News Stories
RED
"RED is the most compelling play in Richmond this year."
Richmond.com
"RED is an incredible play of loyalty, passion, and conviction in one’s work."
RVAnews
RED brings artist Mark Rothko’s studio to life
Richmond Times Dispatch
Review: "Compelling... A Play with a Purpose"
Richmond Times-Dispatch
"Eddy plays Ken to perfection, adopting just the right composition of awe, inquisitiveness, kindness, provocation and intellectual honesty to influence the grandiose Rothko. Bridgewater is Rothko, from the minute we enter the theater to the final scene."
Richmond Family Magazine
Next to Normal
"Next to Normal creates something phenomenal out of an unconventional subject. The best summary is the shortest: Go see it."
STYLE Weekly
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile
"'Lyle' with style!...young theatergoers’ delight at the antics of Lyle"
Richmond Times-Dispatch
"Moving, Hilarious... my [son's] favorite!"
Richmond Family Magazine
Hay Fever
"Hay Fever is attacking theatergoers
with irrepressible laughter!"
Richmond Times-Dispatch
"The extremely talented ensemble cast take on each role with palpable enthusiasm."
GayRVA.com
Hay Fever manages to take the most mundane situations and turn them into comedy gold."
John Porter, mondojohnny.blogspot.com
Hay Fever preview video
CBS 6 - Virginia this Morning
Sons of the Prophet
Sons of the Prophet “impressive and expertly directed”
GayRVA.com
“You can’t help warming to the Douaihys”
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Cotton Patch Gospel
Cotton Patch cast performs "foot-stomping songs" at Hanover Habitat for Humanity's 43rd home dedication.
The Mechanicsville Local
A musical welcoming at recent Habitat for Humanity dedication
The Herald Progress
"Cotton Patch Gospel good for the soul
This is a downright fun Southern hoedown and jamboree of the Gospels
You might even cry back in jubilation, 'Hallelujah!'"
Richmond Times-Dispatch
"A family-friendly show with a lively beat
that will keep you entertained throughout!"
Richmond Family Magazine
Anything Goes Gala
Virginia Rep honors actor Blair Underwood
Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Magic Flute
Fantasy, music and humor prove to be a winning combination!
Something for every age level."
Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Magic Flute on Channel 6, Virginia This Morning
Closer Than Ever
"A worthy musical
many wonderful, creative songs, and the cast sounds absolutely elegant singing them."
Herald-Progress
Madeline's Christmas
"Madeline’s Christmas a treat for kids!"
Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Producers
"Must see!... A great night spent with a great cast."
RVAnews
Interview with Scott Wichmann: Singing and dancing have some parallels in military life
Richmond Times-Dispatch
November 15, 2012
By Celia Wren
"Flashy and fun. VA Rep’s "The Producers" is sweet Broadway escapism at its most undiluted."
Richmond.com
"The Producers comes barreling down Interstate 95 at us full-steam with all its Tony-Award-winning, Broadway-version bells, whistles, cornball jokes, and show-stopping musical numbers happily intact."
Richmond Family Magazine
"Directed here by Patti D’Beck, a longtime veteran of Broadway musical theater, the cast of 22 throws themselves into Brooks’ shtick. And it’s enhanced by D’Beck’s choreography, mixing klezmer folk styles with an abundance of tap dancing that keeps the momentum strong."
Richmond Times-Dispatch
"Fun, toe-tapping good show, that will leave you laughing and humming long after you’ve left the theater"
examiner.com
Young Tom Jefferson
Review: Miller has a solid grasp on what it takes to hold a young audience’s attention for a full hour.
RVA News
October 23, 2012
By Valerie Catrow
Review: Fascinating facts... Talented and Engaging Actors
Richmond Family Magazine
By Margaret Thompson
Review: The fast-paced, lively production is jam-packed with historical tidbits.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
September 29, 2012
By Julinda Lewis
Theatre IV on Tour division
No one will sleep during 'Beauty' at The Paramount
Reporter News: Your Abilene Online
October 11, 2012
By Janet Van Vleet
The Hound of the Baskervilles
Review: Sherlock Holmes a hit at Hanover Tavern
Herald-Progress
October 24, 2012
By Dan Sherrier
Review: Three actors in 20 roles present lively spoof of Holmes
Richmond Times Dispatch
September 16, 2012
By Celia Wren
Night Blooms
Review: Night Blooms Blossoms at Virginia Rep
WCVE
October 5, 2012
By John Porter
Review: Weaves family folklore and social history with poetic intensity and unexpected vividness.
