Brown’s Invasion! Exposes America’s Prejudices
Jonas Hassen Khemiri‘s Invasion! holds a mirror up to our own preconceived notions about other races and cultures, particularly the Arabic male. One of the most acclaimed novelists and playwrights active in Sweden, Khemiri has been vocal about his discomfort in that largely homogeneous society as the bi-racial child of a Tunisian father and a […]
Rent still rocks after all these years
The Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) hosts the 20th Anniversary Tour of the classic musical, which features dazzling performances and a lot of heart. Composer Jonathan Larson did not live to see the global phenomenon his show would become, famously dying from an aortic aneurysm the night after the final dress rehearsal just before its […]
Encore’s Joseph is a high energy winner
Encore Repertory Company has continued its winning streak with a dazzling, high-energy production of Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a musical retelling of the story from the Book of Genesis. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Tim Rice created a jaunty score for the show, which features several memorable tunes. This is a “sung […]
She Would If She Could: Revival from the Restoration
Head Trick Theatre’s latest production, She Would If She Could, is a comedy by George Etherege. Written in 1668 and set in Restoration London (which kicked off with the end of the Cromwellian Interregnum in 1660), the play is both satirical and enlightening in nature. The characters’ witty banter and often satirical dialogue underscores an […]
Rhode Island’s Sweet Little Variety Show
“All the world is a Sweet Little Variety Show and all of our LBGTQ friendly humans merely feminist, anti-racist, queer-positive, body positive players in a cabaret,” to paraphrase William Shakespeare. Aurora in DownCity PVD demonstrates their commitment to diversity and acceptance as host venue for the Sweet Little Variety Show, one of the biggest hits […]
Lend Me a Tenor: La prima donna è mobile
Nominated for nine Tony Awards and winning two, Lend Me a Tenor by playwright Ken Ludwig is an unambitious and ridiculous farce that depends upon numerous perfect coincidences and character stereotypes. The central plot element is a case of mistaken identity that depends upon both parties to the confusion wearing blackface makeup to perform the […]
Miracle Legion Plays The Narrows On April 7th
From the ‘80s onward, there have always been a few bands that not a lot of people knew about but which had a cult impact on American pop culture. One of those bands is Miracle Legion. Started in New Haven in 1983, they always maintained a strong underground following. The band reached a wider audience […]
Album of the Week: Mastodon’s Emperor of Sand
While steadily evolving in countless directions, metal has also experienced a resurgence in the 21st Century. The genre has long been a fixture in the underground, but bands like Atlanta shredder titans Mastodon have brought it back to the forefront of music culture. Their melodic tendencies are accessible while the guitars and their attitude keep […]
Not So Great Gatsby: The Show Must Go On
Dear Nick, Spring is taking its grand ol’ time in arriving fashionably late to Lil Rhody. It’s more like “Winter 2: Electric Boogaloo” than any kind of fairer, milder, out-like-a-lamb type weather. While I am stuck indoors, it gives me time to think, which isn’t necessarily a good thing, and is sometimes more difficult than […]