As a master of the movie musical, Bill Condon knows a certain truth about theatergoers. “Secretly, people love it. They love musicals, but they have to be permitted,” says Condon, who has brought to ...

And I love musical theater. So, it stands to reason that SAW The Musical—a mashup that fuses the grotesque 2004 cult horror film Saw with a campy song-and-dance spectacle—would be right up my alley.

Later this month, Santa Cruz Shakespeare will open its first musical since relocating into the woods of DeLaveaga Park. Fans of Stephen Sondheim are eagerly awaiting Santa Cruz Shakespeare’s ...