Archive: Theater
Something Wicked This Way Comes
I was terrified even before the lights went down. The Folger Theatre's new production of Macbeth will do that to you. The buzzed-about show is co-directed by Teller (of Penn & Teller), and while magic and cool effects were promised,...
By Anne | March 3, 2008; 11:10 AM ET | Comments (7)
On Stage in February
February may be the shortest month, but it sure isn't short on drama. The magic of Shakespeare comes to the stage in a whole new way, while an Academy Award-winning screenwriter turns his talent from screen to the stage. Also...
By Erin | February 1, 2008; 02:13 PM ET | Comments (1)
Q&A: The Residents of 'Avenue Q'
Not since I was 6 years old have I been so excited to see puppets dance and sing. When I was little, I liked to hear them sing about being nice. Now, it's all about the Internet, racism and economizing...
By Erin | November 30, 2007; 03:44 PM ET | Comments (5)
Director Q&A: 'The Studio'
As playwright, choreographer and director of "The Studio" at Signature Theatre, Christopher d'Amboise wears many hats. The son of famous dancers, d'Amboise was a principal in the New York City Ballet, a Broadway actor and artistic director of the Pennsylvania...
By Erin | November 19, 2007; 10:43 AM ET | Email a Comment
Check Out This 'View'
It doesn't matter if you hold season tickets to the opera or have never heard an aria -- "A View From the Bridge" is worth two hours of your time. The gritty show, set among immigrant dock workers in New...
By Erin | November 7, 2007; 03:48 PM ET | Email a Comment
On Stage in November
I'm still eating Halloween candy, but in local theater, the focus is onto Christmas with three different choices for "A Christmas Carol." If you're still enjoying non-Christmas revelry, take a look behind the scenes of the professional dance world or...
By Erin | November 2, 2007; 05:31 PM ET | Email a Comment
A Perfect $10
Unless you won big bucks at a Halloween costume party, chances are good that you don't have the $80 that it takes to score a top seat at one of the elite theaters around town. While I am a huge...
By Erin | November 1, 2007; 09:00 AM ET | Comments (8)
Theater on the Cheap
If your budget is limiting your theater ambitions, take heart. There are a few stellar pay-what-you-can opportunities for this month's stage productions....
By Erin | October 10, 2007; 12:36 PM ET | Comments (1)
On Stage in October
October is upon us and there is music in the air. From a pre-"Rent" Jonathan Larson musical to a world premiere, music-filled look at the women of a housing project, this is a tuneful month on local stages. If fall...
By Erin | October 4, 2007; 11:32 AM ET | Comments (1)
On Stage in September
With September comes the start of several exciting new seasons, notably Studio Theatre's 30th anniversary season. Trends in the month include two shows addressing the afterlife, a few comedic looks at family bonding (both mother/daughter and father/son) and several heart-wrenching...
By Erin | August 30, 2007; 12:24 PM ET | Comments (1)
Hot, Cheap Seats
If price prohibits you from catching up on quality theater, take advantage of a few summer deals. Washington Shakespeare Company hosts Pay-What-You-Can previews for "Private Lives" tonight through Sunday at 1409 Playbill Cafe at 8 p.m. In the show, two...
By Erin | August 17, 2007; 01:52 PM ET | Comments (2)
On Stage in August
It's a fairly quiet month on local stages, but that doesn't mean you won't find some enthralling shows. Local theaters invite audiences to travel on a good-will mission to Africa, honeymoon in a tricky situation and explore the creative quirks...
By Erin | August 1, 2007; 12:07 PM ET | Email a Comment
On Stage in July
During the sticky summer months, many local theaters go dark for a small break between seasons. This respite does not mean that July will be a slow month. Around town, the gospel takes center stage and marijuana receives a musical...
By Erin | July 6, 2007; 05:06 PM ET | Comments (1)
On the Fringe Again
Nude puppet shows, all-female Shakespeare, aerial tributes, satirical comedies, stirring dramas, sleight-of-hand and mini-cabarets. Yes, the 2nd Annual Capital Fringe Festival is revving up to run from July 19 to 29. This year, more than 120 groups will perform 500...
By Erin | June 18, 2007; 01:09 PM ET | Comments (3)
'To Be' Seeing Some Shakespeare
The area's six-month Bard marathon, the Shakespeare in Washington Festival, is nearing its end. The festival wraps up this month, but there are still plenty of chances to catch some of the theatrics....
By Erin | June 14, 2007; 04:07 PM ET | Email a Comment
Free Advice
In yesterday's Got Plans? discussion, several readers wrote in asking advice for how to catch some of the "Love's" happening during this year's Shakespeare Free For All: "Hate to be a repeat since you addressed this last week, but how...
By Erin | June 1, 2007; 02:18 PM ET | Email a Comment
On Stage in June
Answering a phone opens up a can of worms for one ordinary woman at Woolly Mammoth, but crazier characters -- including a trio of witches, an off-key diva and a "Phantom" -- also await audiences on local stages this month....
