Reviews

‘August: Osage County’ at Reston Community Players by Katie Elizabeth Quinn

In an article on the Steppenwolf Theater Company’s website, Tracy Letts writes that his play August: Osage County was inspired by the desire to create for the Steppenwolf ensemble a play that drew on...

‘A Brief Narrative of an Extraordinary Birth of Rabbits’ at EMP Collective by Amanda Gunther

What happens when a women who cannot conceive a child asks her sister to act as a surrogate – but instead of birthing one healthy human baby the sister gives birth to twenty-four fuzzy, adorable baby...

The DC Queer Theatre Festival on May 18th and 19th at The DCCenter by Joel Markowitz

In conjunction with CenterArts at The DCCenter, the DC Queer Theatre Festival will be presenting two nights of queer plays by playwrights in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. The first annual festival will...

Film Review: ‘Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope’ by Andrew L. Baughman

Let me begin by dropping a few names: Joss Whedon, Kevin Smith, Stan Lee, and Harry Jay Knowles. If these names resonate with you, then you probably want to make your way to see Comic-Con Episode IV:...

Mansaku-no-Kai Kyogen Company Performs 3 Kyogen works at The Kennedy Center May 17-19th by Joel Markowitz

The Kennedy Center presents the Mansaku-no-Kai Kyogen Company production of three traditional Kyogen works in the Terrace Theater from May 17-19, 2012. Last seen at the Kennedy Center in 2008 as part...

‘Metamorphoses’ at Constellation Theatre Company by Amanda Gunther

Directed by Allison Arkell Stockman, Constellation Theatre Company’s phenomenal production of Mary Zimmerman’s Metamorphoses is a gift from the gods. It blends aspects of storytelling and Ovid’s Tales...

Six Degrees of Separation opens May 11th at Vpstart Crow Productions by Rob Batarla

Vpstart Crow Productions’ Artistic Director Rob Batarla tells us about their new production of Six Degrees of Separation which opens this Friday at the Hylton Performing Arts Center. “Vpstart Crow...

‘Killing Women’ at Pinky Swear Productions by Mariya Danilenko

Killing Women, written by Marisa Wegrzyn, is a raunchy, witty play about female assassins. The set (Chris Holland) is abstract and simple; black rectangular blocks shape the stage and several wooden...

‘Cupcake Cabaret’ Coming to The Capital Fringe by Peter Sullivan

The 2012 Capital Fringe Festival will be upon us from July 12-29th. We begin our previews of Fringe shows with Cupcake Cabaret. Peter Sullivan and Pamela Nash tells us about this very exotic and...

Alicia Graf Mack: Dancing with Ailey American Dance Theater at The Lyric by Carolyn Kelemen

Alicia’s talent just keeps growing by leaps and bounds. The phones have been ringing off the hooks with callers wanting to know which shows Columbia’s sweetheart ballerina, Alicia Graf Mack, will be...

‘Diary of a Hurried 48 Hour Film Project Filmmaker’ by Erica Laxson

In just 48 hours over 100 teams flooded the DC area to produce their 2012 short films, and I am lucky to count myself among their numbers. My team is proud to be screening our debut work tomorrow...

‘Ruined’ at Fells Point Corner Theatre by Amanda Gunther

The Pulitzer Prize-winning play Ruined by acclaimed playwright Lynn Nottage comes to life on the stage of Fells Point Corner Theatre as the final production in their 2011-2012 season. This haunting...

‘The Taming of the Shrew’ at Folger Theatre by Julia L. Exline

Folger Theatre presents William Shakespeare’s classic comedy The Taming of the Shrew, drawing inspiration and influence from the Wild West, circa 1880. Esteemed director Aaron Posner sheds Shakespeare...

‘Women of the Blues’ at Creative Cauldron by Amanda Gunther

A new sound is sliding its way into town as Creative Cauldron presents Women Of The Blues. An original blues review featuring those melancholy melodies from the turn of the twentieth century right on...

‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream…in Metropolis’ at Lumina Studio Theatre by Jessica Dall

For those expecting to see Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Lumina Studio Theatre’s 100th production – A Midsummer Night’s Dream…in Metropolis might come as a bit of a shocking surprise. Those...

‘Annual Pops Concert’ at University of Maryland by Tiffany Draut

In general, Pops Concerts are a refreshing change of pace from the usual classical fare of orchestras and bands, and tonight was no exception. Tonight was the University of Maryland’s Annual Pops...

