My Theatre Ramblings

Naomi Wallace Festival @Forum Theatre

2011-02-26T13:21:00.000-08:00

One Flea Spare - I was listless and hopeless... in a good way

Promo-Ad for *One Flea Spare*.

This week I had the pleasure of seeing two (strikingly different) productions produced by Forum Theatre, both part of their Naomi Wallace Festival.
The first show was a staged reading of The Fever Chart at an exclusive home in NW DC. The staged reading was powerful and intimate. I believe the intimacy of the location is what gave the play its impact. There were three acts, or as Wallace calls them “visions.” They were loosely tied together by the theme of war in the Middle East. During the post show discussion, we discovered many more connections.

The most enjoyable of the three was the first “A State of Innocence.” James Flanagan was the highlight of this event and his “Yuval” was impressive. The audience follows Yuval as he realizes (with the help of Um Hisham, (Jjana Valentiner)) he is dead. Flanagan and Valentiner bring the audience through a roller coaster of emotion that ends (as most of the visions) with death and destruction.

Next show that I saw in the Naomi Wallace Festival was One Flea Spare. This is the main stage show, at the Roundhouse Silver Spring location. I went on the Young Professional Night (2/25). I had gone to the Forum season preview event last spring, and have been looking forward to this show for quite some time.

And I enjoyed it.

Four people trapped in plague-infested house, have to spend a month together while the town makes sure they are disease free. Throughout the entire play, I felt claustrophobic, dirty, hopeless and listless.

As always, Nanna Ingvarsson (Mrs. Snelgrave) was the standout performer. I think I’ve fallen under Ingvarsson’s spell. Every time she is in something, she is commanding and moving. Her Snelgrave’s fall from grace was believable and took me with her. I never felt that she was forcing anything upon us. This isn’t to say that the other actors were. In fact, they all were strong.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Lisi Stoessel’s set. Stoessel’s raked stage was amazing, and I enjoyed seeing a stage raked at such an extreme pitch, it truly added to the intensity of the play, giving the characters the appearance of always about to fall into the audience and making them feel uncomfortable in the space.

WTF? House of Gold

2010-11-07T13:02:00.000-08:00

"Forced smiles and private breakdowns"

I don’t even know what to say about Woolly Mammoth’s House of Gold, I was confused for most of the play (mainly about the age of the main character, JonBenet Ramsey. At some times she seems like the six year old the historic JonBenet was; and at other times she’s a full grown adult. I do not blame actress Kaaron Briscoe for this, she was just working with what she was given.)

I fault playwright Gregorgy S. Moss. The play was scattered and didn’t offer a true narrative. As he says in the program (which was cleverly disguised as a supermarket tabloid), “The shape of the play is a spiral… as the play progresses, we circle round her [JonBenet], closer and closer until, by the end, we are actually seeing the world as she sees it.” I am all for a non-linear theatre, I thoroughly enjoyed Woolly’s Gruesome Playground Injuries, but this was too much!

I don’t even think I could begin to explain what happened at “The Pageant,” which was the crescendo of the play, where apparently everyone dies? I’m not sure why. It felt like Theatre of the Absurd (which might have been what Moss was going for).

I did however enjoy the live video feed from under the set, in a room that represented “The Stranger’s” lair (The Stranger, played by James Flanagan was the best part of the evening, and his “creepiness” was scary and perverted!).

I don’t know what else to say.

If you do see this, be prepared to be confused and made to feel awkward the entire time.

House of Gold runs from now until November 28. Tickets range from $30 to $65 and can be purchased here.

Women Beware Women @Constellation

2010-10-21T17:20:00.000-07:00

Be careful of the flame

Entering the Source on October 16th, I was very surprised to see the new configuration (a standard proscenium, this made the space seem a lot small there than I’ve seen it in the past) for Constellation’s Women Beware Women. The size aside, the stage was amazing; once the play was started and the whole set was revealed I was overly impressed. It’s angles and colors were consistent with director Allison Arkell Stockman’s artistic idea of melding high fashion run ways with Tim Burton, “Burton’s visual images of creatures both sympatheic and hideous, love affairs that transform from innocent to horrific, and malicious temptations that seduce with glittering, radiant outside appearances sparked our imaginations.”

The Burton-esqu visual style works well with Women Beware Women because every woman in this play is hiding something beneath love.
Actress Sheila Hennessey’s portrayal of Livia (a well-to-do widow with an eye for a country pumpkin) was outstanding. Hennessey’s Livia was both devious and deceptive while I felt the a great connection to her; and was most disappointed when she was revealed as a liar and her life began unraveling.

I will not spoil this ending, but let me just say that what started out as a pastoral about two country folk who married before the opening of the play quickly turned out to be a tragedy in the highest sense of the word.

I enjoyed this play and love how Constellation has begun opening my world to new playwrights (Middleton).

The only down side to this play, much like Constellation’s The Ramayana, I found the music to be a bit too overwhelming! This time however, the transition music was more understated while the underscore seemed a bit too over powering.
Women Beware Women runs until November 14; tickets range from $20 - $30 and can be purchased here.

What's To Come 2010: August/September

2010-08-18T13:19:00.000-07:00

The 2010-2011 DC Theatre season is just around the corner: And I’ve decided to keep you all updated with my plans for each month:

Title links go to show page. Company links go to company/theatre homepage.

August

22: Twelfth Night (Free-For-All) @Shakespeare Theatre Company

23: Scissor Sisters (Concert) @DAR Constitution Hall

27: Midsummer (Free) @Olney

30: Something You Did (Pay-what-you-can PWYC) @Theatre J

September

4: In The Next Room (Subscription) @Woolly Mammoth Theatre

8: Glimpses of the Moon (PWYC) @Metro Stage

10: All’s Well (Subscription) @Shakespeare Theatre Company

11: The Talented Mr. Ripley (PWYC) @Round House

15: Scarlet Letter (PWYC) @Olney

Of course there will be more or less, depending on availability

The Agony and Ecstasy Of Steve Jobs... (at Woolly Mammoth) Or What should I do with my iPhone?

