Arena Stage

Magic Time! ‘Mother Courage and Her Children’ at Arena Stage at The Mead Center for American Theater by John Stoltenberg

It takes a wagonload of courage to take on Brecht these days. His “alienation effect” esthetic challenges every theatrical convention that makes a show a contemporary commercial success. He explicitly...

‘Mother Courage and Her Children’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Sophia Howes

Schopenhauer once said,“Talent hits a target that no one else can hit. Genius hits a target that no one else can see.” These words are uniquely apposite to describe the genius of Bertolt Brecht....

Eitan Mazia on Playing Leo Frank in ‘Parade’ at Act Two @ Levine This Weekend at The Kogod Cradle at Arena Stage

First of all, I cannot thank Director Kevin Kuchar enough for allowing me the privilege to play this role, especially at such a young age. It’s an especially unique opportunity for me because I’ve...

Amanda Silverstein on Playing Lucille Frank in Act Two @ Levine’s ‘Parade’ This Weekend at The Kogod Cradle at Arena Stage

Parade is not just a musical. It isn’t one of those shows where the audience wants to get up and dance and leaves feeling they have been entertained. To me, Parade is an intense story that should make...

The Pre-Professional Program of Act Two @ Levine Presents ‘PARADE’ January 30-February 2nd at Arena Stage’s Kogod Cradle

The Pre-Professional Program of Act Two @ Levine is proud to present PARADE In 1913, Leo Frank, a Brooklyn-raised Jew living in Georgia, is put on trial for the murder of 13-year-old Mary Phagan, a...

The Playwright’s Playground: Part II: ‘Creative Consciousness: An Interview with – Anu Yadav’ by Sydney-Chanele Dawkins

Female theatre artists make up more than 50 percent of those involved in the theatre, yet the number of female playwrights being produced is dramatically lower. Welcome back to the conversation, and...

‘The Tallest Tree in the Forest’ at Arena Stage by David Friscic

The epic journey of the civil rights movement, the political struggles of the times, and the fruitless hatred of humankind towards those they do not understand are beautifully realized –and mirrored...

‘The Velocity of Autumn’ to Open on Broadway at The Booth Theatre on April 21, 2014 and Previews Begin April 1, 2014

The Velocity of Autum is off to Broadway’s The Booth Theatre! “A bracing, honest and deliciously funny performance played with wonderful gritand wit by the great actress Estelle Parsons.” – The New...

dog & pony dc’s ‘Toast’ (a Workshop Production) by John Stoltenberg

“Audience integration” is a buzzword that has been flying around awhile but only recently landed in my brain. In live theater, it means going beyond removing the fourth wall; it means erasing the line...

‘Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner’ at Arena Stage at The Mead Center for American Theater by Sophia Howes

Love is in the Air The best way to describe the new Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner at Arena Stage is this: if you remember when you first fell in love; if you’d like to feel that way again – go to see...

‘Love in Afghanistan’ at Arena Stage at The Mead Center for American Theater by Rick Westerkamp

Love in Afghanistan, Charles Randolph-Wright’s exquisitely woven four person drama currently playing in Arena Stage’s Kogod Cradle, centers around two families: Duke (Khris Davis) and his mother...

A Mother and a Son Look at ‘The Velocity of Autumn’ by Ellouise Schoettler

Last week my son and I were part of yet another audience captivated by Estelle Parsons and Stephen Spinella playing mother and son in Eric Coble’s marvelous play The Velocity of Autumn, now playing at...

‘The Velocity of Autumn’ at Arena Stage at The Mead Center for American Theater by John Stoltenberg

For $64,000, the funny thing about aging is…? Funny like strange or funny like—? Like LOL. Oh, okay, lemme think. [Thinks a long time; lame music plays.] Haven’t got all day. Please, I need more time!...

‘The Velocity of Autumn’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Nicole Cusick

With the stage in total darkness the house is consumed with loud noises of a storm and sirens evoking a very chaotic state. It last for about a minute, just enough to make your heart begin to race,...

‘If/Then’ Video Released-Begins at National Theatre on November 5th

Here is the new video of the ‘Meet and Greet’ of the cast and creators of the new musical ‘If/Then,’ which opens on November 5th at The National Theatre. Pre-Broadway World Premiere of New Musical...

An Interview with Playwright Eric Coble on His Play ‘The Velocity of Autumn’ at Arena Stage by Joel Markowitz

The Velocity of Autumn is about to open at Arena Stage on September 6th, starring Estelle Parsons and Stephen Spinella. Playwright Eric Coble talked to me about the journey of the play from its...

