Shakespeare Theatre's "Titus Andronicus' (1st review)

The Bard as Revenger

Titus Andronicus is early Shakespeare, more gore than glory, but still well worth seeing in Aaron Cromie's canny and inventive staging.

Robert Zaller

Apr 28, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

"Tribes' and "4000 Miles' in New York

The sounds of thinking, feeling and listening

A rare spring season of compelling new work brings two gems to the New York stage, both revealing something new about what it really means to hear and to listen.

Carol Rocamora

Apr 21, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

Mauckingbird's "The Temperamentals'

The way we were (before we came out)

Where were you at the dawn of the gay liberation movement? Jon Marans's lyrical look back at the '50s made me ask that question for the first time.

Jackie Schifalacqua

Apr 17, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

"Evita' and "End of the Rainbow' on Broadway

The tragedy of stardom, real and synthetic

Without Patti LuPone's complexity, Evita sinks to the level of caricature. By contrast, the flesh and blood Judy Garland breaks your heart.

Carol Rocamora

Apr 17, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read

Gombrowicz's "Ivona' at Swarthmore

A princess with a problem

Witold Gombrowicz wrote with a sneering savagery, most of it directed at aristocrats and their sense of entitlement but also at the middle and lower classes who envied them. Swarthmore's production of Ivona wholeheartedly abandoned itself to his frenetic sense of absurdity.

Merilyn Jackson

Apr 13, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

"Cyrano' at the Arden (2nd review)

The essential human misunderstanding

Cyrano de Bergerac is the only French play between the 17th and 20th Centuries to hold its place on the international stage. Michael Hollinger's pungent adaptation gets about as much of Edmond Rostand's epic conception as a modern audience can probably digest.

Robert Zaller

Apr 10, 2012 · Articles · 8 minute read

Bruce Graham's "Outgoing Tide,' by PTC (1st review)

Why again are we laughing?

Bruce Graham's The Outgoing Tide confronts Alzheimer's disease with wisecracks like, “Are you crazy?” The playwright's immense talent, a first-rate cast of three, and innovative staging create a powerful theater experience nevertheless.

Marshall A. Ledger

Apr 10, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

Doubts about Shanley's "Doubt' at Walnut's Studio 3

Without a Doubt

Deep down, even a hard-assed nun is a woman, right? Which means she's a sexual creature. And if a charismatic priest doesn't pay attention to her, well”¦.

Jackie Schifalacqua

Apr 06, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

EgoPo's "The Golem'

Protector of the Jews

EgoPo previously made its reputation by reviving classic theatrical works; here its ensemble has created a new play, albeit one based on old legends, amalgamating the cultural, spiritual and artistic history of Jewish life in Europe.

Steve Cohen

Mar 31, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

"West Side Story' at Academy of Music

Jets and Sharks for a new generation

West Side Story revolutionized musical theater in the ‘50s by virtue of being set in the here and now. That's no longer the case, but the current revival is a revelation in other respects.

Steve Cohen

Mar 31, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read