Washington DC

National Symphony Orchestra with Violinist Arabella Steinbacher at The Kennedy Center

It’s almost a cliché to sit smugly in a 21st century theater or concert hall enjoying a work that some original critic destroyed to his everlasting infamy. And audiences at this week’s National...

‘The Widow Lincoln’ at Ford’s Theatre

In the world premiere production of The Widow Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre, playwright James Still and Director Stephen Rayne create a mélange of fact and fiction, mystery and history, in a stunning...

In the Moment: George Mason University Gets STEAMED

What is the arts role as a means to spark creativity for the American workforce in the post-recession world? Much is being said about keeping the competitive edge of the United States through what is...

‘Out of Silence: Abortion Stories from the 1 in 3 Campaign’

No girl grows up dreaming of terminating a pregnancy. There are plenty of aspirational fantasies out there—some good for her, some not—but to be in a situation where she decides to have an abortion is...

Mariinsky Ballet Featuring Hodson’s ‘Le sacre du printemps,’ Fokine’s ‘Le Spectre de la Rose’ and ‘The Swan,’ and Petipa’s ‘Paquita Grand Pas’ at The Kennedy Center

Russians return to the glory days of ballet Ulyana Lopatkina could have wrapped up The Kennedy Center and taken it home with her after her performance in The Swan, a.k.a. The Dying Swan, created by...

‘Our Mutual Friend’ at Lumina Studio Theatre

“Part mystery, part romantic comedy, part moral fable, Our Mutual Friend justly earns its place among Dickens’s most brilliant novels.” With these words, Directors Kelly Newman O’Connor and John...

Here are the 2015 Helen Hayes Awards Nominations

This is the first time that the new Awards Process will be effect, producing the 47 categories of nominations. Outstanding Performer, Visiting Production Caroline Bowman Evita The Kennedy Center...

‘Bessie’s Blues’ at MetroStage

Drive, ride, or run down to MetroStage for Bessie’s Blues! Bessie’s Blues is one big shiny bauble-filled with song, dance, and more than a few double entendres, smack downs and hilarious patter about...

Meet the Cast and Director of Spooky Action Theater’s ‘Last of the Whyos’: Part One: Meet Randolph Curtis Rand by Roberta Alves

This is the first in a series of interviews with the cast of Spooky Action Theater’s Last of the Whyos. In Part One: Meet Randolph Curtis Rand. Why did you want to become a member of the cast of Last...

Watch The Announcement of 47 Categories as The Helen Hayes Award Nominations are Announced Tonight at 7:30 PM-A Look Back at Last Year’s Awards

UPDATE: Here is the list of 2015 Helen Hayes Award Nominees. Live tonight from The National Theatre at 7:30 PM you can watch a live webcast as theatreWashington unveils 47 categories of nominations...

‘Into the Woods JR’ at ATMTC Academy at Adventure Theatre MTC

On January 23 and 24, 2014 students from the ATMTC Academy at Adventire Theatre MTC performed Into the Woods JR, a child-friendly adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine classic musical,...

Laura Benanti at The Barns at Wolf Trap

You know how it feels to reunite with a friend you haven’t seen in a while? I’m talking about a good friend, the kind of friend where you can let time go between meetings but you pick up right where...

‘Circus!’ at The Puppet Company

Juggling bears, flying trapezes, and tightropes! The Puppet Co. presents Circus!, a spectacle of tricks and feats led by a band of marionettes, beautifully crafted by the talented Len and Pat Piper,...

‘Raisin’ Cane: A Harlem Renaissance Odyssey’ at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts

Inspired by the 1923 novel, Cane, by Jean Toomer, and the work of other renaissance artists, this multimedia presentation fronted by Jasmine Guy provided a look into the general trends and opposing...

‘The Tempest’ at Aquila Theatre

The touring Aquila Theatre production of Shakespeare’s The Tempest opened winningly. An older man we come to know as Prospero, is sitting alone at the lip of center stage. The curtain is closed behind...

Meet the Cast of the McLean Community Players’ Production of ’13’: Part Two: Alex Weinstein, Brett Hungar, Cole Sitilides, Ryan Selig, Will Hemmingson, and Winston Oughourli by Laura Beth Dailey

13 is a hilarious, coming-of-age rock musical with music and lyrics by Tony-Award winning composer Jason Robert Brown and a book by Dan Elish and Robert Horn. The story centers around Evan Goldman,...

