In describing the DC theatre scene to friends around the country, I emphasize the depth and diversity of the offerings here. That point is brought home each year when I look back on the season, particularly the new and original works which debuted in the DC area.
New Audience Choice Awards voted by invitation
DC Theatre Scene’s Audience Choice Awards, now in its fourth year, are the only awards to cover the Washington area’s professional theatrical season – which begins and ends in August – and which allows audiences to make the final decision as to who receives the final awards, based on nominations by the DCTS writers and […]
Arena Stage adds 5 playwrights to its payroll
Is Arena Stage Launching a New Business Model for Playwrighting? Arena Stage, which will be introducing its rebuilt $125-million facility to the Washington public in October, may be putting an even more lasting change into effect by giving five playwrights a salary and benefits. Fueled by a grant from the Mellon Foundation, the plan, which […]
Some personal reflections on the Fringe
While there are numerous awards for Fringe productions, I would like to honor some individual and group performances that made the 2010 Capital Fringe Festival a memorable experience for me. However, I only saw 27 productions (i.e., only 20% of the 132 total) so please chip in with your own comments on who should receive […]
Writing and performing Bucky’s song and dance
A conversation with playwright/director D. W. Jacobs and performer Rick Foucheux If you haven’t read the work of Buckminster Fuller or seen it explained in R. Buckminster Fuller: The History (and Mystery) of the Universe, you might doubt whether watching one solo performance could totally transform how you see this “Spaceship Earth”
David Ives on Spinoza and New Jerusalem
“For my money the main character is not Spinoza but Amsterdam and the Jewish community.” Ives says. “They’re the ones with the problem. He’s the still point of their turning world – the drama is what they’re going to do with him.”
Inside Synetic’s Metamorphosis
Editor’s note – DCTS writer Hunter Styles landed the assistant director gig for Synetic Theater’s Metamorphosis, working with director Derek Goldman, who, at the same time, had a second production in rehearsal, In Darfur at Theater J. While Hunter knew he was about to be a very busy guy,
An inside look at the Joe Louis opera, Shadowboxer
Composer Frank Proto and Librettist John Chenault and director Leon Major reveal what it takes to bring the life of boxing icon Joe Louis to the opera stage.
A Theatregoer’s Guide to the English Monarchs
A Theatregoer’s Guide to the English Monarchs (Post-Hastings) as compiled by Tim Treanor Poets, madmen, geniuses, buffoons — the monarchs of England seem to have been designed for playwrights. Here’s a list of them, their entrances and exits, and how our playwrights (and other artists) made art from them.
The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later
Upon finding his seat, a young man at Monday’s reading of The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later, an Epilogue was already holding off tears. The house lights in the Lincoln Theatre had yet to dim, and much of the programming was still a mystery. But I watched him try to relax, visibly shaken,
Helen Hayes Awards ceremony, 2006
When Greg Kotis backpacked through Europe one summer, he was annoyed to discover that most of the public restrooms were coin-operated. Under similar circumstances, many people would have complained to the American Embassy or their friends back home. Kotis wrote a musical about it.
Snaps from the Prom, Helen Hayes Awards party, 2006
The Helen Hayes After Party, 2006 [ezcol_1half] [/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end] [/ezcol_1half_end] [ezcol_1half] [/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end] [/ezcol_1half_end] [ezcol_1half] [/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end] [/ezcol_1half_end] [ezcol_1half] [/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end][/ezcol_1half_end] [ezcol_1half][/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end][/ezcol_1half_end] [ezcol_1half] [/ezcol_1half] [ezcol_1half_end] [/ezcol_1half_end]