By Chuck Graham. Originally published by TucsonStage.com. Come for the energy (and the laughs) but stay for the artistic insight, that’s my advice when it comes to seeing Arizona Theatre Company’s bristling smack-down production of Sam Shepard’s Pulitzer Prize-nominated True West. I’ll guarantee you this – no one who watches this show thoughtfully will go home feeling short-changed. True West is the best ATC effort of the entire 2023-2024 season. Lee (Zack Fine) and Austin (Rhett Guter) are two brothers who spent their whole lives taking different paths away from each other. The tension they c ..read more

By Ann Brown. Originally Published by the Arizona Daily Star. Arizona Theatre Company’s production of Sam Shepard’s True West is a powerful, poignant portrayal of family dysfunction and sibling rivalry punctuated with laugh-out-loud humor. True West which opened Friday, May 3, closes the ATC season on May 18. Prolific playwright Shepard (1943-2017) is known for his gritty, edgy works. True West was nominated in 1983 for a Pulitzer Prize. It has a tense, taut narrative underpinned by Shepard’s past — he and his father battled alcoholism. The set’s harvest gold cabinets, avocado green appliances ..read more

By Zach Wetzel. Originally published by Broadway World. True West explodes onstage at Arizona Theatre Company. This is the single greatest piece of live theater I have ever seen. True West is the story of two estranged siblings forced to interact while one of them house-sits for their mother. Written by Sam Shepard and directed by Jenn Thompson, True West is a triumph of acting and storytelling. True West was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize in 1983 and for three Tony Awards in 2000. Director Jenn Thompson has been nominated for a Drama Desk Award and has directed plays both ..read more

Consider the American Dream. Consider the promise that hard work breeds success. Nothing is off the table. As long as you are willing to put in the hours to make it happen, the world is at your fingertips. So, you put your head down and you get to work. You do the best you can to optimize your chances of achieving your goals. You go to a good school. You put yourself out there. You network with the right crowd. Greatness is on the horizon. Then suddenly, your sibling, with practically no effort whatsoever, swoops in, tries their hand, and wins. Poof. Your ambition crumbles and now you start fr ..read more

Sam Shepard has been described by New York Magazine as “the greatest American playwright of his generation,” a description earned as a result of several successful works he created. Gruff, gritty, and bold, Shepard’s work stands out amongst the peers of his time. “He was Tarantino, before Tarantino,” said Kasser Family Artistic Director Matt August. It’s almost hard to believe that this was not always the path for him. Born in 1943, Shepard became the first of three children in what would become a dysfunctional family unit. His father, a former bomber pilot in World War II and an army officer ..read more

By Chloe Rabinowitz. Originally published on BroadwayWorld.com. Arizona Theatre Company will present Sam Shepard’s True West in an electrifying conclusion to its 56th season. This raw and gripping production promises audiences a hilariously unforgettable journey into the heart of family, rivalry, and the American Dream. True West depicts the turbulent relationship between two estranged brothers, Austin and Lee, as they find themselves thrust together in their absent mother’s Western suburban home. Their opposite Cain and Abel personalities collide in a fierce battle for dominance, sp ..read more

By A.A. Cristi. Originally Published on BroadwayWorld.com. Arizona Theatre Company is delighted to announce the winner of the 2023 National Latine Playwrights Award. Chicano playwright, David A. Tucker II, has won the award for his black comedy, The Nude, for which he will receive $2500 and a professional workshop and a public reading of the play to launch a National Latine Playwrights Festival, slated for June 2024. Originally established in 1995 by ATC’s Playwright-in-Residence/National Latine Playwrights Award Festival Director, Elaine Romero, under former Artistic Director David Ira Goldst ..read more

By Kathleen Kennedy. Originally Published in Desert Leaf. Arizona is in for a true Western masterpiece this month when Arizona Theatre Company presents the acclaimed Sam Shepard play True West, nominated in 1983 for a Pulitzer Prize and in 2000 for three Tony Awards, including Best Play, and two Drama Desk Awards. Director Jenn Thompson brings a wealth of experience to her task. Nominated for a Drama Desk Award, she has directed plays on and off Broadway, as well as in theaters across the country. Raised in a theatrical family in New York City, Thompson, at age 10, played the original Pepper i ..read more

By Chloe Rabinowitz. Originally Published on BroadwayWorld.com Arizona Theatre Company has unveiled its 57th season. From gripping mysteries to heartwarming love stories to joyful musicals, this season is set to be a celebration of memorable storytelling. “The year that lies ahead for Arizona is going to be challenging on a number of fronts. I want ATC to be a bastion of relief, joy and communion for our audiences” says ATC Kasser Family Artistic Director Matt August. “This season offers a place for people to put their emotions, and leave their anxieties and find each other as neighb ..read more

By Cathalena Burch. Originally Published by the Arizona Daily Star. One of the greatest opera divas is holding a master class and [Arizona audiences are] invited to sit in. But in Terrence McNally’s Tony Award-winning play “Master Class,” Maria Callas doesn’t sing. She talks. Which is a good thing for the star of Arizona Theatre Company’s production.  Vicki Lewis can sing, but opera is a bit out of her range. In “Master Class,” Lewis spends most of her time on stage talking, which the director, Marcia Milgrom Dodge, said is more taxing than singing. “It’s different than carrying ..read more