ATC cooked up a good-lookin' Hank Williams musical biography, starting with the miracle of Hank's birth and going all the way to his death in the backseat of a car, his body laced with substances that didn't belong there. It's a too-familiar tale, but in Hank's case, he managed to take enough time out from self-destruction to transform "hillbilly music" into something that could move anybody, even if they'd never eaten squirrel brains. ATC's production featured a boyish, sincere lead performance by Van Zeiler, fine singin' and pickin' all around, and a show that was much better than your standard jukebox musical.
Runners up:
2. Les Miserables, Broadway in Tucson, www.broadwayintucson.com
3. Mamma Mia, UApresents, www.uapresents.com
Well, get off your ass, dammit, vote: "Didn't see one"