Jeffrey Walker - Page 2

Tom Prewitt, Avant Bard's current artistic director, knew who he wanted to take on this monumental role: Rick Foucheux. A 35-year veteran of stages large and small in the Washington, DC area, Foucheux has played everything from realism to the avant garde; modern and the classics. Capping off his storied career as he is about to leave the limelight to spend time as a grandfather and to travel, Foucheux taking on Lear is a match made in heaven. Effortlessly commanding the stage, Shakespeare's words and the arc of the tragedy seem newly minted in Foucheux's skillful hands.

MASTER CLASS is McNally's fictionalized and highly entertaining play where "La Divina" once again brings her passions to the stage, this time as a teacher of young opera students. For the production now lighting up MetroStage, Illona Dulaski embodies Callas in a tour de force performance.

The Rooftop Productions effort does well by the Gesner and Schulz creation. Director Ted Ballard keeps things simple, just as Schulz presented his characters in pen and ink. Coupled with identifiably perfect costumes by Mandy Ken, and cartoon inspired, primary-colored set pieces designed by Dale Walsh, Ballard's cast is able to bring to life the wit and wisdom of the Peanuts gang.

For one night, folk music legend Pete Seeger's legacy in song was celebrated by a diverse array of musical talent. The Kennedy Center Concert Hall stage held a who's who including multiple Grammy winners, living legends and up-and-coming artists performing in tribute to the singer and activist Pete Seeger. Hosted by Larry Groce of National Public Radio's MOUNTAIN STAGE, the long and satisfying evening was officially entitled PETE SEEGER AND THE POWER OF SONG: TRIBUTE TO A FOLK LEGEND. No frills, no fuss, just great music performed with the same simplicity and power Seeger was known for during his own long career.

While not landmark piece of musical theatre, SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER delivers a few hours of escapist fun and a slew of 1970's disco tunes that will likely take some audience members back to their days in bell bottoms, platform shoes, and hustling the night away. With strong leading performances, a strong emphasis on disco moves, and 20-plus songs from the Bee Gees and other tunes from the era, SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER provides some escapist fun for a few hours. Riverside Center's production opened March 15 and continues through May 7, 2017.

Featuring a cast of seasoned veteran actors working beside some of the DC-area's most gifted young performers, Theater J offers a sublime take on Neil Simon's semi-autobiographical look at growing up poor and horny in Depression era Brooklyn. Through the lens of nostalgia, Simon's 34 year-old play is like a valentine to a hard-scrabble upbringing sprinkled with humor, rather than the laugh riot of THE ODD COUPLE or the later RUMORS.

Co-directed with precision by Christina A. Coakley and Susan Marie Rhea, Keegan's PARADE keeps the staging simple and imaginative, cutting away clutter and using only the barest of props and scenic elements to help the story unfold. No one who has seen previous Keegan musicals, such as HAIR, CABARET, or AMERICAN IDIOT could be surprised by the quality of this rendering of PARADE; I fully expect this production to be recognized multiple times when the next round of Helen Hayes Awards comes around.

From the Broadway stage to the Pulitzer Prize, back to Broadway, and now as a film adaptation with four Oscar nominations, FENCES has riveted audiences for more than 30 years. The film, directed by and starring Denzel Washington, is nominated for Best Picture, with Washington and Viola Davis nominated for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress. The fourth nomination is for the drama's original playwright August Wilson for Best Adapted Screenplay. Wilson died in 2005. Wilson left behind an indelible legacy of dramatic work, having penned the ambitious American Century Cycle of ten plays focusing on the African-American experience in the 20th century.

From BAYWATCH to BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN and beyond, actress Michelle Williams is making her mark in film. Nominated for Best Supporting Actress for a role with relatively little screen-time in MANCHESTER BY THE SEA. As Randi Chandler, wife of protagonist Lee Chandler - played by Casey Affleck - she was able to make a strong impression displaying the couple's complex relationship with just a handful of scenes.

