John Stoltenberg

Reporting from The Page-to-Stage Festival: ‘The Good Devil, In Spite of Himself’ and ‘Aural Sex’ by John Stoltenberg

If you’ve never made your way to The Kennedy Center’s Page-to-Stage fest, let me let you in on a few pleasures that await you even before the pleasures packed into this annual Labor Day weekend of...

‘The Resurrection of Alice’ at The Essential Theatre by John Stoltenberg

If you like theatrical storytelling—the kind that catches you by the heartstrings, gets you all wrapped up, then doesn’t let loose until the very end—you’re going to love The Resurrection of Alice....

Magic Time! ‘Now That ‘Bradass87’ Is Chelsea: A Q&A With Playwright Claire Lebowitz’ by John Stoltenberg

Claire Lebowitz conceived a documentary theater piece called Bradass87 and crafted the script from primary sources—including Bradley Manning’s own online chats and instant messages, in which he used...

Mladinsko Theatre’s Production of ‘Nijinsky’s Last Dance’ by John Stoltenberg

“I am Nijinsky,” says the actor/dancer Primož Bezjak, in a tone almost primal. “The great Nijinsky.” He speaks in Slovenian as his words appear on overhead screens in English. He has been sitting...

‘Bradass87’ at Universalist National Memorial Church by John Stoltenberg

Who is the real Bradley Manning? Does anyone know? Can anyone know? These pressing and compelling questions ricochet today even in mainstream news media, which—more beholden to elites than to...

Magic Time! Keegan Theatre’s ‘A Few Good Men’ by John Stoltenberg

Exploding onstage like a fusillade of biting wit and badinage, A Few Good Men is getting a crackling-good production that makes this power-packed 1991 play feel like it was ripped from today’s...

Magic Time! Film Review: ‘Lovelace’ by John Stoltenberg

In 1972 some men made a film that did her wrong. Unspeakably and indelibly wrong. The film was named Deep Throat. Now some men—with two women producers—have made a film that does right by her. It’s...

‘Caroline, or Change’ at The Elden Street Players by John Stoltenberg

Caroline, or Change—the gorgeously resonant musical about race relations and resilience—has just opened in a gloriously heart-rending production by The Elden Street Players. Here in Herndon, Virginia,...

Magic Time: ‘The Third Breast’ by John Stoltenberg

The Third Breast is a gritty play, produced by a gutsy company. The three actors are arresting; the music and visuals, appealing. But for some interesting reasons, the challenging script by Polish...

Magic Time!: ‘Holy Joseph Smith! Lessons Learned From The Book of Mormon’ by John Stoltenberg

The Book of Mormon… CONTAINS HERESY. That’s not a preshow advisory you’ll find posted at The Kennedy Center where The Book of Mormon is playing to standing-room houses. No, it’s my alert to you, dear...

Magic Time! ‘One Night in New York!’ by John Stoltenberg

The term “gay musical theater” is almost redundant, especially for countless closeted teens who found they could forget their troubles and get happy when they happened upon the uniquely American art...

Magic Time: Oscar Wilde’s Salomé at Scena Theatre by John Stoltenberg

There’s some wondrous strange stuff in the Bible, but for out and out bizarro it’s hard to top the tale of the king Herod’s pervy thing for his stepdaughter (Salomé) and his macabre beheading (upon...

Magic Time: ‘ We Happy Few Productions’ ‘Romeo and Juliet’ at Capital Fringe by John Stoltenberg

Cross-gender casting of the classics can be sometimes a silly stunt, sometimes an earnest bemusement, and sometimes—as in Romeo and Juliet as staged for Capital Fringe by We Happy Few Productions—an...

Magic Time!: 5 Reasons Capital Fringe is a DC Treasure by John Stoltenberg

More than 100,000 people have no earthly need for what follows, and you know who you are: You’re this year’s happy horde of audience members in DC’s most vibrant, creative, and unconventional culture...

Capital Fringe Review: ‘RFK’ by John Stoltenberg

RFK is a triumph. A Capital Fringe production from Philadelphia’s New City Stage, it’s a powerfully moving flashback for anyone who remembers Robert F. Kennedy’s life and times, and an illuminating...