2017

Review: Comedy at The Kennedy Center Millennium Stage with Gary Vider and Sara Armour

Now in its 21st year, the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage is the Center’s gift to everyone in the Washington area, offering live entertainment at no cost every single day. It’s also a great way to...

‘Einstein!’ Returns to Under St. Marks Theatre

Sew and Sew Productions and the Horse Trade Theater Group present the return of Jack Fry’s highly-acclaimed Einstein! to New York City in January. Playing again at Under St. Marks Theatre, where it...

In the Moment: Interview with Stage Manager Paul D. Michnewicz

One of the questions I often receive from theater-goers surrounds the mystery of what a stage manager does for a live theater production. The stage manager is rarely seen, and doesn’t seem to have a...

Report: Keegan Theatre’s ‘An Irish Carol’ Performance on December 29 to Benefit Nonprofit Shatterproof

The holidays are a difficult time for those with loved ones fighting with the effects of addiction. The Keegan Theatre will be holding a benefit performance of An Irish Carol this Friday, December 29,...

Review: Tom Teasley and Seth Kibel present Tiny Planet at Strathmore

Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or at least something different. The good poet welds his theft into a whole...

Review: ‘Foolish Fairytales’ at Faction of Fools Theatre Company

If you have yet to experience a Faction of Fools Theatre Company production, then you are missing out on something truly brilliant and one-of-a-kind. With a Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Emerging...

Review: ‘Les Misérables’ at the National Theatre

One does not simply review Les Mis—at least, not when it’s this stunning revival of the epic that took the world by storm when the novel debuted in 1862 and again when the musical premiered in London...

Report: La-Ti-Do’s Cabaret and Spoken Word Shows Will Be DC’s Hot Ticket in 2018

Imagine a company that blends the drama of Broadway with the talent of spoken word artists: this is just scratching the surface of what to expect at a La-Ti-Do show. The brainchild of Don Michael...

Preview: ‘Salute to Vienna New Year’s Concert’ Promises to Transport Modern Audiences with Dazzling Old World Charm

Salute to Vienna has been a staple of the holiday season for more than 20 years in North America, and Washington welcomes it back for a 17th year on December 30, 2017. Based on the Vienna...

Review: ‘Farinelli and the King’ at the Belasco Theatre

I believe there’s a reason the name of the countertenor Farinelli precedes that of King Philippe V of Spain in the title of the play running currently at the Belasco Theatre on Broadway. Unlike The...

Review: ‘Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol’ at Casabuena Cultural Productions

Jacob Marley’s Christmas Carol proves that damnation can be funnier than hell. Casabuena Cultural Productions’ irreverent take on the beloved Charles Dickens classic follows Marley on a redemptive...

Magic Time!: Inside ‘Amazing Grace’ at the Museum of the Bible: A Q&A with Performer Joshua Simon

When I saw the musical Amazing Grace I praised it to the skies. A blurb being used to promote the show is lifted from my review: “A gorgeous production of a glorious musical! Heart-stopping,...

Review: ‘Holiday Cheer!’ at National Chamber Ensemble

The National Chamber Ensemble’s Holiday Cheer! on December 16 was a celebration of great music. The charming and witty Artistic Director and leading violinist, Leonid Sushansky, sees each performance...

Review: ‘The Summer Club: A Winter Holiday’ at Venice Island Performing Arts Center

Don’t let the name fool you. They’re not just “the boys of summer,” they’re here year-round to keep the spirit of Swing, the sounds of the Big Band era, and the camaraderie of the “Rat Pack” alive,...

Review: ‘A Billion Nights on Earth’ at FringeArts

Thaddeus Phillips’ and Steven Dufala’s spectacularly enjoyable, glowing world of far out, fantastical adventure unfolds and forms like theatrical origami within the FringeArts black box theater....

News: Exclusive La-Ti-Do 2018 Season Feature Announcement

Curated and hosted by co-founders Don Michael Mendoza and Regie Cabico, La-Ti-Do is DC’s premiere musical theatre cabaret and spoken word series. Cabaret and spoken word performances appear in New...

Review: ‘Bad Dates’ at Act II Playhouse

Bad Dates, by Theresa Rebeck, is the third one-person play I’ve seen in the past two months. The others were 2.5 Minute Ride, an autobiographical drama by Lisa Kron which was produced at Theatre...

