Review: “Rut” at the Kraine Theatre
As a critic, I get to see all kinds of different shows, which often leave me with varying emotions, ranging from laughter and singing to deep thinking and holding back tears to simply straight-up boredom…and that’s when I’m not feeling mixed feelings, due to my praise for certain aspects of a show, and criticism of other aspects, which is often the case.
Sometimes, however, I see shows that simply leave me with a sense of frustration, due to a lingering sense that the play had the potential to be significantly better, but was clearly underdeveloped. The one-act drama Rut – which is currently in its final performances at the 2018 FRIGID Festival – is a perfect example of such a play.
Review: "White Guy on the Bus" at Square One Theatre Company
Square One deserves credit for mounting this complex play with such deft, and its effort to spark a conversation about race and privilege is clear and very well-intentioned. It’s a shame that, once again, the company’s season is awkwardly upended by real-world timing, but I do hope that they will continue diving into difficult themes and dialogues – perhaps in the future with stories by and about women and people of color, rather than the white men who inflict violence upon them.
Off-Broadway Review: “An Ordinary Muslim” at New York Theatre Workshop
Hammaad Chaudry’s new play, “An Ordinary Muslim,” currently running at the New York Theatre Workshop, addresses the difficulties Azeem and his wife Saima (Purva Bedi) experience in West London in 2011 and invites the audience to connect their personal histories to the experiences of Muslims globally who face the increase of nationalism in the countries where they were born or settled as immigrants.
Review: "he who falls (celui qui tombe)" at Canadian Stage
The pacing of this taut production is dizzyingly tight. At times, it was terrifying to watch as I held my breath and wondered if any would fall accidentally from the teetering and tottering playing space. Rest assured, these performers functioned as a true ensemble of players who have been well trained. To watch this performance was a joyful reminder from years ago when I attended the circus as a child with my family. I had no idea of the artistry involved in circus performance as the programme states ‘the performer [is] a vector of the forces that pass through him and is driven and penetrated by forces that he interprets.’
U.K. Review: Alan Stewart's Big Big Variety Show
Usually you find me throwing myself head first into reviews of musicals and plays, however, today I am reviewing something a little different. Variety theatre is something which has been entertaining audiences up and down the UK for centuries, and Alan Stewart is a legend when it comes to variety, so after many recommendations to see his Big BIG Variety show, did he manage to deliver?
Review" "A Streetcar Named Desire" at Ubuntu Theater Project
While traditionally seen in a bigger production, this version of Streetcar benefited from the smaller playing space. The focus shifts on the characters and their many complicated relationships, garnering the attention from the audience. Director Emilie Whelan did an excellent job making William’s writing really shine in this classic story of passion and betrayal.
Review: “Sunset Baby” at Collective Consciousness Theatre
I dare suggest that theater can be an even more powerful tool for empathy. The magic ingredient at CCT lies in this distinction. To get to your seats, you must physically walk through Nina’s front door and into her apartment. Even the back row is only feet away from the un-mic’d performers and those in the front can feel the wood floor creak when an actor walks across the stage. There is an unabashed voyeurism in their shows, a sense of watching an intimate conversation you shouldn’t be privy too. But that’s exactly what makes CCT and “Sunset Baby” so powerful.
Review: "Murder on the Orient Express" at Hartford Stage
What makes it special?
New Jersey’s McCarter Theatre Center has brought to Hartford Stage Ken Ludwig’s highly-anticipated stage adaptation of one of Agatha Christie’s most famous novels, Murder on the Orient Express. Already, ticket sales have been extended an additional two weeks, and I’m here to say that it is indeed worth the hype.
Review: Musical Theatre West Bets on Charming New Production of "GUYS AND DOLLS"
When Musical Theatre West presents a new production of a classic musical, it's pretty much guaranteed that the show will be a faithful representation of what one imagines that particular classic show might have been envisioned in its original or (at the very least) its most popular form.
Not surprisingly, that's exactly what you'll get with their latest locally-mounted revival of "GUYS AND DOLLS"—that ubiquitous Tony Award-winning 1950 musical based on Damon Runyon's short stories. This new Long Beach, CA production continues at the Carpenter Center for the Performing Arts stage through March 4, 2018. Buoyantly bright, unabashedly old-fashioned, and yet irresistibly enjoyable, MTW's latest show of its 65th season manages to preserve its infamous old-school charms without making it unapproachable for 21st Century audiences.