2010-07-22T19:30:00.000-07:00

Employees work on the assembly line at the Foxconn plant in Shenzhen, China. Photographer: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

This is a cross post between My Theatre Ramblings and My Random Ramblings.

I recently had an opportunity to purchase cheap seats to the World Premier Preview of Woolly Mammoth’s Theatre Company’s: The Agony and Ecstasy of Steve Jobs, written and performed by Mike Daisey.

I didn’t know what to expect when I read the Tweet Seat call for $10 tickets, but I knew that I wanted to go (I’ll go to any cheap seat theatre). Due to the timing of the tweet and my commute to Chinatown, I had just made it to the theatre about three minutes before curtain, when I found out there wasn’t an intermission. I was then expecting a 60 – 90 minute show.

On stage sat a frosted glass top desk and a glass of water. Out comes Daisey to a round of applause. With an outline to guide him, Daisey began telling us the story of his trip to China. He would alternate “chapters” of the story in China with the story of Steve Jobs and the Apple Computer.

I started taking notes on the story and theatrical notes as I normally do when reviewing a show, but I was quickly enthralled! When Daisey was talking about his trip to China, he was recounting his investigating reporting of trying to visit Foxconn – a giant manufacturing plant in the city of Shenzhen that produces hundreds of different electronics including Apple iPhones, iPads, Intel motherboards, Dell computers, Hewlett-Packer computers, Wiis, Playstations, Xboxes, Kindles and dozens of other cell phones. Daisey, a Mac junkie since the Apple II came out in the late 70’s, had decided to visit the plant that created some of his favorite products, for recently this plant is in the middle of a suicide plague.

Daisey’s story telling was amazing! I couldn’t believe that an actor, not a journalist, was scooping the story. Daisey met dozens of people who were willing to talk to him about the sweat shop like factories that they were working in, making just pennies a day (about $131^1 (American - USD) a month: a quick look up of the purchasing power parity^2 shows that in China this is about equivalent to a monthly income of $483^3).

One stand out story was about a man who had lost a hand in the factory line while making iPads. Daisey showed the man his iPad and the man, using his injured arm to swipe the screen, called it magic. According to Daisey, all completed iPads are shipping out of Shenzhen.

Daisey told a story of line workers forced to stand for hours on end; unable to speak, unable to move, just doing the same repetitive action over and over again with only one “break” in sight: “accidentally” dropping a item. The relief a line worker would have during the new movement was well worth the verbal assault they would receive from their superiors for slowing down production. The financial group Bloomsberg report similar findings “About 80 percent of the front-line production employees work standing up, some for 12 hours a day for six days a week… ‘We get yelled at all the time. It’s very tough around here’[ –Ah Wei, factory worker] ” (Wong^4).

Ironically, this reminded me of Walt Disney! During production of Snow White, Pinocchio, Bambi and Fantasia Walt Disney ran the Ink and Paint department very similarly. The women, underpaid compared to their male counterparts, were working in silence, standing around doing their job:

We tried to keep from talking,” says Yuba—since speed and accuracy were closely monitored. (Ruthie confessed she would sometimes drop her board on the floor “just so it would make noise.”) (Kohn^5)

Of course, this was a different time, and a different situation, but I couldn’t help draw the parallel between Disney and Foxconn’s practices. However, they span over 80 years and are oceans away. During the 20’s and 30’s in America, women were still fighting to get jobs and were treated like second-class workers. In modern Shenzhen, all workers are looked at as second-class and are easily replaceable with the hundreds of other people waiting in line to get a job. This however, hasn’t stopped 11 people from jumping off the roof of their dormitories.

Long days and little pay. I recently spent 12 hours at camp (I arrived at 7:30 to enjoy a leisure hour of prepping and catching up on my internet sites. I talked with a friend until about 9:00 when I began teaching; I took a bathroom break sometime between classes; taught two more classes; ate lunch with friends. Then I performed in a talent show; taught a couple more classes; had an hour to relax before my shows began; had one show; squeezed in a dinner; had two more shows; watched the dance concert and finally went home). That was my twelve-hour day. A twelve-hour day for a worker at Foxconn: arrive at 9, work two hours; 10 minute break (no talking); work two hours; 10 minute break; etc. Can I truly complain about my twelve-hour day when I had a plethora of down time and more interaction between peers and students than I could count?

For most of Daisey’s performance I kept questioning: “What can I do?” Would ditching my iphone make a stance? But what product would I use instead? If it’s not made by Foxconn, it’s most likely made by another factory in Shenzhen or in another factory with horrible human rights practices.

Three hours later, I couldn’t believe it was over! Daisey took me and the rest of the audience on a journey that I don’t think I can ever return from. As I sit here and type this on my iBook, with my iPad and iPhone right next to me, I can’t help but wonder what the costs of these devices truly is. I think I would happily pay more, knowing that every person along the way was treated like a human!

Please go check out this show when it returns to Woolly Mammoth from March 21 through April 10, 2011. Tickets can be purchased here. Also check out Daisey’s blog. As his monologue changes from performance to performance (for it is just spoken from an outline), I can’t wait to go back during the regular run to see what it has turned into!