By Erin | June 1, 2007; 10:09 AM ET | Email a Comment
On Stage in May
Though theater seasons are winding down, May is alive with slamming doors, crises of conscience and a Nantucket summer. Meanwhile, Shakespeare takes the stage with a haunting aria, against a paisley background and to a rock-and-roll score....
By Erin | May 1, 2007; 10:20 AM ET | Comments (3)
On Stage in April
April brings with it a slew of new plays, and since here are too many to list here, these are some of my most anticipated debuts. The Shakespeare in Washington festival ambles on, most notably with a play by the...
By Erin | April 2, 2007; 11:01 AM ET | Email a Comment
On Stage in March
Washington-area theater has been going full throttle this year, and March threatens to kick shows into overdrive. With the worst of winter behind us, local stages offer the whimsy of "Midsummer." There is also a reason to "Doubt," along with...
By Erin | March 1, 2007; 03:45 PM ET | Email a Comment
Stage Might in 2007
This year -- particularly the first six months of it -- holds much excitement on local stages, for the Shakespeare in Washington festival all but guarantees that quality shows will abound through June. With so many productions, it's hard to...
By Erin | January 12, 2007; 12:34 PM ET | Email a Comment
Canned Good
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company offers an instant dose of holiday spirit by offering cheap tickets to a hysterical comedy in exchange for a small act of goodwill. The company has taken Pay-What-You-Can to a new level with "Pay-With-A-Can" performances of...
By Erin | December 8, 2006; 03:21 PM ET | Email a Comment
Well Played
If the holiday season has you looking ahead to goals for the new year, how about resolving to see a play for every day of the coming year? In 2002, Suzan-Lori Parks resolved to write a play a day for...
By Erin | November 17, 2006; 03:49 PM ET | Email a Comment
Hot Nights to Beat the Cold
With pre-holiday stress mounting and the ever-changing weather confusing us so we're always either three layers too bundled or miserably frozen, the theater provides a warm, inviting refuge. I've already written my preview of this month in theater, but there...
By Erin | November 15, 2006; 01:53 PM ET | Email a Comment
Funereal Joy
Save "Harold and Maude," I can't say that I have encountered many people who volunteer to spend a night at a funeral, but in true Cirque du Soleil fashion, "Corteo" should have audiences clamoring to get a seat. The show...
By Erin | October 27, 2006; 10:43 AM ET | Email a Comment
Courting 'Corteo'
"Corteo," a traveling show by Cirque du Soleil, opens tonight under the big top at the old D.C. Convention Center site. The show follows a clown as he imagines his funeral and its attendants. I know, I know. My first...
By Erin | October 26, 2006; 10:00 AM ET | Comments (3)
Hot Ticket
When I blogged about the Free Night of Theater, presented by the League of Washington Theatres (LOWT), I had no idea that tickets would be more in-demand than the 10th anniversary edition of Tickle Me Elmo. Most people could not...
By Erin | October 16, 2006; 10:47 AM ET | Comments (2)
Post-Summer Stage Events
The curtain has just lifted on October, but I'm already focused on the shows taking the stage later this month. I'm excited about dazzling funereal processions and a Halloween-time "Monster." You can peruse my new round-up for a full list...
By Erin | October 3, 2006; 02:52 PM ET | Comments (1)
Light (on the Wallet) Entertainment
We all know the plight. The rent check's been written, the bills have been paid and that leaves low funds for the fun jar. If you've already consumed Julia's list of free things to do in and around the District,...
By Erin | September 29, 2006; 03:35 PM ET | Comments (1)
Buzz About the 'Bee'
"Billy, quick, duck behind this Western Wall. I think I see a jihad coming!" That's just one of the many zingers from the traveling production of "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," currently competing in Baltimore. Though it wins...
By Erin | September 21, 2006; 12:12 PM ET | Comments (1)
Stage Right
September means back-to-school, but it also means back-to-the-theater for several local theater companies. When September rolls around, it seems as if all the world -- or at least the city -- really is a stage and there are lots of...
By Erin | September 6, 2006; 05:12 PM ET | Email a Comment
Drinking on the Fringe
On my way out to a doubleshot of Fringe last night -- "Lunch" and "Vaud Rats" -- I swung by Poste for the festival's daily happy hour. The weather was fine (if gloomy) and many of the tables on the...
By Fritz Hahn | July 26, 2006; 01:59 PM ET | Comments (2)
Puppets and Tales of Tails
The curtains lifted on the Capital Fringe Festival last night, meaning that action-packed days of avant-garde art are underway. I plan to see more than my fair share and I will regale this blog with reviews and and perceptions, but...
By Erin | July 21, 2006; 05:57 PM ET | Email a Comment
Fringe Benefits
For the first time ever, Washington is hosting a theater bonanza in the Capital Fringe Festival. Though the event will feature music and art, its primary focus is on theater and lots of it. The hub of the festival will...
