DC digest™

“All the world's a stage, and most of us are desperately unrehearsed.” --Irish playwright Sean O'Casey

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A Pulitzer Prize Finalist and one of the New York Times top 10 plays of 2012, Lisa D’Amour’s Detroit is an explosive dark comedy that brilliantly captures our economic moment.

Recently laid off, Ben starts an e-business from his suburban home while his wife, Mary, keeps up with the Joneses. But when mysterious new neighbors Sharon and Kenny arrive, the façade of their upwardly mobile lives begins to crack. Soon they find themselves increasingly pulled towards their wild new friends—to incendiary effect.

Ecstatic and dangerously funny, Detroit rips up the floorboards to reveal the racing heart under a crumbling suburban dream.

Click here to purchase tickets.

PRAISE FOR DETROIT

“INCISIVE, FUNNY, and DISTURBING comedy-drama”

The New York Times

“A friendly suburban barbecue

spirals into a DELIRIOUS DANGEROUS BACCHANAL

in the superb play Detroit, by Lisa D’Amour”

The New York Times

“Ms. D’Amour’s play,

BOTH DISTURBING AND BRACINGLY FUNNY,

kicks things off with a promising burst of fireworks”

The New York Times

“Musical, JUICY, idea-packed”

Time Out New York

“A FINE AND SPECTACULARLY TIMELY new play”

Chicago Tribune

“A very PROVOCATIVE SNAPSHOT of this perilous moment”

Chicago Tribune

HOWARD SAYS…

“Detroit brilliantly defines our current American moment. A rollercoaster entertainment, the play taps comically yet powerfully into our anxiety about clinging to whatever economic rung we’ve got a hold of—at a time when the shell of our civilization seems to be crumbling around us. Fundamentally, Detroit is a play about neighbors, two couples who live next door to one another in an inner-ring suburb that could be outside any major American city. One couple is trying to move up, the other is clearly on the way down—but their growing friendship leads to both hilarious liberation and shocking collapse for all, revealing the thin line that separates sophisticated men and women from dangerous drunken beasts.”

-Howard Shalwitz,

Artistic Director, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

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‘Full Bloom’ at Arcturus Theater Company

Posted on August 17, 2013 by Marlene Hall

http://www.dcmetrotheaterarts.com/2013/08/17/full-bloom-at-arcturus-theater-company-by-marlene-hall/

Arcturus Theater Company’s production of Suzanne Bradbeer’s Full Bloom is a story about a teenager, named Phoebe (Kyra Soleil) who is coming of age and whose life is paralleling the book Catcher in the Rye. Meanwhile her mom (Alison Bauer) is coping with a divorce and growing older. Her mom’s friends and neighbors are coping with growing older in a society that values attractiveness and youth Phoebe’s new friend Jesse (Noah Harrington) is coping with fitting into a new town where he has no friends.

Director Daniel Bumgardner has an exceptional group of actors to work with and he receives terrific performances from every member of his talented cast. Soleil does an excellent job conveying the fragility and confusion of being a young teenager. Alison Bauer who plays the mom, effortlessly conveys the pain and of confusion of coping with a divorce, trying to date again while dealing with a confused teenager. Christine Callsen, who plays the married neighbor Crystal Dawn, imbues lightness into the play as she tries to hold everyone together as they all go through life. The play is lush with symbolism, depth, and witticism. Peter Orvetti gives an impressive performance as Jim Giannini, a man struggling to deal with life changes. Noah Harrington did a great job as Jessie Williams, as an earnest young man trying to fit in.

Stephen Strosnider’s set is perfect for portraying a New York City apartment with a stoop and the piano is cleverly utilized to push the show along to the next show. Strosnider also provides the lighting design. Costume design is provided by Adalia Vera Tonneyck, and make-up by Christine Wasilewski.

If you are looking for a play that is deep and thoughtful, go see Full Bloom.

Running Time: 80 minutes, with a 15-minute intermission.

Full Bloom plays through August 24, 2013 at All Souls Episcopal Church - 2300 Cathedral Avenue NW , Washington, DC. Purchase tickets online, or by calling (571)-239-2871.

About Author Marlene Hall

Marlene Hall grew up an army brat and has lived all over the world and in Washington, DC. Since an early age, she has played sports including soccer, basketball, and swimming; receiving three letters in high school for sports participation. Marlene graduated from the University of Virginia where she wrote for the Cavalier Daily. Commissioned as an Air Force officer, she served in Korea, Germany, New Mexico, and Louisiana. Marlene earned two masters degrees while in the Air Force in Management and IO Psych. After leaving active duty, she has worked as a government contractor, freelance writer and public relations executive. Marlene dabbles in improvisational comedy and has taken classes at the famed iO Theater in Chicago. She is very active in the DC charity and social scene and contributes her time to DC Humane Society's Fashion for Paws. She also was a supernumerary in the Washington National Opera's Carmen with opera singer Denyce Graves. An extrovert at heart, she has never met a stranger. Marlene loves journalism, attending events, meeting people and making things happen. She lives by the motto, "The best way to predict your future, is to create it."

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Upcoming Theater Events and Pay-What-You-Can previews

Pay What You Can Roundup!

See Shows at Your Own Price

To kick off their tenth season, Forum Theatre announced their "Forum for All" campaign, where patrons will decide the price of tickets on a first-come, first-serve basis.

This system will be utilized for all shows of the company's 2013-2014 Season.

In addition to Forum, other theatres will be participating in pay what you can performances this weekend:

RORSCHACH THEATRE: Pay-What-You-Can previews 8/16 & 8/17 at 8pm, 8/19 at 3pm for Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. Tixs sold 1 hour before show at Atlas Performing Arts Center.