Review: ‘A Hunger Artist’ at Baltimore Theater Project

Reviewed by Jason Williams Sinking Ship’s production of A Hunger Artist is a dark comedy that balances self-deprecation with self-awareness. Adapted from a short story of the same name from Czech...

Review: ‘The Children’ at Manhattan Theatre Club

The Manhattan Theatre Club has imported the London Royal Court Theatre’s production of The Children by Lucy Kirkwood, and with it have come the highly acclaimed original cast (Francesca Annis, Ron...

Review: ‘The Gift of the Mad Guy’ at Building Better People Productions

Christmastime is promoted by many as a time to let go of, at least temporarily, the practice of excessive self-cherishing. It is a time to reflect on the wants and needs of others. Many...

In the Moment: ‘Christmas at the Old Bull and Bush’ at MetroStage

Brimming with heart, musical numbers to elicit smiles, a unique wit, some audience sing-alongs, and moments that disrupt theatrical norms, MetroStage’s Christmas at the Old Bull and Bush is a charmer....

Review: ‘An American in Paris’ at the Kennedy Center

Glistening The Kennedy Center’s lush Opera House with feted Hollywood glitz and glamour, the national tour of the 2015 multi-Tony-winning musical, An American in Paris, debuted Tuesday for a...

New Records: Listening to ‘Bandstand’ and the Music of Alan Menken

This report on New Records includes three Alan Menken shows that recently received fresh recordings, plus a Broadway show from this year that unfortunately closed after a modest run. God Bless You,...

Review: ‘The Christmas Revels: A French-Canadian Winter Celebration’ at Washington Revels

Washington Revels presents us with a festive holiday offering for a 35th year. This season, we take a trip to the winter wonderland of Quebec in The Christmas Revels: A French-Canadian Winter...

Review: ‘An Irish Carol’ at Keegan Theatre

Now in its seventh year, the Keegan Theatre’s annual production of Matthew J. Keenan’s An Irish Carol has become a favorite Washington DC holiday tradition. It’s easy to see why. A quintessentially...

Review: ‘Ebenezer Scrooge’s BIG Playhouse Christmas Show’ at Bucks County Playhouse

How many versions of A Christmas Carol have you seen? Probably too many to count. But I can guarantee you’ve never seen one that mentions Doylestown, Lambertville and Peddler’s Village before. They...

Magic Time!: ‘The Birds and the Bees: Unabridged’ at Mosaic Theater Company

“Let’s rethink sex” has suddenly become a thing. Well, not suddenly maybe. But it certainly has new pertinence in this era of full-frontal disclosure. Which made the themes of The Birds and the Bees:...

Magic Time!: Life Lessons of ‘The Real Americans’: A Q&A with Playwright-Performer Dan Hoyle

Dan Hoyle’s extraordinary solo show The Real Americans is based on his travels through small-town America and the folks he met, many of them part of Trump’s so-called base. When I reviewed the show, I...

News: Baltimore Center Stage Announces New Accessibility Program

Knott Foundation Grant Opens Doors for Theatergoers Baltimore Center Stage has announced the rollout of its newly expanded and updated Accessibility Programs, funded in part by a grant from the Marion...

Review: ‘A Tuna Christmas’ at Parlor Room Theater

Classic holiday productions, like Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, always show up around the theater circuit this time of year. But there are also many modern...

Review: ‘Urban Scuba: Adult Swim’ at Brian Sanders’ JUNK

Part of the popular Urban Scuba Series, this year’s holiday offering by Brian Sanders’ JUNK is one that’s sure to land you on Santa’s naughty list! Urban Scuba: Adult Swim presents a sequence of saucy...

Report: Arena Stage’s Molly Smith and Playwright Mary Kathryn Nagle Discuss ‘Sovereignty’ and Why Plays by Native American Women Are More Vital Than Ever

In 1839, Mary Kathryn Nagle’s great-great-great grandfather, Cherokee statesman John Ridge, was assassinated for signing the Treaty of New Echota. In 2017, Nagle wrote a play about her family’s...

Review: LiveConnections Presents Fifth House Ensemble + Jason Vieaux at World Cafe Live

LiveConnections Presents kicked off its new season in rousing fashion with an evening of music from the Chicago-based Fifth House Ensemble and classical guitarist Jason Vieaux – introduced, in keeping...