The 32nd Annual Choreographer’s Showcase at The Clarice

The 32nd Annual Choreographer’s Showcase at The Clarice offered up an evening of dance ranging from the outwardly exuberant, to the internally nuanced, and emotions in between. The evening’s...

‘Be My Baby’ at Vienna Theatre Company

Playwright Ken Ludwig is famous for farce, fevered dialogue, and throwing his characters’ worlds off-kilter. Vienna Theatre Company’s endearing take on 2005’s Be My Baby — which Ludwig is alleged to...

‘Dizzy Gillespie™ Afro-Cuban Experience’ at The Kennedy Center

I write about theatre because I know theatre, intimately and over many years. I’m writing about Jazz because I love Jazz, the way a man might love a goddess, fleetingly and in hot pursuit. If you have...

The Canellakis-Brown Duo at The Barns at Wolf Trap

Chamber Music at The Barns at Wolf Trap is a special treat for those of us who remember what music appreciation used to imply before enormous venues and well-dressed audiences prevailed. An intimate...

‘Penny’ at Washington National Opera

The world premier for the Washington National Opera’s newest American Opera Initiative takes a new look at the power of music in the touching, engrossing drama Penny, which follows an autistic young...

‘Baskerville’ at Arena Stage at The Mead Center for American Theater

A small, merry band of actors is taking audiences on a lively, cheery, clever lark of an evening’s entertainment. What is it? It is a sharply produced production of local playwright and multi-Tony...

DC Metro Area Artists Recognized as National YoungArts Finalists

The tropical Miami conditions were a far cry from the cold gripping the DC area in early January. But the temperate climate was not the sole reason a select group of area artists were happy to escape...

In the Moment: An Interview with WSC Avant Bard’s Tom Prewitt on ‘Othello’

On horror’s head horrors accumulate. (Othello Act 3, Scene 3) So why did Othello do what he did? Why did he take the life of Desdemona, the woman he loved? Why did he take his own life? Certainly...

Meet the Cast of the McLean Community Players’ Production of ’13’: Part One: Bailey Drew, Cuinn Casey, Izzy Gaskill, John Ray, and Tori Garcia by Laura Beth Dailey

13 is a hilarious, coming-of-age rock musical with music and lyrics by Tony-Award-winning composer Jason Robert Brown and a book by Dan Elish and Robert Horn. The story centers around Evan Goldman,...

‘The Comedy of Errors’ at Laurel Mill Playhouse

First performed in 1594, William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors is one of his earliest and most farcical of his comedic works. With adaptations on stage, film and television, its story is classic....

‘Life Sucks (Or the Present Ridiculous)’ at Theater J

An intriguing question runs through Life Sucks (Or the Present Ridiculous), which is whether in fact life sucks or not. Is life inherently such a bummer that there’s no point going on? Or is life...

‘The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber’ at Riverside Center Dinner Theater

The scintillating cast of Riverside Center Dinner Theater’s The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber almost blew the roof off when I saw this new production on Saturday, January 17, 2015. The entertaining new...

‘What I Wanted to Sing When I Grew Up’ at The In Series

What I Wanted to Sing When I Grew Up is pure indulgence for audience and singer Fleta Hylton, a soprano powerhouse and DC institution. Billed as a lounge-opera-cabaret, Hylton basically picked all of...

‘Shrek The Musical JR’ at Aldersgate Church Community Theater

Aldersgate Church Community Theater proudly presents the DC area debut of Shrek The Musical JR, with Music by Jeanine Tesori and Book and Lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. Director Corey Latta Bales and...

An Interview with ‘Shocked and Amazed Presents: Strange for Hires’ Producers Alex Doll and James Taylor

Sideshow is one of the oldest and most intriguing forms of performance. Think it’s a 19th century relic? Think again. On Saturday, January 31, 2015, Shocked & Amazed Presents: Strange For Hire will...

‘In the Moment’: ‘Bessie’s Blues’ Remounted at MetroStage

It’s been a long time coming. But the time is right. The multi-Helen Hayes Award production, Bessie’s Blues is returning twenty years after it first appeared on The Studio Theater stage. It is being...

‘Go Back for Murder’ at Rockville Little Theatre

What is more exciting to watch than a story based on Murder? Intrigue? Romance? Seduction? Well look no further than Rockville Little Theatre’s production of Agatha Christie’s Go Back for Murder to...

The 15th Annual 2014 WATCH AWARDS Nominations Announced

THE WATCH AWARDS Nominations Announced January 18, 2015 – 7:30 pm at The Birchmere, Alexandria, VA Award Ceremony Sunday, March 8, 2015 – 7:00 pm at The Birchmere, Alexandria, VA Award Ceremony...

