WASHINGTON, DC THEATER REVIEWS

The play King James –now at the Round House Theatre ---is like a pleasurable afternoon shooting hoops with a friend in the summer. This character-driven play by Rajiv Joseph (who gave us the play Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo---which was presented at Round House in 2012) is entertaining and refr...

Emily Burns' adaptation of 'Frankenstein,' brings a new perspective, and perfectly captures the Gothic atmosphere, the struggle between creation and responsibility, and what family means – all the elements that keep bringing us back to this story....

Andy Warhol really did go to Iran. In 1976, the Shah's wife, Farah Pahlavi, arranged to sit for Polaroid photos which Warhol would then use as a basecoat for a series of prints, and Andrew Cohen reproduces Warhol's image of her as a permanently present part of his set design. Warhol also could reall...

It’s hard to miss Lucy Eden when she bursts onto the intimate playing space at Spooky Action’s basement theatre for its production of CIRCUS OF THE SELF. ...

Here at Capital One Hall, CHICAGO is painting the town. A spectacle to behold, the performance lights up Tysons in a hazy allure of Fosse high kicks and slow-rolling hips....

“Liquid” is 60 minutes of nonstop punk, erotic, aerial fun—with whips and chains thrown in for good measure. The soundtrack accompanying the acts runs through a blistering mix of hit songs from Velvet Underground to My Chemical Romance, and beyond.  The variety and artistry on display are tru...

The pivotal and star-crossed main characters and the Catfish Row community come alive in the highly influential, thought-provoking, and engrossing opera Porgy and Bess. This much discussed opera has its partisans and detractors but there is a distinct need to ponder and consider a work of this quali...

Live theater is one of the oldest and best art forms for exploring inner conflict. When it follows in this tradition, Tarrell Alvin McCraney’s newest work, We Are Gathered, is interesting and effective. ...

DC theatre audiences are blessed because besides there being a huge wealth of local theatres, there are also places like the historic National Theatre that bring us national tours direct from Broadway. It’s current attraction is one of the best tours I’ve seen in a very long time....

NextStop’s production of 'Footloose' felt haphazard and emotionless, and what should have been a fun evening of theater and nostalgia was instead entirely lackluster....

When it came to gender fluid plays, William Shakespeare was way ahead of the curve even 400 years ago. At the time, young males routinely played the female roles anyway. He had already made cross-dressing  hidden identity a part of “The Merchant of Venice” and would do so again in “As You Lik...

Late in Julia Izumi's play, Akira Kurosawa Explains His Movies and Yogurt (with live and active cultures!), one of the characters asks, 'Is that what the whole yogurt thing is about because I'm not getting it?' It's one of several goofball/meta moments in this very theatrical play and marks the spot...

“Falsettos” at Keegan Theatre bursts with humor and heart as the musical’s talented cast explores the hope and chaos, and frustrations and forgiveness that are woven through the bonds of family and friendship....

If you were to ask a modern day student what they know about WW1, they probably would give you a short answer seeing as it is rarely taught nowadays. Powerhouse Broadway performer Melissa Errico wants to change that and has done so brilliantly with her own creation entitled The Story of A Rose: A M...

Constellation Theatre Company’s production of Head Over Heels, directed by Allison Arkell Stockman with musical direction by Walter “Bobby” McCoy, is a delightful musical filled with superb acting and energetic musical numbers. ...

In WOMAN ON FIRE, currently performing at the Creative Cauldron in Falls Church, Virginia, playwright Marisela Treviño Orta tells a haunting story that blends elements of Greek tragedy with a contemporary setting to delve into themes of border politics, cultural identity, and the enduring power of ...

The Avant Bard Theatre’s niche lies in reinventing the classics, and to close out its 35th season, Avant Bard Theatre is taking on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. This rendition, directed by artistic associate Kathleen Akerley, uses an abridged original script (with no sign of the Danes) while bending the...

MAROONED! A SPACE COMEDY, played at the Kennedy Center’s Family Theater over the weekend. In its simplicity, the performance shows the universality of human emotions and experience which transcend age, background, and even language....

A superb troupe of five actors and a great trumpet player (Michael A. Thomas) do everything in their toolkit to realize Dominique Morisseau's significant play, Paradise Blue, about a Detroit jazz club caught in the post-World War II 'urban renewal' which tampered with Black neighborhoods and lifesty...

An evening of the myriad modes of music that constitute the American Experience was celebrated at the Kennedy Center’s production of American Rhapsody. The evening was a rich treasure trove of the glory that is American music from opera, spirituals, modern composers, classic songwriters, and Broad...

Among its other achievements, the world premiere of the Spanish language “Choke” at GALA Hispanic Theatre should also be noted as perhaps the first play to incorporate the collapse of Baltimore’s Key Bridge....

It’s not so strange, really, that there’s  a serious opera about Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. His life’s work is usually invoked before every production of the last decade or more, when audiences are asked to silence their smartphones....

Acosta Danza’s program Cuban Ecléctico ran in the Eisenhower Theater at the Kennedy Center for just three days, but the show deserved much more stage time, both to receive a greater audience and to refine their performance. ...

What did our critic think of ON YOUR FEET! at St. Mark's Players?The absence of melody underneath them frequently gets these singers into intonation trouble, especially given the opening night technical problems with the sound....

The Washington Ballet’s ALICE (in wonderland) is a theatrical, whimsical, and approachable translation of Lewis Carroll’s iconic duology, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. ...