Name: Cotter Interactive
Price range: $

Adrian Lester in 'Red Velvet': little-known theatrical history. (Photo by Tristram Kenton)

'Red Velvet' and 'Raisin in the Sun'

Black in a white world

From a London theater in the 1830s to a Chicago tenement in the 1950s, a black man’s struggle in a white man’s world is being eloquently portrayed on the New York stages this season.

Carol Rocamora

Apr 14, 2014 Articles 6 minute read

'The Light in the Piazza' at Villanova Theatre

The American musical has become a revival show, but the Villanova Theatre’s production of the 2005 Broadway succès d’estime, The Light in the Piazza, tries valiantly to make a case for it as forging a new direction. I’ll still take "Mack the Knife."

Robert Zaller

Apr 10, 2014 Articles 3 minute read

This picture is the work of 90 amateur artists, each of whom was given a section of the original to copy. (photo © Deirdre O'Neill; Creative Commons)

Why Shakespeare? Why now?

Shakespeare-lovers are enjoying a plethora of productions in honor of the Bard's 450th birthday.

Carol Rocamora

Apr 07, 2014 Articles 5 minute read

"Three Sisters": Olga (Sarah Sanford), Irina (Mary Tuomanen), and Masha (Katharine Powell) long for better lives. (Photo by Mark Garvin)

'Three Sisters' at the Arden (2nd review)

A leisurely entry into a leisurely world

This is the real thing, as opposed to the Durang comedy that trades on Chekovian names. It’s a realistic and compelling look at the Russia of 1900, despite — or because of? — some changes in staging and text.

Steve Cohen

Apr 07, 2014 Articles 3 minute read

Durang's 'Vanya and Sonia' by PTC (2nd review)

Relying on outsiders

An homage of sorts to Chekhov is on stage at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre while the real Chekhov is across town at the Arden. The resemblances are slight.

Steve Cohen

Apr 07, 2014 Articles 3 minute read

Actress Rebecca Gibel joined both the audience and the cast outside the Arden Theatre when the fire alarm went off. (Photo by Naomi Orwin)

'Three Sisters' at the Arden

Taking it to the streets

We’re so used to immersive theater experiences that when the fire on stage sets off a real fire alarm, we think it’s just part of the performance. The audience for Three Sisters at the Arden Theatre had a hard time detaching themselves from the show, accepting that they had been driven out into a cold Russian night.

Naomi Orwin

Apr 03, 2014 Articles 4 minute read

What about the women? (Yvette Ganier, Keith J. Conallen, Sarah Gliko, Hannah Gold, Melanye Finister; photo by Alexander Iziliaev)

'Don Juan Comes Home from Iraq' at the Wilma (3rd review)

A wounded hero and the fierceness of his victims

Don Juan Comes Home from Iraq is as much about sexual abuse as it is about the wounded veteran. Why aren’t we talking about that?

Naomi Orwin

Apr 01, 2014 Articles 5 minute read

Grodin, Udine: A noticeable lack of chemistry. (Photo by Matthew Murphy)

'Phantom of the Opera' at the Academy of Music

Reimagining Phantom

A new production of The Phantom of the Opera, designed to be taken on the road, has been bankrolled by the wealthy man who mounted the original version a quarter-century ago.

Steve Cohen

Mar 31, 2014 Articles 3 minute read