Eric Rosen News

Indecent is about the power of theater to dazzle and uplift. Playwright Vogel has discussed plays that make the hair stand up on her neck. That is exactly what Indecent does: makes the hairs stand up on the back of the neck, and we may be at a loss to explain.

Paula Vogel's 2015 play Indecent, in a production now arrived at Center Stage after stops at D.C.'s Arena Stage and the Kansas City Rep, is a staggering tour de force of playwriting prowess that is also a tour of a largely forgotten world: international Yiddish theater shortly after the turn of the last century. A play about a play about a play, it follows Sholem Asch's God of Vengeance on a circular path, from Lodz, Poland in 1906 to Warsaw, to various stages in Europe, through Ellis Island and various New York theaters, culminating with an abortive stay on Broadway, and thence back to Lodz once more, at the peak of the Holocaust. And then, in a sort of coda, it concludes in Connecticut with the last days of Mr. Asch. All these parts are contained within an initial framing device in which, like Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, a stage manager named Lemml (Ben Cherry), introduces the players and musicians, apparently members of a turn-of-the-century Yiddish theater troupe, and identifies the kinds of parts they will play (like male and female Ingenues). Everything that follows, i.e. a play about presenting a play, is presented as a play performed by this troupe.

Based upon the Academy Award winning film and adapted to the Broadway Stage in 2001 by Abby Mann, Judgment at Nuremberg is set in the aftermath of World War II in 1947 and centers on a military tribunal convened in Nuremberg, Germany, in which four German judges and prosecutors stand accused of crimes against humanity for their involvement in atrocities committed under the Nazi regime.

Next up in Kansas City Repertory Theatre's 2018/2019 season is the multiple award-winning Off-Broadway hit SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY, written by Jocelyn Bioh and directed by KCRep's Artistic Associate/Resident Director, Chip Miller. Bioh's hilarious reimagining of Tina Fey's Mean Girls story is a once joyful and heartbreaking, bitingly funny, and poignant. SCHOOL GIRLS, running February 22 through March 17, 2019, at Copaken Stage, is a loving exploration of the real lives of young African women trying to negotiate the confusion around Western ideas of beauty.

This production, of 'Indecent', triumphs through it's precision and timing of choreography, music, and intricate scene movement . Incorporating period musical numbers, that give reference to the time, this show is complete from beginning to its dramatic conclusion. "Indecent" runs approximately one hour and 45 minutes and is performed with no intermission.  The show runs through February 10, 2019 and tickets are available at KCRep.org or by calling (816) 235-2700

Next up in Kansas City Repertory Theatre's 2018/2019 season is the multiple award-winning Off-Broadway hit SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY, written by Jocelyn Bioh and directed by KCRep's Artistic Associate/Resident Director, Chip Miller. Bioh's hilarious reimagining of Tina Fey's Mean Girls story is a once joyful and heartbreaking, bitingly funny, and poignant. SCHOOL GIRLS, running February 22 through March 17, 2019, at Copaken Stage, is a loving exploration of the real lives of young African women trying to negotiate the confusion around Western ideas of beauty.

Kansas City Repertory Theatre presents its Girl Power Campaign for the last half of the 2018-2019 season, celebrating strong, powerful women everywhere. The remaining five plays are all written by women and about women and demonstrate the strength, intelligence, and bravery of women around the world.

Arena Stage presents Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent. Inspired by the 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch's Yiddish drama The God of Vengeance, and the controversy that surrounded its themes of censorship, immigration and anti-Semitism, Vogel explores the behind-the-scenes story of the courageous artists who risked their careers and lives to perform this piece of theater under the most challenging circumstances. Infused with music that combines standards from Yiddish theater with folk traditions of the early to mid-20th century, Indecent, a co-production with Baltimore Center Stage and Kansas City Repertory, is directed by Eric Rosen, with choreography by Erika Chong Shuch and music direction and original music by Alexander Sovronsky. The production runs November 23 - December 30, 2018 in the Kreeger Theater.

Kansas City Repertory Theatre honors strong women everywhere, be they community leaders, artists, CEOs, entrepreneurs, students or stay-at-home moms, as they announce the second half of their 2018/19 season with FIVE plays by FIVE female playwrights, all of which celebrate the strength, intelligence, and bravery of women everywhere.