‘Rooms: A Rock Romance’ at Kensington Arts Theatre by Mariya Danilenko

Kensington Arts Theatre’s production of Paul Scott Goodman’s Scottish rock musical Rooms: A Rock Romance features a thrillingly gorgeous score by Paul Scott Goodman and a poignant, funny, and...

‘Urinetown: The Musical’ at The Arts Collective at Howard Community College by Amanda Gunther

It’s the oldest story, the masses are oppressed, faces, clothes, and bladders are distressed. Where could such a thing happen? Why The Arts Collective at Howard Community College’s presentation of...

‘The Little Foxes’ at Rockville Little Theatre by ZSun-nee Matema

One thing is for sure Community Theater has definitely come of age. The Little Foxes by Lillian Hellman, now playing at Rockville Little Theatre through tomorrow at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre at...

Barbara Cook’s Spotlight: Aaron Lazar by David Friscic

Broadway star, Aaron Lazar (Phantom of the Opera, revivals of Les Miserables and A Little Night Music) casually sauntered into the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater and slowly started singing -“I’m...

‘Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me’ at Port City Playhouse by Erica Laxson

It’s not everyday that a play can take you into the tortured minds of three political prisoners, but the Port City Playhouse presentation of Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me delivers quite a mental roller...

‘The Big Meal’ at The Studio Theatre by Don Mike Mendoza

One of the most important things a family unit can share is a meal around a table together, and The Studio Theatre’s production of Dan LeFranc’s The Big Meal shows us how much of our lives can revolve...

‘Five Little Monkeys’ at Adventure Theatre MTC by Julia L. Exline

Adventure Theatre MTC presents Five Little Monkeys, a wacky production based on the beloved children’s book by Eileen Christelow. Karin Abromaitis directs this energy-packed hour of mischief and...

Tonys Honor DC Theater: Regional Award to Shakespeare Theatre Company & 8 Noms to ‘Follies’ by Joel Markowitz

It was a great day for DC theater as The Tony Award nominations were announced this morning in NYC. Shakespeare Theatre Company will be receiving The Regional Theatre Award. What a coup for the DC...

‘Dionne Warwick’ at The Music Center at Strathmore’s 2012 Spring Gala by Jane Coyne

The incomparable Dionne Warwick came to town on Saturday, April 21, 2012, to headline the 2012 Spring Gala concert at Strathmore. She was a huge, huge hit. Fifty years into her amazingly successful...

Glass Mind Theatre’s Third Season by Andrew Peters

Artistic Director Andrew Peters unveils Baltimore’s Glass Mind Theatre‘s Third Season schedule. As a young company, this third season is crucial. We believe in creating a cohesive season with a theme,...

‘Nabucco’ at the Washington National Opera by Simon Chin

Verdi’s chorus “Va, pensiero,” from his early opera Nabucco, is a piece that lives on as much in Italian national mythology as in the opera house. Director Thaddeus Strassberger’s new production of...

‘Oliver!’ at Compass Rose Studio Theater by Amanda Gunther

Compass Rose Studio Theater’s inaugural season ends with a fabulous and intimate production of the musical Oliver! The classic musical tale of the orphan boy who wanted more is presented in all its...

Report on The Philadelphia ‘Center City Jazz Festival’ by Darlene Olsen

Local Philadelphia trombonist with fresh vision creates inaugural Center City Jazz Festival on April 28, 2012 Out of Philadelphia, the melting pot of music styles came a style of jazz that I’ve heard...

‘Playhouse Puppetry Slam!’ at The Puppet Co. by Julia L. Exline

On April 28, 2012, The Puppet Co. Playhouse hosted a Puppetry Slam!, where puppeteers, both amateur and polished, converged from all over the east coast for a showcase of their talent. While the...

‘Wives and Wits’ at Washington Stage Guild by Amanda Gunther

Domestic felicity can make people blissfully idiotic and there is no greater a display of such jovial nonsense then in the Washington Stage Guild’s final production of their 25th Season, Wives and...

‘The Graduate’ at Greenbelt Arts Center by Amanda Gunther

And here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson, Jesus loves you more than you will know, and so does everyone coming to see her at the Greenbelt Arts Center’s production of The Graduate. Adapted for the stage by...

Film Review: ‘Monsieur Lazhar’ by Andrew Lloyd Baughman

Sometimes, people who survive tragedies from two different worlds come together to find comfort and happiness together. Such is the case in Phillippe Felardeau’s straightforward and poignant film...

