The Guardian’s Michael Billington once wrote, “…at its best, farce makes us laugh uncontrollably while showing human beings reduced to a state of desperation.” This quote comes from an article intended as a response to critics of the form who decry the sexism often found in farce as well as the manner in which classical […]
Like many Rhode Islanders, I first saw Paula Vogel’s How I Learned to Drive 20 years ago at Trinity Rep. How fitting it is, then, to celebrate this groundbreaking production with The Wilbury Theatre Group, a theater known for producing provocative and thought-provoking theater. Let’s begin with the set. Walking in, Monica Shinn’s set welcomes you […]
The Community Players open their 98th season with a community theater staple, Social Security, directed by James Sulanowski. It opened on Broadway in 1986 and ran for about a year, during which time it picked up a few awards, mostly for the set design. Locally, it has been performed by a few different community theaters […]
Academy Players officially opened the doors to the new James and Gloria Maron Cultural Art Center on September 13 with a foot-stomping, rafter-shaking and heart pumping production of Disney’s Newsies The Musical. The Tony-award winning musical is having its Rhode Island premiere under the direction of Academy Players artistic director Rita A. Maron, supported by the non-stop […]
There is something uniquely demanding in staging a production of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. As one of the most well-known murder mysteries of all time, your production must be clear enough for newcomers to follow, and yet still refreshing to those who know it already. This is the exact challenge undertaken by […]
Counter-Productions Theatre Company kicks off its Readings in Autumn series this week with Manhood by Dennis A. Allen II. Titled An Exploration of New Works, the series features local playwright (and artistic director of Epic Theatre) Kevin Broccoli as well as the New York-based Allen. A chance to hear new works presented in a semi-formal […]
Right from the title, the play is a doozy: We Are Proud to Present a Presentation About the Herero of Namibia, Formerly Known as Southwest Africa, From the German Sudwestafrika, Between the Years 1884-1915. Not exactly a title that rolls off the tongue, is it? Written by Brooklyn-based playwright Jackie Sibbles Drury, this play places […]
Dancers are returning to rehearsal studios and fall dance productions abound. RI has a lot to offer this season, starting with Island Moving Company’s fabulous production of Second Star to the Right: A Tale of Hook and Pan. This marvelous endeavor takes place aboard the deck and rigging of the Oliver Hazard Perry Tall Ship as […]
It’s a wild world out there for anyone attempting to produce live performances for local audiences. The cautionary tales shared in hushed tones over a cast party buffet are many. Local theater companies fueled by big personalities, a core of talented performers and unique artistic interpretations of the work still face the challenges of finding […]
As summer comes to a close and the tourists follow the leaves north, Rhode Island theater shifts from the fun and frolic of outdoor Shakespeare and Theatre by the Sea to the full weight of the multitude of theatrical offerings that continue to amaze theatergoers in our tiny state. The Gamm has a new home […]