Theater

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McCann, Lynch: Shipwrecked by the global economy.

Enda Walsh's "Bedbound,' by Inis Nua Theatre

Death of an Irish salesman

Ireland is no longer poverty-stricken, but you wouldn't know it from the current crop of pessimistic Irish playwrights. Witness Enda Walsh's allegorical Bedbound as the latest example.
Jim Rutter

Jim Rutter

Articles 3 minute read
Renninger, Felder: Troubling.

Neil LaBute's "Fat Pig' by Theatre Horizon

Size matters

Neil LaBute's Fat Pig— a commentary about prejudice against those who are different, especially the overweight— is a daring choice for a small suburban company. Its callous characters are difficult to watch but also difficult to turn away from.
Steve Cohen

Steve Cohen

Articles 2 minute read
McCarty (as Bush), Schmitz: Satire, or dead-on imitation? (Photo: Seth Rozin.)

Lee Blessing's "When We Go Upon the Sea'

Europe's ghosts, and ours: George W. Bush on trial

Lee Blessing's new play, When We Go Upon the Sea, imagines George W. Bush in a place liberals would love to see him: awaiting trial as a war criminal in The Hague. Blessing has plenty of fun with “George,” as he calls him, but he points a darker finger at the rest of us, Americans and Europeans alike.
Robert Zaller

Robert Zaller

Articles 7 minute read
Who cares about the story?

"The 39 Steps' in Wilmington

Hitchcock goes slapstick

Patrick Barlow's The 39 Steps is an entertaining spoof of the Hitchcock genre, using a series of clever slapstick stunts in place of the master's subtle wit.
Steve Cohen

Steve Cohen

Articles 1 minute read
Ditnes, Tomasetti: Overdose of protection. (Photo: Aaron Oster.)

Luna Theater's "Sick' at Walnut Studio 5

Clean up your room (but don't overdo it)

Zayd Dohrn's disturbingly intense and provocative play about parents who isolated their children from germs serves as an allegory about the benefit of exposure to alien ideas.
Jim Rutter

Jim Rutter

Articles 3 minute read
Bardeen, Schirner, Riopelle: Making love to wicker chairs. (Photo: Brett Thomas.)

"Travels With My Aunt' at Walnut's Studio 3

Graham Greene vindicated

Giles Havergal's stage adaptation is faithful to Graham Greene's mischievous comic novel about the travels of an amoral adventuress and her straitlaced nephew. But the real marvel however, is the cast— a perfectly synchronized quartet, each playing about 22 madcap roles with pitch-perfect precision.

Jane Biberman

Articles 3 minute read
Greer, Zielinski: A lesson for Mamet. (Photo: Jorge Cousineau.)

McPherson's "Shining City' by Theatre Exile (1st review)

That couldn't be me, could it?

Conor McPherson's haunting Shining City is a small, intensely involving, disquieting and thought provoking story about two lonely men trying to pull themselves together. Shining City. By Conor McPherson; directed by Matt Pfeiffer. Theatre Exile production through April 25, 2010 at Plays and Players Theatre, 1724 Delancey Pl. (215) 218-4022 or www.theatreexile.org.

Pamela Riley

Articles 3 minute read
Pryor: Fine king, terrific Falstaff. (Photo: Mark Garvin.)

Lantern Theater's "Henry IV, Part I' (1st review)

O to be a king (whose nobles are itching for a fight)

Shakespeare's Henriad— the history plays that span the reigns of Henry IV and Henry VI— are hard to stage and rarely performed. They're especially challenging in the confines of the Lantern Theater's cramped space, with multiple roles being played by all cast members save one. Charles McMahon's production brings off the first of these plays with kaleidoscopic vigor and intensity, abetted by brilliant staging.
Robert Zaller

Robert Zaller

Articles 7 minute read
Neuwirth, Lane: Are we shocked yet?

"The Addams Family' in New York

Charles Addams without teeth

The macabre incisiveness of The New Yorker's legendary cartoonist Charles Addams is betrayed in this middle-of-the-road, feel-good musical that merely tips its hat to weirdness. The Addams Family. Lyrics and music by Andrew Lippa; book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice; directed and designed by Phelim McDermott and Julian Crouch. At the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, 205 West 46th St., New York. (212) 307-4100 or (800) 755-4000 or www.ticketmaster.com.
Toby Zinman

Toby Zinman

Articles 4 minute read
Turner: Up from 'Body Heat.' (Photo: Mark Garvin.)

"Red Hot Patriot': Kathleen Turner as Molly Ivins (3rd review)

News from Planet Texas

Kathleen Turner does a star turn in Red Hot Patriot, a one-woman show about the maverick journalist and political iconoclast Molly Ivins. A more focused script would have served Molly better, but she's welcome back.
Robert Zaller

Robert Zaller

Articles 3 minute read