Storytelling, on perhaps its most basic level, is a means of transmitting memories and messages from one generation to the next. As such, it becomes a sort of ritual. By sharing our stories with others, we’re released from the burden of carrying them …Read more
Gertrude Stein’s Four Saints in Three Acts is, to put it bluntly, nonsensical. An avant-garde opera with a libretto by Stein and a score by Virgil Thomson, it’s more word-driven than plot-driven: the libretto repeats the same lines endlessly, strings …Read more
photo by Matt Murphy / @murphymade When a show moves from a big Broadway stage to an off-Broadway venue, something’s gotta give. Whether it’s the staging, the size of the cast, or the number of musicians. Will the Off-Broadway audience enjoy the same …Read more
A CIA newbie with orders to remove the Chilean President walks into a bombed out palace. What could go wrong? In Mark Wilding’s delightful comedy Our Man in Santiago, loosely inspired by the Nixon Administration’s failed attempt to remove the Chilean …Read more
Gertrude Stein once said of her own writing: “if you enjoy it, you understand it.” If that’s true, then I suppose I understood My Onliness: a world premiere musical about a mad king and his rebellious subjects. While I’m still parsing its intended me …Read more
The idea of rewriting history to include a much clearer account of what happened and who people were than the one that fits our current preconceptions about the past. The version of history shown in Lavender Men (written by Roger Q. Mason and directe …Read more
Stories have a special power, and they fill an irreplaceable role in human life. Once Upon a (korean) Time, a new play written by Daniel K. Isaac and developed by the Ma-Ti theatre company, focuses on the power of stories to provide both an escape an …Read more
What’s it like to work at a job that’s slowly sucking the life and soul out of you–and is it worth it? That seems to be one of the questions asked by Alexander Perez in his dark comedy Randy’s Dandy Coaster Castle, directed by Rebecca Martinez and p …Read more
There is an element of sincerity which brings an irreplaceable strength to any show–when it’s missing, it is unmistakable. The Inconvenient Miracle, an original musical staged by the Skeleton Rep playing at the Episcopal Actors Guild through August …Read more
Photo by Aaron Cobb Do you believe that a person can be hypnotized? How about 20 people at the same time on a stage in front of an audience? As long as you believe or, at least, accept the premise for the evening, then you are in for an entertaining …Read more