ROUND HOUSE THEATRE: Pay-What-You-Can previews

Wednesday, August 21 at 7:30pm and Saturday, August 24 at 3pm for The Beauty Queen of Leenane by Martin McDonagh.

Tixs sold 1 hour before show, cash/exact change preferred, two per person.

THEATREWASHINGTON: Summer Hummer, a naughty & bawdy entertaining burlesque fundraiser to support "Taking Care of Our Own" fund for theatre artists & professionals with emergency needs.

Mon, 8/19 at 7pm & 9pm, tixs $35 & $75. More details below!

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FREE! Shakespeare Under the Stars at Olney Theatre Center

OLNEY, MD – July 8, 2013- America’s longest-running touring company National Players present Shakespeare’s hilarious comedy The Comedy of Errors July 18 through 21 at 8:00 pm on The Root Family Stage at Olney Theatre Center. These performances are part of Olney Theatre Center’s annual Free Summer Shakespeare program.

Take one set of identical twins separated since birth, add a second set as their servants, and throw them all into the same town for a single day and you have Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors. Confusion abounds and hilarity ensues as everyone in the town tries to figure out why these people are behaving so strangely today.

WHAT: National Players Tour 65 presents The Comedy of Errors for four free performances

WHEN: Thursday, July 18 at 8:00pm

Friday, July 19, 2012 at 8:00pm

Saturday, July 20, 2012 at 8:00pm

Sunday, July 21, 2012 at 8:00pm

WHERE: Olney Theatre Center

2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road

Olney, MD 20832

ADDITIONAL DETAILS: There is limited bleacher seating, so please bring a blanket or lawn chair. For additional information please visit the Olney Theatre Center’s website at www.olneytheatrecenter.org or call the Box Office at 301-924-3400.

About Olney Theatre Center

Olney Theatre Center, celebrating its 75^th Anniversary in 2013, is an award-winning, nonprofit, Equity theatre. Located just north of Washington, D.C. in arts-rich Montgomery County, Maryland, Olney Theatre Center offers a diverse array of professional productions year-round. Olney Theatre Center is situated on 14 acres in the heart of the beautiful Washington-Baltimore-Frederick "triangle," within easy access of all three cities. Olney Theatre Center is home to National Players, America's longest-running touring company, and led by Artistic Director Jason Loewith and Managing Director Amy Marshall. For more information please visit www.olneytheatre.org.

About National Players

Established in 1949 and based at Olney Theatre Center since 1953, National Players is America's longest-running touring company. Founded on the principle of working with communities that have limited access to live theatre, National Players is comprised of professional young actors who travel across the country each year performing three Shakespeare and classic plays in repertory. National Players also acts as an educational ambassador, teaching theatre-related courses to students of all ages and backgrounds. Though it travels thousands of miles and serves tens of thousands of people each year, National Players always comes home to Olney, Maryland. www.nationalplayers.org.

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WOOLLY MAMMOTH THEATRE COMPANY

ANNOUNCES PURCHASE OF PENN QUARTER HOME

ACQUISITION OF THEATER FACILITY CLOSES

ON COMPANY’S 8^th ANNIVERSARY AT 7^th AND D STREETS

(Washington, DC) Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company is thrilled to announce the May 2, 2013, purchase of its dynamic, 30,000 square foot facility, securing its future and rooting the theatre in the heart of downtown DC as a resource for artists and audiences in perpetuity.

The process of procuring this award-winning space began in 1998, when Woolly partnered with JPI Apartment Development LP on the winning bid to develop a city block-sized parcel, located in the Penn Quarter neighborhood, between 6^th and 7^th Streets and D and E Streets, NW. Designed by Esocoff and Associates, this mixed-use development was to include 428 residential units, retail, parking, and a state-of-the-art, 265-seat theatre space. The developers provided the theatre shell to Woolly Mammoth free-of-charge and the Company then completed a $9 million “Breaking New Ground” capital campaign to support the interior build-out and inhabitance costs.

After performing for 14 years in a 114-seat space located at Church and 14^th Streets, NW—and then a four-year period of homelessness, during which time the Company performed at the Kennedy Center and Theatre J—Woolly Mammoth moved into its new home in May 2005.

Designed by McInturff Architects in Bethesda, the new theatre doubled Woolly Mammoth’s seating capacity, quadrupled its square footage, and expanded the stage volume ten-fold. The theatre also won numerous awards for architecture and design, including a 2006 American Institute of Architects Honor Award for Interior Architecture and a 2006 United States Institute for Theatre Technology Honor Award.

The Company has thrived in this new location over the past eight seasons. In May of 2005, when the Company moved in, Woolly had a full-time staff of 13, an annual budget of $1.8 million, and presented 167 performances during the 2004-05 Season for 21,132 patrons. Today, just past its 8^th anniversary, Woolly employs 24 full-time staff members, has an annual budget of nearly $4 million, and presented 224 performances for 42,378 patrons during the 2011-12 Season.

The Company originally signed a lease agreement with the developers for $1/year in an arrangement set to expire in 2031. It had long been an ambition to own the space outright; and, in the summer of 2012, the owners approached Woolly Mammoth to negotiate a sale. The Company has secured highly-favorable financing while it works to fund the principal from municipal and foundation sources.

“This purchase represents the final chapter of a very successful journey that began nearly 15 years ago when we embarked on the search for a new theatre home,” says Woolly Managing Director Jeffrey Herrmann. “I want to thank the many Board members, individuals, foundations, corporations, and government agencies—especially the Council of the District of Columbia—who supported the original $9 million effort to develop this state-of-the-art facility. Woolly has flourished here ever since, with our budget and attendance more than doubling and our work receiving 103 Helen Hayes Awards nominations and 20 awards over this period of time. We look forward to continuing our trajectory as a unique resource for DC artists and audiences in the Penn Quarter neighborhood with this incredible new asset now on our balance sheet.”

