A case could easily be made that there are too many plays about too many privileged white people bemoaning their fate in too many tastefully decorated rooms. The line from Chekov to Philadelphia Story to Gurney’s Dining Room to Albee’s The Goat is really a study in white privilege burdened by ever-increasing cynicism and mounting […]
Trinity Repertory Company took a huge risk staging A Flea in Her Ear, a bawdy bedroom farce from French playwright Georges Feydeau (adapted by Curt Columbus). In lesser hands, this story about romantic complications and cheating spouses could have fallen flat. Fortunately, a stellar group of actors, under the smooth direction of Tyler Dobrowsky, have delivered […]
This Is the Future, This Is the Past, presented by Epic Theatre Company, is not a play in the traditional sense. Writer/Director Kevin Broccoli has created more than a dozen monologues, all dealing with a common theme: our memories of the past and our fears of the future. Like any anthology of stories, it’s a […]
March Masterpiece Madness is a murder mystery written by Jessica Chace about an art competition set in Cranston. The competition is a tournament that has now come down to the Final Four; during the competition someone is murdered and it is up to audiences to decipher the clues and see whodunnit. Jessica Chace and her cast create […]
Burbage Theatre Company’s production of the classic Shakespeare comedy The Taming of the Shrew begins with a truly inspired bit of trickery. To go into detail would ruin the surprise, so I will say no more. It has to be seen to be believed. The story focuses on Petruchio (Jeff Church, who also directed) who […]
“She looks alarmed, and it is the same disingenuousness that marked the bad acting of so many of Emily’s friends … when they pretended to be actors in their community theater dramas …” – Chris Bohjalian, The Night Strangers “It’s very hard to insert nudity into an Ibsen play.” – Patrick (Kevin Broccoli), “Amateurs” “No […]
John Guare’s dark, biting, yet somehow sweet family drama The House of Blue Leaves was last produced in RI almost exactly a year ago by Next Generation Theatre. In the March 2014 Motif review (https://motifri.com/capable-cast-seeks-fame-in-house-of-blue-leaves/), there is speculation as to how The Gamm’s version the following year would present the same script with a bigger […]
After a long, snowy winter, spring is right around the corner and the State Ballet of Rhode Island looks to heat things up by presenting their annual spring performance nearly two months earlier than usual. In years past, it would fall on or close to Mother’s Day, giving many a wonderful opportunity to treat mom […]
I’m known for complaining about the lack of women playwrights whose work gets produced. One reason artistic directors are reluctant to produce women is because they are telling a “female” story, whereas Death of a Salesman is a “human” story. Amy Herzog’s 4000 Miles is not the stereotypical “female” story. This funny, beautiful and touching […]
Trinity Repertory Company has unveiled a slightly refurbished version of playwright Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie. The semi-autobiographical memory play focuses on the Wingfields: Tom (Brian McEleney), who serves as narrator, his overbearing mother Amanda (Anne Scurria), and his withdrawn sister Laura (Mia Ellis). They live a modest existence in a small apartment. The Wingfields are […]