We had the chance to chat with the performers of Dungeons & Dragons The Twenty-Sided Tavern, which included Jasmin Malave, Conner Marx, and R. Alex Murray.

“Part of it is live theater and all the spectacle you expect from live theater,” Marx tells Nerd Reactor. “Part of it is genuinely playing D&D on stage. Part of it is improv. We never know exactly what will happen. One night to the next, every show is different.”

For those not in the know of Dungeons & Dragons, it’s a tabletop role-playing game where a group of players and a Dungeon Master tell stories set in a fantasy world filled with monsters, magic and heroes. The dice decides whether they succeed or fail on certain actions. In The Twenty-Sided Tavern, audience members get to choose the players’ course of action using their phones.

“And then part of it is the audience playing along with us,” Murray added. “And they’re part of the improvisational spark, but they give us names for NPCs, and also they just heckle us like we’re doing in stand-up, and then they also have the Gamiotics software that we use to have them play along. So audiences are helping with the aid of their phone. They play mini games to boost roles, and they decide if we’re going to go left to right or if we’re going to punch a guy or kiss a guy. That’s all the audience.”

D&D is known for its crunchy combat, where the battle slows down as players take turns deciding how to defeat the enemies using magic and weapons, and then letting the dice rolls and their stats dictate the outcome. (This was the inspiration for turn-based combat in video game RPGs.) The live show moves at a quicker pace by simplifying the encounters.

“Instead of doing rounds and rounds and rounds of combat, everyone gets a turn, and the more successes over losses, whoever did well – there’ll be three on one side and two on the other – the one with three successes wins,” Malave explained. “And so we just make it very simple in that way. We can expedite the process. D&D fans get a little bit of combat, but people who don’t know anything about it and don’t know the move sets can still enjoy it.”

With the Twenty-Sided Tavern coming to Los Angeles, expect some special guests from the video game and tabletop RPG world, including Neil Newbon (Baldur’s Gate 3), Erika Ishii (Ghost of Yotei), Devora Wilde (Baldur’s Gate 3), Aabria Iyengar (Critical Role, Dimension 20), and Anjali Bhimani (Overwatch, Ms. Marvel).

“There’s going to be second-act walk-on guests like every single night,” Malave said. “It’s a party.”

“Yeah, it’s going to be a party,” Murray added. “And I very often tell people like you love the show and you came once it was great. And then you come and see it again, and you really realize how different it is the second time. And then that’s when people get obsessed and start coming back and seeing it four, five, six times. I think we’ve got a couple of people who are well into 50 shows, like repeat guests. And I think LA, every night is going to be something special and spectacular, and that it won’t ever happen again.”

You can buy tickets to the show in Los Angeles at https://www.broadwayinhollywood.com/.

The post Inside the Chaos of The Twenty-Sided Tavern: How D&D Became Live Theater appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

I was able to catch the Hollywood Pantages showing, with the tour cast including Matt Loehr as Joe/Josephine, Tavis Kordell as Jerry/Daphne, and Leandra Ellis-Gaston as Sugar. Some Like It Hot is a funny and sweet musical thanks to the cast and writing, and the different sets were captivating as the characters travel from Chicago to San Diego.

Loehr, as Joe, is fun to watch as he tries to come up with plans on the spot while hiding in plain sight as Josephine. Fans of Mrs. Doubtfire will get a kick out of the musical. One of the hilarious highlights is the running gag of people commenting on how Joe, as Josephine, looks older. Joe and Jerry successfully disguise themselves as women and join an all-female band as they travel to the West Coast.

The heart of the duo is Kordell’s Jerry/Daphne, Joe’s brother and someone who is always following his plan. However, Joe is slowly becoming more accepting of being Daphne. There’s a sequence where Daphne is performing flamenco, and it was fiery and passionate. Ellis-Gaston, as Sugar, shines with her vocals as the singer of the all-female band. She befriends Joe and Jerry as Josephine and Daphne, and the two compete to win her affection.

As a musical set during the prohibition era, the big band swing style is used with a lot of cheerful and lighthearted song and dance numbers. The songs are really fun and exciting, but don’t expect to leave the theater humming the music. Overall, it captures the era, and on repeat listening, it did make me want to go swing dancing. The dancing choreography really captures the energetic spirit of big band swing, and there’s a reason why it won for Best Choreography at the Tony Awards.

Some Like It Hot is a fun time at the live theater thanks to the performers, dancing, and music. There’s a good message in the musical, and the concept was executed in an entertaining way.

The post Some Like It Hot Musical at the Pantages: A Swinging, Hilarious Must-See appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

Harry Potter now has a son, Albus Potter, and he is struggling with parenthood and living up to the accomplishments of defeating Lord Voldemort, aka He Who Shall Not Be Named. Meanwhile, Albus befriends Scorpius Malfoy, the son of Harry’s former rival, Draco Malfoy. Now the two discover the power to change the past and future, and they are on an adventure to save the wizarding world.