“We are elated to lay down permanent roots in a state-of-the-art space that allows us to bring high-quality production value to cutting-edge new plays,” says Woolly Artistic Director Howard Shalwitz. “This latest achievement symbolically stakes Woolly’s place at the center of downtown DC and Washington’s cultural life.”

The building purchase will enable an even greater focus on “Free the Beast!,” an innovative $4 million fundraising campaign to support the production of 25 new plays over the next ten years. Conceived as a follow-on campaign to “Breaking New Ground,” this effort was designed to take the artistic work housed within Woolly’s award-winning facility to the next level.

Free the Beast! support for Woolly’s current production, Stupid Fucking Bird, included a completion commission for award-winning playwright Aaron Posner, funding for the composer of the original score, a one-week workshop at Lake George Theater Lab in upstate New York, and three readings at Woolly Mammoth.

ABOUT WOOLLY

Now at the end of its 33^rd Season with Stupid Fucking Bird by award-winning playwright Aaron Posner, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company continues to hold its place at the leading edge of American theatre. Acknowledged as “one of the most influential outposts for the best new American plays” (The Washington Post), and “known for its productions of innovative new plays” (The New York Times), Woolly Mammoth is a national leader in the development of new works, and one of the best known and most influential mid-sized theatres in America.

Woolly Mammoth’s upcoming Season 34, themed “America’s Tell-Tale Heart”, includes Lisa D’Amour’s Detroit (September 9–October 6, 2013), Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Appropriate (November 4–December 1, 2013), Jackie Sibblies Drury’s We Are Proud To Present… (February 10–March 9, 2014), Elevator Repair Service’s Arguendo (March 31–April 20, 2014), and Peter Sinn Nachtrieb’s The Totalitarians (June 2–29, 2014). Returning this holiday season are The Pajama Men, Shenoah Allen and Mark Chavez, with their newest show, Just the Two of Each of Us (Dec 10, 2013–Jan 5, 2014).

www.woollymammoth.net Facebook.com/woollymammothtc Twitter.com/woollymammothtc

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Pay-What-You-Can Performance on Saturday, February 9 at 3 p.m.

GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS

Round House Theatre (Bethesda)

On sale 1 hour prior to curtain, cash, 2 per person

Round House Theatre

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WHAT: The Castleton Festival, weekends 4 and 5: A Little Night Music and recitals. Complete schedule online

WHEN: July 13-15 and July 20- 22, 2012

WHERE: Performances are at the Castleton Festival Theatre, 7 Castleton Meadows Lane, Castleton, Virginia, and the nearby Theatre House at 633 Castleton View Road. Location: Rappahannock County, 65 miles southwest of Washington, D.C.

WHO: Legendary conductor, composer and violinist Maestro Lorin Maazel, stars of tomorrow, conductor Levi Hammer, violinist Jennifer Koh.

RSVP and Additional Information: If you need more information, please contact Laura Gross, at press@capitalfringe.org or 202-207-3645, c: 202-255-2054.

About Capital Fringe

Capital Fringe is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 2005 with the purpose of connecting exploratory artists with adventurous audiences by creating outlets and spaces for creative, cutting-edge, and contemporary performance in the District. Capital Fringe’s vital programs ensure the growth and continued health of the local and regional performing arts community by helping artists become independent producers while stimulating the vibrant cultural landscape in our city.

Funding for Capital Fringe is provided by: DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation, Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, Weissburg Foundation, Share Fund of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, Philip L. Graham Fund, MARPAT Foundation, PNC Bank, Douglas Development, Starbucks, The Washington Post Company and the Fringe Family of Donors.

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The Normal Heart at Arena Stage--phenomenal theater!

review by Evey Cherow

June, 2012 - This past Sunday I saw The Normal Heart --a brilliant and mind-blowing production by playwright Larry Kramer--founder of the Gay Men's Health Crisis AIDS service organization, and directed by George Wolfe, who's won many Tonys and Drama Desk awards for too numerous productions to name. The play chronicles the early days of the AIDs epidemic in NYC--the political realities, lack of research funding, the confluence of rights activism vs. fear of condemnation and 'outings', and the role of media--all are addressed through the relationships between and among the men and the woman dr treating them. A subtheme deals with the abrasive advocacy style of the protagonist--an angry Jewish journalist who alienates the Board of the organization he founded ...seemed all too familiar on many levels and brought up sad memories of dear friends lost in the early years of this horrific epidemic.

The Washington Post lauded this production in yesterday's Style section. If you haven't seen it --you may wish to book seats --and they're seeking more ushers for this run as it's gotten much attention.

The set as always is so powerful and the acting from cast members you'll recognize from Broadway and TV dramas --it blew me away...and it comes as a prelude to the International HIV/AIDS Conference in DC due to open in DC soon.

Evelyn Cherow, MA, MPA is CEO and Founder of GlobalPartnersUnited globalpartnersunited@gmail.com

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Memphis

review by Barbara Twigg

"Memphis," at the Kennedy Center through July 1, is a fun show, with lots of great voices, personalities, and dance numbers. Full of humor, largely built around the over-the-top white DJ who ventures into the black world of dynamic "race" music in Memphis, the production also touches on the powder keg racial situation of rigidly segregated, 1950's Tennessee. That's a difficult line to straddle, but "Memphis" handles it pretty deftly with musical triumphs mixed with both ugly and poignant racial encounters. I wasn't crazy about the ending, plot-wise, though it might have been drawn from real events and characters. But ending aside, there is much to enjoy in "Memphis" as a rollicking piece of Broadway musical energy that takes on a Southern culture slowly starting to change.

