Arriving at Contemporary Theater Company to see Bryony Lavery’s Dirt, the audience members navigate around beds of soil surrounding the minimal set to find their seats. They look at a glossy white floor with a red chair. In the red chair is a neatly piled mound of soil. As the action of the play unfolds, […]
The real Wilhelm Furtwängler was a polarizing and divisive figure in 20th Century music. Universally acclaimed as one of the greatest orchestra conductors of all time, he chose to remain in Germany during its Nazi years between Adolf Hitler coming to power in 1933 and the end of World War II in 1945. Furtwängler made […]
If you’re a fan of Monty Python and the Holy Grail but haven’t seen the musical Spamalot, Roger William’s University’s production is a great opportunity. For a mere $10 admission, you can see why this funny satire that mocks theatrical musicals and epic films ran for five years on Broadway. Theater announcements before a show […]
I had the good fortune to interview John O’Hurley (Seinfeld‘s J. Peterman). He is an extremely tall, extremely handsome actor who has, in his own words, “cornered the market on arrogance and pomposity.” My personal observations about his appearance are noted only because – yeah, right – his physical presence is a great part of […]
I transcend the three flights of stairs at 95 Empire Street and pass through the dance studio door at AS220, encountering yon Tande and Jude Sandy — together known as Denizen Arts in their creative endeavors — talking through a run of their premiere collaboration, “Walk the (pink) Elephant.” White quilts hang from the rafters […]
The Academy Players are staging a production of Singin’ in the Rain Jr. If you’re expecting to see Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds, you won’t find them here. Yet. What you will see is the next generation of Broadway stars before they leave for New York. These kids are going places! The “junior” production is […]
Jonas Hassen Khemiri‘s Invasion! holds a mirror up to our own preconceived notions about other races and cultures, particularly the Arabic male. One of the most acclaimed novelists and playwrights active in Sweden, Khemiri has been vocal about his discomfort in that largely homogeneous society as the bi-racial child of a Tunisian father and a […]
The Providence Performing Arts Center (PPAC) hosts the 20th Anniversary Tour of the classic musical, which features dazzling performances and a lot of heart. Composer Jonathan Larson did not live to see the global phenomenon his show would become, famously dying from an aortic aneurysm the night after the final dress rehearsal just before its […]
Encore Repertory Company has continued its winning streak with a dazzling, high-energy production of Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a musical retelling of the story from the Book of Genesis. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Tim Rice created a jaunty score for the show, which features several memorable tunes. This is a “sung […]
Head Trick Theatre’s latest production, She Would If She Could, is a comedy by George Etherege. Written in 1668 and set in Restoration London (which kicked off with the end of the Cromwellian Interregnum in 1660), the play is both satirical and enlightening in nature. The characters’ witty banter and often satirical dialogue underscores an […]