Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Late: A Cowboy Song

Olmsted Thomas and Wilmoth Keegan in LATE A COWBOY SONG(L-R: Sarah Olmsted-Thomas and Alyssa Wilmoth-Keegan in No Rules Theatre’s production of Late: A Cowboy Song. Photo: Second Glance Photography)

Despite the title of Sarah Ruhl’s Late: A Cowboy Song, this early work from a quickly rising playwright is about being trapped rather than being late. The show now playing at No Rules Theatre features a heroine Mary (Sarah Olmsted-Thomas) who is trapped in an abusive relationship and day-to-day bustle that is quickly getting away from her to the point where it feels like she’s living from holiday to holiday. Her exasperated observation about the litany of holidays in a year will ring true to you once you sit down and think about it. Her boyfriend/husband Crick (Chris Dinolfo) is trapped in a perpetual man-child state which involves a love for modern art that borders on unhealthy and extremely needy tendencies. Mary’s childhood friend Red (Alyssa Wilmoth-Keegan) found her escape through her life as a cowboy living outside the city setting of Pittsburgh. The show’s eclectic tastes include musical interludes, interpretive dance, and clever use of props. However, despite a captivating exploration of identity, romance, and the idea of the perfect life, Late is a production trapped in its own complexity. Its lack of polish can be attributed to a playwright’s early work.

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Concert Round Up, Entertainment, Get Out & About, Life in the Capital, Music, Night Life, The District

January 2014 Concert Round Up

Yeah we’re a little late with our monthly concert round-up, but hey even we need a little R n R from concert going and writing. Nevertheless, there are still PLENTY of solid shows left in the month of January, so keeping reading after the jump for recommendations (St. Lucia, Cate Le Bon, Phosphorescent, Delorean, Pixies and MORE) on how you should kick off the first month of your 2014 DC concert goings.

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Entertainment, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Gypsy

Sherri L. Edelen as Momma Rose in Signature Theatre’s production of Gypsy. Photo by Teresa Wood.

Based on the real-life memoirs of burlesque performer Gypsy Rose Lee, with book by Arthur Laurents, music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Gypsy has been a beloved musical of mine ever since I was 15 and was fortunate enough to be cast in a local production of it. I have seen a number of productions both on stage (including the 2003 Broadway revival with Bernadette Peters) and screen (with the 1993 film version with Bette Midler my favorite). I can honestly say that Signature Theatre‘s current production was, by far, the best one I have ever seen. It was breathtaking, rendering me speechless. Those who know me realize that is a huge feat.

Between an engaging script and two acts of captivating songs, Gypsy is more the story of Gypsy Rose Lee’s mother, Rose, than it is about her. Although the account of the famous stripper (real name: Louise) and her sister, June, is told—their history as child performers on the vaudeville circuit to June’s running away from home and Louise’s transition from novelty act to burlesque performer—it is only to highlight the journey Rose takes. The quintessential stage mother, Rose foregoes personal relationships, a stable career and home life, and financial comfort so that her children may be stars. It is only when her children and fiancé leave her, their vaudeville careers washed up, and with her life in shambles that Rose realizes all the toiling and strife done in the name of her children were really about fulfilling a dream of stardom for herself that will never come true because she was “born too early and started too late.” Continue reading

Entertainment, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Elf

Noah Marlowe and Will Blum in Elf at the Kennedy Center

Noah Marlowe and Will Blum in Elf at the Kennedy Center. Photo credit: Amy Boyle

There is something about the holidays that brings families to the theatre. People who don’t see live theatre the other 364 days of the year seem to revel in one annual trip with the children and in-laws to see actors sing and dance to melodies rife with sleigh bells and falling snow. Although there are a number of movies about Christmas, stage options until recently were very limited. There was A Christmas Carol, Miracle on 34th Street, and White Christmas. Whether it was because repeated viewings of these shows is extremely monotonous or just because other movies leant themselves to being musicalized, Broadway has recently introduced three new shows into the holiday canon. Now families across America, in taking their annual jaunt to the theatre can also see How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Christmas Story or Elf. For DC area residents, this year’s musical offering is the latter, based on the 2003 movie starring Will Ferrell as Buddy, a human raised as a Christmas elf who goes to New York City to meet his father, a high-powered book publisher with no holiday spirit. Although closely following the cinematic story, the musical stage version of Elf, playing at the Kennedy Center, doesn’t try to imitate the film, but provides its own take on the story and makes for a very fun family outing.

