Erica Cataldi-Roberts

In 1998, my senior year English teacher decided to mix things up by having us start the semester by watching movies rather than reading the usual high school classics. The selections were varied – The Godfather, Ghandi, Some Like it Hot, From Here to Eternity.

What did our critic think of SHUCKED at Providence Performing Arts Center?

Just in time for Mental Health Awareness month, Newport Contemporary Ballet presents a captivating evening of three mind-focused pieces, FRAMES OF MIND, at Providence’s WaterFire Arts Center.

Aaron Sorkin’s dramatic adaptation of Harper Lee’s classic novel, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, pulls no punches, showing how racial injustice and the attitudes and issues related to it are all still relevant to the modern day.

What did our critic think of THE GOOD JOHN PROCTOR at Trinity Repertory Company?

What did our critic think of TOPDOG/UNDERDOG at The Gamm Theatre? The Gamm theatre launches its 2023-24 season with Suzan-Lori Parks’ multi-award winning play, TOPDOG/UNDERDOG. On its surface, it’s the story of two Black brothers, Lincoln and Booth, who share a troubled past and are now sharing a room in a squalid boardinghouse while trying to figure out a path forward. Underneath, however, is a text that is rich with multiple layers of interpretation and commentary on the American Dream, capitalism, Black masculinity, and so much more.

What did our critic think of SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET at Trinity Repertory Theatre?

What did our critic think of CATCH FIRE! at NEWPORT CONTEMPORARY BALLET?

What did our critic think of PURE DANCE at FESTIVAL BALLET PROVIDENCE?

What did our critic think of BEETLEJUICE at Providence Performing Arts Center?

What did our critic think of ELEMENTS AT NEWPORT CONTEMPORARY BALLET at Newport Contemporary Ballet?

In 2021, Festival Ballet Providence announced a brand new version of the holiday staple, THE NUTCRACKER, fully reimagined by the company's Artistic Curator, Yury Yanowsky, and Company Director Kathleen Breen Combs. Moving the show away from the Providence Performing Arts Center to the Veteran's Memorial Auditorium, audiences were treated to new sets, new costumes, new choreography, and, as usual, spectacular dancing.

What did our critic think of THE HUMANS at Wilbury Theatre Group?

What did our critic think of SWEAT at THE GAMM THEATRE? For the better part of the last 40 years, things have been a nightmare for the American working class, especially across the so called 'rust belt' where factories once thrived and have now fallen silent and abandoned. In SWEAT, Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer prize winning play, the playwright takes us directly into that world with a piercing look at small town America and the destruction wrought in those communities by de-industrialization, racism, violence, and addiction.

When Dave Malloy’s NATASHA, PIERRE, & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812 closed on Broadway in late 2017, fans of the show (myself included) lamented when, or if, it would be possible to see any iteration of this show again. Thanks to the Wilbury Theatre Group, our hopes have been answered! Known for its eclectic score, ranging through music styles from electronic dance music to folk, GREAT COMET featured a 360 degree, interactive experience no matter where one sat in the theatre. And, with a cast who could act, sing, and play instruments, it seemed unlikely that the show would ever have legs in a regional setting. Fortunately, the Wilbury Theatre Group is more than up to the challenge.

Warning: this is not your traditional version of OKLAHOMA!, and good riddance. Without changing a word of the book or lyrics, director Daniel Fish has created a revival of the 1943 musical that highlights different aspects of the material simply by changing the tone in which scenes are presented. The story has always been one of a community banding together against an outsider, but that aspect of the show is usually buried in favor of the sunnier, romantic elements of the plot. Not so this time. While the show loses some of its oomph by no longer being presented in the round, as it was during its run on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre, there is still plenty to like even when presented in a traditional space like the Providence Performing Arts Center’s.

Festival Ballet Providence’s popular UP CLOSE ON HOPE series returns to their black box theatre. This innovative program is comprised of four unrelated pieces – two contemporary, one neoclassical, and one romantic, two of which are world-premieres. These shows are the perfect way for audiences to experience different styles of dance, and that is certainly true with this specific line-up.

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR landed at the Providence Performing Arts Center this week as part of its 50th anniversary tour, and the show does not disappoint. Originally scheduled to visit Providence in 2020, the tour was cut short and delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic, however, its return was triumphant and well worth the wait. The familiar tale, set against the final weeks of the life of Jesus Christ and told through the eyes of Judas, features some modern design embellishments that succeed in updating the look of the show without altering the outstanding original score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, all while allowing the actors’ performances to shine.

Festival Ballet Providence’s new version of THE NUTCRACKER contains new sets, new costumes, new roles, new choreography, and even a new venue, but retains its charm while being exactly the shake-up this Rhode Island tradition needed.

In a recent interview with CNBC, Lin-Manuel Miranda, the highly acclaimed composer and lyricist of HAMILTON, stated how the live show is as popular as ever due to the filmed stage version that has been available on Disney+ since July 2020. That certainly seemed to be true on Wednesday evening, based on the nearly full Providence Performing Arts Center auditorium and enthusiastic response of the audience as Hamilton’s Philip Tour began its approximate 2-week stint in Rhode Island.