The play is available all over the world including London, New York City and Germany. For those in the United States, it’s currently on a national tour with upcoming cities including Washington DC, Boston, Orlando, Atlanta, and more. Right now, fans can watch Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles.

Starring as Harry Potter in the national tour is John Skelley, with Emmet Smith as Albus Potter and Aidan Close as Sorpius Malfoy.

“Yeah, it’s a really weighty thing,” Smith tells Nerd Reactor. “It’s more than getting a part in a new play. It’s more than getting even a part in a known musical that has already existed. Because of the fanbase of Harry Potter, there is so much expectation and weight, I think, especially for the original golden trio: Harry, Ron and Hermione.”

“Will you have this expectation put upon you?” Skelley asks. “And so in some ways, that part is freeing because you go, ‘Oh, I’m experiencing this, and Harry is experiencing this, and I can just live that truth of, yeah, there’s a lot of pressure. I think this is THE Harry Potter. This is how I am.’ And then those private moments, you get to explore those kind of deeper feelings. Those are, I think, hopefully universal feelings because I think all of us read the books and it’s impossible to not start to become one with those characters.”

Peeves is a ghost at the Hogwarts School who loves to cause mischief. When something weird happens during the show, the cast would call it the Peeves Show.

“So we do have shows where we call them Peeves shows,” Close tells Nerd Reactor. “So if you read the book, there’s a ghost called Peeves that is just looking to make mischief. This show is a living breathing thing and that’s what makes it beautiful is that you see like, ‘Ah!’ Something just happened. That reminds you that it’s real. But sometimes we have shows where there’s some sort of supernatural – poltergeist is trying to mess with our show, and honestly, sometimes that’s when it comes the most alive.

“Because I think it’s a common experiences as an actor like, ‘I flubbed a line,’ or ‘I feel like I miss something.’ Maybe it comes from ego, maybe it comes from some other source, but there’s this fire that’s lit in you and you’re like, ‘No, I will bring the resounding thunderbolt of truth onto this stage right now because I have to.’ Because of shame maybe. It shocks you awake.”

Tickets for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child are now available at the Pantages Theatre Hollywood. For more info, visit https://tour.harrypottertheplay.com/

The post Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Actors on National Tour and Pressures of Being in the Wizarding World appeared first on Nerd Reactor.

I saw the musical on opening night, and it had Carolee Carmello starring as Kimberly, a 16-year-old girl with a fictional disease that makes her age fast. She has an alcoholic father and a pregnant mother, and the family recently moved to a small town, making the titular character’s life challenging as she has to adapt to a new life as a teenager who looks like an older lady. Kimberly meets Seth, a teenage boy who is a social outcast with a heart of gold. They bond quickly and their relationship is sweet as they bond over anagrams and more.

Carmello captures the energy of a teenager along with their sense of adventure and curiosity. She is easily one of the best singers in the production, and it’s no surprise why she got the part. Miguel Gil as Seth is very friendly and delightful and is also a highlight of the show. Kimberly’s family includes Jim Hogan as Kimberly’s dad, Dana Steingold as Kimberly’s mom and Emily Koch as Kimberly’s Aunt Debra. Together, they complicate the title character’s life as flawed characters who try to make life easier for Kimberly. The other high school classmates are Grace Capeless as Delia, Sky Alyssa Friedman as Teresa, Darron Hayes as Martin, and Pierce Wheeler as Aaron, and they help bring life to the high school.

Yes, there was a moment that made me feel uneasy, but the way the show handled it was short and sweet. I was relieved by how the performers handled the romance plot with the big age gap behind the scenes.

The music of Kimberly Akimbo overall is fun and melodic, and there were some gems including Hogan’s speedy performance in “Happy for Her” and Koch’s hilarious performance in “How to Wash a Check.”

Kimberly Akimbo deals with a subject matter that can be depressing, but I believe there is a lot of hope and cheerfulness that helps balance things out. With the topic of a disease that makes someone age faster, I want to inform you that no, there is no sad ending. It has a happy ending and the musical is about finding happiness despite adversities. This should put those at ease who are watching the show and are dealing with something similar.

Kimberly Akimbo is now playing at the Pantages Theatre. Tickets are available at https://www.broadwayinhollywood.com/events/detail/kimberly-akimbo

Featured image credit: Carolee Carmello in the National Tour of Kimberly Akimbo. Photo by Joan Marcus.

The post Kimberly Akimbo Is a Hilarious and Sweet Musical That’s Part Robin Williams’ Jack and All Teen Dramedy appeared first on Nerd Reactor.