WASHINGTON, DC THEATER REVIEWS

Important content and several exceptional performances outweigh 1st Stage's flawed production of August Wilson's Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. ...

The New York City Ballet's technique, grace, and variety of programming is impeccable. The night feels like a quick tour through the dance and music of the past 100 years, starting with the jazz of George Gershwin and ending with the frenetic electronica of Dan Deacon. There's something for everyon...

One of the finest ballet companies in the country is in town this week at the Kennedy Center for two programs that feature the work of some of the world's most famous choreographers....

DC is a topsy-turvy, satirical farce; or so it seems this morning. Happily, so is The School for Lies. At least The School for Lies is fiction and man, it felt good to laugh....

New musicals are always a risky proposition for any theatre company, but Pallas Theatre Collective is rising to the challenge in a big way with its current production Crazy Mary Lincoln. The show is a product of the company's Table Read series, which puts the writers through a two year process of re...

Tom Prewitt, Avant Bard's current artistic director, knew who he wanted to take on this monumental role: Rick Foucheux. A 35-year veteran of stages large and small in the Washington, DC area, Foucheux has played everything from realism to the avant garde; modern and the classics. Capping off his sto...

From now through October 14, visitors to the theatre can expect to be - like I was - impressed by how the creative team, its stellar cast, and some exceedingly talented technicians bring this well-known story to life on its massive stage....

In the pop music world there are certain artists who only need to be introduced by their first names. When you hear Cher, Madonna, or Barbara, there is instant recognition. The same holds true in the musical theatre world. When you hear the names Idina, Sutton, or Audra you know exactly who these pe...

NextStop Theatre's production of Urinetown is a musical that is certainly worth the wait in line…even if you have to hold your bladder....

HIR is the conscientious absurdist's guide to confronting 'the world order.' It's crazy watchable, like some kind of substantive, impactful, topsy-turvy sitcom. Mac's characters are flamboyant and talk very loud about all the things that our parents told us not to discuss in public. And it's wond...

As Capitol Hill seems to talking nonstop about the state of American health care at a time when it all might change, a couple of one-man plays at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop was breaking down the issues in terms that are immediate, emotional and human....

Sometimes things sound really good on paper, but never fully pan out in their final incarnations. Paul D. Miller's ( aka  DJ Spooky) Rebirth of a Nation is a prime example of this scenario becoming reality....

A powerful piece of theater that brings you into the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict....

Half the fun of going to see plays at Spooky Action Theatre is seeing how they've transformed the basement of the Universalist National Memorial Church for each production. Sometimes they completely obscure its identity; other times they embrace very nook....

Sometimes you attend a performance and one of the most memorable parts is something unscripted and spontaneous, and that leaves you with a lasting impression of the performance. In Mouth Open, Story Jump Out, the phenomenal solo performance by UK spoken word artist, Polarbear, something unscripted h...

The Kennedy Center Theater for Young Audiences takes a bold leap in bringing this one man show from Red Bridge Arts in Scotland. Titus, a show recommended for audiences 12 and up tackles serious issues that unfortunately in today's society, children may face....

It's hard to believe that the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar has been around since 1971. What started life as a concept album a year earlier, the musical is now a perennial favorite to present among professional and non-pro companies....

Ty Hallmark directs a moving ensemble with the powerful play, 'The Most Spectacularly Lamentable Trial of Miz Martha Washington.'...

Synetic Theater's 'beautifully disturbing' HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME is gripping storytelling at its best. The wordless production conveys the epic tale with movement, spectacle, connection, and artistry....

Ian Merrill Peakes begins and ends his role as 'Timon of Athens' standing in the center of Folger Shakespeare Theatre's stage. At the start, he's basking in his glory as a prosperous master of the universe, happily dispersing his gold; in the end he's alone, torn down, penniless emotionally, at the ...

Led by the incomparable Ted van Griethuysen, The Father forms a palpable connection with the audience as it explores what happens when loved ones, and indeed one's own self, become unrecognizable....

It's thrilling to discover a work of Shakespeare for the first time, especially as a kid. For me, those introductions came from old episodes of "Wishbone" on PBS, but luckily for today's young audiences in the Washington area, there's a live option: NEARLY LEAR, a tweaked, SparkNotes-length version ...

The Constellation Theatre teams up with renowned instrumentalist Tom Teasley and revives one of the world's most classic stories....

At one point in Monumental Theatre Co's current production of Five Lesbians Eating a Quiche, one of the actors asks, “What would happen if a bomb were to go off?” If you are brave enough to attend this show, you will get your answer first hand....

This rewarding theatrical experience is a must-see for anyone interested in exploring the power of love, memory, and family in a small Irish town....