Review: ‘The Revolutionists’ at Everyman Theatre

“It’s a powerful thing to come together and laugh in a scary time.” – Playwright Lauren Gunderson Mon Dieu! I had no idea how much I needed a good laugh until I attended a performance of Everyman...

Report: Violinist Tessa Lark in the Phillips Collection’s Sunday Music Concert Series

Nothing is quite as draining as endless discussions in the classical music world about how concerts “should” work to recapture their prominence in the cultural fabric. So nothing is quite as...

Review: ‘The Color Purple’ at the Forrest Theatre

It may take place in rural Georgia circa 1909, but because of today’s headlines about the mistreatment of women, The Color Purple is more relevant than ever. The tour of the recent Broadway hit...

Review: ‘The Parisian Woman’ at Hudson Theater

Drawing room comedy is back for the moment, thanks to Beau Willimon’s The Parisian Woman. Genuine high wattage star Uma Thurman is riding in this vehicle which deals with the powerful people in...

Get into the Holiday Spirits with Tinsel Christmas Pop-Up Bar!

Philadelphia’s Midtown Village is a whole lot brighter this year with the opening of Tinsel, a new Christmas pop-up bar in the space occupied for over 100 years by Simpson’s Jewelry. The sparkle of...

Review: ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ at Compass Rose Theater

Compass Rose Theater’s production of Fiddler on the Roof is a lovely revival of the classic 1964 musical. With book by Joseph Stein, music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and directed by...

Interview: Jazz Singer Sara Jones

“I don’t perform ‘You Don’t Know What Love Is’ that often,” jazz singer Sara Jones admits. “I mean, the song’s a real downer. You have lyrics in that song like ‘lips that taste like tears’ or ‘lose...

Review: Hilary Hahn Plays Bernstein with The Philadelphia Orchestra

The Leonard Bernstein Centenary continues with concerts by Yannick Nézet-Séguin and The Philadelphia Orchestra. Last weekend’s performances featured one of Bernstein’s most interesting (and relatively...

Review: ‘An Operetta Holiday’ at The In Series

The In Series’ An Operetta Holiday, written and directed by Nick Olcott, is a charming aural journey through the era between opera and musicals. Four male and four female singers delivered a wonderful...

Review: ‘Aladdin: A Musical Panto’ at People’s Light

Continuing its signature holiday tradition this year with the company’s 14th annual panto – a family-friendly seasonal brand of musical-comedy entertainment, with origins dating back to the...

Review: ‘A Christmas Carol’ at McCarter Theatre Center

A snowy Princeton afternoon may be the most festive of conditions in which to see the great McCarter Theatre holiday tradition of A Christmas Carol. Add to that a host of Dickensian characters...

Review: ‘Duke Ellington’s Neighborhood’ from The In Series performing at Gala Hispanic Theatre

Engaging, sophisticated entertainment and education that didn’t talk down to the intended audience; children who may not have been familiar with the grand musical and cultural figure, DC’s very own...

Interview: ‘You and My Mother Can Purchase Sweaters for Obese People to Your Heart’s Content’ – A Conversation with Cameron Folmar

David, the character Cameron Folmar plays in The Santaland Diaries (now at Drafthouse Comedy Theater in DC through December 23), struggles with compartmentalizing his identity as a Macy’s Elf with...

Who’s in Town?: ‘The Piano Guys’ Performing at The National Theatre December 13th through 16th

The Piano Guys might just be one of the 21st century’s most notable social media success stories. Now a successful musical group known for their lush videos of classical and contemporary compositions...

Review: ‘Meteor Shower’ at the Booth Theatre

This 90-minute sketch by Steve Martin begins as a situation comedy. Until fairly recently there were always several lighting up Broadway; and they were usually written by the likes of Neil Simon, Jean...

Review: ‘SpongeBob SquarePants’ at the Palace Theatre

At last, a musical version of the SpongeBob family of characters who first appeared in a film cartoon in 1999. The title character and his friends have always lived in the fictional underwater city of...

Review: ‘The Phantom Tollbooth’ at Providence Players of Fairfax and The Young Hearts

Need a break from Christmas music? Providence Players of Fairfax and The Young Hearts’s production of The Phantom Tollbooth delivers all the joy of the holiday season without the jingle. Based on the...