^1 Pay rate found at 9 to 5 Mac
^2 Purchasing Power Parity is the idea that although an exchange rate between money is how much the money is worth in gold, it does not take into account the price of goods and services. So if $1.00 USD can buy you a loaf of bread, and 3.69 Yuan buys you that same loaf of bread, then the PPP between USD and Yuan is 3.69 (despite the fact that 1 USD would buy you 7 Yuan^2a)
^2a Conversion rate: Coinmill
^3 Purchasing power parity was figured by taking the monthly income ($131) and mutilplying that by the PPP of the yuan 3.69 per USD. Wiki Answers: What is the PPP in China?
^4 Wong, Stephanie; Lie, John; and Culpan, Tim; Bloomberg: IPhone Workers Say `Meaningless' Life Sparks Suicides; June 2, 2010
^5 Kohn, Patricia; Vanity Fair: Coloring the Kingdom; March 2010

Back Blog #1

2010-06-20T19:17:00.000-07:00

Backlog Blog

I go to a lot of theatre, and feel bad when I don't get to blog about it all.

Some of these shows were great; some not so much. But here is my current Theatre Backlog (or Back Blog):

Around The World in 80 Days a decent show retelling the classic Jules Verne tale. The acting was great, but noting seemed to standout. Except for Permanent Collection I haven't been all too impressed with Round House. I hope next season they have more great shows that push the boundaries of social decorum!

Hamlet at the Folger Theatre. I love Shakespeare and Hamlet is one of my favorite shows. This re-imagination of it, in a more contemporary (however timeless) way gave a whole new perspective to this show. I mostly appreciated the way Graham Michael Hamilton (Hamlet) brought new life to the role of Hamlet, particularly his delivery of certain lines... such as "Do you think I mean country matters?" was delivered at "Do you think I mean cunt-try matters?" The most unfortunate part of this play was the seating, I was uncomfortable the entire time and couldn't truly enjoy it.

60 Miles to Silver Lake at Studio. This two character play was intense. The actors, particularly Andrew Sonntag (Denny), did an amazing job showing the frustration that comes from a "broken" family. Sonntag did a great job showing the many different ages of Denny. Biggest complaint: it was long without an intermission; which I can completely understand was some of the intent of the playwright. Denny and Ky couldn't leave the car and get any relief from each other, so we couldn't get relief from the heighten drama!

Gruesome Playground Injuries at Woolly Mammoth Theatre. I loved this show, and wish I had the time to give it a full review, but here's the snippet. Another two character show without an intermission. Of course it had it's flaws (particularly in the second scene when it didn't seem the actors properly aged the characters.) But generally it was a great experience and the actors did a wonderful job taking the audience along with them.

The Magic Flute at Catholic University. I won't be reviewing this show, because I've never been in a production of Opera let alone even seen one.

That should bring us up to date.

Legends! @ Studio Theatre

2010-06-20T09:56:00.000-07:00

It is Divine!

Lypsinka Photo Credit: Josef Astor

What do you get when you take aging Hollywood divas, a sassy black maid, food stamps and men in drag?

A fabulous ninety-minute presentation of self-indulgent irreverent behavior that could only be pulled off by two hilarious performers called Legends!!

Lypsinka (John Epperson) and James Lecesne play the aging Hollywood divas Leatrice Monsee and Sylvia Glenn, respectively. They are approached by Off-Broadway producer Martin Klemmer (Tom Story) to portray two aging Hollywood divas who are involved in a long time bitter feud (a long stretch for Leatrice and Sylvia, who’ve been fighting for the past 40 years). Neither Leatrice nor Sylvia want to admit that they are struggling to make ends meet, so Sylvia borrows a friends Upper East Side apartment (and her maid, Aretha – Roalind “Roz” White) unbeknownst to the friend and Aretha!

Lecesne tended to give Sylvia the air of an actress of the 20’s and 30’s (rather than the 50’s and 60’s as the story seemed to indicate) but this seemed to only help add to the comedy as she seemed more out of place in everything she did! Lypsinka also had some odd quirks that made her also seem more from the earlier part of last century. Their portrayals of these women were in striking discord with the pop culture references that plagued the script. I much would have preferred this play to be a bit more timeless with far fewer pop culture references (like Janet Jackson’s boobs) and many more Golden/Silver Age of Hollywood quips.

To offset these over the top women, White’s Aretha is more grounded. After fawning over Leatrice, Aretha eventually has to play mother to these two women and really show them the error of their feuding ways. White was truly able to find the humor in all of her lines and still maintained Aretha’s respect for the Hollywood darlings.

One of the most surprising moments of the play was when Leo Christopher Sheridan, Boom Boom, made his musical entrance, however, I will not spoil his role.

I also would have enjoyed more singing! The only lip syncing occurred when Leatrice was under the influence of pot. The closing number however was exactly what I had wanted and I wish there would have been more numbers that included the whole cast and glamor and glitz!

This show was very entertaining! It runs at the Studio Theatre on 14th and P NW from now until July 4. Tickets range from $35 - $63 and can be purchased here

The Ramayana @ Constellation Theatre

2010-05-09T10:30:00.001-07:00

Great Epic Play Creates Exotic World

Promotional Art from Constellation Theatre

My excitement has been building for Contellation’s The Ramayana (Ra-MY-yan) since I was able to attend the Design Event on March 29, 2010. At the design event, I got to preview some scenes, view a model of the set, see illustrations of the costumes, be mesmerized as the dramaturg, Gaurav Gopalan, tell about the world of the play, and listen to Tom Teasley perform some music and explain the instruments he will be using during the performance.

The Ramayana is an epic Indian tale about the blue God Rama (played by actor Andreu Honeycutt) and his adventures to save his wife, Sita (Heather Haney) who has been kidnapped by Ravana (Jim Jorgensen) and his band of demons.

The play opens with a bit of a back-story, to explain that Rama is near the end of his fourteen-year banishment, when his father dies. And the first thing I noticed was the great costumes! Honeycutt was covered in blue body paint that had glitter in it! His cloak/vest/jacket was a gorgeous white with flakes of gold. Haney’s costume was equally detailed, as the pinks and golds wonderfully picked up the tints of her skins.