SYNOPSIS - From the underground dance clubs of 1950s Memphis, Tennessee, comes a hot new Broadway musical that bursts off the stage with explosive dancing, irresistible songs, and a thrilling tale of fame and forbidden love. Inspired by actual events, Memphis is about a white radio DJ who wants to change the world and a black club singer who is ready for her big break. Come along on their incredible journey to the ends of the airwaves--filled with laughter, soaring emotion, and roof-raising rock ‘n' roll. Winner of four 2010 Tony Awards^(r) including Best Musical, Memphis features a Tony^(r)-winning book by Joe DiPietro (I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change) and a Tony^(r)-winning original score with music by Bon Jovi founding member David Bryan. Directing is Tony^(r) nominee Christopher Ashley (Xanadu) and choreography is by Sergio Trujillo (Jersey Boys).

Performance Timing: Act I - 75 min.; Intermission - 20 min.; Act II - 55 min.

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Make Monday a ReDiscovery!

FREE ReDiscovery Reading: Emilia Galotti

By Gotthold Ephraim Lessing

Directed by Jenny Lord

Monday, June 4, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.

The Lansburgh Theatre

450 7th Street NW

Washington, DC 20004

Seats are limited; reserve your FREE tickets now!

Reserve Tickets - call 202.547.1122

No one can escape the beauty of Emilia Galotti. When a Prince is stricken by her perfection, he falls desperately in lust with her and decides to do anything in his power to have her, even though she’s engaged to the Count Appiani. Deceptions, power plays and heart-breaking realizations all lead to one of the most shocking endings in all of classical tragedy. Full of passion, sex and intrigue, this German classic explores big ideas—politics, religion, art—through the lens of human desire. Written in 1772, Lessing’s Emilia Galotti has most often been called an early example of the German bürgerliches Trauerspiel (bourgeois tragedy), but it’s really the first of that modern, provocative genre: the tragedy of sex.

This Monday, experience a reading from the series that sparked STC's mainstage productions of The Heir Apparent, The Liar, The Dog in the Manger, The Beaux' Stratagem, Lorenzaccio and more. Don't miss STC history in the making! Works for the ReDiscovery Series are chosen by Artistic Director Michael Kahn. Guest artists join members of the Washington theatrical community to investigate these great but lesser-known plays of world literature.

Seating is on a first-come basis. Reservations are required.

Reserve your tickets today!

Shakespeare Theatre Company

Washington DC

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Save $10 on tickets for Lonely Planet

Call MetroStage for tickets (Code: Friendship)

703-548-9044

(Performances Th and Fri at 8, Sat at 3 and 8, Sun 3 and 7 thru June 17)

A fascination with maps, absurdist flights of fantasy and surprising moments of humor create a world where friendship and fear collide. A brilliant, evocative award-winning play about the power of friendship in a world of potential terror and suffering. Dietz's love of maps and the absurdist world inhabited by Ionesco's masterpiece The Chairs, coupled with game playing, truth telling, and surprising moments of humor, creates a world where friendship and fear collide, and the compassion, empathy and commitment of Jody and Carl can resonate and survive.

What the Critics are Saying about Lonely Planet

“Russotto’s performance …packs an emotional wallop. And Sutton is delightful as the vexing, leather vest-wearing Carl whose sarcasm can belie his good-heartedness. Playful and fun…skilled director John Vreeke guides the actors in creating some glowing, touching moments. a glimpse of the gay community at its very best and the enduring value of friendship.” Washington Blade

"*****A roller coaster of emotions – sometimes quiet, sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, but always powerful, charming, and meaningful. It’s emotional, real, well-directed and performed. Producer Carolyn Griffin assembles a dream team for this production: Director John Vreeke and actors Michael Russotto and Eric Sutton...Russotto and Sutton are both fantastic.. MetroStage’s Lonely Planet is an entertaining, powerful, and heartfelt experience that should not be missed." DC Metro Theater Arts

“It is an intimate and darkly humorous portrait of universal love and loss and the methods we use to cope…memorable performances by Michael Russotto (Jody) and Eric Sutton (Carl) who create a believable bond in the face of unimaginable loss with ferocity, humor and fluidity.” Alexandria Times

“a warmhearted and memorable story of friendship featuring two outstanding acting performances.” DC Theatre Scene

”poignantly realized in the performances of Michael Russotto and Eric Sutton and under the expert direction of John Vreeke…Russotto and Sutton brilliantly sustain a verbal tug of war and create a powerful friendship …Sutton is a tornado of energy…perfectly cast…handsome set…piercing lighting…a haunting memorial to lives lost…with a superb cast and poignant message, “Lonely Planet” is a must-see…” Alexandria Gazette Packet

“haunting, powerful…sterling revival…finely detailed, emotionally nuanced performances” Washington Post

“a showcase of casting…tender and remarkably intimate performances” Talkin’ Broadway

“skillfully directed…a tour de force for Russotto and Sutton, both of whom describe their characters with sensitivity and humor.” Washington Examiner

“expertly written, deftly directed and performed with such tender nuances it remains as timely as ever.” Alexandrianews.com

“richly evocative…charming…both actors are superb…MetroStage is to be commended” MetroWeekly

MetroStage

1201 N. Royal Street

Alexandria, VA 22314

www.metrostage.org

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Mr. Burns, a post-electric play

Pay-What-You-Can performances on Monday, May 28th and Tuesday, May 29th at 8pm.

Sunday, June 17th at 7pm will be a Cheap Date Night performance: all tickets $20.

Armageddon has struck and the grid is down: no TV, no radio, no internet—how will life go on? For one group of tenacious survivors, sitting around a fire and reminiscing about The Simpsons proves to be the greatest escape from despair. Miraculously, from their collective memories, a new industry struggles to be born: a crude theatrical re-creation of the digital culture we can’t possibly live without.

