Love, sex, rhythm; more sex and some dancing; some Gaga. More Gaga. A jukebox-style montage of performance and social politics, and buried beneath it all, a fairly poignant question — what happens when the community you call home, one built on sex (and rhythm), no longer welcomes you inside?
Archives for July 2014
Do You See What I See?
Tragedy + timing = comedy. So the saying goes, at least, and all three were here tonight — to varying degrees. Do You See What I See? is an unusual blend of sketch comedy, stand up, and (just a little) improv. Like many variety shows of its kind, its ensemble of aspiring comedians spend 70 minutes […]
13 Men – A Cabaret
Dating in the District can be excruciating, so upon hearing that this engaging, fun-loving cabaret’s plot was based on three friends talking about their misfortune with men, 13 of them to be exact, I was intrigued. Welcome to Leopard Print Productions’ 13 Men—A Cabaret. Real life pals Colleen Brown (co-director,) Faith Hayden (playwright,) and Kendra […]
R+J: Star Cross’d Death Match
They might not be sporting doublets and hose, and modern day expletives might weave their way into Shakespeare’s elegant verse now and then, but the performers of R+J: Star Cross’d Death Match are using nontraditional means to achieve a very traditional end. They are performing Shakespeare the way it was originally intended: raunchily, unapologetically, and […]
Size Doesn’t Matter – 7 Shorts by DC Playwrights
Size Doesn’t Matter does what it sets out to do by providing a showcase for eager actors. Some of the parts outshine others, diminishing the work as a whole.
Contrafact of Freedom
The moment the lights dim at Hunger & Thirst Theatre Collective’s Contrafact of Freedom, the audience is ferried to early 19th century Maryland where Francis Scott Key is on the cusp of writing the most famous song in American history.
Uncanny Valley: CATF
When we first meet Julian (Alex Podulke), he’s a talking head. The brainchild of techies and artificial intelligence scientist Claire (Barbara Kingsley), Julian is a robot learning to be life-like. Under the patient tutelage of Claire, Julian’s voice loses its robotic cadences, his smile relaxes into naturalness and his blinking seems reflexive.
North of the Boulevard: CATF
Jeez, all the palookas want in North of the Boulevard is an effing break. Is that too much to ask? They don’t want millions or to rule the world. They just want to pay some bills, maybe get ahead, buy some gifts for the kids, not pinch pennies until Abe cries like a girl. Most […]
The Name Game
I thought I walked into Mary Stone Hanley’s the Name Game late. As I took my seat, I saw already on stage a collection of dancers dressed in full-bodied spandex suits gliding back and forth in abstract, improvised movements. Their flitting gestures and facelessness gave them an uneasy phantom appearance.
Empress of the Moon: The Lives of Aphra Behn
We know so little about the remarkable Restoration-era novelist/playwright/spy Aphra Behn (1640?-1689) that her life can serve as a tabula rosa upon which other artists project their own ideas and issues. In Empress of the Moon, playwright Chris Braak has done exactly that. The ideas are not particularly new or startling, but in the slenderized […]
Desire Moments
“This is the end for me,” said Gloria (Temple Fortson) recounting her maturing daughter ignoring her after the school play, “Soon I’ll be the enemy.”
Not Every Card
A crisp fedora, the sound of cards being shuffled, and a dark alley lit only by the end of a burning cigarette: Noir is one of those genres that’s hard to explain, but you know it when you see it. And in the opening scenes of Not Every Card, it’s pretty clear from the start […]