The Seattle Star

There is a lot about The Half Brothers’ Old Time Variety Show, the Seattle-based bluegrass trio’s recent late night production at Annex Theatre, that evokes the spirit of Woody Guthrie, the late folk singer. For their part, the trio balance their fond homage to “old-timey music” with a healthy amount of modern sensibility.

As director Corey McDaniel notes in his introduction, Joseph MoncureMarch’s poem The Wild Party was originally banned for its “exploration of pleasure, sex, decadence, violence, race, prohibition and all that pushed the boundaries of society.” The Sound Theater Company production of the musical based on this work does not shy away from most of it.