From The Simpsons to the pop hits of the last ten years, Mr. Burns, a post-electric play is a rocking, rollicking, scary good time that leaves you questioning how you’d make sense of the world if all your gizmos were gone.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Mr. Burns, a post-electric play runs May 28–July 1; Wednesdays–Fridays at 8pm, Saturdays at 3pm and 8pm, and Sundays at 2pm and 7pm. *Sunday, June 3rd no 2pm performance. There will be Pay-What-You-Can performances on Monday, May 28th and Tuesday, May 29th at 8pm. Sunday, June 17th at 7pm will be a Cheap Date Night performance: all tickets $20.

TICKETS

Tickets for Mr. Burns, a post-electric play start at $35 and can be purchased through the Woolly Mammoth Box Office at 202-393-3939, online at www.woollymammoth.net, or in person at the Box Office located at 641 D Street, NW (7th & D). For directions and parking information, please visit www.woollymammoth.net.

ABOUT WOOLLY

Now in its 32nd Season, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company continues to hold its place at the leading edge of American theatre. Acknowledged as “the hottest theatre company in town” (The Washington Post), “known for its productions of innovative new plays” (The New York Times), Woolly Mammoth is a national leader in the development of new plays, and one of the best known and most influential mid-sized theatres in America.

Woolly’s 32nd Season features five works that relate to the question, “Does our civilization have an expiration date?” They include Samuel D. Hunter’s A Bright New Boise (Oct 10-Nov 13), The Second City’s Spoiler Alert: Everybody Dies (Dec 6-Jan 8), Jason Grote’s Civilization (all you can eat) (Feb 13-Mar 11), Joey Arias and Basil Twist’s Arias with a Twist (Apr 4-May 6), and Anne Washburn’s Mr. Burns, a post-electric play (May 28-July 1).

www.woollymammoth.net

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company

641 D Street, NW

Washington, DC 20004

Box Office: 202-393-3939

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$25 Preview Tickets This Weekend Only

Lonely Planet

Steven Dietz's award-winning play, thru June 17

at MetroStage

Directed by John Vreeke

Featuring Eric Sutton & Michael Russotto

A fascination with maps, absurdist flights of fantasy and surprising moments of humor create a world where friendship and fear collide.

A brilliant, evocative award-winning play about the power of friendship in a world of potential terror and suffering. Dietz's love of maps and the absurdist world inhabited by Ionesco's masterpiece The Chairs, coupled with game playing, truth telling, and surprising moments of humor, creates a world where friendship and fear collide, and the compassion, empathy and commitment of Jody and Carl can resonate and survive.

$25 Preview Price This Weekend Only (Code: Preview)

Runs Thru June 17

Thurs & Fri at 8pm

Saturdays at 3pm & 8pm

Sundays at 3pm & 7pm

Tickets $45 - $50

Call 703-548-9044 or 800-494-8497 for tickets NOW

MetroStage

1201 N. Royal Street

Alexandria, VA 22314

www.metrostage.org

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PayWhatYouCan Tonight at MetroStage

Thursday, May 10 at 8:00 p.m.

The stunning award-winning play Lonely Planet opens at MetroStage tonight

Featuring the amazing Michael Russotto and the return to DC of the great Eric Sutton

Directed by a favorite director John Vreeke

A must see. This is your chance to see a remarkable play for the best possible price. Come tonight –box office opens at 7—and we can promise you a memorable evening at the theatre. You have my word. --Carolyn Griffin, Producing Artistic Director

A Note from the Director

Why do Lonely Planet again, almost 20 years after it was written and 25 years since the onset of the AIDS crisis? Because the devastation in the 1980’s to the gay communities was horrendous. Because HIV positive diagnosis was a death sentence. Because although AIDS research and the success of pharmacology have managed to keep the statistics of death by HIV down, HIV/AIDS is still ever present and we must always be vigilant, with ourselves, with our friends…and because friendship and love remain unchanged. This play asks: What is our legacy to this world? Steven Dietz’s poetic story of friendship defines an era of gay relationships and remains a timeless, universal story. --John Vreeke

MetroStage

1201 N. Royal St.

Alexandria, VA 22314

Call 703-548-9044/ www.metrostage.org

Free parking

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Strange Interlude

Theater Review by Barbara Twigg

Eugene O'Neill's "Strange Interlude" is a challenging evening by its very length: it was over at 11:15 p.m., tough for a school night. early on, it seemed a little dated, but as the play unfolded, it drew the audience in. The play spans two decades, as the charismatic and challenging Nina toys with the three men in her life: husband, lover, and loyal, adoring friend. Throughout the often humorous play, the characters speak their private thoughts to the audience, as their interwoven lives permit our eavesdropping. By the end, it proved a very satisfying evening of theater, an evolution of plot and character over time. Indeed, near the conclusion, Nina herself quotes the title of the play, describing the previous often chaotic years as a "strange interlude." It's a play one needs to see till the end to secure its rewards.

Synopsis: Shakespeare Theater Company Artistic Director Michael Kahn directs Eugene O’Neill’s Pulitzer Prize-winning, yet controversial, drama about love and deception. Heartbroken over her adored fiancé’s death, Nina engages in a series of sordid affairs before agreeing to marry a man she does not love. Months later, pregnant with her husband’s child, she learns a horrifying secret about his family, setting off a dramatic and emotional chain of events across two decades. One of O’Neill’s early plays, Strange Interlude was hailed as revolutionary, shocked 1928 audiences – and became a smash hit.

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Pay What You Can performance on Wed, April 4, at 8pm

(Box Office opens one hour before the show. $10 minimum.)

