The Ringwald Theatre

Love the Ringwald. Small, intimate and hilarious. Get there early so you can snag the purple couch and get cozy for the show. I also love to grab a glass of wine at Dino’s next door before or after…

Best. Theatre. Evar. I have never had a bad time at The Ringwald, and I have often laughed so hard that tears ran down my face. The Bad Seed, Book of Liz, Making Porn, and serious plays too such as The Whale, Streetcar and Into the Woods. Handcrafted theater, made to order, always a pleasure

Been coming here fairly regularly since they opened. Consistently quality performances but sometimes the material if a little weak. ‘Into the Woods’ our favorite having seen it both opening night and then closing night with a large group of friends. They do a lot with a small space and limited resources. Highly recommend!

Great little theater with funny shows. We came in on a Monday night to watch a little show it was great. Funny. The only bad part is how uncomfortable the chairs are.

10 naked men!
HI yes I said that and it was awesome. I got the full monty and loved it!
How could you not love the Ringwald?
I love the local arts kind of scene here in Metro Detroit its so diverse and The Ringwald never disappoints.
You guys need to go… see a show grab a date grab your friends go alone its totally worth it!
Support our local artists!

i’ve been for a couple different shows now, both comedies and dramas, and i find the small company puts on a great show. the space is perfect for an intimate feel. i don’t know if they always offer this, but multiple times i have went they had refreshments of the alcoholic nature.
they really do a lot with that tiny stage. the props and backdrop change change easily in most of the shows. its definitely worth a night out.
love, juston

One of the best theatre’s in Detroit, the Ringwald offers so much variety from comedy to drama their shows are always worth seeing!

This place is great for a night of a different kind, if your bored of the movies and want to try something on the creative fun side… this is your place. Great cast of people, cute spoof~like shows that teeter on the quirky side. Support the Arts … Word of caution, with only about 80 seats this place fills up fast so it would be wise to get tickets in advance.

My friend and I were in the mood to go to a play and The Ringwald Theatre was the only place with a show on the Saturday of a Memorial Day weekend. We got tickets to watch «August: Osage County». The theatre is tiny and the setting is very up close and intimate — we experienced the play as though we were in it, playing a part, rather than as audience — my ideal local live theater experience!

The Ringwald is a great little theater venue… I would be surprised to find out that it seats 80 patrons even. The stage is small but easily visible form every seat in the house, the sound is good. Basically, it’s a simple, pleasant venue. Lighting and sound are simple, but well-​done.
The play I watched…“Making Porn”…was definitely a bit scandalous, and clearly gay themed. It was overall quite funny and well done. The actors were generally quite skilled, especially for semi-​pro theater.
Tickets are cheap, the theater is intimate, so this is clearly a fun way to spend an evening in a happening and exciting neighborhood.

Love this place. It’s the best place for often-​bawdy local theater on the cheap. I’ve seen several productions there. My first was «Debbie does Dallas, the musical.» I’ve been sold ever since.
The place is small, but the acoustics are great. You’ll often see the same cast members in different productions. This is not a bad thing, as they are generally quite talented. Go to Dino’s, which is right next door, for drinks before and after!

When Hedwig strutted out in her translucent, swishy taffeta skirt and decried the Ringwald as a cheap storefront theatre, we all laughed. But I make a point to never trust the opinion of East German transvestites about theatre venues for good reason. Two words: Soviet architecture.
Chances are you’ve strolled by the Ringwald Theatre on the way to other venues along Woodward Avenue, like the WAB or Como’s. Situated inside the large white Ferndale office building, the front curtained windows allude to a secret world isolated from the fabulous crowds. Coy glimpses might come through the open doors where lines queued for their chance to escape from sultry summer nights or humdrum, day to day routines.
The Ringwald is a venue I’ve meant to visit practically since coming to Ferndale, and the Unilocal!Culture Club finally afforded me the opportunity for a première debut of «Hedwig and the Angry Inch.» The Ringwald may not be the size of the Detroit Opera House or the Fox. Productions might not have the budget of the Chicago Theatre. A passionate, committed staff and brilliant, sometimes ludicrous performers bring out the joie de vivre of theatre, striking to the soul, pulling you along without sacrificing quality.
Perfectly suited for our lovely, artsy community, the excellent choice of «Hedwig» transformed the interior black box-​style theatre into a stage for Hedwig, who in classic Eddie Izzard-​esque transvestite style, looked better in a bustier and heeled boots than girls often do. A dedicated set crew flung up lame and sequin-​spangled bolts on the walls, and the projected images showed montages of music videos and stills to support the play in one long, glorious act. A few technical difficulties hardly interrupted upon a fascinating show, which featured plenty of audience interaction and laughter. The intimacy of the space works greatly in the Ringwald’s benefit to draw in even reluctant viewers. About my only complaint was a distinct need for earplugs (for sale for $ 1, if you didn’t bring them), but I was sitting second row, center.
Why do I love Detroit and her suburbs? Reasons like the Ringwald. Intimate places flower with creativity and flourish in the loving embrace of their surrounding community. The Ringwald is for Ferndale, by Ferndale, of Ferndale; so many other sites also benefit from this wholesome symbiosis. My first flirtation satisfied my curiosity and deepened the enchantment out of puppy love into something more matured, like a good wine.
I want my second taste.
And I want Hedwig’s sexy tresses, dammit.
Thank you, Ringwald, and thank you, Annette!

