Giordana Segneri - Page 2

Now, 30 years (three decades!) later, Flashdance--The Musical is back to remind us of the raw spirit, sparkly promise and (possibly drug-enhanced) energy of that bubble gum-laden, neon-hued era when innocence was much more innocent and people actually believed that dancing could save the world. Except this, the original U.S. national touring production (note that it has not yet made it to Broadway), has toned down the horrific '80s fashion faux pas and added a bit more 21st-century sophistication.

While the musical production-a collaborative effort between the Strand Theater Co. and StillPointe Theatre Initiative-tackles such weighty issues as racism, sexism, feminism and even terrorism, it is by no means a somber performance; to the contrary, it is jubilant, joyous, soulful and energizing, and the enormous (at least for this space), 12-actor cast shakes, shimmies and grooves along to the music of a five-piece live band through Childs' delightful lyrics and hilarious script, reminding us (and perhaps reminding herself) not to take things too seriously.

I went through a fairly intense Agatha Christie phase before I hit double digits. I read her mysteries rabidly, watched all the old movies and even, thanks to a mother who was happy to feed both my whodunit and theater-going habits, saw The Mousetrap in London's West End at the ripe old age of 10. I even remember the Laura Ashley dress I wore to the show. I did not, however, remember the ending, which made for a blissfully ignorant repeat performance on my part as I sat in the audience at The Vagabond Players for its rendition of one of Dame Christie's finest.

The joy of watching a playwright perform her own piece comes from the insight and the passion she brings to it. Especially when the playwright perceives the performance-the entire production, really-as "a chance to make fun of myself," as Susan McCully describes Inexcusable Fantasies, her whip-smart romp through absurdly outrageous queer scenarios that everyone knows should be daydreamed and neither seen nor heard.

Through a series of vignettes, For That Which Returns (performed at Baltimore Theatre Project) explores the constantly shifting relationship of mother and daughter, unraveling how their reliance on and need for each other never wane despite their roles often flip-flopping as they age.

As the last two pandas on earth, Gwo Gwo and Marion intrinsically know their task is to repopulate their species, but when mating season rolls around, they encounter a small hitch: Chester the crocodile has got his eyes on Gwo Gwo, who-despite all his practicing-can't seem to get a hang of baby-panda creation and finds himself increasingly distracted by that sly and charming croc.

A typographer, a geographer and a stenographer sit down at a bar. There's no punch line to be found in Iron Crow Theatre Co.'s production of Adam Bock's The Typographer's Dream, but rather an unveiling of personalities and of how so often what we do is inseparable from who we are.

There's nothing more personal than theater in the round, especially when it's on such an intimate scale as that at Spotlighters Theatre where there's a maximum of three rows of seating on each side. And it seems a fitting way to get to know Dolly Gallagher Levi, star of Hello, Dolly!, since her greatest joy is getting to know you-in the hopes of making a little money off of what she's figured out.

In his notes about the play, director Steven J. Satta-Fleming writes that The Soldier Dreams "is no more a play about AIDS than The Wizard of Oz is the story of a cyclone," and it's interesting how AIDS and homosexuality, while important catalysts, are both omnipresent and barely there in this beautiful, sad, hilarious, heartwarming offering that Iron Crow Theatre doesn't just produce but conquers.

With Godspell enjoying a renaissance in popularity following its recent revival on Broadway, it seems everyone wants in on the fun. And that's the beauty of Godspell-it's an occasion to rejoice, to delight in the irreverent retelling of the parables in the Gospel according to Matthew, to feel good about faith-whether you share this particular set of tenets or not-and, well, to jump around in your seat and rock out along with Jesus.

The far flung often breeds the bizarre, and Martin McDonagh's deliciously dark A Skull in Connemara capitalizes on its setting in the wild west of Ireland to weave a contemporary tale that's at once peculiar, touching and hilarious. Centerstage's offering brings together a remarkably even cast of four top-notch, talented actors, all making their debut at the theater and bringing to life the strange story of a motley crew who keep each other company in their misery.

Eugene O'Neill lived a strange and somewhat sad life during the first half of the 20th century, and despite the playwright being exceptionally lauded for his written works (he was the first American ever to win the Nobel Prize in Literature), O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh, running at the Fells Point Corner Theatre, is no less strange and sad than its author's reality.

It's been said that laughter is the best medicine, and in some cases, it may even be the best antidote. The Vagabond Players' Arsenic and Old Lace brings a 70-plus-year-old script involving the manifestations of insanity in an established Brooklyn family gracefully and hilariously into the 21st century.

With a title like Glitter and Spew, you'd think this three-act play would be highly energetic-ebullient, even-and dazzlingly polished. During a holiday entertainment season trimmed with endless renditions of The Nutcracker and A Christmas Carol, the production is the Strand Theater Co.'s attempt to provide an alternative to December stage fodder that's become saccharine and trite. Disappointingly, it falls flat, and the barely one-hour performance deals in dullness rather than the glitz of glitter.

While this production borrows its title from a childish poem, it should by no means be mistaken for children's entertainment, and in fact, an early scene's full-frontal male nudity audibly takes the full house at Fells Point Corner Theatre by surprise. But the adult content shares quite a few themes with the nursery rhymes and fables that underscore our childhood: It's all about the pursuit of happiness and how our success or failure in that quest hinges on our decisions.

The Vagabond Players opened Godspell Oct. 14, nearly simultaneously with the Broadway revival's preview, which leads up to an official Nov. 7 debut (the Vagabond Players have stated, in fact, their gratefulness for not having the rights to the production pulled). In the Vags' intimate, historic space, the production takes on a very participatory quality that-in its hugeness-breaks right through the fourth wall and draws the audience in.

Anna Bella Eema would be a terribly depressing story were it not infused with such intense, infectious energy-so much so that it tumbles off the thrust stage and threatens to swallow whole the tiny, black-box space that's home to the Strand Theater Co. This energy is wild, untamed and mildly spiritual, a perfect echo of the characters that Obie Award-winning playwright Lisa D'Amour has so carefully crafted, exploring the murky corners of their personalities by allowing them to narrate their own obscure histories.

The set for Salt Luck Arts' five-act @The_Moment: #5shortplaysonlifein2011 is simple to begin with and gets no more complicated as the performance progresses. This is a plus, since the stage is small and the ensemble cast's acting is good enough-very good enough, actually-to require little in terms of props or scenery to convey the theme coursing through the five one-act shorts: the idiosyncrasies of our very-connected-yet-somehow-not-connected-at-all life in the '10s.