Off-Broadway Review: “Disco Pigs” at Irish Repertory Theatre
The 20th Anniversary Production of “Disco Pigs,” currently running at Irish Repertory Theatre, is a soul-ripping exploration of the psychological process of separation and individuation and the sometimes-painful experience of facing adulthood without what would seem requisite practice.
Review: “Stiff” at the Barrow Group Theatre
Anyone who’s ever been in show business before knows that there’s nothing quite as demoralizing as receiving a negative review from the press. As someone who has been on both sides of the artist/critic dynamic, I know all too well the wide-ranging impact that a review can have – for better or for worse – on one’s career and self-esteem. In Jeff Swearingen’s new play Stiff – currently being produced by Fun House Theatre and Film – a bad review is exactly what a new theatrical production in 1950s NYC is about to be in store for.
U.K. Review: Phoenix Dance Theatre's "Mixed Programme 2018"
Windrush is a poignant and thought-provoking piece, but its inclusion in this Mixed Programme of other contemporary works presents a Phoenix that appears divided in the direction it wishes to take itself in.
U.K. Review: "Hedda Gabler" at the Grand Opera House York
This production of Hedda Gabler is truly unmissable theatre. The presence of economical, careful direction is incredibly refreshing, and as a result, plenty of space is given to Ibsen’s text to breathe. There is no additional clutter stifling Hove’s piece whatsoever, and the chilling momentum that builds as a result is powerful and highly enjoyable to watch. This production is a true testament to a stunning creative collaboration between everyone involved, and is nothing short of a true theatrical and cultural triumph.
Review: Touching Musical “VIOLET” Makes Regional Premiere at Chance Theater
Reflective and, ultimately, achingly bittersweet, “VIOLET” surprised me with its dark, heightened subtlety but eventually it pierced my core the same way more bombastic shows have managed to do. So many other shows these days churn out their narratives in service of big musical numbers. Here, “VIOLET” allows its gravitas to spill out like molasses so that audiences can savor the slow burn, the subtle tone shifts, and its rich contextual layers.
Review: "BLKS" at Steppenwolf Theatre Company
Aziza Barnes looks at life in the city from the perspective of a black woman, bringing her poetic flair and contemporary voice to the Upstairs Theatre with her new play BLKS, at the Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago. While Barnes’ voice speaks to a specific audience, the themes and characters in BLKS translate to a universal audience.
Off-Broadway Review: “A Walk with Mr. Heifetz”
Although “A Walk with Mr. Heifetz is more docudrama than drama, Mr. Inverne chooses not to document the complexities of the Jewish migration into Palestine under British rule, complexities which continue to exist in the present. Obviously, this was not the purpose of his play; however, this omission leaves the audience with only a partial understanding of the development of the State of Israel and the continued absence of a Palestinian State.
U.K. Review: "What If I Told You" at the West Yorkshire Playhouse
What If I Told You is a special piece that will stay with you, not only because of its topical and engaging conversation about its culturally reverberant themes, but because of its joy in igniting conversation and leaving its audiences inspired.
U.K. Review: "Still Alice" at the West Yorkshire Playhouse
Steadily pacing along during its 90 minute running time, Still Alice is a poignant and unflinching piece of theatre that brings its audience face to face with the reality of living with an incredibly distressing mental illness.
U.K. Review: "Birdsong" at the West Yorkshire Playhouse
Sebastian Faulks’s 1993 novel Birdsong has long established itself as one of the nation’s favourite books. In recent years it has continued to find success as a stage adaptation, captivating audiences with the story of a soldier’s passionate love affair against all the odds. Adapted by Rachel Wagstaff and directed by Alastair Whatley with Charlotte Peters, I took my seat in the West Yorkshire Playhouse’s Quarry Theatre to see the show on its new tour.
Broadway Review: “John Lithgow: Stories By Heart”
“Stories By Heart” is not just the reading of two somewhat obscure short stories. Mr. Lithgow shares with the audience, “I’m also going to tell you some stories about these stories. I’m going to tell you why these two particular stories are important to me, how they connect to my life, and how, over the years, they have helped turn me into a storyteller. /And along the way, I intend to do a little offhand philosophizing about storytelling itself.”