I’ve probably read Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden to my daughter Cassidy more than any other book; in fact, it’s one of our favorites to act out with dolls, puppets and even Legos. So, I was thrilled to be taking her to NextStop’s production of the beloved musical—the first time either of us has […]
Archives for March 2015
GW psychiatrist develops Tangles, a new musical about Alzheimer’s
Don’t try to make GW’s Dr. Charles Samenow choose between his two passions, theater and medicine, because his plate is full with both currently, almost to overflowing. That’s because his dream of presenting health issues in the context of theater attended by the general public is about to happen.
In the hands of Venus Theatre, Ugly is the new Beautiful
Art manifests when dark matter is shaken, stirred, and flipped into a brilliant light, which is what playwright Doc Andersen-Bloomfield and Director Deborah Randall have achieved with God Don’ Like Ugly. A tiny show (the entire black box space is no bigger than a small studio apartment) with big impact that is, contrary to its […]
Forum Theatre triumphs with Ruhl’s Passion Play
Everything about Sarah Ruhl’s Passion Play is ambitious. Clocking in at just under four hours (yes, you read that right), the three-play cycle chronicles the staging of Passion plays across three places in geography, politics, and history. It uncovers, in the process, parallels in faith, morality, and aspects of human nature.
G-d’s Honest Truth, a painfully funny new play at Theater J
What if you bought a one-of-a-kind Picasso, and then a friend revealed it wasn’t really one-of-a-kind? Would you accept the truth – or cling to ignorance like a warm blanket? In Theater J’s painfully funny premiere of G-d’s Honest Truth, playwright Renee Calarco explores how and why smart people willingly suspend logic and fall for […]
Revolution not televised, but intelligently staged at CenterStage
Family politics are prickly enough, but throw in a proudly political left-wing clan and you’ve got the makings of some proletariat pyrotechnics.
Director Garces on taking chances, risking all with Lights Rise on Grace
Michael John Garcés is no stranger to Washington, DC. Washington audiences will remember the 2013 production of The Convert, and before that, Oedipus El Rey. He directed both for Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, where he returns this season to bring us the world premiere of Chad Beckim’s Lights Rise on Grace, which opens March 30.
Fugard’s The Island compels Brown and Williams to reunite at MetroStage
South African playwright Athol Fugard is highly acclaimed for his plays, many of which opposed his country’s system of apartheid. In 1971, Fugard devised The Island with actors John Kani and Winston Ntshona, and it made its area premiere at MetroStage in 1991.
Blaemire turns end of the world into quirky new musical Soon
The world is ending at Signature Theatre. Not with a bang, not with a whimper, but with a song. In Soon, a world premiere musical from writer/composer Nick Blaemire, we are faced with the threat of untimely demise. And remarkably, it’s a good time.
Warlow and company deliver a stunning Man of La Mancha
What object best represents Man of La Mancha, the newly opened musical at Shakespeare Theater Company? Maybe a stylish and well-fitting pair of jeans with rivets on the seams. Perhaps a classic Chrysler LeBaron with shiny wheel spokes and smooth pseudo-wood panel on the side. Or Man of La Mancha could be a fine bottle […]
Monologue Madness championship tournament, Sunday, March 29
While this year’s NCAA Basketball Tournament has so far been brutal for our area teams—with Georgetown, Maryland and Virginia all being ousted in the second round, there’s another bracket that people in the region can get excited about.
Kevin McAllister’s a standout in Wildhorn’s revamped Freedom Song
History’s habit of repeating itself comes with a twist in Freedom’s Song: Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War, now playing at Ford’s Theater. The play is essentially a museum piece made of a series of songs set in the Civil War that are mashed up with the words of Abraham Lincoln and the vocal talent […]