Washington DC

4615 Theatre’s gripping ‘A Measure of Cruelty’ rips open three men’s wounds

The casual cruelty that constructs men’s certainty they’re real men—and the cost of that violence to others and to themselves—comes under scathing scrutiny in Joe Calarco’s shattering one-act A...

Charming ‘Leading Ladies’ pleases at Vienna Theatre Company

Leading Ladies is a charming little farce written by Ken Ludwig. Directed by Eleanore Tapscott, this production at Vienna Theatre Company is sure to be a popular, audience-pleasing production. The...

Songs of love and war in UrbanArias’ brilliant ‘Glory Denied’

If your parents taught you that opera is the ultimate blend of words and music, where both elements are dependent on the other and that the end result is far more than the sum of its parts, and if you...

Pianist Yefim Bronfman dazzles, while NSO disengages under guest conductor Gemma New

Nature, nuance, or its lack thereof, were central themes when the National Symphony Orchestra welcomed conductor Gemma New, pianist Yefim Bronfman, and the young composer Salina Fisher to Washington...

For actor Justin Weaks, the diverse content produced in DC theaters was reason enough to move here

In his five years on DC stages, actor Justin Weaks has played an impressive array of characters written by contemporary African American playwrights. It is a dream he feared would never become reality...

‘Sheltered’ at Theater J hits home in America right now

A gathering stormcloud looms over this exquisitely wrought play by Alix Sobler. “How bad is it going to get?” a character wonders aloud. No one can answer. “It can’t go on like this much longer, can...

Theater J examines world history, good and bad, in ‘Sheltered’

Alix Sobler’s play Sheltered, based on real-life characters, is a rarity. It is a history play that doesn’t fall into the trap of portraying a period in history in such detail that it forgets to...

MLK’s final evening is imagined in NextStop Theatre’s ‘The Mountaintop’

The Mountaintop by Katori Hall is a remarkably affecting play full of humanity, faith, unexpected humor, and the Almighty. Strikingly directed by two time Helen Hayes award recipient Kevin S....

‘Quadrille’ at Greenbelt Arts Center is a four-handed game of romance and chance where true love prevails

In a veddy, veddy proper tale about class differences, gender roles, secret lovers and the pitfalls of an arranged marriage, playwright Melynda Kiring is quite right that “the fun in this play is the...

‘Grease’ at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts rocks and rolls

Grease is a musical that celebrates the changes born of the late 1950s era of rock n’ roll, drive-in movies, and James Dean–an era that sat on the cusp of the turbulent 1960s. Riverside Center for the...

Old dogs and new tricks: the Hermès Quartet and guests in performance at the Phillips Collection

Here’s a thought: Older virtuosi are boring. That’s not original to me, but to an audience member who offered his views during a concert intermission recently. We were at the Phillips Collection for a...

‘Yellow Face’ at Silver Spring Stage sparks important conversations

Is racism a taboo subject in the arts? Of course not. From Uncle Tom’s Cabin to Porgy and Bess to the whitewashing of the Oscars, artists have used their platform to explore America’s history of...

A Black boxing champion battles racism in ‘The Royale’ at 1st Stage

Black early 20th-century celebrity heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson has had as irresistible a pull on subsequent playwrights and filmmakers as he did on the public of his day. Already the...

‘1001 Black Inventions’ continues The Essential Theatre’s free presentations for young audiences

The Essential Theatre rings in the New Year by continuing an 18-month celebration of the 30th anniversary of its founding. In partnership with the District of Columbia Public Library System the...

Director Stevie Zimmerman on the rewards of going outside of comfort zone

Professional theaters in the DMV have been at the forefront of making diversity a critical watchword and action step. During the past several years, the DMV has hosted two Women’s Voices Theater...

Uplifting ‘Veils’ returns to Restoration Stage by popular demand

Four African American women address the audience as if speaking to a department store clerk. Each is shopping for a dress—a dress, they stress, that must be “special.” As they turn to the faces of...

Colonial Players’ fascinating ‘The Children’ explores bleak post-nuclear future

Annapolis’ Colonial Players takes on Lucy Kirkwood’s 2016 environmental disaster drama The Children in an intimate production which explores the human cost of uncontrolled consumption and destruction....

