‘Music Man’ offers fun blast from the past
Toby’s Dinner Theatre in Columbia is now presenting The Music Man, the brash, classic musical of Americana. The show opened on Broadway in 1954, garnering five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and inspiring a motion picture released eight years later that starred Robert Preston, Shirley Jones and Buddy Hackett. The Music Man centers around Harold Hill, a self-proclaimed... READ MORE
Artist Weiss explores concepts of time
The night before Michael Weiss’s 10th birthday, he found himself in the middle of an existential crisis about aging. “I was in tears because I was never going to be single digits again,” he said. “The notion of time, the passage of time, the delicacy of life, the fleeting nature of it — it’s been with me since I was that age.” Now 57, Weiss can laugh about this childhood ... READ MORE
A taste of childhood that sparks glee
It’s not a good look when a man of a certain age (yes, me) freezes an entire dinner party by jumping up and down with glee. But I confess — and I would do it again. Such was the pleasure of tasting Apple Brown Betty once more. For me, ABB was the quintessential 1950s dessert. They must have served it every other day in the school cafeteria when I was in third grade. Then and ... READ MORE
‘Sister Act’: A nun on the run at Ford’s Theatre
Sister Act, the musical based on the 1992 film, is back and currently playing at historic Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. Yet this production is not just a musical adaptation of a comedy that starred Whoopie Goldberg. It’s a spiritually uplifting tour-de-force that suggests that being in touch with the Divine and with what it means to be human may be one and the same. For those... READ MORE
Dolly Parton’s books for kids
Every month, when Eris Doweary’s 4-year-old daughter sees a book arrive in the mail, she “gets excited,” her mother said. “She’ll yell at me, ‘Mommy, I got a new book!’” said the D.C. resident. “It’s a treat for her when the books come into the house.” Doweary’s daughter, who has been receiving free books from Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library since she... READ MORE
Three local retirees publish works
Writing poetry is like baking a fresh batch of oatmeal raisin cookies. At least that’s what poet John Biggs says. For Biggs, poetry doesn’t have to be perfect but should have an insight, reflect our passions and — most importantly — be honest. His poem “Sudsville” was recently published in Passager, a Baltimore-based literary journal highlighting the work of older... READ MORE
It’s not so easy to play Cupid anymore
My wife came home from lunch with a former colleague. She’s usually bubbly after such events. On this day, she was a bit moody. “He got divorced,” she announced. “And he wants me to fix him up with a female friend of mine. Any female friend.” She agreed to try, without enthusiasm, without any guarantees offered or expected. But as she tossed her raincoat onto a chair and ... READ MORE
Shakespeare connects in S. African play
This month the Shakespeare Theatre Company brings the play Kunene and the King to D.C. for its U.S. premiere. Written by and starring South African playwright Dr. John Kani, it’s a heartfelt play in which, Kani has said, “A piece of you is on that stage.” Kani is best known as King T’Chaka in the film Black Panther, but he’s also an activist, writer and Tony Award-winning... READ MORE
Area premiere of Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’
“It’s a rich man’s game no matter what you call it, and you spend your life puttin’ money in his wallet.” Although that’s no way to go through life, take time off to see 9 to 5: The Musical, where those lyrics came from, now playing at Toby’s Dinner Theatre in Columbia. The musical is based of course on the popular 1980 movie starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin,... READ MORE
In friends we trust at Everyman Theatre
The new production at Everyman Theatre combines the small-town nostalgia, humor and life lessons of Andy Griffith’s Mayberry with the allegorical devices of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town. The result is a thought-provoking, heartwarming and satisfying 90-minute play. Primary Trust is the 2024 Pulitzer Prize-winning work by actor and playwright Eboni Booth. It runs through March 2 at... READ MORE
