It’s a bright Sunday afternoon when I arrive at The Granite Theatre, unclouded blue sky and soft September breeze giving no indication of the delicious darkness that waits within the playhouse. On stage, a lavish scene is set: artwork scattered on the walls, deep red drapes wrapping two sets of French doors, a sparkling bar […]
Hercule Poirot fans looking to see their favorite detective onstage in the dramatic interpretation of Agatha Christie’s The Hollow may be disappointed. Christie removed the character from the stage adaptation, having tired of him (she felt his appearance “ruined” the 1946 novel). The leadup to the play’s 1951 opening was circuitous, but the eventual success […]
If you’re a student arriving in PVD for the first time, or one who’s grown up here but wants to make theater a part of their college life, you’ve come to the right place. And by the right place, I mean Motif, and this article in particular, because I’m going to give you the rundown […]
In September, Academy Players are bringing a RI premiere with “Imaginary,” a new musical by Timothy Knapman, that tells about the power of imagination and explores the wonder of childhood. Academy will dance their way through November with Mama Mia, sure to be a crowd pleaser. And don’t forget to visit Academy’s second annual vendor fair […]
When it comes to theater, nostalgia is a hit-or-miss proposition. It’s a great way to get people into seats, but once they are there, your challenge is in some ways twice as daunting. Not only do you have to work to put on a great production in its own right, but you also have to […]
I haven’t read Frances Hodgson Burnett’s story The Secret Garden since I was a child. The tale of the beauty of the garden has stayed with me, as it stays with almost everyone who reads it as “It was the sweetest, most mysterious-looking place any one could imagine.” In their second summer offering, Epic Theatre […]
On the very same day the Spectrum Theatre Ensemble opened its production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest at the Wilbury Theatre, in the kind of irony the poets dream of, the president expressed a desire to reopen mental institutions in order to combat mass shootings – the likes of which were largely shut […]
On the same day that Robert Mueller testified before Congress, I had the pleasure of interviewing MacArthur Fellow, Tony-nominated performer and playwright, and gift to us all, Taylor Mac. You’re probably thinking that it’s inappropriate to gush like that in what is ostensibly a feature promoting Mac’s A 24-Decade History of Popular Music (Abridged) which […]
For medical reasons, it’s common (and legal) practice to provide warnings to theatergoers if there will be strobe effects or flashing lights in a theatrical production. That courtesy then extended to warnings in the lobby that the play you are about to see contains the sound of gunshots or other sudden noises that may startle […]
Congratulations to all our winners! Community Champion Award: Bert Silverberg Improv / Audience Participation: Providence Improv Guild Youth Production of the Year: Once On This Island, Academy Players Favorite Ensemble: The Rocky Horror Show, OUT LOUD Best Concessions: Trinity Rep Bombastic Fight Choreography: Victoria Casillo, West Side Story, New Bedford Festival Theatre Best-est Fests: PVD […]