Voting has now concluded for the 2018 Motif Theater Awards. Thank you for participating and supporting our theater community. Winners were announced at a free public event on Sunday, August 12th at McVinney Auditorium in Providence. This event featured performances from 8 different local theaters, including Trinity Rep and Theatre by the Sea, representing some of their […]
The local theater scene is BOOMING! But have you ever thought about who is behind the creative magic? Well, we’re pulling back the curtain to pay tribute to some of the local folks who create stories for the stage. I threw several questions at some local playwrights to learn a little about them and their creative process. Barbara […]
When Nancy Patiño and Francis Parra opened Teatro ECAS in 1997, they did so because they knew there were stories that were not being told and audiences that were not being reached. Parra, who is the company’s artistic and creative director, studied theater in Dominican Republic and was disappointed by the lack of options for […]
When I was in my teens and still amassing a music collection, I was eager to catch up on the classic rock and pop acts that had made their mark just prior to my getting seriously into music. To that end, I was gobbling up greatest hits collections by powerhouse acts from the ’60s and […]
There are better people than me who could be writing this. I acted in far fewer shows at 2nd Story Theatre than a lot of actors in this area, and directed only two. In its illustrious history, I was a participant for only a decade. The first show I acted in there was in the […]
Sam Bobrick’s Remember Me? (described alternately as “wacky” or “elegant,” depending on your source) is Newport Playhouse’s current offering, providing several easy chuckles for their always appreciative audiences. Running through July 1, Bobrick’s familiar tale of unhappy marriage and playful infidelity slots in well with Newport’s programming (last year’s Self-Help comes to mind) – bawdy, […]
As Bill Hanney’s Theatre By The Sea picks up speed in its 85th Season, all the buzz is concerning their second offering, the ABBA-inspired jukebox musical, Mamma Mia!. Hanney’s excitement about securing the rights to one of the more popular pop-infused Broadway gems was palpable even last year when he told Motif that he was […]
For their last show at the 117 Washington St location in West Warwick, The Arctic Playhouse is taking audiences down the rabbit hole for the classic Lewis Carroll tale, Alice in Wonderland. Adapted by Brainerd Duffield, this version takes 14 episodes from “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass” and knits them into a […]
Who knew that the valley of the shadow of death was a ball pit? Escape is a “world premiere movement piece” (there are no words) with five actors centered on an enclosing ball pit that is white with white balls, suggesting the cushioning of a casket, all surrounded by black. As original music by Stephen […]
Woonsocket is home to one the state’s coolest local venues for community theater, The RISE Playhouse. I’ve been to the theater to see a few traveling shows and even to audition for a local film (if you are a performer, I recommend checking out their audition schedule). This was the first show I’ve seen from […]