WNO’s American Opera Initiative 2020 is an essential take on opera in America

“It’s a ridiculous thing to sing at the top of your lungs about your vulnerability,” American composer Laura Kaminsky observed to this year’s Washington National Opera’s American Opera Initiative...

Review: At the Kentlands Arts Barn, Nat King Cole is as ‘Unforgettable’ as you remember him to be

A near-capacity crowd hushed as the evening opened with the title song from Nat King Cole’s 1959 album Welcome to the Club. I was immediately impressed that Don Dillingham, the evening’s soloist,...

‘NSO Pops: Diana Ross – Music Book 2020’ brings mesmerizing Motown royalty to the Kennedy Center

She’s mesmerizing, astounding, and accomplished beyond reason. I’m writing about world-renowned superstar recording artist Diana Ross. Ross, conductor Emil de Cou of the National Symphony Orchestra,...

Folger Theatre setting up summer shop at National Building Museum

The National Building Museum announced its partnership with Folger Shakespeare Library, in association with the University of South Carolina, to design the 2020 Summer Block Party exhibition for the...

American Shakespeare Center announces principal casting for Marquee Repertory season

American Shakespeare Center launches the 2020 Marquee Repertory season this summer navigating the waters of Venice, the glittering locale of Shakespeare’s Othello and The Merchant of Venice and Ben...

Tchaikovsky’s vocal compositions attract audiences in DC and New York

It is often hard to determine what fills the seats in many performing arts genres, with counterintuitive surprises on both the negative and positive side. Count this one as a positive: While Peter...

Studio Theatre names Reginald L. Douglas Associate Artistic Director

Studio Theatre and Artistic Director David Muse are pleased to announce that Reginald L. Douglas will join the organization as its new Associate Artistic Director later this month. Douglas comes to...

‘Richard the Second’ at Brave Spirits Theatre: a tale of two kings

Brave Spirits Theatre (BST), led by Artistic Director Charlene V. Smith, has taken on a spectacular challenge: Shakespeare’s eight history plays. Richard the Second, Henry the Fourth Parts I and II,...

Dark Horse Theatre Company presents regional premiere of ‘The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later’

Located just 47 miles away from Washington, DC in The Plains, Virginia, Dark Horse Theatre Company creates some of the best theater in the DC area. Director Natasha Parnian continues a streak of...

IN Series’ ‘Le Cabaret de Carmen’ is opera for those unafraid of art’s raw power

“I want us to be in contention for a Helen Hayes Award,” IN Series artistic director Timothy Nelson told me last fall over coffee near his office in the Shaw neighborhood. We were discussing his...

DCMTA 2019 Staff Favorites: Outstanding Design Elements in Professional Productions

As the year draws to a close, we asked DCMTA writers to think back on the shows that left an indelible impression on them in 2019. In this category, outstanding professional design, we recognize:...

‘A Jazz New Year’s Eve’ brought Branford Marsalis’ innovative style to the Kennedy Center

The Grand Foyer at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts teemed with patrons sporting gowns swirling against the carpeted floor and tuxedos announcing an auspicious occasion, signifying...

The audacity of Brave Spirits Theatre: a conversation with Artistic Director Charlene V. Smith

Tumultuous times call out for audacity in the performing arts. And Brave Spirits Theatre (BST) has boldly marked its territory for the next two years. Over the 2020 and 2021 seasons, Brave Spirits...

DCMTA 2019 Staff Favorites: Outstanding Performance in a Professional Production

As the year draws to a close, we asked DCMTA writers to think back on the performances that left an indelible impression on them in 2019. Here are the professional performances that made the biggest...

Playwright Jonathan Spector on the shadows that lurk behind the laughter in ‘Eureka Day.’

There’s no doubt about it. Eureka Day is a very funny play. The show, now having its DC debut at Mosaic Theater, features five perfectly-attuned actors, a director who understands comedy, a script...

Family friendly ‘Tiny Tim’s Christmas Carol’ at Silver Spring Stage

Silver Spring Stage’s production of Tiny Tim’s Christmas Carol is a fun, family-friendly take on Charles Dickens’ classic tale. Written by Ken and Jack Ludwig, this 2015 play has Tiny Tim and his...

