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Interview: RICCARDO HERNíNDEZ (Scenic Designer for Broadway’s LEMPICKA [Tony Nomination] and SUFFS)
DESIGNING THE FUTURE Tony-nominated set designer for this season’s Lempicka, Riccardo Hernández also designed Suffs. Other Broadway productions have included The Thanksgiving Play, Jagged Little Pill, Indecent, Porgy and Bess, Caroline, or Change, Bring in ‘da Noise/Bring in ‘da Funk, and the original Parade. An international designer of operas, plays, and musicals, he’s also the co-chair…
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Extras: ECO-FRIENDLY PRACTICES IN MODERN THEATER PRODUCTIONS
Theater has always been a powerful medium for storytelling, creativity, and community engagement. However, as with many industries, the environmental impact of theater productions has come under scrutiny in recent years. From set design to lighting, costumes to marketing materials, the traditional practices of theater production can be wasteful and resource-intensive. The good news is…
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Theatre Review: ENGLISH (European Premiere at RSC’s The Other Place, Stratford-upon-Avon, and Kiln Theatre, London)
PLAIN ENGLISH The New York production of English, written by Iranian-American Sanaz Toossi, won a Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2023. Directed by Diyan Zara, English is making its European premiere at The Other Place, RSC’s center for new writing in Stratford-upon-Avon, before moving to London’s Kiln Theatre. It’s a quiet play’”about 100 minutes long,…
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Extras: FLOODLIGHT FIASCO: HANDLING WATER-DAMAGED STAGE EQUIPMENT
Stage equipment is notoriously sensitive, requiring specific care and conditions. A major flood light fiasco can cause severe damage to this equipment, often leading to costly repairs or replacements. Drenched in chaos, handling water-damaged stage equipment is a meticulous task. Fast and efficient actions paired with the right techniques are critical when your toolkit is…
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Theatre Review: THE BUDDHA OF SUBURBIA (RSC & Wise Children at Swan Theater, Stratford-upon-Avon)
The Buddha of Suburbia, a lively and joyous coming-of-age story set in late 1970s suburban London is a delightful exploration of love in numerous forms, some painful, most unconventional, but all of them heartfelt. Co-adapted for the stage by Hanif Kureishi (from his novel of the same name) and director Emma Rice (Tristan & Yseult,…
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Off-Broadway Review: SCARLETT DREAMS (Midnight Theatricals at Greenwich House Theater)
SCARLETT FEVER Kevin (Andrew Keenan-Bolger) used to be a hunk, and a successful playwright with an off-Broadway hit. But lately, he’s become a couch potato, much to the chagrin of his husband, Milo (Borris Anthony York), who owns and operates a successful health club. But there is an exciting solution for Kevin’s doldrums. Milo and…
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Opera Review: ELĪNA GARANČA (Recital Tour at BroadStage)
On the auspicious evening of Friday, May 10, 2024, the audience at BroadStage in Santa Monica was graced with a recital of exceptional caliber, featuring the illustrious mezzo-soprano ElÄ«na GaranÄa, whose performance was augmented by the symphonic grandeur of a full orchestra. ElÄ«na GaranÄa, whose reputation as a preeminent mezzo-soprano in the classical music sphere is…
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Theater / Film Review: MACBETH (Ralph Fiennes & Indira Varma; screening in cinemas)
SOUND AND FURY INDEED “When the hurly-burly’s done, when the battle’s lost and won,” says a Witch to introduce my favorite cursed play by the Bard, and I immediately crave medieval witches, prophecies, ghosts, and murders, but fearing a disappointment because of its length and complexity. Well, this powerful version adapted by Emily Burns starring…
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Concert / Event Review: KRONOS QUARTET & GHOST TRAIN ORCHESTRA PLAY MOONDOG (The Town Hall in New York City, Tuesday April 16, 2024 at 8pm)
IT’S SO GOOD THAT I’M HOWLING AT THE MOONDOG Moondog’s music is magical and timeless, it has the power to take us to faraway places. I am here to tell you about the extraordinary concert, Kronos Quartet & Ghost Train Orchestra Play Moondog, the collaboration between The Kronos Quartet, breaking down music boundaries as they…
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Off-Broadway Review: GRENFELL: IN THE WORDS OF SURVIVORS (National Theatre at St. Ann’s Warehouse)
THE FLAMES OF INJUSTICE Documentary theatre, a.k.a. docudrama, uses existing nonfiction sources to create works of performance that reenact historical events. My earliest recollection of docudrama was Twilight, Los Angeles 1992, written by performer Anna Deavere Smith from interviews with people involved in the L.A. Riots that followed the acquittal of the police who brutally…
