Washington DC

Tracy Lynn Olivera To Perform One-Night Cabaret at BlackRock This Friday, Feb 1

BlackRock will be kicking off its jam-packed February with Broadway Gold, a musical cabaret spun together by Signature Theatre’s own Tracy Lynn Olivera. On Friday, February 1 at 8 PM, Olivera and her...

Review: ‘Visions of Love’ by Pointless Theatre

Pointless Theatre has produced a stage adaptation of Charlie Chaplin’s masterpiece, City Lights, called Visions of Love. Using the original score, adapted and composed by Chaplin himself, and...

Review: ‘The Screwtape Letters’ at Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Lansburgh Theatre

When the Rolling Stones’ “Sympathy for the Devil” comes on the pre-show soundtrack, it’s a tipoff that C.S. Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters is going to be a diabolically delightful evening of theater and...

Review: ‘La Cage Aux Folles’ at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts

Riverside Center for the Performing Arts presents La Cage Aux Folles, with Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman and Book by Harvey Fierstein. Based on Jean Poiret’s farcical play by the same name, La Cage...

Review: ‘Three Sistahs’ at MetroStage

MetroStage’s Three Sistahs is a marvelous musical, an evening of vocal and dramatic excellence. Written and directed by Thomas W. Jones II – with a story by Janet Pryce – and music by William Hubbard,...

Review: ‘Kleptocracy’ at Arena Stage

A young Vladimir Putin (Christopher Geary) steps onto the stage, wearing a 1980s tracksuit, quoting a passage from the Soviet absurdist and surrealist writer Daniil Kharms (1905-1942) “How a Man...

In the Moment: ‘The Baltimore Waltz’ at the Keegan Theatre

How any of us deal with the death of a loved one is so very personal. With the passing of her beloved brother Carl, playwright Paula Vogel found her own sui generis way to let the world know how much...

Review: ‘Gulf View Drive’ at Washington Stage Guild

Gulf View Drive is the third and final play in Arlene Hutton’s highly-acclaimed Nibroc Trilogy, which opened this week to waves of laughter and applause at the Washington Stage Guild in downtown DC....

Review: ‘Lucia di Lammermoor’ by Maryland Lyric Opera

The Maryland Lyric Opera’s stated raison d’etre is to find and nurture good singers, then give them a place to test their mettle on masterworks such as those by Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, and the like....

Review: ‘Twelve Angry Men’ at Ford’s Theatre

Some sixty-five years since its original premiere as a black-and-white teleplay, Reginald Rose’s Twelve Angry Men remains timeless; all too intriguingly relevant as ever. In the Ford’s Theatre...

Review: ‘The Baltimore Waltz’ at the Keegan Theatre

Anna always wanted to go to Europe. See the City of Lights. Drink a pint of authentic German beer. Have a rendezvous (or two, or five) with strange men who whisper unintelligible sweet nothings into...

Review: ‘Peter Pan’ by Vienna Theatre Company

J.M Barrie’s Peter Pan is a classic tale whose title character first appeared in a 1902 novel from the same author. Peter is a carefree spirit, who never wants to grow up and embodies innocence,...

Magic Time!: ‘Admissions’ at Studio Theatre

“Some of my best friends are white men,” says Sherri, the very liberal white woman who handles admissions at a small New England prep school. Avowedly antiracist, Sherri is on a mission to increase...

Yael Weiss Premieres “32 Bright Clouds: Beethoven Conversations Around the World” at Strathmore January 24

At some point in their careers, most concert pianists tackle some, if not all, of Beethoven’s 32 piano sonatas. Many pianists also commission new music for their instrument by living composers, to...

Review: ‘Admissions’ at Studio Theatre

It’s an odd thing, as a Latina here in Washington, D.C., to observe the mental wrestlings of liberal white folks struggling to come to terms with their privilege. How in muted voices they make sure to...

Review: ‘Submission’ by Scena Theatre

Go with no preconceived notions to best absorb Scena Theatre’s Submission, the American premiere theater adaptation of the 2015 European best-selling novel by French author Michel Houellebecq. Adapted...