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Pay What You Can Performance on Monday, March 5 at 7:00 p.m.

Rodgers & Hammerstein's follow-up to "Oklahoma!" (1943) was the musical "Carousel" (1945), inspired by a play called "Liliom", written in 1909 by Ferenc Molnár.

At 7:00 p.m. on Monday, March 5, the Washington Stage Guild will offer a rare reading of "Liliom"--pay what you can performance --

in the Mt. Vernon Place United Methodist Church's Undercroft Theatre, 900 Massachusetts Ave., NW.

For more information go to www.stageguild.org or call (240) 582-0050.

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Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte at Kennedy Center through March 15

review by Barbara Twigg

Although Washington Post critic Ann Midgette found much to criticize in this production, my three friends and I who saw the opening night performance enjoyed it thoroughly. Yes, we are not highly experienced opera buffs, but this Cosi Fan Tutte staged in modern dress by the Washington National Opera, complete with the occasional cell phone on stage, mined the humor of the opera with great flair. Though glorious music issuing from blue jeans and biker jackets might be jarring to some, it captured the spirit of an opera that was written to be a silly comedy. Having seen soprano Elizabeth Futral in the tragic role of Lucia di Lammermoor madness at the Met, it was great to see her having such fun in this. I think Mozart would have loved it.

SYNOPSIS: In Mozart's game of love and seduction, two young men wager that their fiancées will remain faithful, even when tempted. To prove it, they decide to do the tempting themselves. Acclaimed director Jonathan Miller's modern-dress production, "a compelling piece of music theatre, wonderful in its delineation of Mozart's mix of comedy and psychological pain" (The Guardian), captures the essence of Washington, DC, with a stunning ensemble including Elizabeth Futral, Renata Pokupic, Joel Prieto, Teddy Tahu Rhodes, William Shimell, and Christine Brandes. WNO Music Director Philippe Auguin conducts Mozart's score, packed with biting comedy and poignant beauty.

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PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN performance Thursday, February 16

The Water Engine by David Mamet

Come fire up The Water Engine by David Mamet on Thu 2/16 @ 7:30 PM. This first performance is PWYC at the door. Spooky Action Theater's production runs Thu - Sat @ 7:30 PM, Sun @ 2 PM thru Mar 11.

Mamet's story of a transforming invention and the dark forces bent to suppress it starts as a radio drama, but characters quickly materialize and take over the stage. Originally written for NPR, there is NO BAD LANGUAGE!! Kids 11 and up are welcome.

Directed by Richard Henrich with: Ian LeValley, Scott Seder, Mary Egan, John Brady, David Coyne, Max Jackson, T. Griffin Jones, Hilary Kacser, Noah Mitchel, Laura Rocklyn, Baakari Wilder and Chuck Young.

Spooky Action Theater at The Universalist National Memorial Church, 1810 16th St NW, Washington, DC 20009 (corner of S St, entrance at the rear of the building). Visit www.spookyaction.org to buy tickets, or phone (202)248-0301 for reservations and info. Tickets $20 - $25, with special deals for students, actors and seniors.

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Monday, February 13: Pay-What-You-Can performance

Civilization (All You Can Eat)

THEATER: Woolly Mammoth's new show Civilization (All You Can Eat) opens tonight. Of particular interest to our food & wine-loving readers: the satire explores the relationship between food and modern society. Tickets for tonight's pay-what-you-can performance are available at the box office starting at 6 P.M. for an 8 P.M. show. Tickets for other performances (starting at $30) can be purchased through the theater's website. The show runs through March 11.

What do a corporate lecturer, a career waitress, and an anthropomorphic pig all have in common?

They are all characters in the world premiere of Civilization (all you can eat), a vaudevillian romp of corruption, consumption, and enterprise at the dawn of the Obama age. Unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, this absurdist satire takes you through the world of six hungry city-dwellers, burning with ambition and a desire to “make it”. But at what cost? Sarah Marshall stars as Big Hog, the ultimate capitalist underdog, along with Danny Escobar, Naomi Jacobson, and an award-winning Washington cast.

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Pay What You Can performance Wednesday, February 8 was cancelled!!!

Instead, a limited number of $10 tickets are offered for

Thursday Feb. 9, Friday February 10 or Sunday, February 12

available at the Box Office starting at 5 p.m.

Mention that you had planned to attend the PWYC performance and you get the $10 tickets.

Genesis Reboot

February 9-March 4

8:00 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays, Wednesdays

2:00 p.m. Sundays

Synetic Theater

1800 S. Bell Street

Arlington, VA

(800) 494-8497

Regular Price: $45-$55

Johnny Shryock/Synetic Theatre

Synetic Theater’s fresh take on the creation story. An angel and a demon discuss creation in this dark comedy.

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Josephine Tonight, a new musical about Josephine Baker is now open.

Some performances are already sold out.

Special Offer for Super Bowl Sunday

Feb. 5 at 7pm

Tickets $25 (Call 703-548-9044, CODE: Super Bowl)

For all of you who don’t know who is playing and don’t care!!!

See a great vibrant new musical at a great price.

(Free Super Bowl chips and dip at intermission)

Josephine Tonight runs thru Mar. 18. To reserve for future dates (before they sell out)

call 703-548-9044 or go online to www.metrostage.org

ALSO

On Tuesday Feb. 7, 6:30 and 8:30

Celebrate Mr. Dickens 200^th Birthday with Catherine Flye, Michael Tolaydo and Bob McDonald with piano accompaniment by Joel Ayau

Ms. Flye and Mr. Tolaydo, MetroStage favorites who have appeared on our stage many times---most notably in SeaMarksand The Real Inspector Hound, will provide vignettes taken from the novels, anecdotes, letters and personal recollections of Charles Dickens. They will be joined by baritone Bob McDonald who will sing songs from the Victorian age which were inspired by the novels and favored by Dickens.

