Photograph courtesy Kirk Sheppard
Counselor by day, film critic by night (and 2018 Northern Wrestling Federation Hall of Fame inductee), Kirk Sheppard sings the praises of Cincinnati theater on his Substack, The Sappy Critic, where he implores fellow thespians to support the arts. With a love for theater that stems back to the dramatics of wrestling and a love for piano-playing and singing, Sheppard’s various “hats” allow him to write multifaceted reviews of the best shows Greater Cincinnati has to offer.
Tell us about yourself and what brought you to Cincinnati.
I grew up on a farm in central Ohio and always loved music, but the only real place for me to do that was church. I moved to Cincinnati in 1996 to pursue a youth ministry major at Cincinnati Bible College. I changed majors to the Helping Professions and pursued my master’s which allowed me to sit for my counseling license.
Why make counseling your “day job?” Why not theater or wrestling?
Counseling people has always been my purpose, even with my side interests—which I think all align together to create some strange syzygy. The name “The Sappy Critic,” for example, alludes to the fact that when I started reviewing shows, if you could make me cry, you almost always got a good review. As a counselor, the cathartic release that theater brings is something I cherish, and I want everyone to experience the joy I feel when I’m moved by a production.
I started pro-wrestling in 1998, and got involved at the Northern Wrestling Federation [NWF] in 2000. I spent almost 18 years backstage and in the ring. During this time, wrestling was my main way of expressing myself.
The theatricality of pro wrestling is something I was always drawn to, so when I was finally exposed to traditional theater, I was hooked. And since I’ve always liked telling stories—whether as a “young author” in elementary school, the editor of my high school newspaper, or in the ring—playwriting seemed like a natural progression.
The Sappy Critic documents your love of theater and experience as a playwright and actor in Cincinnati. What inspired this Substack?
In 2010 I went to Kings Island and fell in love with a musical revue show in the Festhaus called Way Too Much TV. I went back to see it again and again and learned the performers were theater students at Wright State and UC’s College-Conservatory of Music, so I started attending their other performances and as my exposure grew, I found a home.
I’ve always been a writer, so reviewing theater seemed like a good way to ingratiate myself to the new world I was stepping into by giving them written praise. Writing about theater not only gives me a way to express my love for the artform, it helps inform others about the amazing productions and theater companies in Cincinnati.
Speaking of which, what’s Cincinnati’s theater scene like and how is it unique?
Robust! Most people are aware of Broadway in Cincinnati, and I think people know about Playhouse in the Park—if for no other reason than they grew up watching A Christmas Carol—but in Over-the-Rhine we have a “Theatre Row” now: Cincinnati Shakespeare Company at one end, Know Theatre at the other, and the Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati in between. We’ve got an amazing Children’s Theatre that features the best local talent. And across the river, The Carnegie in Covington is establishing itself as the go-to theater for musicals.
There are lots of other smaller theaters, like Falcon Theatre in Newport or Cincinnati Landmark Productions; there are new indie companies like One Off Productions; and, of course, university theater at institutions like Wright State, Miami University, NKU, Xavier, and even Mount St. Joe. My personal favorite is CCM’s musical theater; it’s regarded as one of the best programs in the country—students there graduate and sometimes go straight to Broadway or national tours. Cincinnati is still very underrated in the national landscape of “theater cities,” but people in New York and Chicago are paying attention for sure.
How do you select what shows to review?
I am on most press lists for the theaters in town. Since there has been a decline in arts coverage overall from print media, I think my work has become more valuable, so I try to see as much as I can. I try to support new works and I definitely have favorite playwrights, directors, and actors who I know won’t disappoint. I try to be as honest as possible in my reviews, without focusing on anything negative, because even if I didn’t like something, I still want every seat to be sold every night.
What was your favorite show in Cincinnati this year? Of all time? What performances are you looking forward to in 2025?
So far in 2024, my favorite show is Little Women. Vincent DeGeorge, the new chair of musical theater at CCM, staged it inside Household Books in Walnut Hills and it was brilliant and beautiful and surprising.
My favorite locally staged show of all time is an obscure piece from the 2014 Cincinnati Fringe Festival called Sarge. Kevin Crowley wrote the script and Christine Dye played the wife of a man accused of molesting young men. It was just her on stage, having a conversation with three different people, and watching her transformation from loyal denier to reluctant realizer of the truth absolutely wrecked me. This show truly embodied what it’s like to have my two worlds— theater and therapy—intersect.
Coming up in 2025, CCM will produce Hair in the spring, which should be stellar. The Carnegie is staging The Color Purple in June. In February, Cincinnati native playwright Theresa Rebeck will direct her play—straight from Broadway—I Need That at Ensemble Theatre.
Of course, I’m always hanging around the Cincinnati Fringe Festival, which happens for two weeks around Memorial Day, soaking it all in. And maybe I’ll have a new play to share with the world in 2025, too. We’ll see.
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