This place is cool! I saw Hedwig and the Angry Inch (fantastic show, by the way — I definitely recommend seeing it) and although the theater isn’t large, it has good acoustics and the stage is set high enough that even though it doesn’t have stadium seating, everyone would probably be able to see the entire stage. I’ll definitely be checking out Angels in America when the production begins!

Great theatre feel, wonderful talent and i have found myself laughing or crying at every performance — usually laughing! At times i have felt like part of the performance.
Because of it’s location (9 & Woodward) there are plenty of options for a drink or dinner before or after the show as well.

We’ve seen many of the shows and have always been amazed at the talent and work of these folks!
Anne Frankenstein was one of the funniest things I have ever seen in my life. Killer Joe was disturbing and incredibly well done!
You don’t need a huge theater or vast production values and lavish special effects. You need actors with talent and good scripts telling stories with characters that people care about.
One of the best kept secrets of Metro Detroit!

My girlfriend suffers from a distinct case of wanderlust. So when we were driving around one Saturday and she declared «I want to do something different. Take me out of town for an adventure.» my first thought was «How about gay 1980’s sitcom parody in fashionable Ferndale?»
I think I was surprised how immediately she took to the idea. So we headed to the Ringwald for «Thank You for Being a Friend,» the unofficial Golden Girls musical parody. I can’t tell you what a home run this turned out to to be. We laughed until it hurt.
The theater is small, but that just ensures no bad seats. I’ll never know why Ann Arbor or other communities don’t have more small companies like this, because we had such a good time, we can’t wait to go back.

I went here with a friend on a Monday night and as black box theaters go it wasn’t too bad. The right show would make the space not matter at all. In comparison 1515 Broadway is much larger and has better lobby-​ness, ha! Maybe it was the play that taints my review. We saw «Seinfeld on Crack» I don’t remember honestly what it was called. Some story about people in Hollywood in the 80s doing lots of drugs and ranting about shit that addicts rant about when they have no life. The dope they were smoking was real too which didn’t enhance the over the top ranting…
A better play without the «Special Effects» would get a better review.

We had the chance to see Book of Liz (by Amy & David Sedaris) and all I could think was «these people are REALLY TALENTED!»
It’s a very small theater, literally it’s a big room with a small stage and as many chairs as they can cram into it. No assigned seats, so if you care about sitting with your date, arrive early! Especially on Monday nights when tickets are half price, the place is packed. Anyway, I’ve seen some crappy community theater in much fancier venues, but the actors & crew members of Who Wants Cake? are deeply devoted to putting on a great show. I’ve seen people with less talent on SNL and MadTV, these actors are FANTASTIC. Clearly the Ringwald is their home; they’re very proud to be there and they really give their all!
I had to knock off a star, because even though Book of Liz was only a 90 min show with no intermission, they kept everyone there for a «treat» called Anne Frankenstein. It was an all-​singing bit of comedy but wasn’t very funny. At that point my husband and I both had to pee and were about desperate to get back to Dino’s for a cold beer. But nobody else left, and we didn’t want to be rude, so we were trapped. It was only about 20 minutes but seemed like much longer. Sorry guys.
I still say they have awesome talent there and I would go back in a heartbeat!

The Ringwald Theatre and the folks at Who Wants Cake? Theatre Company have a great little space in downtown Ferndale and are creating some of the best shows around. These guys routinely show that they can be zany and campy (Debbie Does Dallas The Musical) and edgy and groundbreaking (Trainspotting & Three Days of Rain).
WWC? and The Ringwald routinely prove that Detroit Theatre is vibrant and alive and well worth checking out, and as good as you’ll find in the blackbox theatres of Chicago or New York.
Go visit their website and check out their next show. You’ll be glad you did. PLUS… their location makes parking once and going to dinner and a show at a wide variety of restaurants and bars one of the most fun & convenient nights in metro Detroit!