A Powerhouse Performance of Handel’s Messiah by NSO at The Kennedy Center

At the outset, I will confess a bias: I much prefer listening to baroque pieces played in the style, and on the scale, of the time in which they were composed. Handel’s 1741 oratorio Messiah was...

‘A Christmas Carol’ comes to life at Museum of the Bible

Charles Dickens’ classic holiday tale A Christmas Carol comes to life in a unique living history experience at Museum of the Bible in the aptly named A Christmas Carol Experience. This charming...

A ‘My Fair Lady’ for today at the Kennedy Center

The character arc that carries Lerner and Loewe’s classic My Fair Lady belongs to Eliza Doolittle, as she rises from flower girl at Covent Garden to the belle of the embassy ball, from feral street...

‘Not just a field trip’: Strathmore partners with Montgomery County Public Schools to engage children in the arts

Schools play a pivotal role in cultivating the next generations, and the arts have a key role. Research suggests that arts educational experiences can produce significant positive impacts on academic...

DCMTA 2019 Staff Favorites: Outstanding Professional Theater Productions

As the year draws to a close, we asked DCMTA writers to think back on the shows that left an indelible impression on them in 2019. In this category, outstanding overall production, we recognize:...

‘The Magical Piñata’ at the Keegan Theatre celebrates Mexican culture and teaches about sharing

The concept of gratitude and sharing can be one of the hardest things for a child to learn. But in a world full of greed, these principles are vital to maintaining a semblance of peace and prosperity....

The Claremont Trio triumphs with concert of female composers at the Phillips Collection

Concerts in private salons rather than formal concert halls dot the history of music-making. But they can give the impression of being secondary events where no real music history took place. That...

The ‘Long View’ glimpses inner life of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

There has been plenty of backlash during this administration against what some critics have called “the cult” of RBG, aka, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Some are critical of the...

Step Afrika!’s ‘Magical Musical Holiday Step Show’ is a winter wonderland of joy

Now in its eighth year, Step Afrika!’s Magical Musical Holiday Step Show has established itself as the season’s most joyful and lovable family festivity in DC. Exuberant music, adorable humor, and...

Ken Ludwig on ‘Dear Jack, Dear Louise,’ a long-awaited stage celebration of his parents’ long-distance romance

There’s a lovely new play at Arena Stage, but you’ll have to rush if you want to see it. That’s because the play—Ken Ludwig’s Dear Jack, Dear Louise—will be off and running before the year ends,...

‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ hits the road to 50

Jesus wears his hair in a man-bun and Mary Magdalene appears a bit like a millennial caught outside her “safe space”—but there’s still plenty of power and glory on display in the new 50th Anniversary...

Top five theater ghosts…before ‘The Woman in Black’ arrived at Shakespeare Theatre Company

The Woman in Black, the long-playing London ghost story now perturbing a Shakespeare Theatre Company stage, reminds us that spine-chilling horror can be the most delightful of sensations. To put us in...

‘Black Nativity’ inspires and uplifts at Anacostia Playhouse

There are many joyous traditions this time of year, but to my mind the most indispensable has become Black Nativity. With its spiritual values on its finely-woven sleeve, it’s a show that inspires...

Dark Horse Theatre Company, theatreWashington’s newest member, kicks off 2020 with ‘The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later’

Dark Horse Theatre Company is the newest member of theatreWashington. As readers of DCMTA are aware, theatreWashington is the organization dedicated to supporting and representing the Washington, DC...

Isabella Star LaBlanc, who plays Tiger Lily in ‘Peter Pan and Wendy’ at Shakespeare Theatre Company, on why Native stories matter

When Playwright Lauren Gunderson took on the challenge of adapting J. M. Barrie’s 1904 Peter Pan, she knew she had to fix what she has called the “deeply harmful misrepresentation of Indigenous people...

Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert: sing along and hear expert musicians celebrate the season

If singing along to the Hallelujah Chorus or Hark, the Herald Angels Sing are requisite to bolstering your holiday spirit, then Songs of the Season: Christmas with Choral Arts at the Kennedy Center...

Scena Theatre’s ‘The Dead’ presents quiet desperation at Christmastime

Based on a renowned short story by James Joyce, The Dead, now being presented by Scena Theatre, is a slice of the lives of polite, quiet desperation lived by genteel middle-class Dubliners in the...