‘Red High Heels’ at Anacostia Playhouse

Making theatre is hard. Making any kind of art is hard, but the challenges that accompany mounting a live production – logistical, administrative, financial – are far more complicated than making a...

‘The Game’s Afoot’ at The Little Theatre of Alexandria

Before Benedict Cumberbatch starred in the incandescent puzzle palace that is Sherlock, there was William Gillette, the definitive Sherlock Holmes of his time. Tall, lean, with the manner of a...

‘The Liar’ at The Colonial Players

The Liar is the (tall) tale of an outrageous liar who manages to charm his way into your heart. Originally written by Pierre Corneille in 1643 and adapted by David Ives in 2010. This adaptation is...

‘The Whale’ at Rep Stage

A man who refuses to budge often makes for fine drama. Does the same go for a man who cannot budge because he weighs 600 pounds? That’s the first question posed by Samuel D. Hunter’s The Whale at Rep...

‘Greater Tuna’ at the Washington County Playhouse

Greater Tuna, the opening show of the 2015 season at the Washington County Playhouse, now under the new ownership of Shawn and Laura Martin, does not disappoint in a fast-paced, witty spoof of...

‘Mockingbird’ at The Kennedy Center

Kennedy Center’s World Premiere of Mockingbird Is a Must See Play for All Ages Brilliant: very bright, flashing with light; very impressive or successful; extremely intelligent. Moving: having a...

‘Rehearsal for Murder’ at Reston Community Players

Whodunit? That’s the question asked in Reston Community Players’ latest production Rehearsal for Murder. Producer Jay Stein says he, “can almost guarantee that whatever your theory is, it will be...

‘Smellin’ Up the Den!’ A Co-Production of Red Knight Productions and Port City Playhouse

Red Knight Productions met its goal to design and perform Smellin’ Up the Den! as “a silly show” enabling audiences to “laugh at how ridiculous the world is,” as Director Scott Courlander wrote in his...

‘In the Moment’: Aquila Theatre’s ‘The Tempest’ Visits George Mason University’s Center for the Arts on Friday, January 23rd at 8 PM

Bringing “the greatest works to the greatest number,” the nationally recognized Aquila Theatre, will bring its touring stage production of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest to the George Mason...

DCMetroTheaterArts’ Best of 2014: Best Children’s/Family Theatre Productions, Performances, Design, and Direction and 2 Special Awards

The staff of DCMetroTheaterArts is honored to announce that their 2014 Best Productions, Performances, Design, and Direction in Children’s/Family Theatre honors go to: CHILDREN’S THEATRE/FAMILY...

Aldersgate Church Community Theatre Opens ‘Shrek The Musical JR.’ Tonight by Shelagh Roberts

ACCT presents the DC-Area Premiere of Shrek, The Musical JR.! Aldersgate Church Community Theatre is thrilled to present Shrek, Jr. to local audiences for the first time in the DC area. Shrek the...

An Interview with Jasmine Guy on ‘Raisin’ Cane: A Harlem Renaissance Odyssey’ at George Mason University’s Center for the Arts on January 24, 2015

On the evening of January 24, 2015, the renowned star of stage, television, and film, Jasmine Guy will present for one-night only, “Raisin’ Cane: A Harlem Renaissance Odyssey,” along with the...

Unusual Suspects: Meet the Cast of Reston Community Players’ Upcoming ‘Rehearsal for Murder’

Reston Community Players heats up the winter with the thrilling whodunit Rehearsal for Murder January 16-31, 2015. Audiences are invited to test their wits as they enter a world of backstage drama...

DCMetroTheaterArts’ Best of 2014: Best Ensembles in DC Area Theatres

The staff of DCMetroTheaterArts is honored to announce that their 2014 Best Ensemble honors go to: A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Castaways Repertory Theatre A Soldier’s Play at 2nd Star Productions...

Bellini’s ‘La Sonnambula’ (The Sleepwalker) at The In Series

It’s eleven o’clock. Do you know where your children are? A question we’ve become accustomed to, it’s meant to both prod us and reassure us that the “village” is looking out for us, and for our kids....

Whodunit? Reston Community Players Offers a Heady Mix of Backstage Suspects in Thrilling ‘Rehearsal for Murder’ Playing January 16-31, 2015

Reston Community Players opens the thrilling whodunit Rehearsal for Murder This Friday, January 16th. Audiences are invited to test their wits as they enter a world of backstage drama where nothing is...