Although set almost 100 years ago in Depression- and Prohibition-era Harlem, today’s political climate makes the soul-wrenching tale of oppression and hatred in “Blues for an Alabama Sky” eerily familiar.On stage at Trinity Repertory Company, the nearly three-hour piece was written by Pearl Cleage, dubbed the most important playwright alive by Trinity Artistic Director Curt […]
Jeff Church was born to play Hamlet. As lead in a retelling of the Shakesperean tragedy at Gamm Theatre, Church is physically and emotionally nimble, leaping and swashbuckling about the three-tiered stage to deliver iconic lines – “To be or not to be,” “To thine own self be true,” “To die, to sleep, perchance to […]
Gritty, profanity-laced, and unforgiving might be just the elixir audiences need these days and Gamm Theatre delivers via a gut-punch production of Between Riverside and Crazy. The dark comedy by Stephen Adly Guirgis and 2015 Pulitzer Prize winner for drama may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it should be. The reason is Guirgis’ […]
You’ve never had a history lesson like it and if you’ve managed to avoid the “Hamilton” buzz for the last nine years – or you’ve been missing the punchy tunes since the show’s last stop in Providence – here’s your shot. The touring production of the smash Lin Manuel-Miranda hit musical is at the Providence […]
Mamma Mia! The tone was set at the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) Tuesday when the Mighty Wurlitzer rose stage right to treat early arrivals to a mini concert even before the anticipated Abba tunes filled the air. The 25th anniversary tour of the Broadway musical “Mamma Mia!” followed, bringing a light-hearted love story crafted […]
Such lavish pomposity and tomfoolery abound throughout Amadeus that any preconceptions of a stuffy 17th-century Classical music scene are dashed in shards of champagne-tinged crystal. Peter Shaffer’s creation, on stage at Gamm Theatre, is almost three hours of fast-paced wackiness as prodigy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart comes of age in the brutally competitive Austrian emperor’s court, […]
Humans know precious little about brain function, something that doesn’t change – and might actually worsen – in viewing “The Effect.” British playwright Lucy Prebble’s work, on stage at The Gamm Theatre, centers on two scientists and two volunteers in a sequestered medication study of the effect different doses have on depression. As doses increase, […]
All it took was one glance at the audience for Nick Fradiani to settle into his character the first time he stepped onstage for the Broadway production, A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical. The Connecticut native proved that it’s a myth that actors are so blinded by the footlights they can’t see the audience, […]
Five days into Pride Month and Trinity Repertory Company launched a larger-than-a-teased-beehive celebration of love that leaves its audience crowing with laughter and welling with emotion. Trinity’s 60th season ends with a feisty production of Harvey Fierstein’s 1983 Broadway musical La Cage aux Folles, examining the concept of loving who you want romantically and within […]
Beach tunes, island music, yacht rock — whatever you call it, there’s a unique sound to summertime music. This summer, there’s no need to leave the city to catch the sunshiny vibes of the season because the Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) is delivering a trio of concerts that will have you swaying and singing […]