Then the demons came out and upped the costume game. Although their clothes were relatively simple (due to the need for many of them to play several characters), their masks were extremely detailed! I did like them a bit better during the design event, before they were painted, but even under the harsh stage lights, they were great to look at. The demons also had great physicality.

The movement of all the actors (especially those playing non-humans) was fabulous! The choreographer, Amber Jackson, did a wonderful job getting the actors to move in extravagant ways that really helped add to the other worldliness of the play.

And the actors themselves did a great job creating these foreign characters seem real and relatable. Honeycutt, although covered in blue body paint, truly took on a Godly stance and demeanor as Rama searches for months for his lost Sita. He was able to take the audience along with Rama as he longed to find his wife. Honeycutt’s standout moment was near the end of the play, when all of a sudden Rama is no longer loving of his wife. Honeycutt was most powerful when the darker side of Rama is revealed.

Haney, as Sita, goes through many emotions in this epic also, but she stands out most when playing comedy. She has great timing! Another actor with great timing is Joe Brack (Hanuman the monkey god). Brack was unrecognizable as Hanuman (both because of make-up and his body movements). Brack’s Hanuman was possibly the most lovable character too, and I wanted every scene to involve him in some way.

The ensemble of the play had strong members too! But Katie Atkinson takes the cake, without pulling attention from all that is around her. She was an amazing monkey; despite having a mask covering half her face, Atkinson’s eye did all the emoting needed.

I’d also like to mention Jason McCool’s control of his body in his portrayal of Jambavan, the king of the bears. This was another great example of the body work the actors had been working on, as McCool lumbered across the stage with his hands consistently in “claws.”

As a testament to the great ensemble there was, when the fire alarm rang, the scene continued and Atkinson’s line “What is this?” was more telling. The fire alarm rang during the second act and after ringing for about a thirty seconds, director Allison Arkell Stockman stood up and instructed everyone to leave the building. Once we were cleared to go back in by the fire marshal, the actors resumed from the beginning of the previous scene as if nothing had happened.

One of the things I was most excited about since the design event was how the designers were to handle chopping off Soorpanaka’s breast (Abby Wood). Wood is well endowed, and I had trouble believing that the red strings coming from her chest were supposed to be a lack of breasts (which were clearly visible in her low cut costume. I would have liked Soorpanaka to have much bigger breasts than Wood, so they could be removed and Soorpanaka’s reaction to the removal of her breasts (or in this case the severe reduction) could be more explainable.

Finally, the thing I was the least looking forward to from the design run, became the least desirable effect of the evening. Teasley’s music was overwhelming and very distracting. I found at times, I was so distracted by the music that I couldn’t even concentrate on the action. The only time it wasn’t distracting was during the battle scenes. I would have liked to hear half as much music and have the music at half the volume.

The music aside, this play was good (not as good as Three Sisters but still an amazing play). The Ramayana is a great play that helped remind me of the wonders of Eastern religions. It definitely fills a void in DC theatre, which does tend to be very Western centric. I went into this play wondering how well American actors (mostly white) were going to play Indian myths, but right from the beginning, I had already forgotten that the actor’s weren’t Indian.

I want everyone to check out this play. The Ramayana runs from now until June 6th on Thrusdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8pm and Sundays at 3pm at the Source Theatre at 1835 14th Street NW. Tickets range from $15 - $25) and can be purchased here or by calling 1-800-494-8497.

Public Enemy @ Scena

2010-04-29T18:24:00.000-07:00

Avoid like a Protestant at a Catholic Mass

Barry McCovyPhoto Credit: Mike Foster

Ok, so I’ve been sitting on this one for a few weeks, but I’ve finally be able to digest it enough to produce a short blog about it.

I saw Scena’s Public Enemy on opening night of previews. As an actor/director/producer/theatre go-er I understand that the first time a play is in front of an audience, it is something different, it’s usually a bit sloppy and unpolished, but this show still needed a few more rehearsals before it would have been ready for an audience.
It being previews, I didn’t get a program, so I’ll be talking about characters and actors by generic terms in their relationship to the main character, Tommy.

Tommy, played by Barry McEvoy (as seen left), is obsessed with James Cagney. He performs an impersonation act in a local pub (in this mob plagued Irish town), where he wins the talent competition. He meets a girl and they seem to hit it off, but the joblessness has plagued his entire family and he is pushed one step over the brink of sanity: he sets up his life to recreate the American mob movie ‘The Public Enemies.” Tommy lets his best friend die, and the girl in his final attempt “take down the mob’ just like Cagney did. All of this is framed by a detective who is in the present, telling us how he was working on the case.

This script was long and it wasn’t helped by the fact that I couldn’t understand the actors about a quarter of the time (heavy accents). Their hearts were in the right places, especially Tommy’s friend, played by Daniel Baker. I wish I had a program to see Baker’s previous roles, his over enthusiastic energy was great, but many a time over shadowed McEvoy’s presence. I wonder how new he is to the profession.

Finally, through no fault of Scene’s or the actor’s the H Street Playhouse is not metro accessible and was a pain in the ass to get to and from!

Public Enemy plays from now until May 16 tickets can be bought here for $25 - $35, depending on the night.

2010 - 2011 Preview @ Woolly Mammoth

2010-04-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

Why I Subscribed to Woolly

Promo-Art for 2010-2011 season

I was excited yesterday (April 10) as I sat in the Woolly Theatre, waiting for them to preview next season. I looked around and remembered how wonderful Clybourne Park was as I observed the decrepit Act 2 house. I thought to myself, if next season is half as good as Clybourne Park then I’m in!

Miriam Weisfeld and Howard Shalwitz came out on stage and talked about last season. This past season was all about engaging civic dialogue and how we reflect upon it as a community. Shalwitz was very interested in the discussions people had after seeing a show this season. Shalwitz said that “theatre is asking us to go further” as the shows this past season asked us to reevaluate what we say and how we say it, at a community level, while “next season is more personal,” as they explore taboo issues in a “diverse set of worlds” that are happening at a more personal level.

