What a difference a production can make. I saw Blood Knot by Athol Fugard some time ago at an out of state venue and was not impressed. The play seemed to have little depth past the rather obvious conceit of…
Category: Reviews
Review | Small Mouth Sounds: meditative comedy
The Jungle Theater: through June 16Six characters in search of an authorial presence. Bess Wohl‘s amusing Small Mouth Sounds (at the Jungle, through June 16) suffers from this. The primary problem with the play – essentially a portrait of six people at a wilderness (apparently;…
Review | The Sins Of Sor Juana: a nifty combination of religious and poetic fervor
Ten Thousand Things Theater; various venues (check the TTT website), through June 9Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was a gifted poet in Nueva España (as México was called in the olden days). Born a bit too late to be part of the Spanish Golden Age (Lope de Vega, Miguel de Cervantes,…
Review | The Brothers Paranormal: possessed by dispossession
A co-production between Penumbra and Mu Performing Arts, at Penumbra through May 26Billed as a ghost story The Brothers Paranormal begins lightly, with humor and a comic set-up. But scene by scene the play becomes more serious as playwright Prince Golmolvilas draws parallel worlds of reality. Max, a Thai-American, and his brother own…
Review | Marjorie Prime: evocative and poignant
Park Square Theatre, through May 19What does it meant to be human? Is it the small changes in our DNA that separate us from our close animal kingdom relatives? Or is it the experiences, memories and moments we accumulate day by day, everything from the…
Review | Hello, Dolly!: Betty Buckley sparkles in a delightful production
At the OrpheumOnce proclaimed the “Voice of Broadway” by New York Magazine, Tony award-winning legend Betty Buckley is here for a short time at the Orpheum for the touring revival production of Hello Dolly. Put on your Sunday clothes and get your…
Review | Hedwig And The Angry Inch: this one will rock you right to the end
Theater Latté Da, through May 5Hedwig and the Angry Inch is not an easy show to pull off. But when it’s done right, it pulls you in, sinking its Aqua Net misted hooks into you and will stay with you long after the final curtain.…
Review | Cyrano de Bergerac: swashbuckling romance
The Guthrie Theater, through May 5The Guthrie‘s program for Edmond Rostand‘s ageless Cyrano de Bergerac lists, in a first for this reviewer, a credit for “Intimacy Consultant” (Lauren Keating). Oh boy, says I to myself. Intimacy. Tantalizing, erotic, pervading the play. Giving the play a…
Review | Roe: wows in all the right ways
Mixed Blood Theater, through March 31Mixed Blood Theatre‘s production of Roe could not come at a timelier moment in our country’s history as the landmark Supreme Court ruling continues to face fierce opposition today. However, Roe, written by Lisa Loomer, doesn’t spend too much…
Review | The Hobbit: more action than inspiration
Childrens Theatre Co., through April 14In The Children’s Theatre Company‘s world premiere production of J.R.R Tolkien‘s famous The Hobbit has many things going for it. Adapted for stage and directed by Greg Banks, with music by Thomas Johnson, the show has an inexhaustible cast of only…