Community Theater

Review: ‘Grey Gardens’ at the Old Opera House

An unusual choice and subject matter for a musical, Grey Gardens tells the story of the dysfunctional relationship between mother Edith Bouvier Beale and daughter “Little” Edie Beale. The two women...

Review: ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ at the City of Fairfax Theatre Company

There’s the daily ordeal of truth, imaginary facts, and shifting identities. There is wealth and privilege and assumptions based on hearsay, without understanding. Within all of this lies the...

Review: ‘Taking Sides’ at Port City Playhouse by Wesley Cobaugh

Taking Sides by Ronald Harwood is a stark look at post-war process and what is really meant by getting at the truth of what happened, why, who knew and when. Director Mary Ayala-Bush has crafted a...

Review: ‘The Fabulous Lipitones’ at The Little Theatre of Alexandria

Written by John Markus and Mark St. Germain, whose previous writing credits include The Cosby Show, The Fabulous Lipitones is a light comedy that deals with deeper issues with the absolute certainty...

Review: ‘She Loves Me’ at The Arlington Players

The Arlington Players have put on a delicious production of the musical She Loves Me. The 1964 musical by Fiddler on the Roof Composer Jerry Bock and Lyricist Sheldon Harnick and book writer Joe...

Review: ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ at McLean Community Players

Spring has sprung, the dogwoods are in full flower, and there’s a truly delicious cat-fight to be had in McLean—take my word for it. Now that the solemnities of the season have been properly observed...

Review: ‘A Bright New Boise’ at Silver Spring Stage

A Bright New Boise by Samuel D. Hunter lit up the floorboards at Silver Spring Stage on Friday, April 7, 2017. Produced by Andrea Spitz and directed by Matt Ripa, some will find it a comedy with a...

Review: ‘Nine’ at Colonial Players of Annapolis

Colonial Players of Annapolis’ production of Nine is a musical extravaganza, with lots of marvelous singing and dancing, as well as beautiful costumes. With a book by Arthur Kopit, music and lyrics by...

Review: ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ at Laurel Mill Playhouse

Arsenic and Old Lace by Joseph Kesselring, directed by Jen Sizer and produced by Maureen Rogers, opened at Laurel Mill Playhouse on Friday, March 24th. The script was written in 1939 at the end of the...

Review: ‘Mary Poppins’ at Charm City Players

For a day of family fun, it doesn’t get much better than Charm City Players. Charm City’s current production, Mary Poppins, continues their tradition of affordable family entertainment helmed by...

Review: ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ at Providence Players of Fairfax

In a scene of fierce confrontation between Atticus Finch and Bob Ewell in Providence Players’ production of To Kill a Mockingbird, Ewell insults Atticus in such a vicious way, that one wonders why...

Review: ‘Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike’ at Prince William Little Theatre by Tamela J. Ritter

It’s probably helpful to be well versed in Chekhov and Greek tragedies to understand many of the in-jokes and allusions in Christopher Durang’s 2012 Tony Award-winning play Vanya and Sonia and Masha...

Review: ‘Night Watch’ at Bowie Community Theatre

The setting is mysterious, the music is strange, and the lighting is ominous. This is what one will experience when attending Bowie Community Theatre’ Night Watch, a murder mystery by Lucille...

Review: ‘Dogfight’ at Rockville Musical Theatre and Arts on the Green

War, friendship, and love are serious elements in a man or woman’s life. Rockville Musical Theatre’s production of Dog Fight explores those elements through the music and lyrics of Benj Pasek and...

Review: ‘Rock of Ages’ at Reston Community Players

Here’s something I bet you never wanted to think about again: the ‘80s and your hairstyle. Good. Now that I’ve unlocked a horror all too unimaginable, let’s revisit a sexier time in our history. A...

Review: ‘Lucky Stiff’ at Silhouette Stages at Slayton House

The musical Lucky Stiff with book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and music by Stephen Flaherty opened March 10, 2017, at Silhouette Stages and performed at Slayton House in Columbia, MD, under the...

Meet the Cast of Greenbelt Arts Center’s ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’: Part Three: Rachel Pino-Elliott and John Carter

In part two of a series of interviews with the cast of Greenbelt Arts Center’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, meet Rachel Pino-Elliott as Schwartzy and John Carter as Leaf Coneybear....