Being a fan of the film, but not wanting to just see a stage production mirroring the same thing I can see on DVD, I was pleasantly satisfied that Elf was able to keep the integrity of the plot, characters, and humor while, at the same time, giving each of those elements a fresh lift. Continue reading

Entertainment, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

A-Funny-Thing-Forum-STC-11-13-102The cast of Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Photo credit: T. Charles Erickson

In graduate school, I spent an entire semester of theatre history studying Roman comedy, as this ancient art form continues to be seen in contemporary farce today. One of my favorite musical comedies, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart, is the perfect descendent of this form, since it not only utilizes 2,000-year old comedy conventions, such as puns, mistaken identity, physical humor and absurdity, but also because its plot is taken directly from three plays written by Plautus, the Roman father of farce himself.

Forum tells the ribald story of a slave named Pseudolus who attempts to win his freedom by assisting his youthful master win the heart of the beautiful courtesan next door. Using the classical elements of farce and punctuated by fun melodies with clever lyrics, Forum is such a well-written show that even the most amateur of productions can be excellent. I have, in fact, seen Forum a number of times, ranging in scope from its Broadway revival in 1997 to a 40-seat community theatre production with virtually no budget, and thoroughly enjoyed it every time. This is why I was so excited to see Forum at The Shakespeare Theatre Company and why I was so disappointed in their production. If a community theatre of amateur actors, directors, and designers can take a nearly perfect script and present farcical magic, I expected one of the greatest theatres and directors in the DC area, combined with a cast of actors with numerous Broadway credits, to be incredible. And it wasn’t. Continue reading

Entertainment, Music, The Daily Feed, The Features, We Love Music

We Love Music: A Q&A with The Jewbadours

Photo Courtesy of The Jewbadours

It can be tough being Jewish around Christmas time, especially when Hannukah ends shortly after Thanksgiving like it did this year. And while some of my fellow members of the tribe may or may not agree with that sentiment, I still choose to offer up a suitable celebration option for the end of 2013.

Upon scouring the internet for a fitting night of entertainment to combat my craving for an epic holiday season, I stumbled upon a listing for The Jewbadours on Jammin’ Java‘s website. The name reeled me in at first sight so I took to YouTube to find some of their performance footage.

The end result is a soulful albeit entertaining routine executed by a couple of fun-loving Jewish jokesters from New York… who also opted to do a Q&A with We Love DC so all of us can get to know each other a little bit better before they come to town this weekend. You can check out The Jewbadours on their first tour this Saturday night — December 21 — at Jammin’ Java (tickets are still available) in Vienna, VA.

We’d be remiss if we didn’t ask this right off the bat — The Jewbadours is a unique name for a band. Where did it come from, why did you end up making that choice, and how did the two of you end up making music together?

It was one of those glorious moments when an idea crystallizes in a couple of words. We’d love to take credit, but we were named by our manager, Stew Jackson. The three of us were sitting around eating pizza and watching the Knicks, talking about the kind of cover band we would be in. And then Stew said, “you guys should be called The Jewbadours.” We knew right then we had to make this band a reality.

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Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Man in a Case

Mikhail Baryshnikov in Man in a Case. Photo credit: T. Charles Erickson.

Mikhail Baryshnikov in Man in a Case. Photo credit: T. Charles Erickson.

It would be easy for Mikhail Baryshnikov to rest on his laurels. It would also be easy to recommend that you see him in Man in a Case, at Shakespeare Theatre Company as part of their Presentation Series, simply for the novelty of seeing one of the greatest performers of our time on stage. Doing anything. What a pleasure then, that this is not an easy piece. Instead, you have the privilege of witnessing charisma at the service of experimental theater. It’s truly extraordinary.

Man in a Case is adapted and directed by Annie-B Parson and Paul Lazar of Big Dance Theater, who use their innovative approach on two short stories by Anton Chekhov: “Man in a Case” and “About Love.” Parson also choreographs the production (she’s worked with David Byrne on several projects, and with St. Vincent on her upcoming tour). Though it runs just under ninety minutes, the piece has an elegiac pace which allows the seamless combination of video, sound, dance, and narration to unfold with a hypnotic beauty.

