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Anima

April 29, 2008 By Janice Cane 1 Comment

  • anima.jpgAnima
  • By Christiaan Greer
  • Directed by Patrick Torres
  • Reviewed by Janice Cane

“You would never kill me, would you, Ella?” “You would never make me, would you, Vlad?” Ah, young love. Nothing like it. Certainly nothing quite like Ella’s and Vlad’s explosive relationship. Peacemaking after their violent fights consists of cutting themselves with knives, while bonding experiences usually involve hard drugs. All of this is conveyed in the first, quickly paced scene of Anima, the riveting debut production of the Doorway Arts Ensemble.

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The Helen Hayes Awards

April 29, 2008 By Lorraine Treanor Leave a Comment

hha-08.jpg 

Last night, The Helen Hayes Awards, Washington theatre’s most glamorous evening, was presented before a sold-out audience at the Warner Theatre.

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Filed Under: News Tagged With: Helen Hayes Awards, synetic theatre

Stephen Schwartz

April 28, 2008 By Joel Markowitz 1 Comment

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  • Stephen Schwartz on The Stephen Schwartz Project
  • Interviewed by Joel Markowitz

There was “magic to do” when Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz arrived at MetroStage for his first look at the premiere of The Stephen Schwartz Project. [Read more...]

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 Standard Podcast: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (2054)

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Judas Iscariot Revealed

April 26, 2008 By Tim Treanor Leave a Comment

judaspodcast.jpg

  • A conversation with actors Patrick Bussink, Jason McCool and dramaturg Hannah Hessel
  • Interviewed by Tim Treanor

What’s the hottest show in town? It could well be Forum Theatre’s The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, [Read more...]

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 The Last Days of Judas Iscariot: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (1116)

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Translations

April 26, 2008 By Rosalind Lacy 1 Comment

  • translations.jpgTranslations
  • by Brian Friel
  • Directed by Mark A. Rhea
  • Produced by Keegan Theatre 
  • Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy   

A knock-out punch is hard to see coming, but you know when you’ve been hit. Brian Friel’s Translations has that kind of riveting power so that you leave the theater reeling from its quaintly developed revelations. Keegan Theatre’s beautiful  restaging is a chance not to be missed. It’s a mesmerizing revival of director Mark A. Rhea’s 1997 Helen Hayes Award-nominated production.

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NYC Spring Trip

April 26, 2008 By Joel Markowitz Leave a Comment

Theatre Schmooze columnist Joel Markowitz blogs about the New York theatre scene.

SPRING THEATRE WEEKEND MARATHON

MARCH 28-30

Hosted by Joel Markowitz

SEE NEW YORK SHOWS IN A WHOLE NEW WAY

- No one knows New York, its theatre scene and restaurants like DCTS columnist Joel Markowitz. And he is inviting you to a show-filled spring weekend that includes great seats to 5 shows, cast meet and greets, dinner discussions, a Sunday jazz brunch, and more, all within easy walking from the Rado City Apartments in the heart of the theatre district.

The shows -

  • Sunday In The Park With George
  • South Pacific
  • In The Heights
  • Cry Baby
  • A Catered Affair

Don’t miss out on your chance to enjoy New York theatre in a whole new way.

For more information call Joel Markowitz at (703) 447-8805.

______________________________________________

USHERS THEATRE TRIP Nov 9-11, 2007

WHAT THEY SAW. WHAT THEY LIKED.

This weekend, Joel Markowitz and 21 Washingtonians went to NYC on the big Ushers theatre weekend. Each night Joel and a few of his guests recorded their impressions of what they saw.

We start with Friday night, Nov 9th

Doug Poms and Rosalind Lacy join Joel to talk about The Little Mermaid and The Farnsworth Invention

Listen here

Saturday afternoon

Rosalind Lacy and Joel differ on Radio City’s extravaganza, and discuss Glorious Ones and Frankenstein The Musical

Listen here.

Saturday

(not shown: The Receptionist and The Screwtape Letters)

Steve McNight recaps his week of shows

Listen here.

Sunday, the last day

Doug Poms, and Joel are joined by New Yorker Jay Poyerd as they talk about the last shows, and pick the most outstanding, and most disappointing shows of the weekend.

Listen here.

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The Coast of Utopia: Voyage
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It’s a 5 Musicals Weekend!
A bite of the big apple
From their weekend New York trip, Joel Markowitz, Debbie Minter Jackson and Gary McMillan give us a nightly review of some of the hottest shows on Broadway and Joel captures Stagedoor greetings.