Review: ‘Evil Dead: The Musical’ at Dominion Stage

I don’t even know how to describe what took place at Theatre on the Run last night. All I know is that it was one of the most fun nights I had in the theatre in a very long time. Evil Dead: The...

Review: ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ at Greenbelt Arts Center

For the past year, Greenbelt Arts Center (GAC) has been on a fantastic streak as a venue for top-notch shows. GAC’s current show is an addition to that streak. With music and lyrics by William Finn, a...

Meet the Cast of Greenbelt Arts Center’s ‘The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’: Part Two: Pamela Northrup and Jim Adams

In part two of a series of interviews with the cast of Greenbelt Arts Center’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, meet Pamela Northrup as Rona Lisa Peretti and Jim Adams as Vice Principal...

Review: “Key for Two” at The Little Theatre of Alexandria

When I hear the words “British” and “Farce” together, I usually think of the stereotypical over-the-top show involving: a. slamming doors, b. cheating spouses, and c. people running around a couch....

Review: ‘Motherhood Out Loud’ at Vagabond Players

There’s no one like your mother, as an old song goes. Vagabond Players’ production of Motherhood Out Loud, wonderfully directed by Rikki Howie Lacewell, explores that theme and nearly every angle of...

Review: ‘Anton in Show Business’ at Silver Spring Stage

Anton in Show Business by Jane Martin opened last night at Silver Spring Stage. The show is produced by Jim Robertson and directed by Erin Bone Steele. The plot is a strange one that satirizes the...

Review: ‘I Hate Hamlet’ at Dundalk Community Theatre

“It’s Shakespeare! Which is like algebra on stage!” If you’ve ever struggled with The Bard, you’ll appreciate the character Gary Peter Leftkowitz’s sentiments on the subject. In I Hate Hamlet, by Paul...

Review: ‘Calendar Girls’ at Colonial Players of Annapolis

The Colonial Players’ production of Calendar Girls is a screamingly funny, yet poignant comedy. Written by Tim Firth, who co-wrote the 2003 movie, and directed by Debbie Barber-Eaton, it’s an...

Review: ‘Laughter on the 23rd Floor’ at Laurel Mill Playhouse

Politics, laughter, and lunacy come together in this lesser known Neil Simon comedy, Laughter on the 23rd Floor which opened last night at Laurel Mill Playhouse. Directed by John D’Amato and produced...

Review: ‘Two Rooms’ at Kensington Arts Theatre

International diplomacy is like a game of chess, full of strategy, maneuvering and calculation. You take risks you hope won’t prove fatal and you never want to be the pawn. Two Rooms, by playwright...

Interview: Meet the Cast of ‘Two Rooms’ at Kensington Arts Theatre: Part 2: Sandra Cox True.

In part two of a series of interviews with the cast of Kensington Arts Theatre’s Two Rooms, meet Sandra Cox True. Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you perform on...

Review: ‘Willy Wonka’ at Other Voices Theatre

From the opening moments of the Other Voices Theatre’s production of Willy Wonka, the audience is swept away into a “world of pure imagination.” The show is based on s classic children’s novel, with...

Review: ‘Peter and the Starcatcher’ at 2nd Star Productions

2nd Star Productions’ over-the-top presentation of Peter and The Starcatcher is a recent addition to the cannon of lore surrounding the first appearance of that ever-young, pre-tween character, Peter...

Review: ‘I Love You, Because’ at Damascus Theatre Company

Pop-rock musicals are having a moment. With Dear Evan Hanson ruling on Broadway and Freaky Friday recently debuting at Signature Theatre, fun, upbeat musicals are all the rage. While lesser known than...

Meet the Cast of ‘Two Rooms’ at Kensington Arts Theatre: Part One: Sean Dynan

In Part One of a series of interviews with the cast of Two Rooms at Kensington Arts Theatre, meet Sean Dynan. Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you perform on the...

Meet the Cast of ‘The Miracle Worker’ at Rockville Little Theatre. Part 5: Heather Andrews

In a series of interviews with the cast of The Miracle Worker at Rockville Little Theatre, meet Heather Andrews. Joel: Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you...

