his horse News

Last year was the first time I'd taken my son to see Circus Flora, and even though he was excited to go again, he's at the stage where he's a wee bit afraid of the dark. So, when the lights went down at the beginning of this year's show, INGENIOSO, he freaked out a little. But, the charm of the performers, particularly the animal ones, quickly won him over and by the close of the night he was sporting a broad smile as we exited the tent. I think the fact that he got a great big hug from his favorite clown Nino (Giovanni Zoppe) certainly helped. And, it's that kind of warmth and good humor that you'll find on display here, along with a considerable amount of athleticism and grace.

Shakespeare Theatre Company Artistic Director Michael Kahn, praised by The Baltimore Sun for turning the Shakespeare Theatre Company 'into the closest thing this country has to Britain's Royal Shakespeare Company,' announces the Company's 2010-2011 season. The lineup includes Shakespeare's All's Well That Ends Well, Cymbeline (a debut performance of this Shakespeare play on STC's stages) and The Merchant of Venice. The season continues with a recent adaptation by Tom Stoppard of Luigi Pirandello's Enrico IV, Oscar Wilde's An Ideal Husband and the Leonard Bernstein musically adapted version of Voltaire's Candide, directed by Mary Zimmerman in a co-production with the Goodman Theatre.

The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that DreamWorks Studios has acquired film rights to Michael Morpurgo's 1982 novel War Horse, which they will present on the big screen. Billy Elliot scribe Lee Hall will create the screenplay adaptation.

Michael Morpurgo's 1982 novel 'War Horse' will receive a big screen adaptation by Tony Award-winning book writer Lee Hall, according to a story in the Hollywood Reporter. Hall is most notably known for having penned the screenplay for the 1999 film 'Billy Elliot'.

The Stradivari Quartet, made up of four extraordinary artists performing on a unique set of Stradivarius instruments, provided by the Stradivari Foundation Habisreutinger, will bring their distinctive sound to University Auditorium on Sunday, November 8 at 2 p.m.

It's easy to forget how ravishingly absorbing an evening at Equus can be if you only consider it as Peter Shaffer's scripted words. Though certainly not deficient in providing a neat little psychological morality drama, what makes the text succeed so well is that, like a great ballet composer, the author knows how to hand over to other artists the opportunity to use his work as a springboard for the creation of emblazing visuals that illuminate with lofty creativity. Equus may not read like great theatre, but director Thea Sharrock's elegant cerebral nightmare of a production shows it can sure play like it.

The Stradivari Quartet, made up of four extraordinary artists performing on a unique set of Stradivarius instruments, provided by the Stradivari Foundation Habisreutinger, will bring their distinctive sound to University Auditorium on Sunday, November 8 at 2 p.m.

Gino DiIorio's Dead Ringer gets its world premiere tonight at NJ Rep Theater. The play, a family drama set on the Texas range in 1885, follows Tyrus Cole, an old, tempermental horse trainer who lives on a ranch with his invalid sister, Mary. Because he is unable to watch her during the day, Mary is confined to a root cellar. Dwight Foley's arrival, as a young stranger seeking help with his horse, upsets the balance between Cole and Mary. What unfolds is a web of shady business and secrets. The show opens officially on Saturday, October 17 and runs through November 15.

The New Jersey Repertory Company, located at 179 Broadway in Long Branch, is proud to present the world premiere of the Western drama, Dead Ringer by Gino DiIorio, October 15th through November 15th.

The French-infused concoction, MEDRANO, provided my son and I with our first experiences witnessing the magic that this one ring circus conjures up each summer in our own backyard. To quote John Lennon, who was himself referencing an old circus poster he'd found in a junk shop: 'A splendid time is guaranteed for all'.

The Joyce 2009 season kicks off on February 3 with Buglisi Dance Theatre presenting two different programs that will include three NYC premieres and one world premiere. Ronald K. Brown's Brooklyn-based Evidence, A Dance Company returns to The Joyce this year with an exciting NYC premiere, and Doug Varone and Dancers - back for its 10th Joyce season - also will feature a NYC premiere. Following them is the audience favorite Savion Glover, for a three-week season of electrifying tap set to Flamenco music. Then Ballet-Tech, under the Artistic Direction of Joyce founder Eliot Feld, will present two programs of post-classicism work with its 'Mandance Project.'

Stage Centre Productions offers a lively, entertaining staging of the popular French farce. * * * 1/2 (OUT OF 5)