"Davey Morrison is, in my opinion, one of the great talents of Utah. In this production he played Ambitioso, the son of the duchess, and a plotting knave who is trying to take over the dukedom by arranging the deaths of his brothers. Morrison pranced about the stage with buoyant waggery, his precise physical comedy only matched by his mastery of the language. So magnetic was he that even as a side character who was found almost constantly at the side of his brother Supervacuo, I found my attention fixed on him. In one scene where he beats a hapless prison guard to a bloody pulp, he had me in stitches."
"Trippy...unpredictable...surreal...freaky...
amazing...sort of wonderful. An amazingly offbeat piece of writing that really hangs together. The dialogue is very strong throughout, the tale is lean and brisk, and the writer does a good job just keeping us in the moment. The result is imaginative and smart, and executed almost perfectly."
BLOOD OF ISRAEL
written by Davey Morrison
ROMEO & JULIET
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
"Davey Morrison played Romeo’s rival, Paris, with a humorous lisp that called attention to the humor in his lines rather than distracting from the wit already in Shakespeare’s dialogue."
- Julia Shumway, Utah Theatre Bloggers
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
"While many of the actors play several roles, I found great detail placed on making those transitions clear to the audience and a full investment into each character. Whether those were the foiled roles of Hipolyta and Titania by Alex Ungerman, or Davey Morrison's dramatic switches between Hermia (who oddly reminded me of mixture of a sixteen-going-on-seventeen year old girl and Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth) and Robin Starveling, I was delighted by the care that each actor took in crafting every role."
- Dave Mortensen, Utah Theatre Bloggers
RICHARD III
(Best Actor nomination, Utah Tony Awards)
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
"As the show’s protagonist, the dastardly Richard was played by Davey Morrison, whose crackling, impish energy engaged me from the start clear to the finish. He was a deliciously diabolical leading man, and I loved to hate him. Such is the magic of the charismatic villain that at one point he had the audience yelling, 'kill him,' one second and 'kiss him,' the next."
- Elise Hanson, Utah Theatre Bloggers
THE TAMING OF THE SHREW
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
"Morrison played Katharina 'the shrew' as a petulant imp whose wit and tantrums were a pleasure on their own, but whose comic flare shone all the brighter when paired against Sullivan’s booming-voiced lumberjack of a Petruchio."
- Julia Shumway, Utah Theatre Bloggers
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
"Davey Morrison infused his police chief Dogwood with an impish brand of physical humor."
- Julia Shumway, Utah Theatre Bloggers
HENRY IV, PART ONE
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
"As the iconic Sir John Falstaff, Morrison brought most of the humor to the play. Morrison was careful in crafting a Falstaff that was loveable in spite of (or perhaps because of) his many faults. Unlike all of the other characters in the play, whose actions flow out of their social class or place in history, Falstaff was a real, fully developed human being. Morrison showed that Falstaff’s cowardly actions during the battle or his disregard for the lives and needs of others are natural consequences of Falstaff’s philosophy in life."
- Russell Warne, Utah Theatre Bloggers
"Very clever...It got the most laughs of any show at the festival, thanks to the acting, directing and script. Kudos to everyone involved for giving the audience a clever premise and witty dialogue."
GALILEO
written by Bertolt Brecht
directed by Davey Morrison (co-directed by Bianca Dillard)
STORY PROBLEM
written by Davey Morrison
directed by Chase Ramsey
"Davey Morrison's tight direction and mastery of aesthetics made the entire play a feast for the senses."
"Davey Morrison directed a beautiful production of Bertolt Brecht‘s Galileo in a small stone-walled room attached to the Provo Castle Amphitheater. A raised, circular stage doubled as a chalk board where Galileo (played by Barrett Ogden) fervently drew astronomical figures. A chorus of cast members provided exposition as well as interludes via song, choreography, and audience interaction. Morrison made subtle changes in lighting to set the tone for each scene. And the neutral black shirts and pants the actors wore beneath changing costume pieces helped the production to feel like more of an exploration of the conflict between scientific discovery and dogma than simply a historical exposition."
