REVIEW: It’s Alive! Avon Players Closes its Season with the Electrifying ‘Young Frankenstein’

Bawdy, slightly naughty, and with memorable musical numbers, Avon Players brings Young Frankenstein to life until June 14, 2025, in Rochester Hills, Michigan.   Avon Players began their season strong with the darkly funny Sweeney Todd, and Young Frankenstein is the perfect bookend to finish it, just with more laughs than bloodbaths. Featuring music and lyrics by the legendary comedic genius Mel Brooks and a book by Brooks and Thomas Meehan, Young Frankenstein is a parody of the classic horror … [Read more...]

Shriek with Laughter at Avon Players’ ‘Young Frankenstein’

Experimentation goes monstrously wrong, the Mel Brooks way, in this musical comedy A classic horror parody movie by a legend of the entertainment field will come to life on stage in Avon Players’ Young Frankenstein, running May 30-June 14, 2025, in Rochester Hills, Michigan. Eric Rodman as “Dr. Frankenstein.” Photo courtesy of Bryan Clifford Grandson of the infamous Victor Frankenstein, Frederick (Eric Rodman), who pronounces his name "Fronk-en-steen" in order to distance himself … [Read more...]

REVIEW: Sisterly Bonds are Put to the Test in Avon Players’ Heartwarming ‘Crimes of the Heart’

Family trauma brings three sisters together to face their messy past and present in the emotional Crimes of the Heart, which runs through November 23, 2024, at Avon Players Theatre in Rochester Hills, MI. After opening their season with the devilishly fun musical Sweeney Todd, Avon Players’ second production, is smaller in scale, but equally rich in material. Crimes of the Heart is a 1979 play written by Beth Henley and is the first play to win the Pulitzer Prize before being produced on … [Read more...]

REVIEW: Avon Players’ ‘Sweeney Todd’ is a Wicked Fun Mix of Murder and Merriment

Avon Players opens their 78th season with a powerful production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street running through September 21, 2024, in Rochester Hills, MI. We all know the old proverb, ‘Revenge is a dish best-served cold.’ Well, in Sweeney Todd, it’s the house special. This musical originated in 1979, with music and lyrics by the legendary Stephen Sondheim (Company, Into the Woods) and book by Hugh Wheeler. Set in Victorian London, the opening number “The Ballad of … [Read more...]

Attend the Dark, Witty Tale of Avon Players’ ‘Sweeney Todd’

Desperate deeds lead to dramatic ends in this iconic Stephen Sondheim musical Avon Players’ season begins with love, murder, and revenge set against the backdrop of 19th-century London in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street running September 6-21. From L to R: Mario Simone as “Sweeney Todd” and Joy Oetjens as “Mrs. Lovett.” Photo Credit: Bryan Clifford. In this haunting tale, Sweeney Todd (Mario Simone), an unjustly exiled barber, returns to Victorian London seeking … [Read more...]