WASHINGTON, DC THEATER REVIEWS

IN Series' 'Le Cabaret de Carmen' is a haunting, beautiful spin on the popular tragedy. It's a unique and thoughtful retelling, with a wonderful cast and production team, and is entrancing from its languid opening to its dramatic finale....

One of D.C.'s finer classical companies, Brave Spirits, has embarked on a two-year repertory of William Shakespeare's history plays. Leading off this ambitious project is Charlene V. Smith's razor-sharp production of a?oeRichard II.a?? Smith has assembled a cast that is assured in its understandin...

Some of Aretha Franklin's greatest performances happened at the Kennedy Center - chief of which may have been a 2015 performance of '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman' at the Kennedy Center Honors that made Barack Obama shed a tear in the Presidential box....

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Jersey Boys, directed by Des McAnuff, is a typical, fast paced jukebox musical full of popular songs, but the storyline doesn't hit the right notes....

Keegan Theatre's production of 'An Irish Carol' by Matthew J.Keenan holds all the charm and heart of the original Dickens tale, except this time with a tad more profanity, and booze. A staple tradition of the DC theatre scene, 'An Irish Carol' is in its 9th annual production for Keegan and hasn't lo...

A great deal is packed into The Magical Piñata. There's a brief explanation of where Mexico's population comes from; a smattering of spoken Spanish and songs in both Spanish and English; pratfalls; a morality tale; and lots of laugher....

As a reviewer you hear lots of advance hype about a particular show or performer before having your own experience. Much of the time the hype doesn't live up to the end product. Selling over 90 million recordings opera singer Andrea Bocelli was definitely one of those performers who I had heard a lo...

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All told, Come From Away, provides a powerfully inviting experience and is perfect for this holiday season. It preaches hope and love in a way that can be appreciated by everyone....

Presented by the Kennedy Center Taylor Mac tests out a new take on the holidays. Mac (who uses the gender pronoun 'judy'), is an actor, playwright, performance artist and many other things too. Judy was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2017 and is a Macarthur Fellow. Judy's play, 'Gary...

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'Eureka Day' is still a fun show with a solid cast and production team. I certainly laughed, and enjoyed the performance. But I also had a lingering distaste from its heavy-handed, clumsy messaging....

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There's a lot of energy and creativity onstage during 4615 Theatre Company's world premiere of The Infinite Tales -- and they come not only from the actors. The performers are accompanied by live and recorded music, props that take up a good part of the stage (mostly suitcases and trunks, suggest...

Synetic Theater's The Snow Queen feels like a prolonged fever dream brought on by repeated viewings of Disney's Frozen, or its earlier work, Fantasia....

The 2003 romantic comedy 'Love Actually' airs every year, so why not the parody of it as well?...

The Second City's 'She the People' is back at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company. The jokes and social commentary have been updated to address current events, as well as keep some evergreen topics fresh and remind us how upsetting it is that some things are considered evergreen. But, above all, 'She the...

Stephen Mallatratt's stage adaptation of Susan Hill's 1983 horror novel 'The Woman in Black' has become somewhat of a legendary production. Originally directed by Robin Hereford (who has directed every recast of the show including this one), it has become a famous staple of the London theatre scene ...

Directors Steven Scott Mazzola and Timothy Nelson have created a deeply moving, broadly staged version of a piece that was originally designed for the concert hall. In moving the singers throughout the vast, acoustical gem that is the Foundry United Methodist Church, you are surrounded (literally) b...

'Dear Jack, Dear Louise' is a moving, funny, and heartbreaking show with a sweetly earnest cast and a formidable production team. Based on the true story of playwright Ken Ludwig's parents' letters and courtship during World War II, 'Dear Jack, Dear Louise' is a lovingly told and timeless romance, a...

If the holiday cheer seems beyond your grasp, the British Players have just the ticket; this year's 'Alice in Wonderland: A Traditional British Panto,' comes complete with a fractured take on a beloved tale, cross-dressing actors, and opportunities galore to participate in the action. Chock full of...

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Because Christmas is mandatory on entertainment stages all month, it's no surprise that a cabaret at Signature Theatre is again devoted to the Yuletide songbook. But in a clever and very welcome variation, they've approached the holiday through the classic interpretations of one of America's favorit...

The Illusionists: Magic of the Holidays had me instantly intrigued just by the title. I was interested in the idea of coupling magic with the theme of the holidays. After all, magic is a crucial part of the holiday season, and this show sounds like an excellent addition to that magic that comes arou...