Reviews

A Report on Klecksography: ‘Island of the Misfit Toys’ at Rorschach Theatre

Rorschach Theatre has produced another one-night-only show in its adventurous and eclectic Klecksography series, and Saturday night I went to report on what I saw. If I had to encapsulate the evening...

‘Savion Glover: DANCE HOLIDAY SPeCTaCULaR’ at GMU Center for the Arts

On December 19, 2015, preeminent tap choreographer Savion Glover presented his holiday concert DANCE HOLIDAY SPeCTaCULaR at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts. Known best for his Tony...

‘Javon Jackson and Sax Appeal’ at the KC Jazz Club at the Kennedy Center

With Sax Appeal, no other “appeal” is necessary. The soul is satisfied. What happens when you bring four world-class saxophone players, a phenomenal pianist, a fingers-flying bass player, and a young...

‘Matilda the Musical’ at The Kennedy Center

Matilda the Musical, now at the Kennedy Center Opera House, is for all the disrupters and agitators out there in the world no matter what age. It is an insurrection fueled by children who are once...

Vienna Boys Choir: ‘Christmas in Vienna’ at GMU’s Center for the Arts

On December 18, 2015, GMU Center for the Arts hosted the Vienna Boys Choir and their concert Christmas in Vienna. Acclaimed Conductor Bomi Kim leads twenty-three young boys; all between the ages of 10...

‘The Season Bids Us’ at The Folger Consort

The Folger Consort — this splendid, and lapidary jewel in the crown of the Greater Washington area, and indeed, “all the world’s a stage” when it comes to the Folger — opened its Christmas-season...

Jeff Coon at The Arden Cabaret Series

Jeff Coon, a familiar and dependable face on Philadelphia stages for two decades, returned this weekend to the Arden Theatre, a company where he’s played everyone from John Wilkes Booth (in Assassins)...

‘A Christmas Carol’ at Maryland Ensemble Theatre

Like most Americans of a certain age, I have seen A Christmas Carol… a lot. I have seen multiple different iterations of the traditional story, I have seen Scrooge!, I have seen Scrooged. This is...

Magic Time! A Look at Signature Theatre’s Stunning ‘West Side Story’

Signature Theatre’s production of West Side Story is every bit as eye-filling and ear-thrilling as any lover of this great American musical could wish. On a spacious thrust stage inside the intimate...

A Report on ‘It’s A Wonderful W.I.G.’ at Arts Collective@HCC

Howard Community College’s Arts Collective continued its spirited 21st season line-up with its second of four shows, a one-night-only holiday improv show called It’s a Wonderful W.I.G., featuring its...

‘West Side Story’ at Signature Theatre (Review)

Fabulous! Potent! Forceful! Tender! Let yourself fall in love again or for the first time with West Side Story. From the first note of the orchestra’s prologue, then quickly met with the syncopated...

‘The Barber of Seville’ at the Metropolitan Opera

The Barber of Seville turns 200 years old in two months. Performing it in English translation works best when it helps show American audiences how similar the elements of effective comedy are across...

National Symphony Orchestra: Handel’s Messiah at The Kennedy Center

There is a reason Handel’s Messiah has been performed for hundreds of years. It’s a masterpiece and its intricacies, depth, and sheer mass make continually new interpretations both possible and, for...

‘A Christmas Carol’ at Wolf Pack Theatre Company

Charles Dickens’ immortal classic, A Christmas Carol, was first published in 1843. Now, in 2015, the Wolf Pack Theatre Company, in association with Community Crisis Services and St. John Evangelical...

‘Bright Star’ at The Kennedy Center

Bright Star officially opened last night in its pre-Broadway engagement at The Kennedy Center. And there is plenty for audiences to like and enjoy. Let’s start with that banjo. Steve Martin co-wrote...

The National Chamber Ensemble’s Holiday Concert by J.M. Greig

The National Chamber Ensemble never fails to delight, and the “Happy Holidays” concert on Saturday, December 12, 2015, provided a sparkling start to the holiday season, with works by Strauss,...

‘A Broadway Christmas’ with Elaine Paige, Matt Doyle, and Julia Goodwin’ at The American Pops

What a gorgeous, festive evening The American Pops, under the direction and the quietly flowing baton of Luke S. Frazier, gave the Lisner audience last night with their entertaining and joyful A...

