Gimmickry in Theater
While perusing the pop culture section of Bill Simmons’ Grantland site a couple weeks ago, I came across a piece by contributor Sean Fennessy detailing an interesting event…
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Flashpoint lights up the local scene with THE BENDS
Thom Weaver is familiar to me, as he may be to other Philadelphia theatergoers, because it seems every time I see a show with impressive…
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Phindie Podcast 01: coffee with Jennifer Summerfield
For Phindie’s first Philadelphia Independent Theater Podcast, hosts Christopher Munden and John Rosenberg sit down for coffee with local actor Jennifer Summerfield. We talk about…
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60-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,…
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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…
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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…
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A 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…
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60-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…
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Paradise Park (Idiopathic Ridiculopathy): Men in Dresses
If your favorite part of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was the creepy boat ride or if you even remember that scene with a tingle of…
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ASSASSIN (InterAct): Grumpy Professor Review
Although ASSASSIN was directed by Seth Reichgott, InterAct Theatre Company is its producing-artistic director, Seth Rozin, who runs a tight ship. ASSASSIN was okay but it was…
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60-second review: EQUUS (Curio)
Peter Shaffer’s EQUUS premiered in 1973, and its age shows. A psycho-sexual exploration of insanity, spirituality, and conformity, it continues to appeal to generations of…
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60-second review: THE AMISH PROJECT (Simpatico/Renegade)
After a solid run from upstart Renegade Company, THE AMISH PROJECT is getting a revamped co-production with star indie company, Simpatico Theatre Project. Janice Rowland…
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InterAct’s ASSASSIN Hits Hard
Every week there seems to be another news story about the dangers of NFL football. The average career length for an outfield offensive player (running…
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ASSISTANCE (Wilma): 60-second review
Cutting close to the bone, Lesley Headland’s ASSISTANCE is a protest, as provocative as Sophie Treadwell’s Machinal (1928), exposing the Darwinian-exploitative nature of the 2013…
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A Darker Emerald Isle: Lantern’s THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE
The Lantern Theater Company’s production of THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE completes its presentation of Martin McDonagh’s Leenane Trilogy, following 2007’s THE LONESOME WEST and…
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Sharing a Cerveza with THE DRUNK LION
“My mom always told me to be careful accepting invitations, but how often does a Mexican lion invite you to a cantina?” Philadelphia has bright…
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“Reviewing a Play”
Writing a play review, a brief critical account of an actual performance, involves making an evaluation.
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SATCHMO AT THE WALDORF (Wilma): A genius performance by John Douglas Thompson
For some time I’ve read effusive descriptions of John Douglas Thompson’s acting. They are all true—he is an incredible talent. In SATCHMO AT THE WALDORF, now in a brief run at the Wilma Theater, Thompson brilliantly portrays Louis Armstrong, the musician’s hard-nosed talent manager, and other characters, switching diction and mannerism so completely that he seems to inhabit different bodies with each change.
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POOKIE GOES GRENADING (Azuka): The filling for your existential doughnut hole
Behind a thick veneer of such entertainingly hilarious absurdity, Azuka Theatre’s world premiere production of J.C. Lee’s POOKIE GOES GRENADING explores the self-serious commitment necessary to produce any works of artistic expression. Lee’s script is theatrical comedy at its best, fast-paced fun with seriously smart dialog and perceptive underpinnings.
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Walking Fish’s PROBLEM CHILD is One To Love
Kensington’s Walking Fish Theatre continues its presentation of George F. Walker’s Suburban Motel series with PROBLEM CHILD. Walker’s cycle features six plays set in the…
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