“Chuck Smith’s irrepressibly jubilant production is a true stunner … this initially charming, cozy two-hander seems to explode with newfound vigor and purpose.” - RC Reader
Directed by Chuck Smith
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Vivid and hypnotizing … a poignant reminder of what brings us together and what tears us apart … This musical has backbone and doesn't back down in the slightest.” - Mirror Democrat
Directed by Lili-Anne Brown
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“A spiky melodrama with the soul of a thriller, An Inspector Calls is a first-rate guessing game … Theatrical mysteries of this sort live or die on the strengths of their actors, … and Smith, whose stage compositions are beautifully rendered, has a humdinger cast.” -RC Reader
Directed by Chuck Smith
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“ … the music of [John] Denver always struck a chord of enlightenment in my heart, and that's exactly what happened again. … a high-energy journey through some of the more challenging times in American history, and in utilizing the deep and joyful music of America's greatest folk singer … Almost Heaven is the closest thing I've found to a time machine.” - RC Reader
Directed by Courtney Crouse
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Sensational. … the staging reaches out into the audience and overhead into the creaking catwalks, sucking the audience completely into this psychological thriller.” - Mirror Democrat
Directed by Cody Jolly
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Timber Lake Playhouse's production of Sweet Charity features the single most electrifying, exhilarating dance number I've ever seen on a stage. I'm well aware of what a sweeping and potentially exaggerated generalization that statement is, and almost hesitate in making it … But I'll say it again: Sweet Charity features the single most electrifying, exhilarating dance number I've ever seen on a stage.” - RC Reader
Directed by Lili-Anne Brown; Original Fosse choreography set by Sawyer Smith
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Rolling in the aisles hilarious… also a visual wonder. I eagerly anticipated each of costume designer Emma O'Dell's looks for these characters, as her ensembles are rather modest and realistic, and not remotely costume-y. Benjamin Lipinski's set, with its mostly floor-to-ceiling farmhouse windows, is art-gallery-worthy.” -RC Reader
Directed by Stephen Schellhardt
“Unspeakably beautiful. … Without the use of spoken word to guide the story, body language and positioning have to be a driving force … I’ve not seen a better example anywhere of how to portray emotion with dance.“ -Mirror Democrat
Directed by Courtney Crouse; Choreographed by Cameron Turner and Tim Wessel
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Chuck Smith, a Chicago theater legend … has a remarkable ability to bring out the best from performers in his productions. He has done it again. … it is a tour de force.” -Sauk Valley Media
Directed by Chuck Smith
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Mesmerizing … with one of the finest ensembles this theater in the woods has seen in its 50 years.” - Sauk Valley Media
“Nathan Dahlkemper's set - with an evocative growth of leafless trees surrounding the titular grill - is a miracle of finely detailed mise-en-scène. Looking every bit the 50-year-old edifice it's described as … Dahlkemper's playing area feels lived-in and full of character (it practically is a character), which makes it a perfect match for director Matthew Teague Miller's exquisite septet of performers.” -RC Reader
Directed by Matthew Teague Miller
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“The perfect storm of hilarious, fast-paced comedy.” - Journal Standard
Directed by Derek Bertelsen
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“The cast has it all. Act, sing, and dance, they give everything that an audience could ask for. … A production that makes the audience jump to its feet!” - Sauk Valley Media
Directed & Choreographed by Will Taylor, based on Michael Bennett’s original staging
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“The actors, at times, fluidly and beautifully break the fourth wall to pluck an instrument out of thin air and play a song … moving between our world and theirs as if by magic. … Theatre, for me, is a spiritual experience, and this Big River served as a big-tent revival that reminded me of that truth.” - RC Reader
Directed by Courtney Crouse
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Devastatingly hilarious … a constant coke-fueled delight … particularly brilliant staging …” - RC Reader
Directed by Brigitte Ditmars; Choreographed by Jon Martinez
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Romantic, sentimental and nostalgic … and a great cast of actors to bring this family to life.” -Mirror Democrat
Directed by Chuck Smith
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“Ridiculously hilarious … jaw-dropping singing and dancing … An amazing show that is going to keep people talking for a very long time.” -Mirror Democrat
Directed by Derek Bertelsen
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
“There's magic in the Timber Lake Playhouse's Peter Pan that reached my inner child and set him dancing … with this show's fantastic performances, design, and imaginative staging. Even knowing that Rosie Upton's title character would fly, I still got chills when scenic designer Benjamin Lipinski's grand windows were flung open and the forever-young boy floated through them.” -RC Reader
Directed & Choreographed by Zachary L. Gray
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
Directed by Lili-Anne Brown
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
Directed by Jess McLeod
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director
Directed by Courtney Crouse
Timber Lake Playhouse
James Beaudry, Artistic Director