Greg Watkins News

Signature Theatre releases the seventh episode of The Signature Show, a free biweekly half-hour digital experience featuring performances by acclaimed artists, interviews, celebration of new musical voices and memories of Signature’s past and a glimpse into its future.

On September 25, the 36th Annual Helen Hayes Awards concluded, after a series of virtual events celebrating Washington's dynamic and diverse theatre community.

The 2020 Helen Hayes Awards, recognizing the outstanding work on Washington area stages in 2019, continued its four-week virtual event series. 

American Pops Orchestra (APO), in light of the coronavirus pandemic, is stepping up to offer music to soothe nerves while supporting musicians and performers facing a loss of their incomes.

Regina Taylor's Crowns is the story of a young teen from Brooklyn sent to live with her grandmother after the traumatic death of her brother. The more time she spends in South Carolina, the more she learns about herself, her ancestors, and the beautiful art of hat-wearing. Crowns not only draws from old southern traditions within black churches but of generations long before them, passed down through beautiful hymnals and energetic storytelling.

On the eve of launching into its 60th anniversary season starting in the fall of 2020, The Washington Chorus announced today that it has appointed acclaimed conductor Dr. Eugene Rogers as its fifth Artistic Director, succeeding Christopher Bell beginning in July of 2020. Dr. Rogers' appointment was unanimously approved by the Washington Chorus board of trustees on unanimous recommendation from the Chorus' Artistic Director Search Committee, following an eight-month global search which yielded more than 80 highly qualified candidates.

Tonight, at a celebration honoring theatre excellence on stages across the Washington area, theatre artists, administrators, patrons, and special guests gathered in the National Theatre's Helen Hayes Gallery for theatreWashington's announcement of nominees for the 36th Annual Helen Hayes Awards, which will be presented on Monday, May 18 at an event at the Anthem.

Solea Pfeiffer and Emmy Raver-Lampman are set to star as the Clarke sisters, Mary and Martha, in Signature Theatre's world premiere production of Gun & Powder with book and lyrics by Angelica Chéri and music by Ross Baum. Gun & Powder will run from January 28 a?' February 23, 2020 in Signature Theatre's intimate MAX Theatre and will be directed by Robert O'Hara (Broadway's Slave Play).

Solea Pfeiffer (New York City Center's Evita, West Coast Premiere of Hamilton) and Emmy Raver-Lampman (Netflix's The Umbrella Academy, Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton) are set to star as the Clarke sisters, Mary and Martha, in Signature Theatre's world premiere production of Gun & Powder with book and lyrics by Angelica Chéri and music by Ross Baum. Gun & Powder will run from January 28 a?' February 23, 2020 in Signature Theatre's intimate MAX Theatre and will be directed by Robert O'Hara (Broadway's Slave Play).

First Full Season in DU launches a double bill this Fall of Václav Havel's Protest and the company's original music-theatre work Vaněk Unleashed in celebration of the 30thAnniversary of the Velvet Revolution, and in the Spring presents The Dunbar Operaby Steven M. Allen to commemorate the 150thanniversary of the country's first African-American high school (Dunbar in the district,) plus two short Family a?oeDoggya?? Operas by composers Nick Benavides and Dawn Avery, Pepitoand Georgia and Bo.

The 2019 Theatre Week Kickoff Party celebrates the launch of the 2019-2020 theatre season and the start of Theatre Week in the Washington region. The event will take place on Saturday, September 7, 11am-4pm at Arena Stage Mead Center for American Theater. It is a free event and tickets are available through the TodayTix app and website.

Few characters become so embedded in the fabric of pop culture that merely the mention of a color can elicit their memory. Such is the case, however, for Elle Woods, the golden-haired Malibu native at the center of Legally Blonde. Talk about the color pink for too long and someone in your circle is guaranteed to quote one of the now-iconic lines made immortal by Reese Witherspoon in the 2001 film. The 2007 Broadway musical burdened its star, Laura Bell Bundy, with the responsibility of carrying on Ms. Witherspoon's legacy while appearing in almost every scene and belting her lungs out. This hot pink explosion of female empowerment and sisterhood is a deceptively demanding production with a non-stop score by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin. While the DC premiere at The Keegan Theatre is a fun evening, the overly-choreographed production feels like Elle Woods' first day at Harvard: its trying a little too hard.

The Keegan Theatre closes out its 22nd season with the award-winning musical LEGALLY BLONDE, opening on August 3, 2019. Based on the hit movie, LEGALLY BLONDE is a fabulously fun and energetic musical, wrapped up with a snappy pink bow! It features music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin and a book by Heather Hach. The DC premiere production at Keegan is directed by Ricky Drummond with music direction by Helen Hayes Award-winner Walter "Bobby" McCoy and choreography by Ashleigh King. 

Jubilee is now on stage at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. Inspired by the world-renowned Fisk Jubilee Singers, this uplifting new work chronicles the bold African American ensemble as they travel the world, captivating kings, queens and audiences with hymns and spiritual songs supported by their rich voices. Check out video from the production below!

Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater announces the full company for the world premiere of Tazewell Thompson's inspirational a cappella music infused play, Jubilee. Inspired by the world-renowned Fisk Jubilee Singers, this uplifting new work chronicles the bold African American ensemble as they travel the world, captivating kings, queens and audiences with hymns and spiritual songs supported by their rich voices. Written and directed by Thompson with vocal arrangements and music direction by Dianne Adams McDowell, Jubilee runs April 26 - June 2, 2019 in the Kreeger Theater.

There is nothing outright wrong with Thunder Knocking on the Door, the blues-filled musical which opened at Creative Cauldron this past Saturday. But there isn't much that is right with it either. Overall, the production is a firmly middle-of-the-road endeavor where the mismatched cast are unable to elevate the subpar source material. At the end of the day, this is a show that thinks it has more to say that it actually does.

The mysterious guitar playing shapeshifter knocks on Creative Cauldron's doors again in Thunder Knocking on the Door, a blues musical fable written by Keith Glover, with lyrics and music by three-time Grammy award winner Keb' Mo' and Anderson Edwards. The acclaimed artists behind Creative Cauldron's Bold New Works productions, Stephen Gregory Smith and Matt Conner, are directing and choreographing the production. Smith received praise for his gorgeously and lovingly directed Thunder Knocking at the Door production, which played a sold out run at Creative Cauldron back in 2013. The show runs from February 14 March 10 at Creative Cauldron in Falls Church, 410 South Maple Avenue. Performances are Thursdays at 7:30PM, Fridays at 7:30PM, Saturdays at 7:30PM, and Sundays at 2:00PM & 7:00PM. Press Night is Saturday, February 16th at 7:30 pm.

They pipe street noise onto the stage as the latest production of InSeries opera company begins.

Over the past few years DC's Constellation Theatre Company (CTC) has branched out from its mostly classical offerings by presenting a few musicals. They include the blockbusters Avenue Q and Urinetown and one lesser known entity – the Andrew Lippa version of The Wild Party. In all three cases, the shows fit perfectly into CTC's home at Source.