Synesthesia: One-time-only ASL-Interpreted Performance of ‘The Resurrection of Alice’ by Yvonne French

South Carolina, 1949. Fifteen-year-old Alice is about to graduate from high school. When she was 7, her parents had promised her to a man who was old enough to be her grandfather, a little-known...

Synesthesia: Audio-Described Performance Set for ‘One Night with Janice Joplin’ at Arena Stage by Yvonne French

The Metropolitan Washington Ear, Inc., announced that it will provide audio description of One Night with Janis Joplin, back by popular demand after opening last fall. One Night with Janis Joplin is...

‘One Night with Janis Joplin’ Begins Performances on Broadway on 9/20 With Opening Night on 10/10 at The Lyceum

One Night with Janis Joplin is coming to Broadway and will begin previews at Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre – 149 West 45th Street – on Friday, September 20, 2013. Opening night is on Thursday, October 10,...

‘One Night with Janis Joplin’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Max Johnson

I came into One Night with Janis Joplin asking one major question: how will a production presented as “more of a full on concert than a play” by Artistic Director Molly Smith translate into an...

Randy Johnson on Writing and Directing ‘One Night with Janis Joplin’ at Arena Stage by Joel Markowitz

After a critically acclaimed run at Arena Stage last October One Night with Janis Joplin is back. I asked Director Randy Johnson about the new production about to open at Arena Stage an how the show...

2013 Tony Award Winners

Here are The 2013 Tony Award WINNERS The American Theatre Wing announced its Tony Award winners tonight. Among the winners were Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, that stopped at Arena Stage. It was...

58th Annual Drama Desk Awards Winners Announced! Matilda, Pippin & Virginia Woolf Big Winners

Winners of the 58th Annual Drama Desk Awards were announced tonight from Town Hall, in NYC. The winners are announced in bold. DC area theatergoers were so lucky to see Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf...

‘Next To Normal’ at Act Two @ Levine by Max Johnson

When approaching an issue as sensitive and pervasive as mental illness, even the most seasoned performers can underplay the massive implications of a disorder or dramatize it to the point where it...

Arena Stage Holds ‘Voices of Now Festival’ Today Through Sunday

ARENA STAGE HOLDS VOICES OF NOW FESTIVAL MAY 15-19, 2013 The Voices of Now Festival begins today, Wednesday, May 15 through Sunday, May 19 at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater in the...

‘Other Desert Cities’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Mark Dewey

Unhappy Family Fights It Out at Arena Stage Other Desert Cities, the last play in the 2012-2013 season at Arena Stage, takes place on wall-to-wall white carpet in a living room furnished with circles...

‘The Mountaintop’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Mark Dewey

From The Mountaintop into the Promised Land I thought it was really raining behind the motel room on the Kreeger Theater stage. They must have extended the sprinkler system and built a trough to catch...

‘Mary T. & Lizzy K.’ Extended Through May 5, 2013 at Arena Stage by Kirstin Franko

MARY T. & LIZZY K. EXTENDS THROUGH MAY 5 AT ARENA STAGE WITH SIX ADDED PERFORMANCES Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces that due to popular demand, the world premiere play...

‘Mary T. & Lizzy K.’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Mark Dewey

Arena Stage Explores the Lincoln White House Tazewell Thompson’s new play Mary T. & Lizzy K., now playing at Arena Stage, is based on the unlikely friendship between Mary Todd Lincoln and Elizabeth...

Kevin Roland Begins his New Column ‘A View From the Pit’

I didn’t choose to be a Musical Director. It chose me. And thank God it did, because I can’t imagine much else I would be good at. I told my mother for years I didn’t want those silly piano lessons...

Helen Hayes Nominees Partied Hardy and a Visit with Nominees Toby Orenstein & Larry Munsey by Carolyn Kelemen

The snowy rain throughout DC last night hardly dampened the warm, friendly spirit of theater folks gathered in the Hamilton Hotel’s chic downstairs lounge a la cabaret. The cozy room (with a stage and...

‘A Whole Lot of Night Music at the WATCH Awards’ by Heather Friedman

When I was cast in The Arlington Players’ production of A Little Night Music last spring, I had been out of the DC theatre scene for so long that I had never experienced the WATCH Awards, and thus I...

Looking for Participants for April 1st at 7 PM Monologue Fest!

We’re thrilled to announce that–after last year’s great success–we’re bringing back the Monologue Fest! Join us on Monday, April 1 at 7 pm at Ri-Ra Irish Pub in Bethesda as local actors compete for a...

