Andrew White - Page 6

It's especially gratifying to see companies like Aura Curiatlas Physical Theatre return to Washington with a fascinating new work, A Life With No Limits, dedicated to the life and ideas of the Nobel physicist Stephen Hawking. Aura Curiatlas has developed a unique, intensely physical brand of performance without words, incorporating circus and dance techniques into narratives that are eye-popping in their execution and touching in their meaning.

Last weekend I visited one of my friends in the great theatre town of Boston; while there I got to see an exciting new play that by rights should be produced here in the Washington area, and soon. A new playwright, Leo McGann, born and raised in Belfast, has written 'The Honey Trap' and it is a work as mature and necessary as any I have seen--and over the years I've seen quite a lot.

Times like these call for plays that directly address our anxieties; and Mike Bartlett's King Charles III is about as timely and necessary a play as we're likely to see. For all its indulgent verbal sprawl the Shakespeare Theatre Company has served Washington theatre audiences superbly, with a stellar cast and a politically taut drama written in the finely-tuned pentameter that once made, well, Shakespeare himself so famous.

Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm's new play Hooded, or Being Black for Dummies, receiving its world premiere with Mosaic Theatre Company, examines the dangers of identity, prejudice and identity politics from a variety of angles. This is an unforgettable, complex study in identity that for all of its tricks and turns is one of the more psychologically, spiritually rich plays you are likely to see on the stage.

As with all classic ballets in order to bring it to the stage you must breathe new life into it, and create a narrative that balances fidelity to the original with the genius of the modern choreographer. Not to mention the unique talents and personalities of each dancer. Kevin McKenzie, ABT's Artistic Director, brings this 19th-century classic into the 21st century with great sensitivity, but also with a sense of fun and celebration.

Adventurous theatre-goers, take note: a short drive beyond the Beltway, just off the Dulles Access Road, sits Next Stop Theatre Company, a troupe with a growing reputation for solid acting; their current production of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing is an excellent introduction to the growing theatre scene in Herndon, Reston and beyond-a scene which will become much closer as the Silver Line makes its progress to Dulles Airport.

Just in time for those winter, presidential inaugural blues, Pinky Swear Productions comes along offering the ultimate rock-scream therapy session with Lizzie, a musical dedicated to America's most famous real-life axe-murderer. Not for the faint-of heart, this is a musical that by rights should be featured in this Saturday's women's march, a reminder that women are perfectly capable of getting in their digs (or whacks, as the case may be) when pushed to the edge.

If you've had enough of the holiday cheer and are in desperate need of a chaotic romp, you could do a whole lot worse than Pointless Theatre's whimsical production of Alfred Jarry's anarchic satire, King Ubu. Decked out in costumer Ivania Stack's fuzzy, teddy-bear pajamas, the cast crackles with the energy of the cocky, petulant high-schooler that Jarry once was. The result is a 2-hour tour of Shakespeare as interpreted by a drug-addled adolescent.

It's that time of year again-and one of the city's grand annual traditions has returned to the stage, with fresh faces to add excitement to an already wonderful celebration of the Yuletide season. Ford's Theatre Society's production of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol brightens downtown Washington with its irrepressible good cheer and optimism-at a time when many are in real need of it.

There are few films that truly stand the test of time: Fritz Lang's expressionist masterpiece Metropolis, with its dystopian vision of mad scientists and machines devouring all of humanity, is one of them. The visual elements are so striking and the story line so compelling that it has attracted a cadre of composers in recent years. Although often set to a rock soundtrack today, Constellation Theatre's house composer Tom Teasley has created a thrilling, propulsive musical setting that is more than a match for Lang's own amazing work.

It is timely to have a show that focuses like a laser on the complex psychology of young women, as they make their first awkward steps into adulthood. Mosaic Theater's commitment to confronting our deepest community issues continues with Jennifer Nelson's stellar production of Milk Like Sugar, Kirsten Greenidge's Obie-award winning drama about teenage girls navigating their way through their high school years, the most treacherous of all.

Playwright Sarah Ruhl, confronted with her beloved father's death, must have wrestled hard with how to honor his passing, without losing herself in the process.  Her play, Eurydice-in Jay D. Brock's production at Next Stop Theatre-is in some ways a witty take on the old Orpheus myth, but the wit is clearly in service of something more personal and contemporary.

Roundhouse and Olney Theatre's joint production, while long by contemporary theatre-going standards, is as rewarding and heart-warming an evening of theatre as you will ever see.  Director Ryan Rilette guides his all-star cast with a sure hand, and the results are unforgettable.

Exquisitely timed for the final run to the White House, Keegan Theatre 's production of 'What We're Up Against' is a whomping good time. GIven the theme of male mediocrity confronted by female professionalism, comparisons between the characters onstage with current candidates and talking heads will be inevitable. This is just the comic jolt this town needs, see it now!

Angels in America:  Millennium Approaches is not just a national treasure, it is a glimpse of history in the making; it is a then-marginalized community seizing the stage, demanding attention, and beginning the long process of changing hearts and minds across the country.  To watch the kaleidoscope of characters, brilliantly portrayed here by some of Washington DC's finest actors, can be incredibly moving.  Not just for the performances themselves, which are memorable indeed, but for how those performances remind us of the changes this play made possible.

One of the show's most fascinating aspects is the choreography of McNamara's movements; Red Peter tends to morph into the Variety Show act he was trained to perform, shuffling from side to side and raising his hat and cane as if for applause. But the divorce between the 'performer' and his soul is painfully obvious, and the sense of self-alienation is made all the more poignant in moments when Peter retreats upstage to cradle his head and rock himself sane, before reaching once again for his half-pint bottle of Schnapps.

When you have a chance to see a seasoned actor like Craig Wallace, gifted with quiet charisma, performing a one-man show and embodying three inimitably American characters, all I can say is - stop reading this drivel, just go see the man. Director Eleanor Holdrige has collaborated with Wallace to create a timely meditation on fame, race, music, and the tragedy of a generous soul trying to survive in a cynical, brutal world.  Mosaic Theater has launched its second season with a quietly powerful show that should leave audiences with a renewed appreciation for an American legend whose depth of character is rarely acknowledged.

For fans of McDonagh's outrageous dramaturgy, Keegan Theatre's production of The Lonesome West should be truly satisfying, especially now that the dog days of summer are upon us.  Although the playwright's aim is uneven at times, director Mark A. Rhea has assembled a stellar cast that fearlessly tackles it all. 

The Lady with the Little Dog is one of Chekhov's most beloved short stories, and it is especially gratifying to see that Director/Designer Stephanie Mumford has taken The Lady with the Little Dog and created an intimate one-hour visit to late 19th-century Russia. Beginning in an idyllic resort on the Black Sea, Mumford uses live music from the period - performed impeccably by Christine Khrarazian, accompanied by pianist Zachary Roberts-and a sequence of film footage and projections of seascapes by the Russian artist Aivazovsky to bring us into Chekhov's world.

Happenstance Theatre has come up with a perfect evening's entertainment: 'Moxie: A Happenstance Vaudeville' gives your rambunctious youngster a few moments of gleeful anarchy, your friends a little of the old soft shoe, while mom & dad can 'ooh' and 'aah' over Sabrina Mandell's stunning period costumes and some truly beautiful tableaux. The company has collaborated to create a satisfying production with something for everyone - and I mean everyone.