Director - Pull Quotes

Anyone who has seen Shane’s work as an actor or director, as I have several times, can immediately sense his devotion to serving the play. In this way, he carries on as a director the tradition of theater critic Eric Bentley, who judged direction, production, and acting based on how well they realized the vision of the playwright.

Definitely a must-see… Get thee to the production of Hamlet at MetropolitanPark... Performed on a sparse multi-leveled stage, there’s little pretension in this Theatre Jacksonville production.

…the bigger tragedy would be for you to miss it.

The songs do what musical numbers in stage shows are expected to accomplish but rarely do: articulate the transcendent, give form and meaning to the inexpressible … CPT’s Hedwig and the Angry Inch is a near-perfect production, a glorious unification of sound and spectacle, and a true example of theatre as raucous and spiritual Dionysian rite.

Lester Thomas Shane directs with the artistry of a Renaissance master employing a palette of emotions and shadows.

Lester Thomas Shane transforms the minimalist play about the sterility of contemporary relationships into a resonating work of art… Sweet Phoebe is a must-see satire of manners for the 90’s.

With a metaphorical monocle and whip, Shane’s direction is every bit as controlled and self-assured as the Clockwork master. With airtight precision he evokes the couple’s escalating nightmare.

Director Lester Thomas Shane well orchestrates the rapid, elliptical dialogue. It’s a treat to watch.

Let it be known that rarely has such an astonishing amount of talent appeared on one stage in one single production. The performances are nothing less than dazzling. Director Lester Thomas Shane has proven that a modern stage director can fully understand the emotions of Mr. Odets 1935 characters and then pull his actors together in an outstanding and totally engrossing work.

Lester Thomas Shane’s interpretation of Titus is affecting and impressive… Shane makes clear the savageness at the heart of the text. The whole production coalesces into an unrelenting flow of intensity…especially remarkable for the total absence of any cheap stage blood effects. The horror comes from the ideas, not the explicit carnage.

Director Shane opened Titus with a startling tableau… Displaying a masterful use of space, Shane created mesmerizing visual pictures that retained their force throughout the play … a powerful and emotional production.

A hilarious couple of hours of comedy. Mr. Shane keeps things moving briskly, and he has invented at least one very funny bit of business that yields a couple of minutes of sustained and genuine hilarity…cockeyed and off-balance..the spirit of Loot is sustained wholeheartedly throughout Mr. Shane’s exemplary production.