There’s a haunting immediacy to the production from its first moments, as hunters begin swapping stories in a manner evoking the folksy banter of a late night radio show. The onstage presence of sound designer Tei Blow and associate video designer Keith Skretch seems entirely natural as they execute cues from their laptops right alongside the actors. It’s that dichotomy between the natural and the artificial that gives Man in a Case an eccentric edge, which only expands as projections reminiscent of surveillance cameras appear on surfaces both expected and unexpected. It has the quality of immersive theater – even though we are watching from our stationary seats in the Lansburgh, we feel included. There’s a hint of voyeurism which expands and continues to the end.

Man in a Case begins with the story of professor Belikov (Baryshnikov), who lives a heartbreakingly restrictive and proper existence almost devoid of air to breathe. Continue reading

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: The Pajama Men – Just The Two Of Each Of Us

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Mark Chavez and Shenoah Allen. Photo courtesy of The Pajama Men.

The PJ-donned duo of Mark Chavez and Shenoah Allen return to Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company for a show this holiday season called Just The Two Of Each Of Us. Of course there’s nothing to read into the title, their surreal, imaginative, and somewhat improvised comedy style hasn’t changed for those that caught them last year. Those that have yet to experience The Pajama Men need to do so as soon as possible. Chavez and Allen once again bring a heavy dose of physical humor, with amazing vocal and facial performances that result in a night of good ol’ clean fun.

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Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner

(L to R) Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Dr. John Prentice, Bethany Anne Lind as Joanna Drayton, Tess Malis Kincaid as Christina Drayton and Tom Key as Matt Drayton in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater November 29, 2013-January 5, 2014. Photo by Teresa Wood. (L to R) Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Bethany Anne Lind, Tess Malis Kincaid and Tom Key in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater. Photo by Teresa Wood.

For a play based on a film made in 1967, you might suspect antiquated dialogue and plotlines. While William Rose’s screenplay about Joanna Drayton (Bethany Anne Lind), a girl who surprises her family by bringing home an African-American fiancée (Malcolm-Jamal Warner), may have been edgy back then, the idea of inter-racial marriage is much more accepted in our society now.

Right?

Well even in “post-racial” 2013, the idea of whites and blacks marrying each other is still making headlines. Todd Kreidler’s stage adaptation of Rose’s story still resonates with audiences in a new production at Arena Stage. The story may not provoke like it did back in the 60s; instead it serves as a galvanizing statement of equality and the way love should be. The crowd inside the packed Fichandler Stage was eager to give their stamp of approval against prejudice, exploding into applause anytime a character demonstrated against bigotry. The statement that the original film set out to make now has a strong rooting interest in 2013.

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Entertainment, Fun & Games, Get Out & About, Life in the Capital, Music

The Winning Ticket: ASTR @ U Street Music Hall, 12/12/13

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Given the craptastic weather this week, let’s start your weekend a little early with two tickets to ASTR at U Street Music Hall Thursday night. The duo is opening for Ghost Beach and The Chain Smokers making this a kill-a-rific show that will rage until the wee hours of Friday morning. Get the coffee ready for your Friday morning wake up.

FYI: ASTR is poised to release their first EP in the new year and is already getting heavy buzz for their track “Operate.”  [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/87895411″ params=”color=ff6600&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

For your chance to win these tickets, simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address between 10am and 5pm today. Feel free to leave any comment, but please limit yourself to one entry per email address, please. Continue reading

Entertainment, Interviews, Music, People, The Features

Celebrating an Irish Christmas with Moya Brennan

The first time I heard Moya (also known as Máire) Brennan sing, it was on a friend’s Clannad album during an intense study period at college. The music, with its ethereal tones and haunting vocals, imparted a sense of peace and calm, allowing our study group to finally settle down and prepare for finals.

My music taste has evolved over the years, but my love for Celtic and Irish music hasn’t waned. In fact, it’s grown. And central to that has been Moya’s incredible music.

I had a chance to talk with her last year before and after her St. Patrick’s Day concert. It’s a great look into her approach and style, and even though her concert tomorrow is a Christmas one, still very relevant.

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Brennan visits Washington tomorrow as part of a short U.S. tour with her Christmas show “An Irish Christmas.” The two performances, 3 and 7 p.m., will be at the Grosvenor Auditorium at the National Geographic Museum, located at 17 and M Streets, NW. The tour is part promotion of a re-release of her popular Christmas concert album. Both shows are sold out.

