Brett Spahr

Local theater companies and fans came out for the 2022 Cloris Awards Ceremony, the first time it was held at the Jamie Hurd Amphitheater in West Des Moines. See the list of winners here!

After skipping a year, the seventh (almost) annual Cloris Awards will honor eight local theater companies that produced 33 shows during the 2021-2022 season.

The Des Moines Playhouse will continue to offer children’s classes in-person and online this spring including a Spring Break camp. The theatre has classes for students in preschool through grade 8, beginning Mar. 27, 2021.

The Des Moines Playhouse is continuing to offer children’s classes in-person this winter while also offering other classes exclusively online. The theatre has classes for students in preschool through adults, beginning Jan. 9, 2021.

 The Des Moines Community Playhouse held the 2020 Dionysos Awards, virtually, on Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020. The theatre honored eight backstage, guest services, and education volunteers, and announced eight acting awards. The evening began with a number from the theatre's Celebration of the Century, held on Nov. 2, 2019, and concluded with a song from 2018 Dionysos Award double-recipient, Blake Clyde.

Join The Des Moines Playhouse for the 2020 Dionysos Awards at 7:00 PM on Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020. This year's awards are virtual, with a video available on The Playhouse's website, YouTube channel, and Facebook page.

The Des Moines Playhouse is welcoming students back into the theatre for classes this fall while also offering other classes exclusively online. The theatre has six classes for students in preschool-grade 12, beginning Oct. 10, 2020.

What do you get when you cross a classic holiday movie with the Oscar, Tony, and Grammy award-winning team of Pasek and Paul? You get ”A Christmas Story: The Musicalal” playing as this year's holiday classic at Des Moines Playhouse. While this may be the second version of ”A Christmas Story” opening this weekend, this review will not be a comparison of the two.

The Des Moines Community Playhouse presents the family holiday classic, A Christmas Story, The Musical, Dec. 6-23, 2019. Tickets may be purchased online at dmplayhouse.com, by phone at 515-277-6261, or at the Playhouse ticket office, 831 42nd St. A Christmas Story, The Musical is sponsored by Corteva Agriscience.

Imagine finding out you have been living poor your whole life, only to find out you are part of the wealthiest family in your area. How far would you go to get your hands on part of that money? a?oeA Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder,a?? the first presentation of this season at Des Moines Playhouse presents this thought out to the audience. They do this by presenting the case of Monty Navarro. Is he guilty though? That is answered in the first few minutes of the show playing through September 29.

The Des Moines Community Playhouse presents the Tony Award-winning musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Sept. 6-29, 2019. Tickets may be purchased online at dmplayhouse.com, by phone at 515-277-6261, or at the Playhouse ticket office, 831 42nd St. A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder is sponsored by Infomax Office Systems.

Join the Des Moines Community Playhouse for the 2018-19 Dionysos Awards on Sunday, Oct. 14, 2018. The Dionysos Awards celebrates the contributions of more than 750 individuals, giving 55,000 hours annually as actors, backstage crews, and guest services volunteers.  

From Harry Houdini, to baseball, to Booker T. Washington, to the American Dream, Des Moines Playhouse's production of Ragtime covers a lot of ground - ten years to be exact. In presenting an encyclopedic glance of these ten years from 1902 - 1912, the musical, with book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and music by Stephen Flaherty, slowly becomes a big ball of dense nostalgia with glimpses of heart every now and then. But that seems to be a bigger problem with the intent of the show to nicely wrap up ten years of history in under three hours rather than The Des Moines Playhouse's production. Yes, The Des Moines Playhouse's production (directed by John W. Viars)  is grand, beautiful, heartfelt and absolutely delicious to listen to, which makes it an excellent season closer for the company as they head into their 100th season and a renovated theatre.

The Des Moines Community Playhouse presents 'Ragtime,' Apr. 6-29, 2018. Tickets may be purchased online at dmplayhouse.com, by phone at 515-277-6261, or at the Playhouse ticket office, 831 42nd St. 'Ragtime' is sponsored by Des Moines Radio Group.

Although Urbandale Community Theatre's dedication to producing classic shows may be safer than putting on contemporary pieces, a classic must be done in a fresh way in order to convince the audience that the show must be seen. This production remains fresh enough to receive that seal of approval and entertains in spite of certain scenes that slow down the action. I will say that I wish Urbandale Community Theatre would sometimes be riskier in its selection of show, but Guys & Dolls convinces me enough that classics are here to stay.

The Des Moines Community Playhouse held the 2017 Dionysos Awards on Sunday, July 23. The theatre honored 21 backstage, front-of-house, and education volunteers, and announced 10 acting award winners.

Join the Des Moines Community Playhouse for the 2016-17 Dionysos Awards on Sunday, July 23. The Dionysos Awards celebrates the contributions of more than 1,700 individuals, giving 77,000 hours annually as actors, backstage crews, and front-of-house volunteers.  

It is a known fact that any cold heart can be warmed by a seven foot mute monster in tap shoes singing Irving Berlin's "Puttin' on the Ritz". If you happen to be a fan of Mel Brooks' film Young Frankenstein, you already know this. But, if you happen to be like me and have never seen the iconic film, you need to go see The Des Moines Playhouse's production of Young Frankenstein immediately.

The Des Moines Community Playhouse presents "The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein,' Mar. 17-Apr. 9. Tickets may be purchased online at dmplayhouse.com, by phone at 515-277-6261, or at the Playhouse ticket office, 831 42nd St.

The Des Moines Community Playhouse held the 2016 Dionysos Awards on Sunday, July 24. The theatre honored 15 backstage, front-of-house, and education volunteers, and announced eight acting award winners. The evening was bookended by musical performances from the Performance Academy cast of 'Disney's Camp Rock,' with public performances Aug. 5-6, and the cast of 'Rock of Ages,' on stage now through Aug. 7.