Weisfeld said of choosing new plays, that she looks for what the playwright wants to say and whom they want to say it to, and whey they want the audience to walk away with after seeing the play. Then Weisfeld and Shalwitz proudly introduced the actors (Michael Rissoto, Fatama Quander and Jessica Dukes). I was very excited to see Jessica Dukes (last seen in Permanent Collection).

The actors performed snippets from several of the plays for next season. Then the event wrapped and guests were invited to enjoy light refreshments in the lobby.

I then proceeded to the Box Office to buy the under 35, 5 show subscription.

Here is the season (a * denotes a show in my subscription; ^denotes that the actors showed a scene from this play) with my initial thoughts on them.

One-Man Lord of the Rings: sounds fun
In The Next Room, Or The Vibrator Play*^: overly campy?
House of Gold*^: creepy pedophile? Could be an uncomfortable play.
A Girl’s Guide To Washington Politics: No interest in this.
Oedipus El Ray*^: Wow, the language is intense!
The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs*: I love Apple so this might really give me food for thought.
Bootycandy*^: Can’t wait to see, I might learn some new things about sex from this!

Subscriptions start at $150 and go up from there and can be purchased here.

Little Shop of Horrors @ Fords Theatre

2010-04-11T15:47:00.000-07:00

Go See The Plant!

Audrey and Seymour gawk at Audrey II (from Ford's Theatre)

Little Shop of Horrors is one of my favorite musicals. I have a strong affinity for it, as it was my first musical that I starred in (Mushnik back in 2001). I went into tonight knowing that I would be comparing it to my high school version. Well happily, I’m telling you that it was much better than my high school version.

One of the standout performers was Jenna Coker-Jones (Audrey). Coker-Jones’ Audrey had the campy voice and movements associated with the movie Audrey, but added her own flare of having Audrey be just a bit more street smart, and having more ability to see how bad Orin (played by Evan Casey) was for her. Every time Coker-Jones sang Somewhere That’s Green or one of the many reprises, I cried. And during the final reprise, during the song Supertime II, I wasn’t just misty eyed, I was bawling!

This show was probably some of the best theatre I’ve seen down here in DC! From the way the music was played, to how the actors interacted with the revolving set, to the campy costumes worn by the urchins! The notes were sweet and pleasing. The plant was synced nicely between voice and puppeteers (albeit, the plant didn’t look that much more advanced than the one I used in high school).

The only disappointment I had, was how show the musical was!

Go check it out! It plays at the Ford Theatre from now until May 22, 2010 tickets can be purchased here and range from $25 - $55.

Amazons and Their Men @ Forum Theatre @ Round House Silver Spring

2010-04-05T10:58:00.000-07:00

Late I know, but still good

Promotional Art from Forum

I know this one is going up late, but I figured better late than never.

I recently saw Forum Theatre’s Amazons and Their Men. This was the third and last play for their season (the first two being the Angel’s In America series; my review can be found here). The premise of this play was very interesting, it was about The Frau making a Roman movie during Nazi Germany. The Frau (played by Jjana Valentiner) is only called by this, as none of the characters are given a proper name. (However, The Frau was inspired by real German filmmaker, Leni Riefenstahl).

It’s implied that The Frau is sleeping with a high member of the Nazi party, as she used to make propaganda films, but she put a stop to both to make movies that she wanted to make. The problem is that her current movie is eating up so much of her money. So she turns back to the Nazis and makes her movie, in the style of her propaganda films. Valentiner’s portrayal of The Frau is moving. She expertly uses her body to fill even the tiniest of spaces. And her voice to fill the great plains of Africa.

The Frau’s return to the Nazis is not met without ill content. The Man, who plays opposite The Frau in her movie (played by Daniel Eichner), is a closeted homosexual Jew! Eichner expertly represented this forbidden taboo. From the moment the play began, I honestly had little clue that The Man was gay, but once he was introduced to The Boy (Jay Saunders) the chemistry between the lit up the stage; although I did find it sometimes hard to get past Saunders’ awkward smiles.

The fourth character, The Extra (Laura C. Harris), stole the show though. The Extra is The Frau’s sister and conscience. The Extra has played an extra in all of The Frau’s movies and in The Frau’s life. But it’s only when The Man is revealed to be gay, does The Frau confront The Extra on her [The Extra’s] homosexuality. As The Extra pushes herself into the limelight, Harris shone herself. Harris stole the show as I began routing for her to toss The Frau down and truly make a wonderful death scene!

Amazons ran from February 25 – March 20.

My Name Is Asher Lev @ Round House in Bethesda

2010-03-30T15:20:00.000-07:00

No For This Gentile

Photo of Alexander Strain by Matt Urban, Delaware Theatre Compan

It was bound to happen. With all the theatre I have seen this year, I couldn’t possibly like ALL of them. My Name is Asher Lev is one of these.

As I sat in the audience before the show with my theatre friend, Chance Of, we continued discussing Clybourne Park and she made a comment about how this audience was way more Jewish and significantly older. I commented back about they type of theatre Woolly Mammoth does versus Round House and even the way they advertised about it.

For Clybourne the ads were stylized houses in monochromatic black and white (very telling of how Woolly advertises its plays), while Asher Levhas a more classical approach to ads, showing a picture of the lead actor. This shows whom the theatre company is looking to attract. As a twenty-something, I am way more excited for monochromatic stylized art, versus a pretty boring shot of an actor painting a picture.

Asher Lev tells the struggle of a young, Jewish boy as he comes to terms with his desire to paint and how that is in direct contrast to what his Orthodox, conservative parents believe.

