Capsules Galore — Birds, Disgraced, Mountaintop, Notes on a Native Son
The first two months of Philadelphia’s 2016-17 theater season have been extraordinary., Not only was much of quality presented, but variety and creativity have soared. Almost every night in the … Continue reading
Lightning Rounds — The Cripple of Inishmaan, The Elixir of Love, Forever Plaid
April 2016 proved a cruel month in terms of time demands, so I am in a position of having to catch up with commenting a number of productions by screwing … Continue reading
Death of a Salesman — Curio Theatre
Paul Kuhn’s touching, everyman portrayal of American theater icon Willy Loman would be enough to recommend Curio’s unceasingly perceptive and moving production of Arthur Miller’s modern classic. Kuhn, whether in … Continue reading
Quickies: The Bald Soprano, Baskerville, Book of Mormon, McCarter Carol, Volunteers…
Oops! I’m behind for a change. Too much attention to creative writing is the culprit, but it’s time to catch up with what’s happening in local theater. “Quickies” will begin to appear … Continue reading
Noises Off — Curio Theatre
As serious and incisive as Michael Frayn can be in plays like “Copenhagen” and “Democracy,” he is known in most of his novels and theater pieces for poking deliciously mean … Continue reading
Othello — Curio Theatre Company
Call it Iago. Dan Hodge’s production of “Othello” for Curio Theatre centers so much on Shakespeare’s exponentially duplicitous villain, and Brian McCann’s performance of Iago takes such dominant focus, the … Continue reading
The Matter of Frank Schaefer — Curio Theatre
The challenge in documentary theater is how to tell the story accurately, with the tone and intent of every speaker intact, while finding the dramatic spark that makes testimony and … Continue reading
Oedipussy — Curio Theatre Company
The cast of Curio Theatre’s “Oedipussy” have a woeful lament. They whine and complain and threaten to commit dire individual acts in a response to an event they find grievous … Continue reading
Gender Comedy — A Less Stupid Twelfth Night Gay Fantasia — Curio Theatre
Samuel Taylor Coleridge had a reason for recommending that people encountering art should learn to suspend their belief and go with the action and logic at hand in a work … Continue reading
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