A Midsummer Night’s Dream — Arden Theatre
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, Arden Theatre, 40 N. 2nd Street, in Philadelphia, through Sunday, April 9 — The lunatic, the lover, and the poet all seem to have in hand … Continue reading
Theater Blitz — An Attack of Catch-Up Comments
As I mentioned in my last post, I needed a break from the keyboard. Apologies that shows that went uncovered, especially those that are about to receive belated favorable reviews, … Continue reading
Doctor Faustus — Quintessence at Sedgwick Theatre
Watching Alexander Burns’s creative, engaging production of Christopher Marlowe’s “Doctor Faustus,” I couldn’t help thinking how the learned German scholar squandered the 24 years of pleasure he was afforded by … Continue reading
Quickies Again — Rumors (Bristol), Saint Joan (Quintessence)
RUMORS, Bristol Riverside Theatre, 120 Radcliffe Street, Bristol, Pa., through Sunday, April 17 — Neil Simon knows how to structure a play and give characters tics and neuroses that individualize … Continue reading
More Quickies: Hans Brinker, Wonderful Life, This is the Week That Is
HANS BRINKER AND THE SILVER SKATES, Arden Theatre, 40 N. 2nd Street, Philadelphia, through January 31 — I read at the age of two and, like most children, was attracted … Continue reading
The Mandrake — Quintessence Theatre Group at Sedgwick Theatre
Niccolo Machiavelli goes way past the already questionable conundrum about ends justifying means. In the Machiavellian universe, ends are everything. The means don’t have to be justified. They only have … Continue reading
Romeo and Juliet — Quintessence Theatre Group at Sedgwick Theatre
Alexander Burns infuses the Quintessence stage with energy and romance via his bold, wise use of cinematic techniques in his brilliant and moving “Romeo and Juliet.” Early in Shakespeare’s play, … Continue reading
The Three Musketeers — Quintessence at Sedgwick Theatre
Ian Rose’s swordplay, Connor Hammond’s youthfully obtuse take on D’Artagnan, and horseplay of all kind, including some that looks as if it might break an actor’s back, contributed to keep … Continue reading
Richard II — Quintessence Theatre Group
“Richard II” is a model for a history play. Although not as powerful or as varied as its natural sequel, “Henry IV,” “Richard” provides a platform through which Shakespeare supplies … Continue reading
As You Like It — Quintessence Theatre Group
Quintessence Theatre’s “As You Like It” has a Maytime playfulness about it that keeps it fresh and sprightly in its several scenes of comparative love, especially those that involve Rosalind … Continue reading