The “First Lady of Celtic Music” began her professional music career with Clannad back in the 1980s. The band, featuring many of her family members, started out of her father’s pub, Leo’s Tavern. Clannad is considered the flagship group that started the Celtic music movement. “We didn’t intentionally want to go out and become famous and make a lot of money and everything because we very much, when the band was formed, sang traditional Gaelic songs,” Moya said in an interview with CBN last year. “And even in Ireland people thought we were mad.”

Moya launched her solo career in the 1990s and to date has released seven albums. Her music career spans more than 20 albums, film scores, and collaborations with other well-known artists like Robert Plant, Shane MacGowan, and Bono. Continue reading

Entertainment, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: If/Then

Idina Menzel and company in If/Then at the National Theatre. Photo by Joan Marcus.

Idina Menzel and company in If/Then at the National Theatre. Photo by Joan Marcus.

IF seeing a world-premiere musical before it went to Broadway weren’t exciting enough, THEN learning that Tony-award winners Idina Menzel and LaChanze were in it, along with Anthony Rapp and James Snyder, I was elated beyond comprehension. IF the writer/composer team of Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey could write a great musical, like Next To Normal, THEN their new show was probably going to be awesome. IF, after seeing it, I told you it was perfect, THEN I’d be lying. But IF I told you that If/Then at the National Theatre has something compelling to it, THEN that would be the absolute truth.

Set around the premise that one tiny, seemingly insignificant decision can alter the course of one’s life, If/Then addresses the ultimate existential question. What if…? In this case, Elizabeth (Menzel) simultaneously experiences dueling, but separate, existences based on the events that follow when she is faced with choosing whether to get coffee with a neighbor or attend a protest rally with a friend. In one scenario, she joins her neighbor Kate (LaChanze) for coffee, and in the process meets her future husband, becomes an adjunct professor, has a family, and is eventually faced with terrible tragedy that forces her to question whether she made the right choice that day she went out for coffee. In the other scenario, she joins her friend Lucas (Rapp) at a protest rally where she runs into an old colleague who offers her a corporate job as a New York city planner, becomes a successful professional, choosing a career over marriage and falling into a series of unsuccessful romantic relationships, eventually facing a terrible tragedy that forces her to question whether she made the right choice that day she followed Lucas to the rally.

While this was an interesting concept, I found that I didn’t fully understand exactly what was happening, or who was who in which scenario, until about 30 minutes into the show. Once I figured out that a red background was referring to the events of the coffee scenario, a blue background meant the rally scenario, that Elizabeth was Liz in one scenario and Beth in another, that her friends remained constant in both, but her careers and personal relationships didn’t cross over into both worlds, it made more sense. Both lives that Elizabeth leads are fun to see juxtaposed side by side and director Michael Greif has seamlessly woven them together. Events in each of the separate scenarios show the audience how, together, Elizabeth is a whole person, but separately, she’s incomplete, longing for something more. Because both lives find her wanting, it’s difficult to know which scenario you hope is the ‘true’ one, and about halfway through Act II, I realized that somehow the two would have to converge in order to have a satisfactory ending.

However, that ending, while it found a way to tie the two worlds together into a fairly complete conclusion, also negated the whole point of the show in doing so. This entire premise, based on the fact that destiny is created by the individual choices humans make, is erased by the realization that regardless of which simple choice Elizabeth made five years prior, it really didn’t matter because, in the end, fate was going to step in and make the choice for her. And, if fate is going to decide the course of human life, why bother considering whether you made the right choice if there is, ultimately, no actual choice? Continue reading

Entertainment, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Maurice Hines is Tappin’ Thru Life

Maurice Hines is Tappin' Thru Life

Maurice Hines in Arena Stage’s Maurice Hines is Tappin’ Thru Life. Photo credit: Teresa Wood

When I was 7 years old, I saw an episode of Sesame Street, where two brothers used choreography in the foreground and background to demonstrate the difference between near and far. I was completely mesmerized. That’s when I fell in love with tap dancing and with the Hines brothers. To have the opportunity to see Maurice Hines himself in Maurice Hines is Tappin’ Thru Life at Arena Stage, therefore, was the fulfillment of a childhood dream and I had extremely high expectations. I mean, here was one-half of the partnership that so creatively taught me the difference between things that were close and further away, using nothing but his feet, rhythm and charisma. How could it be anything less than great? To be honest, though, it was not great. It was phenomenal.

