Benjamin Lewis

What did our critic think of RIPCORD at Florida Repertory Theatre?

Charly Evon Simpson’s BEHIND THE SHEET is a fictional story, based on real life events, of the inhumane experimentation and treatment of enslaved women who sustained childbirth obstetric fistulas in the birth canal. In BEHIND THE SHEET, Dr. George Barry purchases infirmed slave women from plantation owners to perform experimental surgeries without the use of anesthesia. While Dr. Barry ultimately finds a cure, it is the slave women who endured the pain and suffering of these injuries who drive the narrative as they are treated as human lab rats to find a cure.

Ross Valley Players will kick off its 92nd Season with Ripcord by Pulitzer Award winning playwright, David Lindsay-Abaire - a comic and touching clash of wills between mismatched roommates at a retirement home. Directed by Chloe Bronzan.

The names Edith Piaf and Marlene Dietrich still hold weight decades after their glory days, and Mirvish's production of PIAF/DIETRICH (directed by Gordon Greenberg) makes it easy to understand why. The sheer star power of the two titular women, embodied here by a powerhouse cast and set at major points in each one's personal lives is the kind of complicated, beautiful story of female relationships that the world needs now more than ever.

Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) (William Carden, Artistic Director, Sarah McLellan, Executive Director) and The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (Doron Weber, Vice-President, Programs) announced today that due to unprecedented and overwhelming response, the World Premiere of Behind the Sheet has been extended for a third time. Part of the EST/Sloan Science & Technology Project (Graeme Gillis, Program Director; Linsay Firman, Associate Director), Behind the Sheet is written by Charly Evon Simpson (Jump) and directed by Colette Robert (Mary's Wedding).

Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) (William Carden, Artistic Director, Sarah McLellan, Executive Director) and The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation (Doron Weber, Vice-President, Programs) announced today a second extension for the World Premiere of Behind the Sheet, written by Charly Evon Simpson (Jump) and directed by Colette Robert (Mary's Wedding). Part of the EST/Sloan Science & Technology Project (Graeme Gillis, Program Director; Linsay Firman, Associate Director), Behind the Sheet began previews at EST's Curt Dempster Theatre (549 W. 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019) on January 9, 2019, and opened January 17. Originally set to close on February 3, the play will now run through February 17, 2019.

Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST) and The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation announced today an extension for the World Premiere of Behind the Sheet, written by Charly Evon Simpson (Jump) and directed by Colette Robert (Mary's Wedding).

Start the new year with a showdown! Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is pleased to present the regional premiere of Ripcord by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole, Shrek the Musical). This uproarious new comedy sets two spirited senior citizens against each other in a head-to-head battle of wits and wagers, leading to discoveries about friendship, forgiveness, and free falling. Playing January 19-February 16 and directed by D. Lynn Meyers. Production Sponsor is the Schueler Group.

Start the new year with a showdown! Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati is pleased to present the regional premiere of Ripcord by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole, Shrek the Musical). This uproarious new comedy sets two spirited senior citizens against each other in a head-to-head battle of wits and wagers, leading to discoveries about friendship, forgiveness, and free falling. Playing January 19-February 16 and directed by D. Lynn Meyers. Production Sponsor is the Schueler Group.

Ensemble Studio Theatre and The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation announced today casting for the World Premiere of Behind the Sheet, written by Charly Evon Simpson (Jump) and directed by Colette Robert (Mary's Wedding).

A demanding, but rewarding, production of Britten's opera about ancient Rome, with plenty of lessons for today.

There's something humorous brewing in Lawrenceville! David Lindsay-Abaire's laugh-out-loud comedy, Ripcord is set to round out Aurora Theatre's 2017-2018 season, May 10-June 3, 2018. Audiences will follow the territory battle between Abby and Marilyn, roommates at a senior living facility with clashing personalities, and the hilarity that ensues when the tumultuous pair pushes the envelope to win a seemingly harmless wager.

Ripcord, a comedy of one-upmanship as two feisty senior ladies compete for their rightful place, will run at the Omaha Community Playhouse January 19 February 11, 2018 in the Hawks Mainstage Theatre.

Following its world premiere at Sydney Opera House, and subsequent seasons in Brisbane and Adelaide, the acclaimed melange of outrageous cabaret, air-defying acrobatics and infectious musical revelry is making its way to Perth for FRINGE WORLD 2018, ahead of an international tour.

Ripcord, a comedy of one-upmanship as two feisty senior ladies compete for their rightful place, will run at the Omaha Community Playhouse January 19 February 11, 2018 in the Hawks Mainstage Theatre.

Britain's most beloved diarist (give or take a Bridget Jones) comes to London in chamber musical form in a new adaptation created with the late Sue Townsend's blessing. Jake Brunger and Pippa Cleary's version, tweaked since its premiere run in Leicester in 2015, should certainly prove popular with school holiday audiences, though a broader approach means parents may miss Townsend's subtly genius brand of humour. 

'Honestly. My family just don't understand me. Perhaps when I am famous and my diary is discovered people will understand the torment of being a 13 ¾ year old intellectual' Adrian Mole.

Let it be war. David Lindsay-Abaire's new high-stakes comedy, Ripcord, follows a seemingly harmless bet made between two residents of the Bristol Place Assisted Living Facility.

Playwright Jake Brunger and composer Pippa Cleary have been creating musicals together since they met at Bristol University in 2008. Their work includes Jet Set Go!, The Great British Soap Opera and an adaptation of Sue Townsend's beloved The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 . The latter begins a London run at the Menier Chocolate Factory this week.

London is never short of theatre temptations, whether splashy West End shows, epic dramas or bold fringe offerings. From a Tennessee Williams revival and Bob Dylan-scored drama to royal politics and Adrian Mole, here are some of this month's most eye-catching openings. Don't forget to check back for BroadwayWorld's reviews…