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Art Review: WILD THINGS ARE HAPPENING: THE ART OF MAURICE SENDAK (International Tour at Skirball Center)
MAURICE SENDAK ’” WILD AT HEART Some of us had the good fortune of growing up with the wondrous and zany work of Maurice Sendak. We didn’t know it at the time, but Sendak was in the midst of something quite extraordinary’”a decades-long manifestation of a galaxy of stories and art where children befriend monsters,…
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Dance Review: WOOLF WORKS (American Ballet Theatre – North American Premiere)
WOOF! WOOLF WORKS WORKS! Virginia Woolf’s novels have had a profound impact on literature, inspiring adaptations in ballet and opera. These adaptations face the unique challenge of capturing the innovative narrative structures and exploration of inner lives that are central to Woolf’s work. Wayne McGregor‘s Woolf Works, originally choreographed for the Royal Ballet but now…
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Concert Review: YO-YO MA, CELLO; KATHRYN STOTT, PIANO (Tour Reviewed at Symphony Hall, Boston)
AN EVENING WITH FRIENDS Yo-Yo Ma, superstar of the cello and more importantly, of bringing together music of disparate cultures, performed with his long-time musical partner Kathryn Stott at Boston’s Symphony Hall last night. Stott has announced her intention to retire from performing at the end of the year, so this was likely the last…
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Extras / Theater: STAGE LIGHTING: AN ELECTRICIAN’S PERSPECTIVE
The moment when the house lights dim, the stage blooms into a festival of colors and textures, and an electrifying energy pulses through the audience. Stage lighting can truly turn a performance into an experience. But do you know who’s behind this magic? Enter the electrician, a champion of connectivity and electricity, who illuminates the…
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Theater Interview: BRENT BARRETT (Now Appearing with The Four Phantoms in Concert)
An extravagant celebration of the iconic music of Broadway and more, The Four Phantoms in Concert brings together — you guessed it — four actors who have played the lead role in The Phantom of the Opera. Making a stop at The McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert on April 6, The Four Phantoms are Brent…
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Recommended Screenings: FILMS OF PATRICIA ROZEMA – A RETROSPECTIVE (Toronto, NYC, L.A.)
Considered part of the informally defined collection of independent filmmakers to make up the Toronto New Wave in the 1980s and early 1990s, filmmaker, television director, artist, and educator Patricia Rozema (b. 1958) found breakout success at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival when her first feature, I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing, nabbed the Prix de la…
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Dance Review: DONGPO: LIFE IN POEMS (International Tour)
A LIFE IN DANCE Dongpo (Su Shi’s art name) is a beloved and revered Chinese poet, writer, politician, calligrapher, and painter who was born during the Song dynasty, in the year 1,037. His life and art have inspired great minds; among them is an artist of broad talents, Shen Wei, the award-winning Chinese-American director, choreographer,…
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London Theatre: CONSTELLATIONS (National Theatre at Home)
The National Theatre announces that the Donmar Warehouse revival of the Royal Court Theatre Production, Constellations, directed by former artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse Michael Longhurst (Amadeus) will be available to stream on National Theatre at Home, the theatre streaming platform where global audiences can enjoy the best of British theatre. At heart this is a piece about a…
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Theater Review: MY MOTHER HAD TWO FACES (The Rockwell in Somerville, MA; then touring)
HER MOTHER, HERSELF It’s a truism that many women fear “becoming their mother,” and that’s certainly the implied starting point of Karin Trachtenberg’s one-woman show, My Mother Had Two Faces. The performance opens with a recording of Marlene Dietrich singing “Mutter, Kannst Du Mich Vergeben” (“Mother, Can you Forgive Me”) — an interesting choice in…
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Theater / Film / DVD Review: HAMLET (Directed by Sean Mathias and starring Ian McKellen)
A NEW AGE FOR HAMLET Brooding prince plots revenge; disaster ensues. That’s the core of Hamlet, among Shakespeare’s most enduring and frequently performed tragedies. Considered one of the most challenging roles in Western theatre, the lead is a bucket-list item for more actors than will ever get to play it. But what happens when Hamlet…
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