‘Higher: Renée Fleming and Patricia Barber Perform The Music of Patricia Barber’ at The Kennedy Center

Musicians are not meant to be confined to one facet of their craft. Renée Fleming, one of the foremost voices in opera today, is not shy about her love for jazz and the mastery that goes into the...

DCMetroTheaterArts’ Best of 2015 #2: Best Musicals in Professional Theatres

The staff of DCMetroTheaterArts is honored to announce that their 2015 Best Musicals at Professional Theatres honors go to: The Addams Family at Shenandoah Summer Music Theatre. The Addams Family at...

‘Gentlemen Volunteers’ at Pig Iron Theatre Company in Philadelphia

For Pig Iron Theatre Company’s 20th Anniversary, the troupe is returning to a show it first presented in 1998 and which they have gone on to perform around the world. It’s Gentlemen Volunteers, a...

DCMetroTheaterArts’ Best of 2015 #1: Special Awards

The staff of DCMetroTheaterArts is honored to announce that their 2015 Special Awards have been awarded to: ARI ROTH AND MOSAIC THEATER COMPANY OF DC Mazel Tov to Ari Roth and Mosaic Theater Company...

‘The Holiday Special’: ‘The Santa Closet’ and ‘The Seven Poor Travellers’ at Baltimore Theatre Project

Baltimore Theatre Project’s The Holiday Special is a coupling of Jeffrey Solomon’s The Santa Closet and Charlie Bethel’s adaption of The Seven Poor Travellers. Both of these one-act, solo-performer...

DCMetroTheaterArts’ Best of 2015 #3: Best Musicals in Community Theatres

The staff of DCMetroTheaterArts is honored to announce that their 2015 Best Musicals at Community Theatres honorees are: Altar Boyz at Audrey Herman Spotlighters Theatre. Avenue Q at Other Voices...

‘An Irish Carol’ at The Keegan Theatre

An Irish Carol is an Irish twist on the holiday classic A Christmas Carol, written by one of Keegan’s own company members, Irish-born Matthew Keenan, and directed by Mark Rhea. The play premiered in...

DCMetroTheaterArts’ ‘Best of 2015 Honors’ Begins Tomorrow-A Look Back at the 2014 Honorees

We will be begin announcing announcing our ‘Best of 2015 DCMTA Honors’ tomorrow. Because we will have reviewed over 1,450 shows/concerts/dance in 2015, there is a lot to choose from and to honor. But...

‘The Nutcracker’ at Metropolitan Ballet Theatre

As a fan of dance and ballet, I have seen a number of professional productions of The Nutcracker over the years, but this particular performance by the Metropolitan Ballet Theatre is going to stick...

Discovery Artist in the KC Jazz Club: Fresh Cut Orchestra

On December 12th, 2015, The Kennedy Center Jazz Club showcased a ten-piece jazz ensemble from Philadelphia: the Fresh Cut Orchestra. The show, located in a private room in the Terrace Gallery, brought...

‘Year of the Rooster’ at Single Carrot Theatre

For those of you with a penchant for theatre about cockfighting, ‘tis the season indeed for plays on the subject in our fair city of Baltimore. As Fells Point Corner Theater is closing its very fine...

‘The Gospel of Lovingkindness’ at Mosaic Theater Company of DC

There is a shibboleth shared by liberals and conservatives alike that when a young black man shoots to death another young black man in the inner city, the fault lies in themselves. Something about...

The Washington Chorus’ ‘A Candlelight Christmas’ at The Kennedy Center

No stranger to world-class performances, the Concert Hall of The John F. Kennedy Center of the Performing Arts makes itself home to an annual musical favorite this month, The Washington Chorus’...

‘The Nutcracker’ at Ballet Theatre of Maryland at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts

A sure sign the holiday season is in full swing is the annual return of classic ballet, Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. It is almost as iconic as Santa Claus, a Christmas tree and catching the final...

‘Wish List’ at The Hub Theatre

The Hub Theatre has one of the most intimate spaces I have seen for professional theater in the Metro area. The collaborators who created this show have built a very informal, welcoming environment...

In the Moment: A Look at Synetic Theater’s ‘As You Like It’

Synetic Theater continues to winningly upend The Bard’s canon with its 12th production in the speechless, though far from silent, series that had its start in 2002 with Hamlet…the rest is silence....

