Pamela Roberts

Exclusion, a thought-provoking and witty world premiere by Kenneth Lin at Arena Stage, explores the tug-of-war between what is true and what sells

Fashioned from the real words and personal experiences of DC-area asylum seekers, Theatre Prometheus’s new work, The Cassette Shop, explores the magical sensory connection of music to link us with others and transport us through time. The devised theater work was created in partnership with the local nonprofit AsylumWorks.

The Trip to Bountiful at Ford's Theatre is an incredible showcase for Nancy Robinette, one of Washington’s foremost actors, who skillfully drives the production as Mrs. Carrie Watts who yearns to leave the small Houston apartment of her son and daughter-in-law to return to her Texas homeland, Bountiful.

What did our critic think of THE BAND'S VISIT at The Kennedy Center?

What did our critic think of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at Synetic Theater? Synetic Theater's wordless A Midsummer Night's Dream is, indeed, a dream to behold. An innovative merging of drama and movement, Synetic's silent exploration of the classic work sparkles and pops. It's full of both belly laughs and tender moments. The power and athleticism of the company along with the lush production elements give a fresh perspective to experience the timeless Shakespearean favorite.

A MONSTER CALLS, a powerful story of love, loss, truth and self-discovery, is beautifully rendered for the stage. The fantastical tale is highly physical, gorgeous to behold, and packs a potent emotional punch. The production, now touring to the Kennedy Center, was adapted for the stage by visionary director Sally Cookson. Read our critic's review.

The Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Our Town is a triumphant production of vitality, and consequence. Thornton Wilder’s classic—a work that captures the universal experience of being alive—takes on new resonance and depth in the capable hands of an extraordinary ensemble. This play is immediate—one to see and share and talk about.

A.D. 16 is an exuberant, ambitious world premiere with its eyes on Broadway; music and lyrics by Cinco Paul (Despicable Me, Schmigadoon!), book by Bekah Brunstetter (This Is Us) and direction by Stephen Brackett (Be More Chill). A.D. 16 starts with the missing teen years of Jesus, layers in an effervescent R&B-influenced score, and sprinkles in some irreverence and anachronistic humor.

Before stepping foot into the theatre, you’ve already experienced the best aspect of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical – the extraordinary songs. The production, touring to the Kennedy Center through January 2, highlights the best of Carole King’s hits and reminds us of the tremendous range of her talent. Sadly, that narrative arc of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical is at such a frantic pace and is so light on details it takes a fascinating true story of grit, luck, and talent and renders it a flat, bland, homogenized variety-show telling of King’s career.

SECRET THINGS by Elaine Romero examines faith and human connection – today and through generations. A very sure and charismatic cast and an intriguing history of the hidden Jewish roots in communities of the U.S. Southwest can’t quite make up for a problematic script.

MY LORD, WHAT A NIGHT at Ford's Theatre is a fascinating story of a surprising friendship developing at a critical time in history. We don’t see the characters as mythological beings in this production, thanks to the expert cast we are drawn to the approachable – very human – personal stakes, strong bonds and real concerns that compel action.

Constellation Theatre welcomes audiences back to in-person performances with MOON MAN WALK, a sweet, funny, tender meditation on love, connection, and the people in our lives we need to get by. MOON MAN WALK brings together a gifted cast, beautiful scenic elements, and deep and endearing storytelling.

Jeremy Heere is a socially-awkward, hopelessly uncool student languishing at the bottom rung of the high school's social ladder. "I don't want to be special, I just want to survive," he sings in the opening number of Be More Chill, a show that makes its Washington-area premiere in a wonderfully effervescent and wholehearted Monumental Theatre Company production.

Oslo is an amazing against-all-odds story of risk, trust, and diplomacy. It is about overcoming hard-and-fast assumptions. Oslo shows the value in finding common ground and allowing ourselves to hope. This Round House Theatre production is a wonder-a brilliant heartfelt, heart-filling experience.

To mark the 20th anniversary of the deadly shooting at Columbine High School, 1st Stage brings us a columbinus that, tragically, is as frightening, significant, and topical today as ever before. In the two decades since the massacre at Columbine High-the deadliest school shooting at the time-we have now experienced tragedies at Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, Parkland, and more. columbinus mixes documentary fact with fiction to delve into the alienation, social pressure, intimidation, and rage of adolescent life in high school.

Confection is a spellbinding multi-sensory dance and theater performance that contemplates decadent consumption and the high cost of feeding our appetites. The highly imaginative, gorgeously rendered, thought-provoking Confection is performed by New York's acclaimed Third Rail Projects, considered one of the leading theater companies creating site-specific, experimental artistic performance. The world premiere immersive event is staged in the old-world Tudor splendor of the Folger Library's private Paster and Sedgwick-Bond Reading Rooms. A rare chance to glimpse the curlicued dark wood and ornate plaster lit by candlelight (albeit safe, battery powered candles) is, indeed, icing on the cake.

Richard the Third is one of Shakespeare's most famous villains. Ruthless and astute, savvy and unscrupulous, Richard pursues power with a single-minded and dangerous intensity. In the Shakespeare Theatre Company's production, directed by David Muse, Richard's world is grim, gray, perilous, and unrelenting. Matthew Rauch in the title role is deliciously complex - we, too, are alarmed to find ourselves wooed by his intelligence and charisma even as we are repelled by his treachery and dogged fixation with acquiring power any cost. Shakespeare's tale of villainy, and the Shakespeare Theatre Company's interpretation, asks the audience to venture into a severe and harsh world. It is a dark and fascinating journey, but not for the faint of heart.

Even after 65 years after Twelve Angry Men was first performed, we sit with the uncomfortable realization that prejudice shapes many of our interactions. The current production at Ford's Theatre is an important message, a provocative reminder, and a great night of theater

In the midst of DC's December winter holidays, Theater J brings to us … a valentine. "This story will unfold as a waltz, a valentine" we are told in the opening monologue - and in the gifted hands of director Aaron Posner, Talley's Folly delivers the beauty and rhythm of a waltz, and the big beating heart of a valentine. Actors John Taylor Phillips and Erin Weaver are well paired, their emotions ebb and flow like the current of the folly's nearby river.

Political legitimacy and enduring human connections are at the forefront of a gorgeous and spare King John at the Folger Theatre. In the assured hands of Helen Hayes Award-winning director Aaron Posner, and with a dynamic and gifted cast, the production makes a powerful case for bringing King John off the shelf and onto the stage far more often.