Community Theater

DCMTA 2021 Staff Favorites: Outstanding Community Theater Productions

Here are some of the community theater productions that made an indelible impression on our writers this year.

Colonial Players to stage ‘The Lost Boy,’ about Peter Pan creator

A heartwarming, fictionalized story based on the author James Barrie.

Nostalgia makes for a winning ‘A Christmas Story’ at Silver Spring Stage

An iconic holiday classic and a delightful trip down memory lane.

‘The Wizard of Oz: A British Pantomime’ is a delightful holiday romp

The traditionally British holiday panto meets the very American story of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ in The British Players’ delightful production.

Sterling Playmakers gets away with an entertaining ‘Catch Me If You Can’

Buckle up for a musical about one of the greatest con men of all time.

Two women dress down ‘Five Women Wearing the Same Dress’

The comedy now running at Dominion Stage gets a critical look by its director and a cast member.

Plenty of laughs in pinkalicious ‘Five Women Wearing the Same Dress’

From Dominion Stage, a splendid peek into interior lives.

A fanciful and delightful ‘Cymbeline’ from Rude Mechanicals

Emphasizing the play’s fairy tale elements, Director Erin Nealer steered actors toward a wry, broadly comic style that regularly drew well-earned laughs.

A top-notch ‘On the Town’ from Rockville Musical Theatre

The show’s sights are fixed on the joy of living this day — joy that the production gives the audience abundantly.

‘The Oresteia’ comes to Zoom via Virtual Repertory Theatre Collective

The classic Greek tragedy revisioned to reflect the turmoil and cloak-and-dagger of present-day DC.

Dominion Stage’s ‘Five Women Wearing the Same Dress’ opens Nov. 5

A biting comedy about the societal label of being “too much” that diminishes women.

In praise of a resilient small theater: Fredericksburg Theatre Ensemble

Surviving the pandemic has highlighted the importance of community.

Rooftop Productions takes a stab at Sondheim’s ‘Sweeney Todd’

A worthwhile engagement with the glories and complexities of the “dark operetta.”

Colonial Players entertains with complex ‘By the Way, Meet Vera Stark’

An illuminating exploration of Black erasure through typecasting in Hollywood.

‘A Black and White Cookie’ premieres at Silver Spring Stage

Can a bakery favorite repair the world?

Little Theater of Alexandria has a winning thriller in ‘Wait Until Dark’

Good acting and taut direction in an enjoyably suspenseful evening of theater.

Sterling Playmakers debuts an original romantic comedy, ‘The Social Secretary’

Those who aren’t ready for summer to end will find warmth, love, and laughter in this beach read brought to life.

Smart showtune satire from Reston Community Players teens

Their ‘Musical of Musicals (The Musical!)’ is meta entertainment and unbridled fun.

Colonial Players to present Lynn Nottage’s ‘By the Way, Meet Vera Stark’

This spritely, sly satire is a sharp take on race and culture in the past and today.

Maryland’s AngelWing Project takes audiences to Beale Street

A 1950’s family drama, the play follows two Black cousins from Mississippi who struggle to make a life for themselves in spite of secrets threatening to invade and interrupt their peace.

How a new NOVA theater will go on with the show despite a hit

The lead was struck by a car—but Nightsky Theater will open its outdoor ‘Picnic’ on schedule.

Providence Players of Fairfax premiere youthful ‘The Beatle Club’

It’s the summer of 1965 and these Teaneck club kids really dig the rock band.

A playful and poignant ‘Defying Gravity’ at Aldersgate Church Community Theater

The quirky dramatic comedy is based tangentially on the Challenger disaster.

Reston Community Players kick off apprentice program with musical sendup

A production of ‘The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!)’ providing local students hands-on experience.

Neil Simon’s ‘Rumors’ at Rockville Little Theatre is a delightful romp

For anyone with a funny bone yearning for a few hours of frothy fun.

Good players make the team in ‘Fences’ at Little Theater of Alexandria

The prominent community theater takes a swing at August Wilson’s big-league drama.

Silver Spring Stage returns to live performance with bold 53rd season

The company “is reaching beyond its comfort zone” with “a fully multiethnic, intersectional selection of plays.”

Four badass women ‘Revolutionists’ to kick off Colonial Players 73rd season

Seven-show lineup to traverse the globe, discovering along the way stories of revolution, redemption, and revelation.