Arena Stage presents Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent. Inspired by the 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch's Yiddish drama The God of Vengeance, and the controversy that surrounded its themes of censorship, immigration and anti-Semitism, Vogel explores the behind-the-scenes story of the courageous artists who risked their careers and lives to perform this piece of theater under the most challenging circumstances. Infused with music that combines standards from Yiddish theater with folk traditions of the early to mid-20th century, Indecent, a co-production with Baltimore Center Stage and Kansas City Repertory, is directed by Eric Rosen, with choreography by Erika Chong Shuch and music direction and original music by Alexander Sovronsky. The production runs November 23 - December 30, 2018 in the Kreeger Theater.

Arena Stage presents Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent. Inspired by the 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch's Yiddish drama The God of Vengeance, and the controversy that surrounded its themes of censorship, immigration and anti-Semitism, Vogel explores the behind-the-scenes story of the courageous artists who risked their careers and lives to perform this piece of theater under the most challenging circumstances. Infused with music that combines standards from Yiddish theater with folk traditions of the early to mid-20th century, Indecent, a co-production with Baltimore Center Stage and Kansas City Repertory, is directed by Eric Rosen, with choreography by Erika Chong Shuch and music direction and original music by Alexander Sovronsky. The production runs November 23 - December 30, 2018 in the Kreeger Theater.

Arena Stage celebrated opening night of Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent. Check out the photos below!

There are some plays in the history of Broadway that you just scratch your head as to why they didn't have a longer run. Paula Vogel's Indecent is definitely one of those plays. It opened to rave reviews on Broadway, won the Tony Award for best direction and only ran 128 performances. The award win gave the show a considerable box office bump, but not enough to convince the show's producers to make a run of it in the summer heat. Thankfully, PBS preserved the Broadway production for posterity and the play is now getting a much deserved second life in regional theaters across the country.

Arena Stage presents Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent. Inspired by the 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch's Yiddish drama The God of Vengeance, and the controversy that surrounded its themes of censorship, immigration and anti-Semitism, Vogel explores the behind-the-scenes story of the courageous artists who risked their careers and lives to perform this piece of theater under the most challenging circumstances. Infused with music that combines standards from Yiddish theater with folk traditions of the early to mid-20th century, Indecent, a co-production with Baltimore Center Stage and Kansas City Repertory, is directed by Eric Rosen, with choreography by Erika Chong Shuch and music direction and original music by Alexander Sovronsky. The production runs November 23 - December 30, 2018 in the Kreeger Theater.

Now in its 38th season, Kansas City Repertory Theatre's "A Christmas Carol" is as much an iconic Kansas City holiday tradition as is the annual Plaza lighting ceremony every Thanksgiving evening.  Charles Dickens (Mark Robbins) once again spins his immortal 1843 ghost story of redemption as he himself performed it (solo) on stage for the last twenty-seven years of his life.

Actor Ben Cherry is gearing up to star in Indecent at Arena Stage. He chatted with NBC Washington about the production, and gave a preview of what's to come. Check out the full feature below!

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces the full company for Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent. Inspired by the 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch's Yiddish drama The God of Vengeance, and the controversy that surrounded its themes of censorship, immigration and anti-Semitism, Vogel explores the behind-the-scenes story of the courageous artists who risked their careers and lives to perform this piece of theater under the most challenging circumstances. Infused with music that combines standards from Yiddish theater with folk traditions of the early to mid-20th century, Indecent, a co-production with Baltimore Center Stage and Kansas City Repertory, is directed by Eric Rosen, with choreography by Erika Chong Shuch and music direction and original music by Alexander Sovronsky. The production runs November 23 - December 30, 2018 in the Kreeger Theater.

Kansas City Repertory Theatre continues its 2018/19 season with the emotionally-intimate Broadway sensation, INDECENT, by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel. Running January 18 through February 10, 2019 at Spencer Theatre, INDECENT is a co-production with Arena Stage and Baltimore Center Stage, and is directed by former KCRep artistic director, Eric Rosen, with choreography by Erika Chong Shuch, and music direction and original music by Alexander Sovronsky.

Kansas City Repertory Theatre continues its 2018/19 season with a 38-year holiday tradition, Charles Dickens' A CHRISTMAS CAROL, running November 16 through December 30 at Spencer Theatre on the UMKC campus.

Arena Stage presents Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel's thought-provoking play Indecent