“Beaudry has a solid reputation for producing stunning renditions of plays and musical theater in our area. For over 65 productions at Timber Lake Playhouse, his visionary talent and uncompromising dedication to the craft have combined to deliver up some truly magical performances, catapulting the status of the Timber Lake Playhouse to one of the top spots on our area’s must-do [list].”
Pride & Prejudice, Long Wharf Theatre
“Before anyone’s even spoken, this production has made some grand statements: Social restrictions are boring. Life, and love, should be enjoyable. Everyone should be able to play. Get over yourself and have some fun.”
Sunset Boulevard, Timber Lake Playhouse
“Sunset Boulevard is a rather staggering achievement, so grandly designed and beautifully performed and thrillingly, deservedly confident […] with the almost criminally talented Beaudry at the helm, and a quartet of to-die-for principals leading a superb ensemble, [it] is a glorious good time.”
Heathers, Kokandy Productions at Theatre Wit
“… the Chicago premiere of the show, now at Theater Wit — where it has been superbly helmed by director James Beaudry — could not be better.”
“Director James Beaudry orchestrates his talented cast to level up on the absurdity. Beaudry doesn’t have them ‘poke’ fun at each other. He has them ‘clobber.’ Although ridicule leaves tender, gaping wounds, Beaudry’s healing powers provide a unified ending.”
Murder Ballad, Bailiwick Chicago
“A great environmental experience from director James Beaudry. If they can sing and dance and act this two inches from your face, you know they can do anything. […] You get the feeling that you’re there. You walk out after into the streets of Wicker Park, but it still feels like downtown Manhattan.”
“Director/choreographer—the two are inseparable in quarters as close as these—James Beaudry weaves the action through the audience to generate an intimacy necessitating, at one point, Amanda Horvath’s parading in spike heels atop a bench barely wider than an Olympic-regulation balance beam and, at another, bringing a knife-carrying Chris Logan within inches of spectators’ laps. … Highly Recommended.”
The Most Happy Fella, Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
“★★★★ This production, one of my favorites in many years of Theo Ubique musicals, is truly exceptional in its musical prowess and in its ebullient evocation of the uneasy sensuality that informs a show that is incredibly difficult to produce with this minimal level of resources. Most stagings of this work are concert-style treatments that explore the wild and crazy score … This is not one of those stagings.”
“… the production is free of any trace of cynicism, though it has plenty of humor in addition to emotional honesty. Without making any apologies, it takes you into that increasingly rare territory — the irony-free zone — and comes out a winner.”
The Big Meal, Timber Lake Playhouse
“The Big Meal deserves every superlative I can, and will, use to praise it. The forward progression of [Dan LaFranc’s] plot about the life of a couple from first meeting to final resting place is extraordinary, and Timber Lake Playhouse’s production does it justice. This is a presentation that tickles the funny bone, pulls the heartstrings, and turns on the waterworks. It is, quite frankly, emotionally stunning.”
Titanic, Timber Lake Playhouse
“Timber Lake Playhouse’s rendition of “Titanic” is sensational. Artistic Director James Beaudry, who both directs and choreographs this production, has created a stunning masterpiece … It is simply breathtaking—a true work of art.”
“One of the most complete musicals I saw in 2016. The set, lighting, and musical numbers were outstanding. Director James Beaudry’s cast and production team, meanwhile, did a terrific job touching on nearly every possible story element.”
Meet John Doe, Porchlight Music Theatre
“Beaudry’s direction builds its tension with consummate skill and his taut cast carves its dramatic arc in expressionist stone. From the opening moments, where the terror every newsman has for his job is quite palpable – to John Doe’s escape from his first public speech – the act is non-stop, smart and tough entertainment.”
West Side Story, Timber Lake Playhouse
“By its finale, director James Beaudry’s offering had morphed into one of the smartest, most impassioned versions of this legendary Bernstein/Sondheim/Laurents collaboration I’ve yet seen.”
Aspects of Love, Theo Ubique Cabaret Theatre
“… Applause for James Beaudry’s stunning, fearlessly executed choreography … .”