By: Tim Treanor The Heiress, Olney Theater Center Reviewing a show like Olney Theater’s The Heiress presents almost insurmountable difficulties. The purpose of a review is to describe a play’s successes and failures, evaluate them against each other, and come to a reasoned conclusion about the worth of the enterprise. For The Heiress, there are […]
Archives for February 25, 2006
Three For One
Over at Curtain Up you can read 3 good reviews of This Lime Tree Bower, The Story and Carrie Potter and the Half-Blood Prom. Check them out by clicking here
This Lime Tree Bower
Come on in and sit around the table with Dan Brick, Eric Lucas and Joe Baker.. Let them tell you an Irish tale full of laughs and fine lessons learned; storytelling is something these lads are very, very good at. These three actors take this play by Conor McPherson and turn it inside out, upside […]
Death and Life
By: Ronnie Ruff Death and The King’s Horseman WSC Death and The Kings Horseman written by Wole Soyinka is thought by many to be his greatest work but it is rarely produced in the United States. The play is an aggressive venture for WSC but they historically have made it a point to choose plays […]
By Love Possessed: The Dybbuk
By: Tim Treanor The Dybbuk TheaterJ – Synetic Theater So: what did you think a collaboration between Theater J and Synetic Theater would be like? After all, the coolly cerebral Theater J has staged productions about the German philosopher Martin Heidegger (Hannah and Martin) and about religious debates against the backdrop of the Inquisition (The […]
Words That Fly
By: Ronnie Ruff Eleemosynary Catalyst Theater Spelling Bees, flying children and the joy of articulate vernacular are all part of the simple diversion that is Lee Blessing’s Eleemosynary. This is a story of three bright women; a mother, daughter and grandmother and the ties that bind them together. There is nothing traditional about these women or their […]
Midwives, an exploration of gray
By: Ronnie Ruff Midwives Round House Sometimes during a life threatening illness people feel the need to unburden their conscience of past mistakes and transgressions. Enter Midwives, the latest production from Bethesda’s Round House Theatre. The play is adapted from the Oprah Book Club selection, written by Chris Bohjalian and adapted for the stage by Dana […]
Dream Theatre
Velvet Sky Reviewed by Debbie Minter Jackson Who hasn’t had an occasional bout of insomnia, hint of paranoia, or fear of things that go bump in the night? Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa’s Velvet Sky explores all of these psychological elements in the context of an American family with serious and strange issues. From the first magical moments […]
Less Is More
By: Ronnie Ruff Driving Miss Daisy NobleHeart Repertory Company One of the wisest things a small theatre company can do and one of the hardest lessons to learn is not to over reach. It is far too easy to forget the limitations that come with a modest budget and smaller stage. Failure to heed this […]
Zelda Returns To Arena – Something To Sing About
By: Ronnie Ruff Awake and Sing—Arena Stage It is easy to understand Zelda Fichandler’s love of Clifford Odets’ Awake and Sing currently mounted at Arena Stage. Awake and Sing is the story of two generations, one who has accepted the “American Dream” of values and hard work that seems to have failed them and the younger […]
Not Dead Yet
By: Ronnie Ruff Death Of A Salesman Arthur Miller’s Death Of A Salesman is often called the first great American tragedy and is as compelling today as it was fifty years ago. It is the next production to be mounted by Keegan in a season that started with three Tennessee Williams plays. Helen Hayes […]
Measure for Measure at the Folger Theatre
by Juliet Moser A high backed chair, all straight lines and black, beetle-shiny surface, is topped with a blood-red cushion. Standing at attention center stage and highlighted by a single overhead light, the chair solemnly greets patrons of the Folger Theatre. Thick black columns etched with arching whorls frame the stage. The title of Folger’s […]