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• Defending the Caveman
• by Rob Becker
• Performed and directed by Cody Lyman
• Produced by Theater Mogul and Nederlander of Bethesda
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy

On stage at the Bethesda Theatre, two prehistoric cave paintings serve as historic reminders that even though we think we’ve changed, our DNA programming hasn’t. One shows males hunting bison; the other, a naked female fertility goddess. (more…)

• A Body of Water
• by Lee Blessing                            
• Directed by Michael Ryan Fernandez
• Produced by Firebelly Productions
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy
• After seeing Firebelly’s spellbinding, well-polished production of Lee Blessing’s poetic play A Body of Water, I felt a hunger for human interaction. The edge-of-seat suspense kept me holding my breath until the last revelation. (more…)

  

• Agustín Lara: Boleros & Blues      
• Book by Gabriel Garcia; musically adapted by Mari Paz         
• Conceived and directed by Abel Lopez                                     
• Produced by the GALA Theatre at Tivoli Square
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy   

Who was Agustín Lara, known as Mexico’s musical poet? Worshipped by swooning fans as “Our Golden Skinny Man,” Lara wrote gorgeous, romantic ballads, or boleros, and lived the life of his lyrics-as a woman’s dream of a Latin lover. (more…)

• The Bridge of Bodies
• Written and performed by Kathleen Gonzales          
• Directed by Patrick Crowley                                     
• Produced by the Mead Theatre Lab at Flashpoint
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy   

Sounds of breaking waves and a projected image of surf washing on shore place us in a paradise of calm. A faint echo of voodoo drums sets us up for the cultural question: ‘What is your name? Not just the first but your last.’ (more…)

• Luisa Fernanda
• A Spanish Zarzuela  (light opera) in Three Acts
• Music by Federico Moreno Torroba . Libretto by Federico Romero and Guillermo Fernandez Shaw
• Directed by José Sacin                                     
• Produced by Zarzuela Di Si in collaboration with the Mexican Cultural Institute
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy   

Opening night at the Mexican Cultural Institute buzzed with excitement and anticipation. The grand staircase, lined with towering wall murals, invites you into Pan-American history. It’s a great venue for the charismatic baritone Josê Sacin, who is well-known locally in the Latino community as an opera singer with the stage presence of a lion and an impressive vocal range. (more…)

Volvió una Noche, She Returned One Night

• by Eduardo Rovner
• Directed by Mario Marcel                                     
• Produced by Teatro de la Luna
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy   

One reason I love to see plays at Washington D.C.’s Hispanic theaters is that I emerge renewed, as if I’ve traveled through a parallel universe.  Meet Eduardo Rovner, a multi-prize-winning Argentine playwright, whose 35 plays have been translated into many languages and produced internationally.  Thanks to Teatro de la Luna’s artistic director Mario Marcel we can experience the delicate balance between the real and the magical world of one of Rovner’s wonderful farces. Marcel’s passion for drawing out the best in his inspired and gifted performers has more than succeeded in bringing this comedy about a mother-son relationship to life.  She Returned One Night is so believable you’ll laugh your heart out and be filled with wonder.  (more…)

• Translations
• 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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• A View from the Bridge
• Written by Arthur Miller
• Directed by Daniel Aukin
• Produced by Arena Stage
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy   

A View from the Bridge is a must see. Great ensemble acting, the best and juiciest I’ve seen at Arena Stage, seamless production values .. it all works together like a well-tuned symphony. Start with the unsettling music composed by Michael Keck that warns like fog horns of a dangerous collision ahead. We don’t see the Brooklyn Bridge-that engineering marvel of an American Dream-but we sense its power. Just as we sense Eddie Carbone’s muscular energy.

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• Blood Wedding
• Written by Federico Garcia Lorca
• Directed by Hugo Medrano
• Choreographed by Danilo Rivera and Genoveva Guinn
• Produced by GALA Teatro Hispano
• Reviewed by Debbie Minter Jackson

Blood Wedding. The title tells the story.  No surprises, everything is literal, predictable, and straight forward, right?  Wrong.  Sure the basic storyline is clearly stated in the title and known in literature worldwide.  But, Federico Garcia Lorca’s poetry is an aural feast that must be experienced for the full effect.  GALA’s production of Blood Wedding is a mystical blend of Lorca’s beautiful imagery, authentic Andalusian music, undulating rhythms, even a dazzling taste of flamenco to assure the sizzle factor is caliente.  This show is hot. (more…)

• Bad Dates
• by Theresa Rebeck
• Directed by Lee Mikeska Gardner
• Produced by Olney Theatre Center
• Reviewed by Rosalind Lacy

“Oh, god, these things hurt,” referring to shoes in the opening lines of playwright Theresa Rebeck’s Bad Dates. Haley Walker, an almost 40, divorced mother, alone in her New York City digs, lives in a hyper-kinetic society, where feelings are trivialized and crushed. Gradually throughout this 90-minute play, we identify with this lady’s fetish for changing shoes as if she’s searching for her soul.

High heels, pumps and stilettos lurk everywhere like alter-egos. Stalwart amidst the hundreds of boxes, Haley tries them on, baring her soles and her soul, in a series of scenes framed by blackouts. (more…)