Firehouse Theater, Denver, April 4-May 3

The Old Man and the Old Moon], Fort Lewis College, Durango, through April 4

Shush, Now, Theatre Artibus, The Savoy Denver, March 26-April 12

Frozen, Springs Ensemble Theatre, Colorado Springs, April 2-19

the Light vs the Dark, The Dairy Arts Center, Boulder, April 3-5

The Secret Circus Musical, RISE Comedy, Denver, April 4-5

Angels in America Part Two, Vintage Theatre, Aurora, April 4-May 10

Chapter Summary

00:01 — Introduction Alex and Toni open the episode, previewing the main topics: recent show reviews, theater news and the summer theater season showcase.

01:12 — What we’ve seen: Toni’s reviews Toni runs through several recent productions: A Little Women (Phamaly at Parsons Theatre), a disability-integrated adaptation running through April 4; Bonnie and Clyde (Bright Heart Stages, now closed), a standout production from a company worth watching; and two immersive experiences — Red Willow (Control Group Productions, Littleton), a mixed-bag walk-through-the-woods piece, and Cryptic (Fictive/OddKnock, Denver), a more fully realized puzzle-based immersive experience that earns a positive notice despite some tonal inconsistencies.

09:36 — What we’ve seen: Angels in America Part 1 and more Toni praises Vintage Theatre’s intimate production of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America Part 1, singling out Andrew Uhlenhopp’s performance as Roy Cohn. Also covered: The Cottage (Open Stage, Fort Collins), a well-performed production but with a weak script; and Terms of Endearment (Longmont Theatre Company), a melodramatic staging with significant technical issues.

18:19 — What we’ve seen: Alex’s reviews Alex recaps My Mother and the Michigan-Ohio War (Miners Alley Playhouse), then gives an enthusiastic assessment of Fat Ham (Aurora Fox) — calling it perhaps the best play he’s seen all year — while noting the theater’s concerning low attendance and uninviting exterior.

22:29 — Listener mailbag The hosts field questions and comments inspired by their previous “reviewing the reviewers” episode. Topics include: honoring requests not to be reviewed (including the Denver Center’s touring Phantom of the Opera); a productive phone conversation with a community theater advocate about the role of union membership in criticism; and thoughts from former OSC reviewer Eric Fitzgerald on criticism as stewardship vs. gatekeeping.

29:34 — Theater news Major news items covered: the Denver Center announces its 2026-27 Broadway and Cabaret season (highlights include Beauty and the Beast, The Great Gatsby, Death Becomes Her and Tony-winning Maybe Happy Ending); BETC previews its 2026-27 season including the Colorado premiere of Liberation; Aurora Fox names Lisa Rigsby-Peterson as interim operations manager following Rich Cowden’s resignation; Local Theater Company announces its Local Lab 15 new-play festival (April 16-19, Boulder); and Charlie Miller departs the DCPA to become executive producer of Culture House Immersive. Alex also highlights BETC’s new free-ticket program for high school and college students via studentscomefree.com.

39:13 — Summer showcase The hosts survey the Colorado summer theater landscape: Central City Opera (94th season, featuring The Marriage of Figaro, The Ballad of Baby Doe and Master Class); Colorado Shakespeare Festival (back outdoors at the renovated Mary Rippon with Twelfth Night, Julius Caesar, Shakespeare in Love and Friends, Romans, Countrymen); Creede Repertory Theatre (Fully Committed, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Working and Moriarty); Little Theatre of the Rockies (The Spitfire Grill, Eleanor, Honky Tonk Angels); Rocky Mountain Repertory Theatre (Shrek the Musical, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Urinetown); Theatre Aspen (Sylvia, A Chorus Line, Grease); and Theatre Silco (Million Dollar Quartet, Tenderly).