Sunday, April 22nd In the Heights
It’s Sunday, Day 3, and Joel and Debbie have just seen the hit Off-Broadway show In the Heights. Listen in on their cab ride back to Broadway while they discuss the experience. “Vibrant!.” “It’s about getting away … and coming back to the block.” “Stunning choreography. Plenty of salsa. Arriba! Listen in here.

In the Heights actors send their greetings:

Andrea Burns (Daniela), Tony Falcon (Domingo), Janet Dacal (Carla), John Herrera (Kevin), and Nina Lafarga (Ensemble) Click here to listen.
Company
Gary McMillan has just seen his pick for the best of Broadway this year! It’s the simple but brilliantly conceived and staged Company, Barbara Walsh stopped the show with ‘Here’s to the Ladies Who Lunch.’ The usually unflappable Gary declared Raul Esparza’s performance “Astounding”, He and Joel agree Raul deserves to win the Tony. Listen in here.
Sunday evening, April 22nd: Spring Awakening
Joel’s marathon theatre weekend concluded with the one show almost guaranteed to get mixed reactions – Spring Awakening. Gary acknowledges that the audience went wild after every scene, but it just wasn’t for him. Debbie, who enjoyed the work of choreographer Bill T. Jones, found the stoic 19th century story juxtaposed with in-your-face rock music challenging. Joel, who has loved the show since before its transfer to Broadway, says it might take several listens to understand its brilliance. Listen in to hear what it’s like when they disagree.
Stagedoor greetings from: Skylar Astin (Georg) and Lauren Pritchard (Ilse), Director Michael Mayer (Director), Lilli Cooper (Martha), Brian Charles Johnson (Otto), Phoebe Strole (Anna), and Robert Hager (Understudy for Georg) Click here to listen.
The Final Number

It’s the big wrapup, their 11 o’clock song recorded after midnight Sunday night. So how did it all end? What were their favorite memories of the 6 New York musicals they covered for us this weekend?

For Debbie, it was Audra McDonald in 110 in the Shade, and the young cast of In the Heights. Gary tipped his cap to the standout performances by the ladies, and Joel did the same for his favorite men. Time for the final applause. Listen in here.

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The Screwtape Letters

April 25, 2008 By Tim Treanor 3 Comments

  • screwtape.jpgThe Screwtape Letters
  • Adapted by Jeffrey Fiske and Max McLean from a novel by C.S. Lewis
  • Directed by Jeffrey Fiske
  • Produced by the Fellowship for the Performing Arts at the Lansburgh Theatre
  • Reviewed by Tim Treanor

I respectfully recommend that you commit to memory the name of Karen Eleanor Wight. There will be a day, I predict, when every member of the theater-going public will know it, and on that day will use it as a reason to shell out a hundred bucks to see a show. It will be good for you to get in on the ground floor, and to see her before prices get astronomical. I mean no disrespect to the estimable writing team of McLean and Fiske – who are Screwtape and Director, respectively – or to their superb technical staff, but the best reason to see this production is Wight.

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Theatre Attendance is Declining. Tell Us Why.

April 24, 2008 By Lorraine Treanor 95 Comments

DC-area theatre lovers got some good news and some bad news this week.

The good news is that Washington, D.C. continues to be a robust theatre town. [Read more...]

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Seff on the London Scene

April 24, 2008 By Richard Seff 2 Comments

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  • LONDON CALLING :
  • The Vortex, Speed-the-Plow, God of Carnage, Billy Elliot, Brief Encounter, Gone with the Wind, some not to be missed London spots, and a visit with Emma Thompson

by NY Theatre Buzz columnist, Richard Seff

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Man of La Mancha

April 22, 2008 By Leslie Weisman Leave a Comment

  • savoyards1.jpgMan of La Mancha
  • Play by Dale Wasserman
  • Music by Mitch Leigh . Lyrics by: Joe Darien
  • Directed by Colin Hovde
  • Musical Direction by Shawn Burke-Storer
  • Choreographed by Stefan Sittig
  • Reviewed by Leslie Weisman

You don’t often get the chance to see a small local company put on a Broadway blockbuster that started life as a black-and-white TV show, inspired by a 16th-century novel whose cultural legacy still speaks to us in the 21st.  But for the next few days, you can see it on H Street.

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