By Erin | July 11, 2006; 05:55 PM ET | Comments (1)
Sweet Summer "Nothing"
For some, summertime means warm nights, fireflies, picnics and baseball. At Olney Theatre, it means Summer Shakespeare. This year, Olney hopes that summer revelers will find something to love about their production of "Much Ado About Nothing." Lasting two weeks,...
By Erin | June 14, 2006; 02:47 PM ET | Email a Comment
A Merry Dish of "Spamalot"
I was laughing from the moment I settled into "Monty Python's Spamalot" at National Theatre last night. Before the curtain is even lifted, attentive audience members will be amused with the Playbill and even the cell phone announcement. I will...
By Erin | June 8, 2006; 09:51 AM ET | Email a Comment
One Great "Body"
The ninety minutes of "A Body of Water," currently on stage at Round House Theatre in Silver Spring, are some of the most fascinating and enriching minutes of theater I've seen in ages. In its understated way, the show provokes...
By Erin | May 19, 2006; 12:01 PM ET | Email a Comment
All Aboard
In a sure sign that summer is coming, Shakespeare Theatre has announced the production and dates for this year's Shakespeare Free For All. The early summer tradition offers quality theater under the stars at the Carter Barron Amphitheater, and lots...
By Erin | April 21, 2006; 01:04 PM ET | Email a Comment
Support 'Marriage'
Rather than beginning your Saturday night at the U Street bars this weekend, start off on a riotous, and perhaps activist, note just down the road at "Boston Marriage," which is playing at the Source Theatre through April 2. This...
By Erin | March 15, 2006; 05:56 PM ET | Email a Comment
'Measure' Up
"Measure for Measure" is one of those plays that was always looked over in my high school and college Shakespeare classes. One of the Bard's problem plays, it touches on morality without a satisfying and happy finish. I love drama,...
By Erin | February 2, 2006; 02:20 PM ET | Email a Comment
The Tell-Tale Part
Oh! that my young life were a lasting dream! My spirit not awakening, till the beam Of an Eternity should bring the morrow. So, I have long loved Edgar Allan Poe. While other kids preferred the works of Shel Silverstein,...
By Erin | January 18, 2006; 05:56 PM ET | Comments (1)
Washington Theater, Episode IV: A New Hope
If you missed yesterday's paper, you should check out Peter Marks's Sunday Arts piece about the impressive original work that debuted on Washington area stages during the past season. While I didn't catch nearly as many plays as I wanted,...
By Jen Chaney | June 27, 2005; 04:35 PM ET | Comments (11)
Midsummer, Take Two
For those who may have missed the Free for All performance of "A Midsummer Night's Dream," don't fret. This midsummer, Olney Theatre Center brings Shakespeare's whimsical comedy back to the area for its own free summer Shakespeare festival to inaugurate...
By Erin | June 21, 2005; 11:36 AM ET | Comments (2)
A Dramatic Sale
These days, it's hard to be unique on a budget. Seemingly different retro-style clothing (think "I'm a Pepper" and "Ithaca is Gorges" T-shirts) and tiki bar stools are actually mass-produced and line the shelves of trendy stores like Urban Outfitters....
By washingtonpost.com | May 17, 2005; 01:42 PM ET | Comments (1)
A Mammoth Deal
The theater bargains just keep coming. Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company is offering pay-what-you-can previews of its new production, "Big Death & Little Death" at 8 p.m. tonight and tomorrow. This is a world premiere for both the play and its...
By washingtonpost.com | May 10, 2005; 02:25 PM ET | Comments (2)
'Marriage' for 2
If you're looking for some high-class entertainment on a no-frills budget, Folger Theatre is offering 2-for-1 tickets to its hilarious production of "The Clandestine Marriage," which Post reviewer Peter Marks called "a refreshment with abundant tang." The special is available...
By washingtonpost.com | May 2, 2005; 01:47 PM ET | Comments (1)
Seinfeld, Four
Tom Shales has called him ""the best comedian of our time." Find out if you agree when Jerry Seinfeld stages four performances of his stand-up comedy on June 24 and 25 at the Kennedy Center. Tickets go on sale tomorrow,...
By washingtonpost.com | April 14, 2005; 11:28 AM ET | Comments (1)
A Signature Season
Signature Theatre's lineup for the 2005-06 season has just been announced, and I'm happy to report that the opener is "Urinetown." For those of you not immediately excited about a musical named after a bodily function, let me assure you...
By washingtonpost.com | March 25, 2005; 04:08 PM ET | Comments (2)
A Very, Very Mad World
It's not easy to get in the mood for a play about the 1999 shootings at Columbine High School. But if you can manage it, head to the Round House Theatre in Silver Spring to check out "columbinus." I saw...
By washingtonpost.com | March 9, 2005; 04:15 PM ET | Comments (1)
It's Raining Men
You can still get seats in the mid-orchestra for this year's musical by the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington. This is important because the costumes and the set design are the most mind-blowing part of the production, so you really...
By washingtonpost.com | March 1, 2005; 10:29 AM ET | Comments (2)