The story was hard for me to connect to, try as I might, I just could not feel sorry for Asher. Chance Of said that it is because I am a gentile. As I did not grow up around Jewish people, I honestly did not have enough background knowledge to make the most sense of what this play was offering.

But as I’m not an African American and yet I still enjoyed Permanent Collection, I have to say that this can’t be the only reason I didn’t like the show. So I turn my focus on the other elements of any live theatre event, the actors. In Lev, there are only three actors (Alexander Strain playing Asher, Adam Heller playing the other male roles and Lisa Bruneau playing the female rolls). Of the three, I bleieve Bruneau carried the show, every time she was on stage I felt a bit of magic that could possibly make this show something more. When Bruneau came out on stage as her second character, I thought to myself, “But there were only supposed to be three actors!” However, any magic Bruneau had brought to the stage was quickly squashed by the mediocre performance of Strain. His lackluster act made the show drag as he tried to make us feel sorry for Asher having to disobey his parents, but I was not feeling it.

Here was another chance for me to connect with the play, but it was not happening. I’ve more than once disobeyed my parents, gone against what they believe is right. And yet, I still could not connect to Asher. This has made me very upset, and it seems odd for Strain’s performance to be so dull, for I had the pleasure of seeing him Angel’s In America where his portrayal of Louis was empathetic.

Given the uninspiring performance of Strain (and the lack of utilizing the revolve again!) I would recommend skipping this show and going to see Clybourne Park Not For This Gentile

Asher Lev plays from now until April 11 and tickets can be purchased here and range from $20 - $60

Clybourne Park @ Woolly Mammoth

2010-03-24T17:59:00.000-07:00

Where does racism end and gentrification begin?

Nickell and Glenn in the second act. Credit Woolly Mammoth

Woolly Mammoth’s Clybourne Park, by Bruce Norris, begins to answer this question and raises a whole lot more.

I again, attended a Pay-What-You-Can-Preview. My theatre going buddy, Chance Of, got into line really early, and we got some fabulous seats in fifth row orchestra. As soon as we entered the theatre, we were both impressed at the set! Set designer James Kronzer, realistically recreated a suburban home right there on the stage! I actually felt like I was walking into the living of this well decorated house.

In a side note, I thought it was interesting that through the upstage dinning room bay window, more patrons sat. This gave me some cause for hesitation, as I couldn’t decide if I would have wanted to sit there. It would have deeply added to the fact they we (the audience) were eve’s dropping; but would the sacrifice of sight lines and the backs of actors be worth the different perspective?

As the play opens, we see Russ and Bev, a white couple, packing up their 1959 home for a move. Some witty banter between these characters quickly moves to the play towards the deeper context, which we don’t know about from the start. Russ is visited by a cast of characters including their minister, the community home-owner’s association director, his deaf, pregnant wife, their Black maid and her husband.

Russ and Bev are accosted by the home-owner’s director, Karl, played by Cody Nickell. Nickell’s performance in this act was just ok, his nervous ticks were hard to read, where they Karl’s or Nickell’s? But as the second act progressed it became easier to see that Nickell is a superb actor that can really fill the need of a awkward character.

Back in Act 1, Karl has the audacity to be offended that Russ is selling his house to Black people! After the initial shock of this thinking (I do live in 2010) I began to realize how real these concerns were in 1959. I could even imagine members of my own family having this conversation in the late 50’s!

Francine, Russ and Bev’s maid, played by Dawn Ursula, and her husband, Albert, played by Jefferson A Russell, are there to witness the community leaders openly shun their “kind” of people, Black. Though many a time, they could have left, Norris’ story and Nickell’s acting compelled them to remain.

Tempers fly as Russ defends his opinion that it doesn’t matter who moves in, the neighborhood will still be great (the reason for his move is the suicide of his son upstairs in the house).

The discussion of race was more frank in this act as it was almost only a second thought to consider the feelings of the Black people standing in the living room. And not much seems to be resolved as the first act wraps up, Russ kicks everyone out and appears to have grown just a bit closer to Bev since distancing himself when their son committed suicide.

Act Two opens to a house that is now under construction. Nickell, now playing Steve and Kimberly Gilbert, playing his pregnant wife, Lindsey – not deaf in this act – are a married couple who recently bought a house in the “up and coming neighborhood” of Clybourne Park. This time, the conflict is about the size of their construction. The home-owner’s association is again present, this time they are Black: Lena and Kevin (played by Ursula and Russell) and their biggest concern is how more white people moving into the community will change the culture, as they turn the history rich community into big box stores and Starbucks.

This gentrification can be seen all over Washington, DC today. Back when I was in undergrad, Columbia Heights, was a more diverse community, while now they have a Target and Bestbuy and condos that cost more than homes in the suburbs!

The debate heats up over the gentrification of Clybourne Park (now considered a Black community, my how things change in a mere 50 years), as Steve sticks his foot his mouth (or is it Lena that can’t get over the racism hump?). The whole house blows up. Tempers flare and nothing gets resolved either! But this act kept a more PC tone (as is more expected in 2009).

I blame Norris for some of my dislike of act two, the characters this time didn’t have a history with each other. I can’t even tell you how or why Tom (played by Michael Glen) was even part of this conversation (although his counter part in act one, Jim, the minister, remained rather silent and tertiary). But also Kathy (Jennifer Mendenhall – Bev from act one) and Dan (Mitchell Hebert – Russ) seemed to play such minor roles, that they might not even have been needed. Even though they did add some different perspectives and Kathy gave moral support to Lindsey, again they seem auxiliary.

The play poses many questions about gentrification and racism. One big question I asked myself, is where do I fit in to this equation. I live in a predominantly Black and Latino/Latina community, am I seen as one of the people coming in and trying to change a community to better fit my needs. But isn’t that the same problem posed by Karl – some “other” coming into the community and changing it (whether for good or bad or whatever their intentions be)? If it is called racism when Karl doesn’t want Black people to come to Clybourne Park, isn’t it also racism when Lena doesn’t want White people to change a house?