Television, film, the stage - As an actor, Denzel Washington has made an indelible mark in these arenas. His stature as an actor, director, and filmmaker has only been solidified this year with the release of the adaptation of FENCES, in which he not only costars with Viola Davis but directed. For the 89th Academy Awards, Fences is nominated for four Oscars: Best Picture, Adapted Screenplay, Best Actor, and Supporting Actress. Washington already has Oscars for his roles in the Civil War drama GLORY and the gritty TRAINING DAY.

Emma Stone's star is on the rise. The 27-year old actress has been a sought after leading lady for several years. Her Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role for the film BIRDMAN is only solidifying her reputation as one of Hollywood's most exciting young actresses of today. She recently ended her run on Broadway as the iconic Sally Bowles in the revival of CABARET, fulfilling a childhood dream.

Four towering music legends live on in a rousing, tune-filled walk down memory lane at Fredericksburg's Riverside Center for the Performing Arts. Fans of Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins need look no further than the retrospective musical MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET, now bringing audiences to their feet through March 5.

Making its regional premiere at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts, A CHRISTMAS STORY, THE MUSICAL is now ready to aim an Official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot Range Model air rifle at audiences through New Year's Eve.

Written and first presented two decades ago, FULLY COMMITTED was revised and revived in New York recently with Broadway veteran and one of the costars of TV comedy hit 'Modern Family,' Jesse Tyler Ferguson. This brought enough interest in the show to warrant additional productions and Carolyn Griffin, artistic leader of MetroStage thought it was the perfect vehicle for two of the DC areas hardest working artists: Tom Story and Alan Paul.

Scrooge, Tiny Tim, and the quartet of seasonal spectres - if these characters are back in action, it must mean A CHRISTMAS CAROL has returned to spread humbug and cheer in the Kellar Family Theatre in Manassas. The resident community theatre at the Center for the Arts, Rooftop Productions, is offering their annual revival of the Dickens classic to delight audiences young and old. As a matter of fact, at the Sunday matinee I attended, there were nearly as many youngsters as grown-ups, which is a wonderful thing to see at a live theatre event.

Director Gaye Taylor Upchurch makes her Arena Stage debut working with Kathleen Turner (MOTHER COURAGE AND HER CHILDREN, MOLLY IVINS) in the play adaptation of Joan Didion's memoir THE YEAR OF MAGICAL THINKING. Upchurch talked with Broadway World's Jeffrey Walker about directing the play, working with Turner, and the power of the witty and honest look at grief.

Riverside Center for the Performing Arts presents a first class production of Alfred Uhry's prize-winning drama DRIVING MISS DAISY. Expertly directed by renowned Washingon, DC-based actor/director Rick Hammerly and starring Karen Grassle from LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE in the title role, Riverside's DRIVING MISS DAISY charms and warms the heart.

Audrey Cefaly's new play THE GULF is an exciting premiere to say the least. As funny as it is powerful, as tender as it is passionate, THE GULF reveals a pair of volatile lovers whose relationship is as sharp as a fishing knife - pointed and dangerous. As directed by Joe Calarco, the play is also a duo-de-force for the actresses who bring the love, sex and honky tonk to a small fishing boat floating aimlessly in the Gulf of Mexico. IT is also a tour de force for two actresses: Rachel Zampelli and Maria Rizzo light up the stage with fire and gritty realism.

Legend has it there were five encores at the triumphant Viennese premiere of Mozart and da Ponte's Le Nozze di Figaro on May 1, 1786. By the same token, Washington National Opera's new production of the effervescent comic opera deserved just as many ovations. Now playing through Sunday, October 2 in the Kennedy Center Opera House, THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO with Mozart's bubbly score and de Ponte's delicious libretto sparkles as bright as ever. The cast of first class singing-actors and the prime conducting skills of James Gaffigan are reason enough to take a seat for this masterpiece.

The vibe of the swinging sixties, the cat and mouse intrigue, the jazzy score, the witty lyrics - this is the winning combination NextStop Theatre Company has captured for their new and lively production of CATCH ME IF YOU CAN - The Musical. Take the red-eye flight to get your tickets for CATCH ME IF YOU CAN. Between the bountiful cheesecake, strong performers, and memorable tunes, this is a ring-a-ding-ding musical that deserves to sell out.