Rhonda J. Soikowski

It’s the holiday season, Dear Readers, and you know what that means. Myriad productions of “A Christmas Carol” in the area. Just to name a few, there’s the old, trusty standby production out at ACT. And last week I saw an amazing one man “Christmas Carol” performed by the incredible Allen Fitzpatrick. But today we’re going to talk about “Fellow Passengers” from Strawberry Theatre Workshop currently performing at 12th Avenue Arts. Yes, it’s “A Christmas Carol”, but this adaptation by Greg Carter is so much more, and absolutely blew me away.

Seattle Children's Theatre brings another classic book to life in their production of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. The book by Kate DiCamillo tells the story of a china rabbit that is given as a gift to a young girl, Abilene, by her grandmother. The girl adores the rabbit and names him Edward. Edward, however, is only interested in himself and his own thoughts and fails to appreciate or connect with those around him. The grandmother who seems to sense Edward's aloofness, warns that she is disappointed in him, and that loving others is the whole point of existence. Through a series of events, Edward is separated from Abilene and spends years moving in and out of the possession of various people. Along the way he learns what it means to be loved and how to love others. Through chance or fate or maybe miracles, Edward is given the chance to love those who first loved him.

Peter Morgan's brilliant look at the dissection of one of the most powerful men in the country by one whom many considered a joke, 'Frost/Nixon', is enough of an enticement to want to see Strawberry Theatre Workshop's current production. But then when you hear that director Greg Carter has cast the predominantly male show with all women you could find yourself of two minds. Either, 'cool, this will be interesting' or, 'oh, another gimmick casting'. But I want you to put the idea that it's an all-female cast out of your mind as that's not the point. Sure, it's great that these actresses get to play these meaty, traditionally male roles but what you should focus on is how each of them, especially Alexandra Tavares and Amy Thone as the titular David Frost and Richard Nixon, are simply the best people for the roles. And what they create for us is a thrilling game of cat and mouse where the role of the cat keeps changing.

The theater is filled with some of the greatest love stories, "Romeo and Juliet", "Mary's Wedding", and "Falsettos" just to name a few of my favorites. But in order to engage an audience in a love story you need to give them a reason to invest in the relationship whether that's through a specific circumstance or interesting characters. Unfortunately New Century Theatre Company's current production of "Bright Half Life" has neither of those. What it has is two average people going through moments in their relationship utilizing a storytelling device that I've seen done better and what results is a love story that's about as engaging as reading a collection of a vague acquaintance's Facebook posts about their love life.

New Century Theatre Company (NCTC) begins its 2017 10th Anniversary Season with Tanya Barfield's Bright Half Life. Bright Half Life will run February 15-March 11, 2017 (opening night is February 17, 2017). Single tickets are available for purchase online now at www.wearenctc.org.

New Century Theatre Company (NCTC) begins its 2017 10th Anniversary Season with Tanya Barfield's Bright Half Life. Bright Half Life will run February 15-March 11, 2017 (opening night is February 17, 2017). Single tickets are available for purchase online now at www.wearenctc.org.

In Beth Henley's play "Crimes of the Heart", currently playing at Village Theatre, the character of Meg says, "To talk about our lives. It's an important human need." Well an important theatrical need is for the characters in a play to listen to each other and not just wait for their next bit but there was very little listening going on in the show I saw last night and that was just one of the issues that sapped the heart right out the show making this Pulitzer Prize winning play feel more a sitcom.

Broadway-bound new musical, Come From Away, presented by Seattle Repertory Theatre, wins four Gypsys, tying with another new musical, Lizard Boy, also produced by Seattle Repertory Theatreand also with four Gypsys, a company that has been known for years as a powerhouse dramatic straight-play playhouse! 

Seattle Theater Writers critics' circle is pleased to present the nomination slate of the fifth annual Gypsy Rose Lee Awards, theater awards devoted to recognizing excellence across the economic spectrum of professional Seattle theaters in the prior calendar year.

Dreams are there for our brains to work things out when we can't and the more incapacitated we are the weirder those dreams become. I mean Dorothy dreamt about flying monkeys. Well in "Wizzer Pizzer: Getting Over the Rainbow", currently from Theatre22 as part of their Pride Series, the dream is just the latest in an attempt to tell someone else's message utilizing a trip to Oz. And while I loathe someone working out their therapy on stage, Amy Wheeler's play comes across as more what she felt would have been the resulting mindset from therapy without actually going through it and that's even worse as it's cliche joke after cliche joke ultimately amounting to no real resolution or message.

Just when it was safe to assume that holiday shows have all been done, a new play comes along to slap that assumption in the face. Christmastown: A Holiday Noir is a new play by Wayne Rawley, directed by Gregory-Award winner Kelly Kitchens, and premiering at Seattle Public Theater today, December 5-24.

Just when it was safe to assume that holiday shows have all been done, a new play comes along to slap that assumption in the face. Christmastown: A Holiday Noir is a new play by Wayne Rawley, directed by Gregory-Award winner Kelly Kitchens, and premiering at Seattle Public Theater December 5-24.

Freehold will tour The Flower of England's Face: William Shakespeare's Henry IV directed by Freehold Artistic Director Robin Lynn Smith, to unique locations across the greater Puget Sound area, June 30 - July 20, 2014.

Seattle Theater Writers, a critics' circle of local theater writers and reviewers, today announces the 2012 slate of nominees of the second annual Gypsy Rose Lee Awards, theater awards devoted to recognizing excellence across the economic spectrum of professional Seattle theaters.

Dario Fo's 1970 play, "Accidental Death of an Anarchist" with it's anti-establishment rhetoric certainly has connections to items in the news today what with the occupy movement and people's disillusionment with the government. But the problem that the current production of the play from Strawberry Theatre Workshop has is that they don't trust the audience to make those connections and instead feel the need to jam them into the script and beat us over the head with them. And while the show is funny and has some amazing performances it also at times comes across as self indulgent and lacking commitment.

ACT Theatre joins The Beebo Brinker Chronicles Festival, a 1950's lesbian pulp festival spanning seven months, involving the work of over 50 of Seattle's most talented actors, musicians, designers and neo-burlesque performers, produced by Cherry Manhattan Presents.

ACT - A Contemporary Theatre offers up something for everyone! Sarah Ruhl's tender, electric new comedy hit, In the Next Room, or the vibrator play lights up the Mainstage, while the Central Heating Lab keeps things cooking with steamy performances all month long!

ACT Theatre joins The Beebo Brinker Chronicles Festival, a 1950's lesbian pulp festival spanning seven months, involving the work of over 50 of Seattle's most talented actors, musicians, designers and neo-burlesque performers, produced by Cherry Manhattan Presents.

ACT - A Contemporary Theatre offers up something for everyone! Sarah Ruhl's tender, electric new comedy hit, In the Next Room, or the vibrator play lights up the Mainstage, while the Central Heating Lab keeps things cooking with steamy performances all month long!