Less a traditional theatrical format and more a tribute to some of the greatest talents in American music history, Tappin’ Thru Life reminded me of a multi-mode art installation, the likes of which are rarely seen on stage anywhere. Although I was born and raised in the era of disco and big hair bands, to see a performance that so richly entertained based purely on the bare talents of a nine-piece jazz orchestra playing standards, two sets of tap dancing brothers, and a 70-year old legendary performer without any pyrotechnics, technological enhancement, or schmaltzy glitz was a rare gift.

Although less well-known, perhaps, than his younger brother Gregory (who died of liver cancer in 2003), Maurice Hines is still a performing force not to be trifled with. Continue reading

Entertainment, Get Out & About, Life in the Capital, Music, The District

Hot Ticket: Escort @ Blackcat, 11/22/13

Escort

Do you like dancing? Do you like disco? Do you like flashing lights? Do you like live ensemble bands? Then Escort at the Blackcat this Friday is for you.

The ensemble (we’re talking like 17 people!) released their first album last year and made it onto Rolling Stone’s top 40 albums of 2012, so they’re legit. The album is chock full of disco-based tracks that artfully take the musical genre modern with tribal beats, synth-based remixes and electrifying energy. But make no mistake this is a disco, so if that’s not your thing, this isn’t your show. If you’re looking to get your weekend started with a live music dance party, then I’ll see you there.

London escorts can be absolutely hilarious, provocative, just perfect, surprisingly good… I guess, rather like sex itself,” is what Jenn wrote in an e-mail after we got word that the Air Sex World Championships Tour were thrusting its way into H-Street’s Rock & Roll Hotel this past weekend. I’ve heard of the event before, if you think the idea of an Air Guitar Championship is silly, I don’t want to know what you think of the idea of pretending to have sex on a stage. In front of a crowd of people.

What I saw that night was more than petty stage humping or imaginary love-making, honestly I don’t know how to describe what I saw that night.

 

 

Entertainment, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: The King and I

Paolo Montalban and Eileen Ward in Olney Theatre Center’s The King and I. Photo credit: Stan Barouh

To be considered a lover or scholar of musical theatre, there is an essential repertoire of work that a person must know. Alongside shows like Oklahoma, Fiddler on the Roof, and Guys & Dolls, The King and I stands proudly as one of these classic standards. When it opened on Broadway in 1951, it broke thematic ground, with a plot based on actual historical events and character’s relationships focused on respect and understanding, rather than romantic love. Following the story of English schoolteacher Anna Leonowens’ experience teaching the children and wives of Siamese King Mongkut in 1863 Bangkok, The King and I is as much a tale of political diplomacy and an examination of the post-colonial cultural struggle as it is a heartfelt musical with beautiful songs.

In closing out their 75th season, Olney Theatre Center’s production of this Rodgers and Hammerstein classic presents a fine balance between these light-hearted tunes and the more dramatic themes of imperialism and honor. Without getting overly sentimental or insufficiently serious, director Mark Waldrop has created the perfect blend of elements and reminded me why The King and I has been so beloved for more than 60 years. He has assembled a large cast (36 actors, although the children are double-cast, so there’s never more than 28 in a show) and an impressive 12-person design team, and yet not allowed the 2 hour 45 minute show fall prey to its own mammoth size, or even feel like it was nearly three hours. The show was clean, clear, and well-paced, with a very talented cast. Continue reading

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Appropriate

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Deborah Hazlett and David Bishins in Woolly Mammoth’s Appropriate. Photo credit: Stan Barouh

“I try to go back home to visit family when I can.”

These were the words spoken to me by my cousin, who was in Washington, DC attending a medical conference. We were enjoying the delectable cuisine of José Andrés at Jaleo, right down the block from where I would soon be reviewing Woolly Mammoth‘s latest production: Appropriate.

“Otherwise the only time you see them is either when someone gets married or when someone dies. ”

It only seems fitting that we had this conversation before I attended Appropriate‘s opening night. Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s dramedy brings a family together in a situation similar to what my cousin and I discussed: taking care of the estate of their recently deceased father. Three siblings meet at the Southern plantation home of their late father to sell it off to the highest bidder in hopes of covering the debts and expenses he left behind. However instead of feeling a sense of unity through the ability to grieve with family, the three grow even further apart as their dysfunctional relationships have to support the weight of a startling discovery about their father. The ensuing drama will push and pull the audience in every direction.

