Abraham Lincoln’s status as “the Great Emancipator” is a foundational myth of the American nation: a racially loaded narrative explored and satirized by Suzan-Lori Parks…
View More 60-second review: THE AMERICA PLAY (P&P)Category: Reviews
Wilde’s curious SALOME at Villanova Theatre
They only believe in things that can’t be seen. Oscar Wilde’s witty drawing room comedies are well known to theatergoers. SALOME, an experimental modernist piece…
View More Wilde’s curious SALOME at Villanova Theatre60-second review: THE HAND OF GAUL (Inis Nua)
A pleasingly unpretentious comedy, THE HAND OF GAUL is something of a departure for Inis Nua, which generally produces serious works by contemporary Irish and…
View More 60-second review: THE HAND OF GAUL (Inis Nua)Everybody’s talking about TIMON OF ATHENS (PAC)
With their engaging interpretations of classic plays, Philadelphia Artists’ Collective has established a reputation as one of the best and boldest independent theater companies in…
View More Everybody’s talking about TIMON OF ATHENS (PAC)TIMON OF ATHENS (PAC) A rare glimpse at a Shakespeare work
I’m going to go out on a limb and say William Shakespeare is a pretty good playwright. Yet his stories, his speeches, his one-liners have so…
View More TIMON OF ATHENS (PAC) A rare glimpse at a Shakespeare work60-Second Review: EVERYONE AND I (Azuka)
“I go back where I came from to 6th Avenue/ and the tobacconist in the Ziegfeld Theatre and/ casually ask for a carton of Gauloises…
View More 60-Second Review: EVERYONE AND I (Azuka)MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (Philly Shakes): A Shakespeare comedy that’s actually funny
When presenting Shakespeare comedies, companies often forget that they should be funny. This is not the case with Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre’s production of MUCH ADO…
View More MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (Philly Shakes): A Shakespeare comedy that’s actually funnyUNDER THE WHALEBACK (Wilma): Grumpy Professor Review
UNDER THE WHALEBACK, a tale of the sea taking place on a fishing ship, will upset audiences at the Wilma Theater until April 7. As…
View More UNDER THE WHALEBACK (Wilma): Grumpy Professor ReviewHENRY V (Lantern): Grumpy Professor Review
HENRY V, a wonderful Shakespeare play, is being presented by the Lantern Theater until the end of April . Charles McMahon usually does very exacting…
View More HENRY V (Lantern): Grumpy Professor ReviewSEMINAR (PTC): Grumpy Professor Review
SEMINAR by the Philadelphia Theatre Company at the Suzanne Roberts Theater proved to be quite enjoyable for theatergoers. Even though the foul- mouthed professor berated…
View More SEMINAR (PTC): Grumpy Professor ReviewA RAISIN IN THE SUN (Arden): A delightful production of a hefty play
Lorraine Hansberry’s classic A RAISIN IN THE SUN starts slow and takes a while to get to where it’s going, but the cast at the…
View More A RAISIN IN THE SUN (Arden): A delightful production of a hefty playThe Lantern’s noble HENRY V
HENRY V completes Shakespeare’s four-part series on Plantagenet kings of England. No longer the indolent partier, Prince Hal has inherited the English throne, but is…
View More The Lantern’s noble HENRY VGOOD PEOPLE (Walnut): Grumpy Professor Review
GOOD PEOPLE is suffering a weak production at the venerable Walnut Street Theatre for seven weeks until April 28th. Criticizing the Walnut is like insulting…
View More GOOD PEOPLE (Walnut): Grumpy Professor Review60-second review: SEMINAR (PTC)
Writers will find much familiar in Theresa Rebeck’s SEMINAR, which brilliantly satirizes writerly blowhards (a proportionally large subset) and the self-seriousness necessary to pursue this art.…
View More 60-second review: SEMINAR (PTC)OTHELLO (Philly Shakes): Grumpy Professor Review
OTHELLO by the Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre at 21st and Sansom, is quite an excellent show. Carmen Khan, the director, really gets perfect diction from every…
View More OTHELLO (Philly Shakes): Grumpy Professor Review60-second review: OTHELLO (Philly Shakes)
In most of Shakespeare’s tragedies, the characters are overtaken by the swirl of events, following fate to their bloody end. A notable exception is OTHELLO,…
View More 60-second review: OTHELLO (Philly Shakes)Another entertaining stay at George F. Walker’s SUBURBAN MOTEL (Walking Fish)
Not a lot has changed since last time Walking Fish Theatre checked into George F. Walker’s Suburban Motel, for November’s PROBLEM CHILD. The room is…
View More Another entertaining stay at George F. Walker’s SUBURBAN MOTEL (Walking Fish)Theatre Confetti is On Target with EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS AND HIT THEM
Stretched along the long wall of Old City’s Power Plant Basement, Theatre Confetti’s set for EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS AND HIT THEM evokes the emptiness…
View More Theatre Confetti is On Target with EDITH CAN SHOOT THINGS AND HIT THEMA Hollywood Wasteland: New City’s HURLYBURLY
“When shall we three meet again, in thunder, lightning or in rain? When the hurlyburly’s done, when the battle’s lost and won.” —William Shakespeare, MACBETH…
View More A Hollywood Wasteland: New City’s HURLYBURLY60-second review: ENDGAME (Arden)
Samuel Beckett’s ENDGAME (now onstage at the Arden Theatre) is empty and confusing; the action confined, the pacing slow. For all this, it’s a great…
View More 60-second review: ENDGAME (Arden)