My first experience with Lakewood Playhouse's production of 12 Angry Men began as I took my seat. To do so, I was led across the stage - passing by a table littered with scraps of paper, ashtrays, and discarded paper cups - to my section, which happened to sit right next to an old-fashioned municipal washroom. Twelve chairs surround the table, and the audience surrounds the chairs. 12 Angry Men's set design announces its intentions immediately and without mistake: as an audience, we are made to be conscientious observers, to judge these jurors as they judge a murder. It's an intriguing way to view this show, and it's one of the things that this production gets absolutely right.

Read Rev. McKinney's full review of 12 Angry Men in the Music & Culture section.

12 ANGRY MEN, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, through March 16, pay what you can 8 p.m. Feb. 27, Lakewood Playhouse, 5729 Lakewood Towne Center Blvd., Lakewood, $19-$25, 253.588.0042