Call 703-548-90-44 for tickets ($25)

All happening at MetroStage

1201 N. Royal St.

Alexandria, VA 22314

Free parking

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DCdigest highly recommends the hilarious "Two Gentlemen of Verona: A Rock Opera" w/music by Grammy Award-winning composer Galt MacDermont (Hair)

Jan 27-29 only - very limited engagement!

John Guare (Six Degrees of Separation) and Mel Shapiro's 1972 rock opera, Two Gentlemen of Verona, adds a spicy, funky twist to Shakespeare's work of the same name. The musical centers on the relationship between two friends, Proteus and Valentine, as they battle for the affections of the same woman. With music by Galt MacDermot, best known for his work composing the music for Hair, Two Gentlemen of Verona transforms and celebrates one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies of mistaken identity. Performances will run concurrent with STC's mainstage production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona.

Shakespeare Theatre Company site

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AMELIA

In a society where the oral tradition of storytelling seems long ago to have died away in favor of fast moving camera angles, active engaging music and computer generated graphics, the Washington Stage Guild’s production of Amelia brings back that dying art form. And it does so simply, effectively, and with nostalgia.

With virtually no backdrops and no stage props, this cast of only two effectively play the role of a mother and father, a suitor and a hardware store clerk, foot soldiers and army officers, a runaway slave and a prisoner all poised and interacting with a dominant, speak-your-mind type of woman who knows she is equal to the best man out there.

As an avid theatre-goer, I found it interesting that the general formula of theatre today, as we see so often in DC, and as thus we have come to expect, should be so effectively transplanted by what is much more of a story; whose stage on which it is played out, and whose single set costume, is not the focal point of the performance, but rather of minor support.

Do yourself a favor and see this performance; it will be time well spent.

-- Lou Guarino

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(Nearly) Free Theater in Olney

In January, Olney Theatre Center will present two pay-what-you-can

performances by the National Players: "Of Mice and Men" & "The Taming

of the Shrew," both on the Olney's Historic Stage at 7:30 p.m., "Of

Mice and Men" Tuesday, January 10th & "Taming of the Shrew" Wednesday,

January 11th. Seating is first come, first ticketed. The Olney sits

at 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, at the intersection of Doctor Bird

Road, between Georgia & New Hampshire Avenues, about 5 miles north of

Wheaton, MD. For more information visit the Olney Theatre Center's

website at www.olneytheatrecenter.org or call the Olney box office at

(301) 924-3400.

"Pay-what-you-can" means exactly that. It's nice if you can pay $5 or

$10 per ticket (or more), but there is no minimum. And even $10 is a

whole lot less than regular DC-area live-theater ticket prices. These

days it's even less than the price of a movie ticket.

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A Broadway Christmas Carol

by Donna Christenson

December 2011 - A delicious holiday treat, A Broadway Christmas Carol tells the classic Dickens' tale with uproarious parodies of your favorite Broadway show tunes. Don't miss it at MetroStage in Alexandria, VA now through December 18th.

If you enjoyed Musical of Musicals as much as I did, this show is for you! A legendary Washington tradition returns (seven straight sold-out seasons at Round House Theatre, last seen in 2004, and a great run at MetroStage last year) with an all star new cast.

Laugh out loud, roll in the aisles funny. Call now for tickets and start a new holiday tradition at MetroStage. http://www.metrostage.org

Last season the show received many wonderful reviews, and I hear this one is as good or better:

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theatreWashington ANOUNCES THE LAUNCH OF

theatrewashington.org

Organization’s Interactive Website is Designed to Eliminate Barriers

to Attendance Through Exclusive Original Content,

an Advanced Filtering Show Selector, and More

(Washington, DC) – theatreWashington is thrilled to unveil its new website, theatrewashington.org—the cornerstone of the organization’s recent rebranding process that has moved the 27 year-old organization previously known as The Helen Hayes Awards into its new chapter astheatreWashington.Theatrewashington.org is designed by Unconformity, LLC, an integrated marketing and design firm based in Alexandria, Virginia.

theatreWashington’s new interactive website includes original content about theatres, artists, and audiences in the Washington area, an advanced filtering Show Selector feature, social plugins, user reviews, and geo-locating functions that allow users to see what shows are playing within a self-specified geographical radius of a designated location. The launch of theatrewashington.org completes Phase One of The Helen Hayes Awards’ move totheatreWashington. Additional web features, in additional organizational programming, will continue to be rolled out in the coming months.

"The theatreWashington site is a great example of how technology can enhance the arts and democratize the experience of live theatre," says to Zev Remba, Creative Director of Unconformiy, LLC, “In the next few months, we'll be adding features that will serve both consumers and theatre professionals, as well as helping to build the Washington area into a nationally respected theatre brand."

“The abundance of Washington theatre has proliferated to a point where there is so much to choose from that audiences need some assistance to manage their choices,” says theatreWashington President & CEO Linda Levy Grossman, “The unique features and content of theatrewashington.org help audiences make selections that are most appropriate to their tastes, purchase power, location, who they're bringing with them, and accessibility issues.”

Highlights of theatrewashington.org include the sites Show Selector, News & Features, and social media compatibility, details of which are outlined below:

Show Selector

The Show Selector feature on theatrewashington.org is a filtering system that allows users to search for shows playing in the Washington metro area based on several criteria: date, genre, age appropriateness, price range, and geographic location. Often cited as one of the greatest barriers to attendance, by streamlining the research process, the initial step in attending the theatre is made easier and therefore attendance at Washington-area theatre is likely to increase.