LA TI DO to present Joel Markowitz Award at ‘LUCKY: A 7th Anniversary’

LA TI DO will present its second annual Joel Markowitz Award at LUCKY: A 7th Anniversary on January 28, 2019. Washington, DC’s premiere cabaret series will award DC business owner Russwin Francisco...

Magic Time!: ‘Jeffrey’ at Rainbow Theatre Project

If there’s such a thing as gay wit, Paul Rudnick’s got a load of it. Imagine Oscar Wilde and Noël Coward if they could be out about it. Yeah, Rudnick ranks with them and then some. As proof, check out...

Review: ‘Stonefish’ by The Coil Project at Greenbelt Arts Center

On Saturday, January 19, I had the pleasure of seeing Erica Smith’s years-in-the-making play, Stonefish, produced by The Coil Project and Greenbelt Arts Center. Director David Dieudonne and assistant...

WATCH Awards Nominations: 19th Annual Washington Area Theatre Community Honors

The nominees for the 19th Annual WATCH Awards were announced tonight at the Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia.

‘Jeffrey’ at Rainbow Theatre Project

Jeffrey, the current offering of the Rainbow Theatre Project by playwright Paul Rudnick, casts a humorously defiant eye towards the tragedy of the AIDS epidemic – as set in the New York City of the...

Review: ‘Superior Donuts’ by Reston Community Players

In Superior Donuts, which opened at the Reston Community Players last night, the new Starbucks across the street is taking business from a 60-year-old family-owned shop. It is a familiar story in...

Pipeline Playwrights Presents Winter/Spring 2019 Reading Series at MetroStage

Join Pipeline Playwrights on Monday nights for readings of exciting new works, featuring some of the area’s most talented actors and directors! The series opens with a play by Pipeline’s newest...

Review: ‘School of Rock: The Musical’ at National Theatre

Kicked out of the band and facing eviction from “his” apartment, Dewey Finn questionably intercepts a substitute teacher assignment at a prestigious local academy to pay the rent. With no teaching...

Review: ‘The Fantasticks’ at The Little Theatre of Alexandria

Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt’s The Fantasticks had a legendary 42-year Off-Broadway run (and then an 11-year revival), suggesting that there’s something strangely captivating about this sweet and...

Step Afrika! Kicks Off 25th Anniversary Season With Showcase at Strathmore

When Step Afrika! began performing nearly 25 years ago, founder C. Brian Williams couldn’t have imagined his now-famous dance company would bring the art of step to audiences around the world. “When I...

In The Moment: ‘Image China: Xuanzang’s Pilgrimage’ Makes U.S. Premiere at The Kennedy Center

A far-reaching cultural exchange production from China by the China Performing Arts Agency (CPAA) is making its United States premiere at The Kennedy Center. It is Image China: Xuanzang’s Pilgrimage,...

Review: ‘Cinderella’ at The Kennedy Center Opera House

Don’t walk into the Kennedy Center Opera House expecting a Disney-esque, happily-ever-after retelling of the evergreen fairytale Cinderella. British director/choreographer Matthew Bourne has spent his...

Shakespeare Theatre Company Hosts Annual Mock Trial

On January 14, 2019, the Shakespeare Theatre Company presented its Winter Mock Trial at Sidney Harman Hall (610 F Street NW). Guests were invited to hear Richard the Third: A Good Name Restored – Was...

Review: ‘Silent Sky’ at Colonial Players of Annapolis

Colonial Players’ production of Silent Sky is a beautiful combination of wonderful acting, direction, lighting, and sound. The 2011 play, written by Lauren Gunderson, is based on the real-life stories...

Monumental Theatre Company Presents New Children’s Musical ‘Dress Up Day’

Monumental Theatre Company will present Dress Up Day beginning March 2, 2019, as part of the Atlas INTERSECTIONS Festival and Monumental’s New Work Series. Dress Up Day follows a spunky first-grader...

Riverside Center for the Performing Arts Presents ‘La Cage aux Folles’

The Riverside Center for the Performing Arts in Fredericksburg, Virginia is excited to present the Tony Award-winning La Cage aux Folles, beginning January 9th and running until Sunday, March 3rd. The...