New play from Shoestring tells true story of a Frenchman Who Changed Virginia

…and it wasn’t the Marquis de Lafayette.

Rockville Little Theatre announces 74th season

A hilarious farce, a psychological thriller, and a boisterous classic—all live and onstage again at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre.

The Little Theatre of Alexandria launches dynamic new season

The company’s 2021-22 lineup includes comedies, thrillers, mysteries, an August Wilson classic, and more.

Sterling Playmakers’ ‘Godspell’ is a heartfelt call for peace in times of strife

The cast shares the musical’s message with the audience in a warm embrace.

‘The Bluest Eye’ to open Dominion Stage’s 72nd season

Lydia R. Diamond’s adaptation of the acclaimed Toni Morrison novel explores the legacy of racism for a community, a family, and an innocent girl.

‘Rumors’ swirls with mischief and mayhem at Little Theatre of Alexandria

A solid reason to return to live theater for an outlandish peek at the ups and downs of married life.

Sterling Playmakers to stage ‘Godspell’ for our time in need of healing

The updated script comes from the Broadway revival. The show can be enjoyed both live and online.

Virtual Repertory Theatre to Zoom original adaptation of ‘The Great Gatsby’

The young bicoastal company retells F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic story about how the realities of money and class impact the ability to dream.

Have supper outside with a side of Shakespeare at City of Fairfax Theatre

Student actors will perform a whirlwind of excerpts from the Bard bookended with monologues, sonnets, or scenes performed by adults.

‘She Kills Monsters’ from Silver Spring Stage is a roleplay pleasure

A fun tribute to Dungeons & Dragons, the production combines comedy with deep emotion.

Neil Simon’s classic farce ‘Rumors’ up next at Little Theatre of Alexandria

It’s not home alone on Zoom; it’s live on stage where comedy belongs.

Colonial Players to address dressing in ‘Love, Loss, and What I Wore’

Funny, wistful, and heart-to-heart stories about the nostalgic power of women’s clothing.

Silhouette Stages’ bold ‘BKLYN the Musical’ is a true tearjerker

A scrappy young theater company streams a fairy tale performed by an energetic, cute, and enthusiastic cast.

A prickly take on marriage rocks ‘A Doll’s House, Part 2’ at Silver Spring Stage

Lucas Hnath’s sequel to Ibsen’s classic raises thoughtful contemporary questions.

Audrey Cefaly’s ‘Maytag Virgin’ is a joy to see at Colonial Players of Annapolis

Maytag Virgin is Colonial Players of Annapolis’s first show since the pandemic forced theaters to close. Directed by Edd Miller, it is offered livestreamed as well as to limited, masked, and...

Poignant ‘Dear Elizabeth’ at Vienna Theatre pens a true friendship

Dear Elizabeth, performed by a two-person cast and streamed online by Vienna Theatre Company, is a feast for fans of 20th-century literature, or even just those interested in stories of friendship....

Tom Barylski on directing female-centric and gay fantasy ‘She Kills Monsters’

By Laura W. Andruski, theater program coordinator, The Arts Barn The Montgomery Playhouse in cooperation with Arts on the Green is presenting a virtual performance of She Kills Monsters by Qui...

Reston Community Players restarts with Cold War drama ‘A Walk in the Woods’

After being dark since last March due to COVID-19, Reston Community Players comes back to life with A Walk in the Woods, a Cold War–era drama by Lee Blessing that examines the relationship between a...

The relevance of ‘The Mountaintop,’ beautifully played at the Arts Barn

Eddie S. Glaude Jr., author of Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own (2020) and a Princeton professor, writes in The New Yorker about an encounter at a fundraiser...

A great stage flick from AmaZing Theatre rips U.S. racism in ‘Torn’

AmaZing Theatre Company is presenting an original movie/play hybrid that they have dubbed a stage flick: Torn, by local playwright John Becker. The show is based on the momentous event in 1901 when...

Four views from ‘The Mountaintop,’ streaming live from the Arts Barn

By Laura W. Andruski, theater program coordinator, The Arts Barn Rockville Little Theatre – in cooperation with Arts on the Green – will livestream The Mountaintop, Katori Hall’s gripping reimagining...

Excitement of discovery drives ‘Ada and the Engine’ at Silver Spring Stage

Silver Spring Stage’s streaming production of Ada and the Engine is an exciting mixture of history, science, and poetry. Written by Lauren Gunderson, it tells the story of Ada Byron, a mathematician...