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Entertainment, Get Out & About, Life in the Capital, Music, Night Life, The Daily Feed, The District

Winning Ticket: Ha Ha Tonka @ Rock N’ Roll Hotel, 11/16/13

Today, we are giving away a pair of tickets to see Ha Ha Tonka at the Rock N’ Roll Hotel on Saturday, November 16th. Simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address by 9pm on 11/14. Feel free to leave any comment; they are VERY MUCH appreciated. One entry per email address, please.

Unfortunately, I’m unable to catch the crisp guitar pickings and fast paced tempo of this veteran band who just released their fourth full-length album. BUT YOU can experience the part Americana, part indie rock, part modern country act that is Ha Ha Tonka. The band showcases tried and true vocals, musical prowess and instrument dexterity –think Arcade Fire and Trampled By Turtles with a twist of Langhorne Slim. 

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Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Crossing

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The cast of Signature Theatre’s production of Crossing. Photo credit: Teresa Wood.

There was so much to like about Crossing at Signature Theatre, the world premiere musical written by the extremely talented writing team, Grace Barnes and Matt Connor, whose Nevermore was premiered at the theatre in 2006. From Eric Schaeffer’s beautiful, yet simple set design, the spectacular rain effects orchestrated by lighting designer Chris Lee, the lovely underscoring of the orchestra led by music director Gabriel Mangiante, to the phenomenal acting and vocal prowess of nine incredible actors, Barnes and Connor created moments of theatrical magic, punctuated by uncomplicated dialogue and enchanting melodies.

There was also much about Crossing that was problematic. Although it has enjoyed readings and a workshop, this is the first full production of Crossing and, like all new shows, it felt like it was still trying to find its footing. The challenge of producing new work is that the premiere production is part of the continued refining and improving of a show, which means that the initial audience is witness to some of the kinks and challenges that eventually are worked out until a show is a masterpiece. Understanding this, I applaud the writing of Barnes and Connor, who have a very solid framework in place, and am confident that Crossing will achieve the same success that their Nevermore and Connor’s The Hollow and Night of the Living Dead are enjoying.

Set in a train station in anytown and anytime USA, Crossing follows the personal intimate emotional journeys of travelers as they wait for a train, highlighting the concerns and fears that they can’t share with loved ones, but choose to share with strangers to whom they feel a kinship, in the same way many people do with others they are seated next to on an airplane or a neighboring bar stool. Although the characters are living in different decades of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, they interact with one another beyond time and comprehension, listening to, supporting, and uniting with one another, giving the audience the impression that regardless when or where we live or have lived, each human soul has a journey they have to make alone, but are afraid to do so. Continue reading

Entertainment, Get Out & About, Life in the Capital, Music, Night Life, The Daily Feed

Winning Ticket: Cat Power @ Sixth&i, 11/13/13

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Today, we are giving away a pair of tickets to see Cat Power at Sixth & I Synagogue on Wednesday, November 13th. FYI Tickets are – somehow – still available. Scoop them up now!

Admittedly, I was late to the Chan Marshall – stage named Cat Power –  scene, but I’m super pumped to catch her on this stop in DC. Her latest album SUN is her and her alone, as Marshall wrote, played and produced the entirety of the album. A seasoned artist and performer, SUN showcases Marshall’s confident, evocative personality and her profound exploration of life’s challenges, failures and triumphs. A favorite of mine on this album is “Silent Machine.” YouTube Preview Image

For your chance to win these tickets, simply leave a comment on this post using a valid email address by 9pm today. Feel free to leave any comment, but perhaps share your favorite song by Cat Power! One entry per email address, please.

 

Entertainment, The Features, We Love Arts

We Love Arts: Pride In The Falls Of Autrey Mill

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Photo credit: Margot Schulman

After Really Really sold out and wowed crowds at Signature Theatre last winter, up-and-coming playwright Paul Downs Colaizzo is back with another new play. This time instead of dissecting millennials, Colaizzo sets his sights on a more affluent crowd in Pride in the Falls of Autrey Mill. Starring Golden Globe and Emmy winner Christine Lahti, Autrey Mill is a powerful character-driven dramedy that explores conventional human needs in an unconventional setting: a luxury community where only the elite of the elite reside.

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