Richmond Times Dispatch
September 30, 2012
By Matthew Miller
Night Blooms tells family tale against civil rights
Richmond Times Dispatch
September 20, 2012
By Celia Wren
Costume Director, Sue Griffin
Star Dresser
STYLE Weekly
September 4, 2012
By Belle Magazine
Filming at the November Theatre - Killing Lincoln
Filming for 'Killing Lincoln' Has Begun in Richmond
Richmond.com
August 1, 2012
By Richmond.com Staff
Nice People Dancing to Good Country Music
Review: Prepare for mad laughter
RichmondMom.com
August 7, 2012
By Lisa Ann Setchel
Review: Hanover Tavern lassoes a hit
STYLE Weekly
July 31, 2012
By Rich Griset
Virginia This Morning: Video Preview of Nice People Dancing with David Bridgewater and Matt Mitchell
CBS6
July 30, 2012
By Virginia This Morning
Review: Quirky...very funny...charmer. What more could you want?
Richmond Family Magazine
July 23, 2012
By Karen Schwartzkopf
Review: Featuring a supremely talented cast of five, “Nice People” is one of those shows that keeps you in stitches from beginning to end
GayRVA
July 20, 2012
By Jen Maciulewicz
Review: A witty play performed nearly flawlessly
Richmond Times-Dispatch
July 15, 2012
By Julinda Lewis
Nice People... Set to Play Hanover Tavern
Broadway World
July 21, 2012
By BWW News Desk
Spring Awakening
Review: Parent and Teen Review
Richmond Family Magazine
June 28, 2012
By Karen Schwartzkopf and Samantha Schwartzkopf
Review: Virginia Rep raises the temperature — and the roof — with "Spring Awakening.".
STYLE Weekly
June 26, 2012
By David Timberline
Review: Audacious and edgy, Virginia Rep's "Spring Awakening" rocks the November Theatre this summer.
GayRVA
June 25, 2012
By Matthew Miller
Review: Virginia Repertory Theatre's Controversial, Teenage Rock Drama
Richmond.com
June 21, 2012
By Liz Jewett
Review: 'Spring Awakening'
Richmond Times-Dispatch
June 17, 2012
By Julinda Lewis
Virginia Rep Announces Spring Awakening for Richmond this Summer -Newcomer Oliver Houser as Melchior
Broadway World
June 4, 2012
By BWW News Desk
Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV are now Virginia Rep
Barksdale and Theatre IV finally make it official with a merger.
STYLE Weekly
June 5, 2012
By Rich Griset
It was the shot heard round the Richmond theater world: Local juggernauts Barksdale and Theatre IV were merging. While the two companies have operated in conjunction since 2001, they will restructure under the name Virginia Repertory Theatre, or Virginia Rep for short...
From Merger, Virginia Repertory Theatre Is Born
Nonprofit Quarterly
May 23, 2012
By Mike Keefe-Feldman
There is often a courtship period when two nonprofits are considering a merger, but it’s not usually so long as it was in the case of two nonprofit theater groups in Richmond, Va. The Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV recently announced that they would merge to form one entity, the Virginia Repertory Theatre...
Curtains up for theater nonprofit
Richmond BizSense
May 22, 2012
By Michael Schwartz
Two Richmond theaters are putting their business operations front and center. Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV struck a deal last week to merge and become the Virginia Repertory Theatre, a move its leaders say creates a more powerful nonprofit with an almost $5 million budget and plans to raise $14 million...
Theater Groups Combine to Form New Repertory Company
WCVE
May 22, 2012
By John Ogle
Barksdale and Theatre IV have combined resources to create Virginia Repertory Theatre and raise the profile of professional theater in the area. Audio Content.
Say Hello to Virginia Repertory Theatre
Richmond.com
May 21, 2012
By Colleen Curran
Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV announced Sunday, May 20 that they are now one theater company with a new name:
Virginia Repertory Theatre.
The new theater company will have a combined budget of $5.1 million dollars, making it one of the largest performing arts organizations in Virginia...
Barksdale, Theatre IV merging
Richmond Times Dispatch
May 20, 2012
By Holly Prestidge
Two of Richmond's legacy theater companies are merging with the aim of becoming central Virginia's premier professional theater.
Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV will join forces July 1 to form Virginia Repertory Theatre under the leadership of Bruce Miller and Phil Whiteway...
Barksdale and Theatre IV join to create Virginia Repertory Theatre
rvanews
May 20, 2012
By Nathan Cushing
Two of Richmond’s premiere theaters are joining together. Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV will merge on July 1st to form Virginia Repertory Theatre. The two theaters had operated in tandem, yet distinctly, for the last several years. The creation of Virginia Repertory Theatre will formally merge them...
Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV Merge into Virginia Repertory Theatre
RichmondMom.com
May 20, 2012
By Rhonda Day
Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV announce that the two nonprofit theaters will formally merge effective July 1, 2012 under a new name – Virginia Repertory Theatre (Virginia Rep). With a budget exceeding $5 million, four distinct venues, and an annual audience over 550,000, Virginia Rep will become the largest professional theater and...
Virginia Repertory Theatre announces its season
Richmond Times Dispatch
May 20, 2012
By Holly Prestidge
The name is new and so is the season. But some things will never change. Virginia Repertory Theatre will host four distinct series this year that showcase the new company's identity as central Virginia's premier theater arts organization, as well as pay homage to the programming legacies of Barksdale Theatre and Theatre IV...
Theater legacies
Richmond Times Dispatch
May 20, 2012
By Holly Prestidge
What does it take to start and then sustain a successful professional theater company? The answer can be explained, as Bruce Miller did recently, in a matter of seconds: All it takes is everything...
Seussical
A Mash-Up Smash: "Seussical" the musical is where it's at
STYLE Weekly
May 8, 2012
By Rich Griset
Parents, listen up: Are you tired of being dragged to dreadful children's films with anemic plots and worse humor? Do you count the days until Pixar's next release so you can finally watch a children's film without contemplating violent acts. Have no fear, "Seussical" is here, and Theatre IV has brought in some heavy hitters to make sure you and your little ones are supremely entertained...
RFM Review - Seussical The Musical
Richmond Family Magazine
May 4, 2012
By Margaret Thompson
Oh the places you’ll go when you put a fabulous script and score in the hands of a fabulous cast in a fabulous downtown Richmond theater. This perfect storm comes in the form of "Seussical", on stage through May 20th at the Sara Belle and Neil November Theatre...
Review: Seussical the Musical
Richmond Times Dispatch
April 29, 2012
By Susan Haubenstock
The adorability quotient is high in Theatre IV's "Seussical," playing at the November Theatre. The 2000 kid-oriented musical conceived by Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty and Eric Idle is based on several beloved Dr. Seuss books. And the colorful production directed by Chase Kniffen is lovable, too...
Broadway’s “Seussical” Now Playing in Richmond! A Real Richmond Review
RichmondMom.com
April 29, 2012
By Katie Mardigian
Theatre IV has brought Broadway hit “Seussical” to Richmond, and it is a colorful, fantastical, musical extravaganza that will entertain the whole family...
Preview of ‘Seussical’
Virginia this Morning, WTVR Channel 6
April 26, 2012
By Chelsea Greaux
Video content
Scorched Earth
Theater review: Barksdale's production of David L. Robbins' play 'Scorched Earth'
Richmond Times Dispatch
April 15, 2012
By Susan Haubenstock, Photo by Jay Paul
There are many thrilling elements in "Scorched Earth," the world premiere of David L. Robbins' play now at Barksdale at Willow Lawn. The stunning wraparound set by Ron Keller envelops the audience in the contemporary small-town atmosphere of Good Hope, Va., not too far from Richmond. The satisfying depth of skill displayed by the cast of 16 makes most of the 23 characters come to life. And Steve Perigard's sensitive direction emphasizes emotion...
Another Earth
STYLE Weekly
April 10, 2012
By Rich Griset
To restore the graveyard's whites-only status, the church deacons had a very simple solution: exhume the body of a recently buried, mixed-race infant.
It might sound like a work of fiction, but it was a real-life scenario that grabbed national headlines in 1996 for the city of Thomasville, Ga. The deacons at Barnett's Creek Baptist Church later retracted their request to remove the baby's body, but for novelist David L. Robbins, it was the kind of thing that stayed with him...
World premiere of David Robbins' 'Scorched Earth' at Barksdale Theatre
Richmond Times Dispatch
April 1, 2012
By Celia Wren, Photos by Jay Paul
David L. Robbins' sailboat won't be taking a bow when his drama "Scorched Earth" begins its world premiere run at Barksdale Theatre on April 13. That's too bad: The vessel deserves some of the credit for the play, an adaptation of Robbins' 2002 novel of the same title. At least, that's the story the bestselling novelist tells as he sits, barefoot, dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt, in the study of his home in Southside Richmond. Robbins obviously spends a lot of time here: He has, after all, published nine novels (a 10th is in the pipeline)...