I highly suggest seeing this show as soon as possible. Then talk about it with someone. Discuss it with a neighbor, a friend and a stranger. Tell your kids or your colleagues what you think about gentrification.

Clybourne Park plays from now until April 17 at Woolly Mammoth Theatre. Tickets can be purchased here and range from $27 through $62.

No Theatre This week or next week (or the following week!)

2010-02-27T07:37:00.000-08:00

So it looks like I'm in a lul between shows. This week has no show, although many are opening up in the DC area, I just haven't been able to see any! And this coming week I'll be out of town, and the following week I'm having out of town guests who do not like theatre. So please don't expect an update until mid-March! (What am I going to do without theatre for that long).

Check out my other blogs for other updates.

The Miser At Washington Shakespeare Company

2010-02-22T17:32:00.000-08:00

Kick 'em when they're down!

Washington Shakespeare Company Logo

Viewed 2/20/10

I live in Silver Spring, Maryland, and I'm not going to lie, it was a long Metro ride to Washington Shakespeare Company at Clark Street in Crystal City, VA. Then when I arrive (just above an hour before curtain), I approach a falling down warehouse, that doesn't have a clearly marked entrance.

Statues celebrating NYE. Photo Credit: FutureWorld84

After finally seeing someone enter (wound up being one of the actors), I enter, clam my pay-what-you can ticket and sit in the bar area. The theming of this area was quite interesting. There was some sort of New Year's eve type party going on with statues around the bar wearing party hats. I believe this had nothing to do with the show, but were pretty cool none-the-less.

The show begins inside this lobby as actor Sara Barker, playing La Fleche - a man servant of another character, - takes us into the house of Harpagon, all the while talking about how Master Cleante is just a few thousand dollars in debt and we (the audience) are here to help him with that.

I love this type of theatre! Although this facade wasn't kept the entire play, it was hinted at a few times during.

Once in the space itself, I found myself pleasantly surprise with how the theatre was set up. Theatre in the 3/4 round. With crap all over the place. The set designers, Tobias Harding and Eileen Garcia, did a great job filling the set with Horpagon's "collections." What was also exciting was the seating, I took a second row arm chair (later regretted this when the woman in front of me was sitting in a high back stool like chair).

The story revolves around Harpagon (played by Rex Daugherty) and his two children Elise and Cleante. Elise and Cleante have love interests that Harpagon would not approve of. Harpagon is also a penny pincher and this plays a big role in the play as his money gets stolen at one point (and he has an efed up dream about it - I did not enjoy the Tim Burton style dream sequence).

The plot was easy to follow for Molier, as this was contemporary adaptation by David Ball. But, the first third of the play was a bit long. It's not until we meet Cleante's love interest, Mariane, and Horpagon demands she marry him instead of his son, do things really get moving. I also feel the lack of an intermission helped make this first part seem long, as I was adjusting to the idea that I wouldn't be moving for a while.

But as boring as the first part was, what kept it moving was the acting. I was so excited to see several actors from A Flea in Her Ear were working together again here. I was particularly excited to seen Katie Atkinson, Elise - Harpagon's daughter. Atkinson's Elise was a timid waif of a girl, but at the same time she knows how to handle her father and help set her wedding into motion.

I was confused about Frank Britton's portrayal of Master Jacques. He would be a "cook" in one scene and a "driver" in another and both characters would blame the other for something. Was this characters actually insane?

One stand out performance was by "Flea" alum, Heather Haney, Frosine. Frosine makes just a few appearances on stage, but every time Haney was there, she would commandeer the stage and powerfully play with the audience as we wonder how Frosine is connected to the other characters and what she can get from Harpagon's downfall.

I honestly couldn't care about Harpagon's downfall, as he goes insane with the theft of his money. I don't know it it was Daugherty's performance or the script, but I was happy when he was left alone at the end of the play!

The Miser plays at the Clark Street Playhouse from Thursdays through Sundays, from now until March 7, 2010. Tickets can be purchased here and range from "Pay-what-you-can" for Saturday Matinees to $36.50 for Saturday evenings.

If taking the metro, allow at least 15 minutes to walk to the theatre. Doors opens one hour before show, and seating is general (but showing early doesn't guarantee a good seat as the theatre seating doesn't start until the show starts). I recommend sitting in the center section (to the left as you enter the seating) a few rows up.

The Leadership Repertory: Richard II/Henry V at Shakespeare Theatre Company

2010-02-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

Battle Royale: Richard II v Henry V
Richard II

Promotional Material for Richard II

I have never been a fan of Shakespeare's Histories. So I was very disappointed when I found out my subscription to Shakespeare Theatre Company included not only one, but two. And not only two, but in rep! That meant I'd spend my next two shows hating life as I watched histories.

First up was Richard II (viewed February 12, 2010). I was shocked when I entered the theatre to note that it was thrust. And my E row seat was suddenly front row. This excited me. I've never sat front row in a large theatre like the Sidney Harman Hall.

Right from the beginning though, I was very impressed with the scenic design. Lee Savage, completely reformed the theatre! The space (used for both shows) was thrust with a balcony and a lift device. The background was a falling apart castle, with four entrances up top and four on the ground level (including a double door (that could either slide or be opened traditionally. The gray castle wall was is stark contrast to the rusted "I" beam that hung over head and the exposed scaffolding that composed the left and right of the stage. These two designs already showed that you were not entering a healthy environment, but one that is torn and corrupting. Although the industrial lights above two of the doors, seemed highly out of place.

Now comes the part that I hate in histories. The talking. Richard II, played by Michael Hayden, talks a lot. And Hayden's voice was grating. He would have pauses in his speech that extended an already long play. His biggest redeeming quality was how he would use his hands. Hayden would use his hands to help reveal Richard's true feelings.

