Maya Cantu recently graduated from Virginia's James Madison University, where she majored in theatre. She is very excited about starting her MFA in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism at Yale School of Drama this fall. Maya was once a performer, and played roles ranging from eccentric mediums (Blithe Spirit) to slain noblewomen (Macbeth) to founding fathers (1776). While she hasn't been to an audition in ages, Maya still delights in belting showtunes - sometimes on key - at piano bars.
Having moved gracefully through the moral shadowlands of John Patrick Shanley's Pulitzer Prize-winning play Doubt, acclaimed actress Adriane Lenox now finds herself in a lighter realm - that of Noel Coward's hilarious classic Blithe Spirit, which plays the Williamstown Theatre Festival from July 18th through 29th.
There are two kinds of great solo performers - those who can evoke awed silence in audiences, and those who can stir them to laughter, cheers and impassioned cries of affirmation and awareness. Daniel Beaty – who is part slam poet, part motivational speaker and a completely phenomenal performer – proves that he belongs in the latter category with Emergence-See
For over half a century, Stuart Vaughan has been - in every sense of the phrase - a true Renaissance man of the theatre. Vaughan's latest project is a new stage version of The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne's classic 1850 novel about the conflict between Puritanism and passion. With honesty, eloquence and insight, Vaughan recently answered some questions about his incredible life in the theatre - and about a career that shows no signs at all of slowing down!
Although it could benefit from a little more spontaneity at times, Arena Stage offers a lovely production of Terrence McNally's bittersweet romance Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune
The characters and conventions of film noir get flamboyantly comical facelifts in Adrift in Macao, a new musical by Peter Melnick and Christopher Durang that, as presented by Primary Stages, will open at 59E59 Theaters on February 13th. Melnick has previously written musicals and has scored many films and TV shows, and Adrift in Macao is the talented composer's most high-profile project to date.
Darren Holden, the talented singer/songwriter and stage performer, formed his own band at the age of 16 - and continues to rock as the Piano Man in the national tour of Movin' Out
The Light in the Piazza's ability to both dazzle and devastate is amply showcased in its touring production, which has settled at the Kennedy Center for a run through January 7th
Shout!'s "Green Girl" Erica Schroeder is a talented and insightful performer who thinks of the '60s musical as the latest colorful patch in the quilt of her life and career
Creator/director Ryan J. Davis and composer/lyricist/bookwriter Joe Drymala discuss the new NYMF musical White Noise, about two young singers whose pop music is infused with emotion-charged melodies, optimistic lyrics and blatant racism
Although the dialogue in Robert Dominguez' Faded sometimes stings like black coffee and the author provocatively explores the media's way of turning souls into spin, the play isn't able to transcend its lurid potboiler trappings
Although its clever concept is sprinkled with a few too many moonbeams and rainbows, the FringeNYC children's musical Rapunzel is charming and original
Judy Blazer, the talented and articulate actress most recently seen in Off-Broadway's Bernarda Alba, chats about her career and about Artist's Crossing, the program for young performers of which she is the artistic director
Shawn Northrip's punk musical "Lunch," currently playing the inaugural Capital Fringe Festival in DC, has attitude and vitality, but also an unfocused book and overindulgence in stereotype
The Actors' Theatre of Washington is serving up a double act evening of Joe Orton's Ruffian on the Stair and Charles Busch's Vampire Lesbians of Sodom; the effect is of a grandly filling entree after an under-spiced appetizer
Although the national tour of Chicago, currently onstage at Wolf Trap in DC, offers darkly sexy fun and a stunning turn by Michelle DeJean, performances are uneven and the revival itself lacks a bit of sting
In 1987, a British actress in a shabby brown trenchcoat, newsboy cap and with a dirt-smudged face, sang of her solitude. Breaking all but the stoniest hearts of the Imperial Theatre's audiences, she scored numerous awards--including the Tony--before returning to the UK. Two decades later, Frances Ruffelle has come back to New York to perform a cabaret show
Brent Barrett, known for his romantic presence and ravishing tenor has played many roles--but never before has he brought down the world's most famous chandelier
Ensemble Studio Theatre bills itself as "The Major Forum for One-Act Plays in America." Having not surveyed too many of the minor forums, I can't necessarily second it. But if its 28th Festival of One-Act Plays "Series C" is any indication, the company can pride itself on presenting intriguing work by artists more than skilled in the craft of one-act playwriting—and even the writing of musicals
Stephanie J. Block, the talented performer who will soon be appearing in concert at Birdland, dishes on her soon-to-be reign as The Pirate Queen, on her turn as Wicked's Elphaba, and on other favorite roles
In the famous Act One finale of Mame, the musical's irresistible title character single-handedly revives the drowsy South, sending its courtly gentlemen and Georgia peaches into an ecstatic serenade of acceptance and very high octaves. It's a rousing number in the Kennedy Center's gorgeously-mounted production, but it's hard to find the same kind of enthusiasm with Christine Baranski filling Mame's jodhpurs
Studio Theatre's production of Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori's Caroline, or Change is uneven with its staging, but its performances accent the power and compassion of an almost-great musical
We've all heard that some actors really want to direct. But the multi-talented John Cariani--whose play cul-de-sac runs at the Transport Group through May 13th--belongs to a somewhat smaller group of thespians: those who have carved out successful second careers as playwrights.
Christiane Noll, currently starring in the York Theatre Company musical A Fine and Private Place, is a versatile performer who sees no reason to impose limits on herself--in theatre and in life
Joe Drymala and Eric Svejcar aren't a songwriting team, but they have a few things in common besides the fact that they both write musicals. The songs of both men will be sung by performers such as Euan Morton, Robert Cuccioli, Tyler Maynard, Kate Wetherhead and Amanda Watkins on April 26th for their Stuck in the Zipper concert at the Zipper Theatre, and it's safe to say that both like to take risks with their shows...
Maya Cantu recently graduated from Virginia's James Madison University, where she majored in theatre. She is very excited about starting her MFA in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism at Yale School of Drama this fall. Maya was once a performer, and played roles ranging from eccentric mediums (Blithe Spirit) to slain noblewomen (Macbeth) to founding fathers (1776). While she hasn't been to an audition in ages, Maya still delights in belting showtunes - sometimes on key - at piano bars.
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Movie Actors
Everyday Rapture
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Photos: ANDREW JACKSON Meets the Press
Lisa Kron To Host 2010 IT Awards
Nominees Announced For 2010 Latin Grammy Awards
DeGeneres Makes a Surprise Cameo in PROMISES
Molly Shannon to Join PROMISES, PROMISES for 11 Weeks Starting 10/12
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Kara DioGuardi Departs AMERICAN IDOL
IDIOT Visits 'America's Got Talent' Tonight, 9/8
Larry Keigwin to Stage Fashion's Night Out: The Show at Lincoln Center 9/7
Photo Coverage: 'If It Only Even Runs a Minute 3' at Le Poisson Rouge
