Weathervane Playhouse

My boyfriend brought me here as a surprise for our date night. We saw Les Miserables. It was excellent! The set was great, the actors were just wonderful and the evening was one for the memory books! By intermission we were already looking forward to coming back for another show. They have stadium seating and capacity is roughly 300. They had a concession booth with very frozen yogurt that was good. Restrooms are located in the other building that is adjoined by a covered walkway.

I will admit Newark is a bit of a schlep, taking upwards of 45 minutes from the east side of Columbus to arrive at this theater disguised as a barn. There is good theater going on within city limits all summer– some of it in the great outdoors where you can soak up summer breezes. Why would you venture behind 270? As it turns out, there is good reason to do so and your drive will be worthwhile!
I must reveal that my assessment of the current run of The Sound of Music is biased. My little cousin is playing one of the Von Trapp children. Not only am I happy for her to have this opportunity, but also happy for me to have come across a reason to make the trek to Weathervane, so that I now see why this theater sells out its shows. It is easy to locate, much cleaner than an actual barn ;), concessions are tasty (including Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams), staff is friendly, and their website makes ticketing a breeze. It’s actually worth the extra $ 2 charge they tack on because the website is user-​friendly, you can see what seats are available and select where you would like to sit, and highly preferable to Ticketmaster. But if you’re shelling out $ 26 to see a show, you’d probably like to hear about the production itself…
This being the first musical I have seen, I will an only extrapolate that they are all at the impressive level of The Sound of Music, which I saw opening night. The acting and singing ranged from an «A» to a «B+» with some performers demonstrating Broadway-​caliber skills. There is also a youth theater program at the Weathervane, which I have not seen, but I imagine they must be training them right considering the strength of the performance the 7 youngsters gave. Choreography and costuming went beyond what is expected in regional theater. Sets and lighting were simple, but creative and proficient in helping tell the story and take the audience into pre-​WWII Austria. The accompaniment was live, which is appreciated, and featured mostly keyboard and a small orchestra. Proper amplification, mixing, and acoustics made it easy to understand lyrics, both spoken and sung.
This may have been my first trip to the Weathervane, but it won’t be my last. With or without a cute little cousin up on stage.