After reading your comments, I had second thoughts about my tickets, and boy am I glad that I went to see “Joseph.” This production epitomizes the sort of fresh perspective that Andrew Lloyd Webber intended when he wrote the score.

You thought that Potiphar as a Professional Wrestler was an “odd” interpretation. Yet one of the primary constituents of the audience – children – identified with this characterization. They might not have as readily indentified with the traditional role of Potiphar as a pyramid magnate – distracted by his accounting, and neglecting his spousal duties.

You wrote a review of an opera and never once mentioned the music. Philemon Tevis’s rendition of “Close Every Door” and “Any Dream Will Do” were masterful, and his warm, buttery tones left me wanting more. Further I found that you could watch him evolve as a character. When Donny Osmond performed this show, he portrayed Joseph as an arrogant individual, who after that little run-in with his brothers, felt justified to his arrogance. Philemon’s portrayal of Joseph starts as naive and doe-eyed, and after his rise to power, a definate Yul Bryner sort of confidence. Watch carefully, and you’ll see that same doe-eyed Joseph in the Finale, as he sings “May I return to the beginning”.

The cast features 11 additional brothers, each of whom exudes personality. When they come on stage, you hardly know where to look. The kids around me loved them – and I dare say – so did most of the adults.

This is a show that moves. It has energy. It will not disappoint you.

And yes, we are seriously reconsidering attending future dress rehearsals, and may only attend “real” performances. But unfortunately that would mean there will be some theaters that get cut out of the slight extra exposure we can give them. So, that’s a tough issue, and one we take seriously. We’re open to suggestions.

It’s an interesting issue you raise. Some reviewers do not ever attend a rehearsal for review. They will only attend a performance. That gets tricky since almost all community theater performances are Friday night, Saturday night or Sunday afternoon. There are a few exceptions locally (LTA, ESP, PCP, KAT. LMP), but if we adopted a policy of only reviewing performances, there would definitely be shows we would not be able to attend to review.

Another problem is getting photos of shows. I like that Port Tobacco lets press take photos at the press night rehearsal. If we attended a performance, we’d need to get “official” photos from Port Tobacco.