‘It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play’ at Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, PA

As far as enchanting holiday entertainment is considered, It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play at Bucks County Playhouse may just be the warm mug of cocoa you’re looking for this time of year. A...

‘Hansel and Gretel’ by the Washington National Opera at The Kennedy Center

Once upon a time, dozens of children streamed into the elegant Terrace Theater at The Kennedy Center, all of them paragons of excitement and curiosity. Were these holiday tots rushing in to see the...

‘American Festival Pops Orchestra: Holiday Pops: Songs of the Season’ at GMU’s Center for the Arts

On December 12, 2015, American Festival Pops Orchestra presented Holiday Pops: Songs of the Season at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts’ concert hall. Founder and Artistic Director Anthony...

‘Hansel and Gretel’ at Quintessence Theatre Group in Philadelphia, PA

While all of us are familiar with the story of the two siblings wandering into a witch’s candy house in the woods, Quintessence puts a fun spin on the story. With catchy songs, fun characters, and...

‘As You Like It’ at Synetic Theater

Synetic Theater’s As You Like It is what W.H. Auden called an “inverted pastoral”—the outlaw theme of Shakespeare’s play is enhanced by the transformation of the Forest of Arden into a dystopian urban...

‘Diner: The Musical’ at Delaware Theatre Company

In a Grease meets Jersey Boys coming of age story, Diner: The Musical has a something for everyone. Following a group of friends living in Baltimore, December 1959, the gang confronts spurring...

‘Snow White and the Family Dwarf’ at Providence Players of Fairfax

Heartwarming, hilarious, and fun, reminiscent in tone to It’s a Wonderful Life, and similar in its moral purpose, Snow White and the Family Dwarf makes an uplifting holiday entertainment. It’s a sweet...

‘Outside Mullingar’ at Everyman Theatre

There was a festive atmosphere at Everyman Theatre last night. Irish music played as the audience arrived for the Baltimore/DC Metro premiere of Outside Mullingar. The music alone could lift your...

China National Traditional Orchestra’s ‘Rediscover Chinese Music’ at The Kennedy Center

Having just returned from China—where one of the highlights of the trip was hearing traditional music performed casually in teahouses and parks—I was curious to see how these simple melodies would...

‘Peter Rabbit’ at Red Branch Theatre Company

The world premiere of the new musical Peter Rabbit at Red Branch Theatre Company in Columbia finally puts to rest one of life’s great riddles: Why are bunny tails so short? Answer: To keep tiny young...

‘Michael Feinstein: Sinatra Centennial with Big Band’ at Strathmore

Michael Feinstein is as warm, relaxed, and personable a musician as you’ll ever find. Last night, he worked every seat in the big house, making sure the folks in the nosebleed balconies in back felt...

‘Seasonal Disorder’ at Washington Improv Theater

‘Tis the season for jolly laughter, and if you like humor that’s loopy, irreverent, quick-witted, and fresh, you’ll fit right in at Washington Improv Theater’s annual Seasonal Disorder. It’s all made...

‘Behind the Music: Holiday Edition’ at Act II Playhouse in Ambler, PA

Sonny Leo and April Woodall create a fun evening full of historical anecdotes, personal traditions, and holiday classics that are just as likely to melt your heart and make you laugh. Matt Silva boots...

‘It’s A Wonderful Life’ at Castaways Youth Theatre

Castaways Youth Theatre presents It’s A Wonderful Life, Doug Rand’s fast-paced stage adaptation of the holiday classic. Julie Little directs a large cast of local youths in this production, and while...

‘Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some)’ at Silver Spring Stage

Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some) Brings on the Joy at Silver Spring Stage Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some) got its start in 2003 when Michael Carleton, James Fitzgerald,...

‘School of Rock-The Musical’ at The Winter Garden Theatre in New York City

Full disclosure: I am not a rock ‘n roller, and think its music has little to offer what we’ve come to know as “musical theater.” Before you start cursing me out as an old codger let me tell you that...

‘A Christmas Carol’ at McCarter Theatre Center

As McCarter Theatre’s A Christmas Carol opens, the streets of London are bustling. Snow is falling lightly, and good will is in the air. A group of carolers gathers around a brightly decorated...