Looking Back: An Interview with Valerie Harper on ‘Looped’ and Her Theatre Career by Joel Markowitz

When I heard that Valerie Harper had dropped out of the National Tour of Looped, (replaced by Stephanie Powers) I knew that it had to be something terrible that would keep this trouper off the stage,...

New Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey’s ‘If/Then’ with Idina Menzel to Stop at National Theatre

Pre-Broadway World Premiere of New Musical Tony Award-Winner Idina Menzel in If/Then A New Broadway-Bound Musical From the creators of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Next to Normal Music by Tom Kitt Book...

Arena Stage and George Washington University Announce the Launch of ‘The National Civil War Project’

The National Civil War Project to Create Original Theatrical Productions and Innovative Academic Programming Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater and the George Washington University...

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater Announces 10 Shows for Their 2013-2014 Season

ARENA STAGE AT THE MEAD CENTER FOR AMERICAN THEATER ANNOUNCES 10 SHOWS FOR 2013/14 SEASON Four world premieres including a work by Resident Playwright Charles Randolph-Wright and a presentation by...

‘Good People’ at Arena Stage by Mark Dewey

Arena Stage Makes Good People Great The pivotal character in David Lindsay-Abaire’s new play Good People, directed at Arena Stage by Jackie Maxwell, has no lines and never comes onstage. All she does...

‘The Grand Parade (of the 20th Century)’ at Arena Stage by Natalie McCabe

Take key events of the past century. Add some music by a Russian composer. Throw in television, radio, and video game transmissions and broadcasts. Frame it with Marc Chagall’s paintings, focusing on...

My Top 10 Favorite Shows in New York in 2012 by Doug Poms

Here are my Top 10 New York Theater Favorites of 2012: 1. Once -The musical adaption of the Oscar-winning independent film masterly directed by John Tiffany. Winner of eight Tony Awards, including one...

The Best of 2012: Part 10: Designers, Cabarets & Concerts, Dance & University Shows

Here are DCMetroTheaterArts writers’ choices for their favorites designs of production in the the DC Metro Area in 2012. I always felt that Designers never received enough ‘ink’ or credit or respect...

The Best of 2012: Part 9: ‘Solo Performances, Children’s/Young Adult, Directors, Performances & Special Award

BEST SOLO PERFORMANCES Joe Brack in My Princess Bride at DC Capital Fringe Festival. Alex Brightman in How I Paid for College at The Hub Theatre. Mike Daisey in The Agony and The Ecstasy Of Steve Jobs...

The Best of 2012: Part 8: ‘Best Director of a Play and Best Supporting Actor and Actress in a Play’

Here are our choices for Best Director of a Play and Best Actor and Actress of a Play in 2012. Feel free to leave a comment and share your favorites of 2012 with our readers by leaving comment at the...

The Best of 2012: Part 7: ‘Best Play’ and ‘Best Actor’ and ‘Best Actress in a Play’

Here are the writers of DCMetroTheaterArts’ choices for Best Plays of 2012 and Best Performances by an Actor and Actress in a Play in 2012 in the DC Metro Area. Congrats to everyone on our list and to...

The Best of 2012: Part 6: ‘Best Ensemble of a Play’ and ‘Best Ensemble of a Musical’

Here’s our favorite Ensembles from plays and musicals in 2012 on DC Metro Area stages. Congrats to everyone on these lists and to everyone who appeared on our local stages in 2012! BEST ENSEMBLE OF A...

The Best of 2012: Part 5: ‘Best Director, Best Musical Direction, and Best Choreography of a Musical’

For the next week we will be posting lists of our favorites of 2012 in several categories. These lists reflect the opinions of members of the writing staff of DCMetroTheaterArts. We were allowed to...

The Best of 2012: Part 4: ‘Best Performance by Supporting Actor and Actress in a Musical’

For the next week we will be posting lists of our favorites of 2012 in several categories. These lists reflect the opinions of members of the writing staff of DCMetroTheaterArts. We were allowed to...

The Best of 2012: Part 3: ‘Best Performance by an Actor and Actress in a Musical’

For the next week we will be posting lists of our favorites of 2012 in several categories. These lists reflect the opinions of members of the writing staff of DCMetroTheaterArts. We were allowed to...

The Best of 2012: Part 2: ‘The Best Musicals of 2012’

After reviewing over 1,200 theatrical productions, concerts, and recitals on DCMetroTheaterArts in 2012 – it was no easy task to come up with this list of our ‘Best Musicals of 2012,’ because there so...

‘Pullman Porter Blues’ at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater by Jennifer Perry

Often I find that the productions in our area that interest me the most are ones that take a lesser-known story, concept, or theme, bring it to life with extraordinary actors, and entertain local...