‘Hamlecchino’ at Faction of Fools by Natalie McCabe

Something may be rotten in the state of Denmark, but energy is high and comedy very much alive in Faction of Fools’ current production, Hamlecchino, which takes Shakespeare’s Hamlet and reinvents it...

‘Deathtrap’ at Prince George’s Little Theatre by Amanda Gunther

Suspense is a fine tool to sharpen any theatrical thriller. And you’ll find plenty of it along with a healthy dose of comedy in the Prince George’s Little Theatre’s production of Deathtrap. The sharp,...

‘Sandwalk’ at University of Maryland’s School of Theatre Dance Performance Studies by Tiffany Draut

Usually, when I am in the theatre, I’m very grateful for the fourth wall. The players interact with each other, and I am content merely to sit and watch and enjoy, or passively ponder. Yet in the...

‘The Nautical Yards’ at Force/Collision by Amanda Gunther

A mystical journey awaits you in the waters of Yards Park. Water mythology, wartime, love and loss, all of this is intricately intertwined into the devised site-specific water ballet/theatrical...

Dance Review: ‘Noism’ at The Kennedy Center by Carolyn Kelermen

If off-the wall comedy, space-age dancing, technical wonders, and choreography that defies definition turn you on, catch tonight’s performance of choreographer/lighting designer/architect/poet Jo...

‘Mary Poppins’ at Hippodrome Theatre at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center by Amanda Gunther

Wanted: a nanny for two adorable children, one who will play games, all sorts, and take them on outings and give them treats, sing songs, and bring sweets. The advertisement has been answered as...

‘Miss Havisham’s Fire’ At Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center by Tiffany Draut

There are certain characters in literature that, for whatever reason, capture the imagination, whether for good or ill. Miss Havisham, with her decaying wedding dress and moldering wedding feast, has...

‘The Fantasticks’ at Vienna Theatre Company by Doug Poms

The Fantasticks has the distinction of being the longest-running musical in history (the original Off-Broadway production ran a whopping 17,162 performances between 1960 and 2002, not including a...

‘A Grand Night for Singing’ at Washington Savoyards

Rodgers and Hammerstein musicals live in our hearts with their happily-ever-after stories and popular songs. In Washington Savoyards’ production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein review called A Grand...

‘Pure Tango’ at Gala Hispanic Theatre by Amanda Gunther

Tango es la pasiòn del alma. Tango is the passion of the soul. Tango is many things; it can be a man, a woman, a feeling, a dance…all these things and more. And all these discoveries of tango are...

‘The 39 Steps’ at The Olney Theatre Center by Amanda Gunther

Murder! Mayhem! Mystery! Clowns? This exciting action-packed thriller could be none other than The 39 Steps presented at The Olney Theatre Center. Adapted by Patrick Barlow based on the movies of...

‘Las Meninas’ at Rep Stage by Amanda Gunther

Deception is the shining glory in the court of King Louis XIV. Or so the story unfurls in Rep Stage’s production of Lynn Nottage’s Las Meninas. A thought provoking, emotional rollercoaster of a show...

‘God of Carnage’ at Signature Theatre by Ashunda Norris

I absolutely loathe the fact that people must pretend to like one another for the sake of appearances and are deemed socially inept if they don’t go along with the status quo. Most people only unravel...

‘Deathtrap’ at McLean Community Players by Julia L. Exline

McLean Community Players presents Deathtrap, Broadway’s longest-running thriller by Ira Levin. Directed by Jerry Bonnes, Deathtrap is a suspenseful treat filled with greed, deceit, and shocking...

‘Witness for the Prosecution’ at The Little Theatre of Alexandria by Julia L. Exline

The Little Theatre of Alexandria present’s Agatha Christie’s Witness for the Prosecution, a courtroom thriller with sudden twists and turns that shock even those with the keenest detective eyes....

‘The Whipping Man’ at Theater J by Joel Markowitz

Theater J’s powerful and sizzling production of Matthew Lopez’s The Whipping Man, directed with sensitivity and heart by Jennifer L. Nelson, is a theatrical experience you will never forget. I left...

‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ at Quotidian Theatre Company by Natalie McCabe

Quotidian Theatre Company’s Mission Statement reads, in part, “By providing realistic situations and dialogue, we want to give the audience the impression that they are witnessing events over a...