DCMetroTheaterArts
Your source for theater news, reviews, and interviews in DC, MD, Northern VA, and New York
Who was the first rock and roller? You could say it was Elvis Presley, the first rock and roll superstar. Or Bill Haley, the first rocker to have a number one hit. Or maybe it was Ray Charles, or Fats Domino, or one of dozens of other musical pioneers. But there are some who would […]
It was a thrill and a privilege to be at the grand reopening of Baltimore Center Stage last night. I felt like a movie star walking up the red carpet, past the searchlights, into the shiny new lobby. The redesigned Head Theater looked simply luxurious with its comfortable, plush, red seats. It was almost enough […]
Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is back at Ford’s Theatre in a production that is guaranteed to fill your heart with Yuletide cheer. Michael Wilson’s adaptation tells the classic tale of Ebeneezer Scrooge as he is visited by the three ghosts of Christmas who offer the crotchety miser a chance at redemption. This iteration of […]
It is sometimes difficult to imagine what theater might be able to further contribute to an already contentious national conversation about tolerance and devisiveness in America. An unconventional election season has placed our culture into an echo chamber of misconstrued facts and figures, along with a swarm of closely-held prejudices. However, the past few years […]
The rarely performed Pericles by William Shakespeare, now on stage at Folger Theatre, is that even rarer of manuscripts: a folk play with epic plot, with virtuous storytelling and song, and without a hint of psychology. In these troubled times, Pericles and its simple, uplifting tale, is just what the dramatist ordered. May it have […]
Dazzling. Indeed Pericles is quite dazzling in the contemporary creation from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival currently at the Folger Theatre. It possesses a radiance with its modern youthful vigor of “let’s see what we can do with it” sensibility for what is a less-often-seen work by Shakespeare. And it is a work that was a […]
Pericles is a night of wonder, perfect for a romantic evening or a thought-provoking night out with family or friends. Watching it is like lying in the grass watching clouds move over a beautiful blue sky; mesmerizing, brief, and final. The original production was staged, to critical acclaim, at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Director Joseph […]
Rembrandt once said, “Of course you will say that I ought to be practical and paint the way they want me to paint. Well, I will tell you a secret. I have tried and I have tried very hard, but I can’t do it, I just can’t do it! And that is why I am […]
Only through art do we become immortal. The Guard, commissioned by Ford’s Theatre for the Women’s Voices Theater Festival, is an original work by playwright Jessica Dickey. Jessica Dickey and The Guard are recipients of the National Theatre Conference’s 2015 Barrie and Bernice Stavis Award, an award celebrating outstanding emerging playwrights. The play plumbs existential depths […]
It was an exciting morning at Sardi’s as the cast, producers, and the director of The Velocity of Autumn were introduced to the NYC press. I was so thrilled to be there and to see my friends Playwright Eric Coble, Producers Van Dean and Larry Kaye and Arena Stage’s Artistic Director Molly Smith, who is making […]
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 York Times “Estelle Parsons is sublime in a delightfully nuanced performance with exuberance and sensitivity” – Variety “The team of Parsons and Spinella feels right for almost any occasion. You’re in the presence of actors of the top rank under Molly Smith’s unassailable direction.” – The Washington Post Estelle […]
Bruce Dow is wowing DC audiences with his high-energy and funny performance of the slave Pseudolus in Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Joel: How did you get involved with STC’s production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum? Bruce: I can’t remember […]
The opening number of Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s Tony Award-winning musical farce A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, “Comedy Tonight,” promises, “Something appealing, something appalling, something for everyone…tragedy tomorrow, comedy tonight!” If its comedy and baudy that you are expecting, you will most definitely not be disappointed! Alan […]
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 Arena Stage at The Mead Center for American Theater. As the play ended all the audience members jumped to their feet […]
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! Come on, clock’s ticking. No, wait! Nope. Time’s up. Your final answer. Now. Um…um…lemme guess— [Over sound of nasty buzzer:] The […]
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, then it all goes silent and the lights come up on the house. There she is, Alexandra […]
Written by Trey Ellis and Ricardo Khan, and passionately directed by Ricardo Khan, Ford’s Theatre’s production of Fly is a tribute to the experiences of the African-American men who signed up for the Army Air Corps – collectively known as the Tuskegee Airmen. From the moment Fly begins, you’re drawn into the story of these brave […]