Henry Bolingbroke (played by Charles Borland), was great opposite Hayden. He wold push the story along as he picked up the pace. His charisma and charm really made you feel that Henry had the right to the thrown.

My biggest problem with the histories is all the talking and Richard II is no exception. There is a lot of off stage action. But it was not enjoyable to watch Richard fall from grace.

Henry V

Promotional Material for Henry V

Viewed 2/14/10

When I discovered that Hayden was playing Henry V, I was resolved to another mediocre performance as a grating voice sifted through my ears. Low and behold, Hayden out-shined himself as Henry was COMPLETELY different. Not only was Hayden's acting more acceptable, his voice was softer and he was more like-able.

The stage was set very similarly to that of Richard II, but now two "I" beams supported the castle wall (later used as ladders), some work lights were visible (though moved during the transition from Chorus to play). The lift also wasn't working for this performance, but the actors took on the challenge and the transitions were not sloppy, but looked wonderfully rehearsed and prepared.

Unlike Richard II, a lot of action happens in Henry V. Battle scenes are all over the place. Henry himself even takes up arms against the French. What also sets this play apart is the love story. Hayden played both Richard II and Henry V and actress Rachel Holmes played Queen Isabel and Katherine (respectively), but their relationship to each other was completely different. In Richard II, I felt they were forced, and their love needed a lot of work (although I felt bad for Isabel when she was banished back to France and Richard was sentenced to "The Tower," I couldn't empathize with them. I couldn't find the thing that made their relationship human). But the courting scene at the end of Henry V (although awkwardly placed at first) really made Henry a love-able character and made the script more bearable.

Another aspect that made this play bearable was the chorus. More typical of Greek tragedies than Shakespearean histories, this chorus helps set the stage for many of the scenes. Excusing they play for not having horses and such. The chorus in this play (Larry Paulsen, Robynn Rodriguez and Ted Van Griethuysen) were more contemporary than the story they were telling. I enjoyed the way that the chorus actors were worked into the play. I'm a big fan of this (again, very Grecian). Now the lights above the doors, mentioned above, have a purpose! They are simply work lights, they were lit during the "chorus" scenes.

Other stand out actors in the repertory were Lois Lotorto (Bagot in RII and Nym/Governor Harfleur/Rambures in HV). Lortorto flexed his acting muscles between the two plays. As Bagot, he was a Richard II duke/lord that was a bit stuck up; while in Henry V, Nym's vagabond character (and his band of "merry men") added some comedy.

Speaking of the band of men, Flyod King (Bardolph/Burgundy in HV and Woodstock/Bishop of Carlisle in RII) is a great character actor! King took Bardolph's trampism and really found the comedy within the drama for this role. He was also a scene stealer in RII as the Bishop of Carlisle!)

On thing about Henry V that was annoying was how much French there was. I do not speak a drop of French. I know that the script calls for French, but if I were directing it, I might have pulled the chorus to explain that the scene between Kate and her nurse is supposed to be in French, but is in English for you... or something of the like. (The nurse was even played by chorus member Rodriguez). Yes, I caught on that Kate was learning English, but I didn't understand why, this scene bore no connection to the scenes before or after and only a little later on when Katherine meets Henry (could this scene have been added years later by a different author?)

Richard II and Henry V play, in rep, from now until 4/11/10. Tickets are available here and range in price from $20 - $82 (for weekend performances in the orchestra). If you can only make one, I recommend Henry V over Richard II for it feels more like a Tragedy versus a traditional History.

Suicide.Chat.Room by Taffety Punk Theatre Company

2010-02-15T08:50:00.000-08:00

Not My Cup of Tea

Kimberly Gilbert and Matthew R. Wilson in Taffety Punk Theatre Company's suicide.chat.room Photo by Colin Hovde

Suicide.Chat.Room presented by Taffety Punk was just not my cup of tea. It was well acted and the movement was great, but I just didn't enjoy it.

I went in expecting a contemporary play based on actual conversations from suicide message boards and new groups. And in essence, that is what I got, but I got a whole lot more too.

Choerographer, Paulina Guerrero, created a wonderful modern piece, showing the repetition of those who try to commit suicide. I did enjoy the opening movement piece, where only 5 performers were going through the motions, until Kimberly Gilbert (left) joined the "chat room" and found a partner. It was very fitting with the plot of the play of all these people being lonely.

The actors did a great job showing the desperation, one of my personal favorites was Matthew R. Wilson, playing DOUG44. Doug would continually post about his attempts and failures at suicide. Doug was also continually made fun of because he would create elaborate plans that fail, and many posters started to refuse to listen to his post. Wilson did a great job finding that hopelessness. I honestly wondered if Doug wanted to die, or just wanted companionship.

But, why didn't I like it. I honestly don't like experimental theatre. Grant it, I don't need a defined theatre space (I enjoy what plays break away from the proscenium) but I enjoy a more classical definition of play, where my drama is told through the plot, not through the dance. However (although I love musical theatre, that's a different thing, rather than the experimental melding of Drama/Dance that was suicide.chat.room).

Suicide.chat.room is no longer playing and I caught the tail end of the run because of the snow that crippled DC.

This is not the last strike against Taffety Punk, as I enjoyed one of their previous shows (Troilus and Cressida), but I will do more research into their plays before heading out to one.

Repost: Previous Reviews

2010-02-15T08:28:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the new component of my blog series: My Random Ramblings. Here you will find all the theatre reviews. I made the decision to spilt the Random Ramblings into three blogs because as I start reviewing more DC theatre, and get put on to more "press" lists, I want to make sure my reviews are easily accessible to those looking only to follow my reviews. As the same goes for My Educational Ramblings.

So, as to not start this blog empty. Take a look over here to view all my theatre reviews at My Random Ramblings tag theatre.