“How can we live without our lives? How will we know it’s us without our past?” So wonders the desperate Joad family in Steinbeck’s “The Grapes of Wrath,” as they burn their belongings before fleeing drought-stricken Oklahoma for a new start in California. Arena Stage’s inventive and moving Mother Road follows Tom Joad’s last living […]
About Ben Demers
Review: Pilgrims Musa & Sheri in the New World from Mosaic Theater, a delightful romcom
Beneath differing customs and languages, are people basically the same? Playwright Yussef El Guindi makes a strong case with his unique and endearing romantic comedy Pilgrims Musa & Sheri in the New World. After a chance meeting, a free spirited American waitress and an Egyptian immigrant cab driver forge their own path together, while navigating […]
Review: Eureka Day, vaccinations’ controversy in Jonathan Spector’s whip smart, insightful comedy from Mosaic Theater
Is it possible for everyone to be right at the same time? How do we hold society together when people can’t agree on basic facts? Mosaic Theater Company’s whip-smart Eureka Day takes a darkly comic journey through present day disputes around vaccination, social justice, and internet disinformation. This painfully timely comedy/drama from playwright Jonathan Spector […]
Review: RENT’s 20th Anniversary Tour, talented cast in a feisty remount
“Take me for what I am. Who I was meant to be.” So sings Maureen in one of RENT’s most famous ballads. Those famous lyrics are also perfect advice for people headed to the National Theatre for the iconic musical’s 20th Anniversary Tour. Sure it’s a little rough around the edges, but if you take […]
Review: The Improvised Shakespeare Company. Ridiculous. Silly. Delightful.
Five men, three chairs, and 75 minutes of improv set in the world of the Bard. That’s the simple premise of The Improvised Shakespeare Company. But the payoff is so much more. At the Kennedy Center on Tuesday, the skilled improvisers treated the audience to a laugh-out-loud war farce cooked up on the spot, with […]
Review: The Smuggler, Solas Nua’s instant hit at Allegory, has sold out. Extend it, please!
It is possible for a good solo show to deliver some of the greatest magic in theater. In Solas Nua’s innovative production of The Smuggler, actor and artistic director Rex Daugherty captivates the audience with 75 minutes of Irish-brogued yarns, clever wordplay, and mixology. It’s a gripping, one-man tragic tale, delivered in a remarkable 9,000 […]
Allyson Currin’s Sooner/Later. A funny, brutally honest look at love, family, and loss
Playwright Allyson Currin’s poignant new work Sooner/Later captures the messy reality of relationships and family in a funny and brutally honest way. From the crushing awkwardness of a first date to the often thankless grind of raising kids, to the dull pain of loss, Mosaic Theater Company’s world premiere of Currin’s intimate comedy/drama gives an […]
The Peculiar Patriot review: Liza Jessie Peterson uses humor to expose our mass incarceration of African Americans
Actress, playwright, and advocate Liza Jessie Peterson is a force of nature fighting to expose the wrongs of America’s sprawling prison system, one performance at a time. Her rousing one-woman show, The Peculiar Patriot, catalogues the ruinous effects of mass incarceration on communities across the U.S. in a spellbinding 90 minutes. Peterson relies on a […]
Review: If I Forget asks big questions about forgetting and forgiving
How do we honor our past without closing doors to the future? What do we owe our parents and grandparents, when weighed against the prospects of our children and their children?
Review: In Series double bill: Soldier’s Tale and Emperor of Atlantis
The Emperor of Atlantis feels simultaneously “too soon” and “right on time”. The creative minds of In Series have devised an inventive, timely, though somewhat uneven double bill that takes on weighty subjects including the toll of war, the rise of fascism, and even the meaning of life. It’s a potent theatrical tonic for anyone […]
Review: GALA’s En El Tiempo de Las Mariposas (In the Time of Butterflies)
Memory can be a warm blanket, a cruel knife, and a revolutionary act all at once. Gala Hispanic Theatre’s must-see En el Tiempo de Las Mariposas (In the Time of Butterflies) unfurls a gripping vision of life, love, and sacrifice under the ruinous rule of Dominican dictator General Rafael Trujillo. Gripping performances and audiovisual effects ensnare […]
The Illusionists dazzles magic lovers at The Kennedy Center
What better way to ring in the New Year than with a little magic? The Illusionists unites five unique magicians in a spectacle that, while cheesy at times, still has the power to truly dazzle audience members of all ages.
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