Review: ‘Company’ at McLean Community Players

Stephen Sondheim’s gloriously urbane, stylistic and sophisticated musical Company was groundbreaking when it first arrived on Broadway in the Seventies and it still remains relevant today. McLean...

Review: ‘The Miracle Worker’ at Rockville Little Theatre

The Rockville Little Theatre’s production of The Miracle Worker written by William Gibson, produced by Dean Fiala and Emily Mullin and directed by Laura W. Andruski opened Friday, February 3, 2017, at...

Interview: Meet the Cast of ‘The Miracle Worker’ at Rockville Little Theatre. Part 4: Jordan Clifford

In part four of a series of interviews with the cast of Rockville Little Theatre’s The Miracle Worker, meet Jordan Clifford. Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you...

Interview: Meet the Cast of ‘The Miracle Worker’ at Rockville Little Theatre. Part 2: Lena Winter

In Part 2 of the series of interviews with the cast of Rockville Little Theatre’s The Miracle Worker, meet Lena Winter. Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you...

Interview: Meet the Cast of ‘The Miracle Worker’ at Rockville Little Theatre. Part 1: Meredith Abramson

In a series of interviews with the cast of Rockville Little Theatre’s The Miracle Worker, meet Meredith Abramson: Joel: Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you...

Review: ‘The Lion in Winter’ at The Arlington Players

This past weekend, The Arlington Players opened a solid production of the dark comedy, The Lion In Winter, by Playwright James Goldman. For those unfamiliar with the play, it is a work of fiction but...

Review: ‘Bells Are Ringing’ at The Fredericktowne Players

The Fredericktowne Players have just opened their revival of the classic musical Bells Are Ringing. This is an infrequently performed work from the 1950s, that has many charms. Musical theatre...

Magic Time! ‘Silent Sky’ at Silver Spring Stage

Lately the news has been resignifying theater more than usual. To resignify is not a commonly used verb but it’s a commonly understood thing. It means “to give new signification to,” to alter what...

Review: ‘Spring Awakening’ at Zemfira Stage

By Leonard Hughes The plucky Falls Church-based Zemfira Stage has taken on the Tony Award-winning Spring Awakening, a far cry from the company’s joyous summer performance of The Wizard of Oz....

Interview: Meet the Cast of ‘Loves and Hours’ at Laurel Mill Playhouse. Part 5: Heather Warren

In part five of a series of interviews with the cast of Loves and Hours, meet Heather Warren. Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you perform on the stage before....

Review: ‘Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike’ at Reston Community Players

The names might seem familiar, and as you watch the show, some of the references sound like something you may have heard of before. In Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, the Tony Award-winning Best...

Interview: Meet the Cast of ‘Loves and Hours’ at Laurel Mill Playhouse. Part 4: Taylor Duvall

In part four of a series of interviews with the cast of Loves and Hours, meet Taylor Duvall. Please introduce yourself and tell our readers where they may have seen you perform on the stage before....

Review: ‘Anything Goes’ at The Little Theatre of Alexandria

Cole Porter’s Anything Goes is a show that is equal parts silliness, slapstick, and shenanigans. The Little Theatre of Alexandria opened the old classic this past weekend to a sold-out house. With...

Review: ‘The Tin Woman’ at Prince George’s Little Theatre

The Tin Woman, written by Sean Grennan, is based on a true story, and is Prince George’s Little Theatre’s winter production. The show is directed by Estelle Miller, who also designed the set, and is...

Spine: ‘Silent Sky’ at Silver Spring Stage

On occasion, a play comes along with a bit of history, a bit of uncovered history, and that history changes the nature of the universe. Silent Sky is that sort of play. Lauren Gunderson’s biography...

Review: ‘Blackbird’ at Fells Point Corner Theatre

When Una, the 27 year-old British woman at the center of David Harrower’s startling and complex play Blackbird, tells a man named Ray, 15 years her senior, that he made her into a ghost, there is no...

Here Are This Year’s WATCH AWARD Nominations

Announcement of Nominations 16th Annual Washington Area Theatre Community Honors THE WATCH AWARDS Nominations Announced January 15, 2017 – 7:30 pm at The Birchmere, Alexandria, VA Award Ceremony...