Local Favorite Margo Seibert Comes Home for Signature Theatre Concert

Fans of Margo Seibert – the Broadway star of Rocky and In Transit – may face some unusual competition for tickets to her upcoming concert at Signature Theatre. That’s because metro DC is no touring...

Dante’ Pope Is Center Stage in Strathmore’s Artist in Residency Program

Raheem Devaughn. Dom Flemons of the Carolina Chocolate Drops. Erykah Badu: Soul vocalist and Strathmore Artist in Residence Dante’ Pope has performed or shared the stage with them all. From sideman to...

Review: ‘American Moor’ at Anacostia Playhouse

American Moor, in a return engagement at Anacostia Playhouse, lambasts the audience with a series of provocative questions: can an actor play a role without tapping into the darkest parts of their...

Review: ‘Proof’ by St. Mark’s Players

“The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” implies that a child has similar qualities or characteristics as his or her parents. A particular talent may be handed down through the genes, but less...

Review: ‘Equivocation’ by Bill Cain at Silver Spring Stage

It is 1605. The Gunpowder Plot, in which a group of disaffected Catholics attempted to blow up King James I, his wife, his children, and all the political and religious leaders of the age, has just...

Magic Time!: ‘ 19: The Musical’

It was “a century of struggle” before women in the United States won the right to vote in 1920, and the centenary of the amendment that cinched it, the nineteenth, is just around the corner. An...

Review: ‘Heathers: The Musical’ at Dominion Stage

High school never changes. This is abundantly clear in Heathers: The Musical. With book, music and lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy, this edgy and fun musical comes to Dominion Stage under...

‘The Enchanted Bookshop’ at Encore Stage & Studio

Encore Stage & Studio’s polished and playful production of The Enchanted Bookshop is funtertainment for the whole family! The Enchanted Bookshop by Todd Wallinger tells the magical tale of Margie, the...

Review: ‘Cartography’ at The Kennedy Center

With its premiere of Cartography, The Kennedy Center continues to be a welcoming venue for theatrically devised civic discourse on often fraught issues. Cartography is a unique live documentary about...

Review: ‘Judy Garland: A Star Is Born’ at Signature Theatre

Signature Theatre’s Cabaret Series is a relaxed affair. Pull up a chair and put your elbows on the table because Awa Sal Secka and Katie Mariko Murray are going to make you feel right at home. The two...

Past Is Prologue in New Musical About Suffragists

When Nancy Pelosi accepted the gavel as Speaker of the House last week, she expressed pride at presiding over Congress during the 100th anniversary of women having the right to vote (coming in 2020)....

Theater J Names Jojo Ruf New Managing Director

Theater J, the nation’s pre-eminent professional Jewish theater, announced yesterday that Jojo Ruf will become its new Managing Director on January 28, 2019. Ruf joins Artistic Director Adam Immerwahr...

Avant Bard Announces 2019 Scripts in Play Festival

Avant Bard theatre is proud to announce the 2019 edition of Scripts in Play Festival, its signature play-reading series, February 8 to 24, 2019. This year’s selection features seven plays over two...

American Opera Is Becoming Its Own Genre and It’s Happening Here in DC

Opera in America has had the stink of death upon it for some time now. Lavish productions of period piece love stories and power struggles set largely during the time of kings and courtesans in Europe...

DCMTA 2018 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 2018. In this category, outstanding professional design, we recognize:...

Review: ‘[title of show]’ at NextStop Theatre Company

Like TV’s “Seinfeld,” [title of show] is a show, to a degree, about the mundane. [title of show] is a musical about four friends creating a musical – the one the audience sees. Along the way, they...

Review: ‘From U Street to the Cotton Club’ by The In Series

Rising from its roots in the Deep South, African American music journeyed north with the Great Migration, invigorating urban culture with rhythms derived from shouts to spirituals, work songs and...

Review: ‘Catch Me If You Can’ at the Montgomery Playhouse

In Montgomery Playhouse’s production of Catch Me If You Can, now playing at the Gaithersburg Arts Barn, Director Ed Starr has once again sprinkled fairy dust on an erstwhile gaggle of ordinary...