- Julia Shumway, Utah Theatre Bloggers
“Very smart...a really funny and refreshing take on the vampire formula...Even with the slapstick humor, it really does give you an uplifting and positive message about growing up and learning from consequences.”
- Slamdance Film Festival
"A fresh, new concept for a horror film...well-written and complex...unique, hilarious, fun twists, clever, satisfying. The characters are delightful!"
"Surprisingly heartfelt for a film that is so gleefully silly at times - it just works. Everything is where it's supposed to be, and the script moves briskly...the dialogue is tight and actable...but it's the gleeful absurdity of the concept and the place it goes that really makes this shine. You will not see the twists in this one coming."
“Davey Morrison as Kilroy is a comic gem.”
AN OAK TREE
Sackerson
BEN & THE ART OF REGRET
written by Davey Morrison
DON'T DRINK THE WATER
Hale Center Theatre
AS YOU LIKE IT
Hale Center Theatre
"Davey Morrison and Tyler Harris play the Duke’s second and third sons Ambitioso (an ambitious and ruthless chap) and Supervacuo (a total goofball) and provide some comic relief in this rather dark, gruesome play. I’ve seen Morrison and Harris work together many times and their synergy and timing really is perfection."
"Wide shots, while capturing the beauty of nature, also isolate the couple and underscore how vulnerable and alone they are. In a series that's all conversation, the world speaks for itself."
- Michael McFall, The Salt Lake Tribune
THE REVENGER'S TRAGEDY
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
ADAM & EVE
written by Davey Morrison
produced and directed by
Davey Morrison & Bianca Dillard
THE MERCHANT OF VENICE
The Grassroots Shakespeare Company
Davey MORRISON
"On the afternoon I attended, Morrison received information pertinent to his role in various ways. First, Ogden would simply tell Morrison where to stand and what to say, frequently asking a question and providing the answer which Morrison would verbally mimic. In each case, Morrison infused character and emotion into these one-word responses, somehow adding a nearly tangible charge to the syllables. In longer, dialogue-heavy scenes, Ogden handed Morrison a clipboard with the lines for the scene highlighted. While technically this qualifies in the theater world as a 'cold read,' there was absolutely nothing cold about these moments...For example, when under the Hypnotist’s power, the Father was instructed to play the piano. Morrison was so attuned to a track of music he had never heard that his fingers mimicked the runs and trills only fractions of a second after they had sounded."
"The climax is heart-rending. You must not miss it. It is the most moving moment of any I have seen from Grassroots, and Morrison deserves all the credit.
“Davey Morrison (usually in the TThS cast) deserves special mention, as he takes on the role of Le Beau, as well as numerous animals. He is so uninhibited.”
"A stellar performance by Shylock actor Davey Morrison...a very powerful take on Shylock...During Shylock’s famous 'Hath not Jews eyes' soliloquy, Morrison engaged the audience with questions...Morrison's choice to actively question the audience and expect their answer before he moves on makes the audience another guilty party for agreeing with his revenge. Because of the attention the audience was compelled to pay to the characters, the political and moral implications of the show shone more brightly than they ever would have if this play had been presented in any other fashion.
One of the most powerful scenes in the play is when Shylock is forced to convert to Christianity. The amphitheater fell silent as Morrison, on his knees, slowly took off his yarmulke and Star of David scarf and was forced to wear the Christian cross instead. It was an uncomfortable moment as the sheer wrongness of the scene penetrated me. As Morrison left the stage silently, with nothing, it seemed even more wrong that the show just continued to go on as every other character received a happy ending."
- Raven Rodriguez, Utah Theatre Bloggers
"I was inspired by the quality of the production [and] moved by the humor and realness of the characters."
- Ashmae, By Common Consent
"A post-Edenic rom com? Well, think about it. It’s the perfect set-up: What happens when your meet-cute moment is discovering you’re one of only two people on earth? And that the ultimate arranged marriage has already been divinely ordained for you — and you’re not even sure you’re attracted to this other person? I found the first episode charming and unexpectedly funny."
- Jana Riess, Flunking Sainthood
Davey Morrison © 2013