News and Features

Phase One of theatrewashington.org contains a News & Features section filled with unique content generated by members of the theatreWashingtonstaff, and overseen by Managing Editor Manny Strauss. Phase One content is segmented into five buckets: Profiles, 10 Questions for Artists, The Theatregoing Experience, Final Bow, and Why Theatre Matters.

Social Media

Theatrewashington.org has been designed with the social user in mind. Visitors to the site can comment on each article posted on the site and can leave a user review on the show pages. Each page on theatrewashington.org contains a social plugin that allows visitors to share the page’s content with their social media networks. theatreWashington can be found on Facebook and on Twitter at @theatreWashDC.

As the development of theatrewashington.org continues, the site will contain an extensive history of the Helen Hayes Awards, forums, easy-to-use calendars, additional editorial content and more.

About Unconformity, LLC

Unconformity is an integrated marketing and design firm based in Alexandria, Virginia. The firm provides marketing services including identity design and brand experience, web development, new media, advertising creative, collateral development, and custom publication design. In the web arena, they specialize in development of large-scale, content-managed sites that include custom web-based applications.

Unconformity's clients include the American Institute of Architects, American Chemical Society, Celera Genomics, Document Management Industries Association, Johns Hopkins University, Sprint, the Smithsonian Institution, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, National Osteoporosis Foundation, National Geographic, Penton Media, and many more.

Unconformity is led by partners Zev Remba, formerly the executive creative director of MHI Communications, a Washington, DC-based agency with more than 300 staff; and Michael Quattrone, former vice president of Wickham and Associates, Washington’s oldest graphic design firm.

Unconformity principal Zev Remba is a specialist in the development and implementation of branding and integrated marketing communications programs.Remba has launched brands and spearheaded marketing campaigns for dozens of national clients over the past 20 years. Unconformity principal Michael Quattrone is a 20-year veteran and innovator in web development. He has focused for that past decade on developing sites that use cutting-edge techniques for online fundraising, marketing and promotion. A pioneer in developing online publishing systems that enable large-scale event marketing, he has developed sites for a wide range of national organizations and corporations.

About theatreWashington

Building on 27 years of credibility and service as The Helen Hayes Awards, theatreWashington is the unified voice of Washington area theatre and is the only organization dedicated solely to promoting, representing, and supporting all segments of Washington’s professional theatre community—theatres, artists, company members, and audiences of all ages.

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*Additional Pay-What-You-Can performance Monday, Nov. 14

ARMS AND THE MAN

a comedy by George Bernard Shaw

October 20 - November 20

directed by Allison Arkell Stockman

A young lady fantasizes about the bravery of her heroic fiancé when the reality

of war bursts into her bedroom in the form of a fugitive enemy soldier. Enjoy

this witty comedy by famed playwright George Bernard Shaw and its revealing

truths about romanticism, class and the idealization of war.

Performances Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays thru November 20

Purchase Tickets Online at http://www.constellationtheatre.org/arms.html

or CALL 1-800-494-TIXS

General Admission seating $20-$35

All Performances at

SOURCE

1835 14th Street NW

Washington DC 20009

*2 Blocks from the U St/Cardozo Metro Stop

Scroll down to poster below for additional details, cast member photos and links to site.

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The Studio Theatre

is offering complimentary space-available passes to:

THE HABIT OF ART

Directed by David Muse

Starring Ted van Griethuysen and Paxton Whitehead

with Margaret Daly, Matt Dewberry, Cameron Folmar, Wynn Harmon and Randy Harrison

Wistful and filthily funny, the latest play from the award-winning writer of The History Boysexamines creativity, desire, and the tenacity of the artistic spirit.

Friday, October 21 at 8:00pm

and

Sunday, October 23 at 2:00pm

Reservations required.

To reserve space-available passes, please call The Studio Theatre Box Office

at 202.332.3300

Limit 2 per person.

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A limited number of complimentary tickets have just become available for the performance of Lemieux Pilon 4D Art: Norman for tonightThursday, October 6 at 7:30 p.m. If interested, please email your full name and count no later than 2 p.m. today Thursday, October 6 by replying to the following email address at: kc-scotty-owner@yahoogroups.com

Please remember I have no control over location of seats, any requests for more than two tickets may require splitting your party up, and please reply by email only. Also, requests for complimentary tickets for future events cannot be accepted, I merely post what's been offered to me. And finally, once 2 p.m. on Oct. 6 comes and goes, please do not email me asking if you can still get tickets, this only puts me in an awkward position. If you require accessible seating because of a disability I will make every effort to accommodate you, but you must tell me you require accessible seating at the time you make your request for tickets. *If you have not received an email confirmation from me, then you do not have tickets for the performance. ***These tickets MUST be used. Please be sure that before you make a request for complimentary seats to this performance that you will be able to attend. Failure to comply to this rule may result in disqualification from future offers.*** Tickets will be held in the names provided at our Will Call window for pick up after 6 p.m. and an email confirmation will be sent to the requestor. Please allow ample time to pick up your tickets from Will Call.

About the Program: Lemieux Pilon 4D Art: Norman October 6, 2011 – 7:30 p.m. Eisenhower Theater

"Imaginative, ingenious, unique and, one might even add, wondrous. Pure genius!" Globe and Mail, Toronto Norman blurs the line between real and imagined, life and technology. In this mixed-media performance, film, dance, music, and theater collide in a tribute to pioneer filmmaker Norman McLaren. Through the use of advanced projection technology, Montreal-based directors Michel Lemieux and Victor Pilon bring McLaren's iconic masterpieces to life, filling the stage with holographic characters interacting with dancer/choreographer Peter Trosztmer. The effect is a dramatic homage to McLaren's great modernity, humanism, and genius. RUNNING TIME: 90 minutes

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