Even kings struggle to speak
By the 1930s, British monarchs could no longer rule simply by appearing in public, brandishing medals on their military jackets. Instead, they communicated with their people by radio. But Prince Albert, second in line to the throne, was unable to speak without a stammer and subsequent public humiliation. The King’s Speech, at the National Theatre through Feb. 16, delves into the life... READ MORE
Powerful play highlights female strength
Prior to the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, women comprised half of government workers, 70% of schoolteachers and 40% percent of doctors in its capital city, Kabul, according to the U.S. Department of State. A Thousand Splendid Suns, which runs through March 1 at Arena Stage, tells the story of Laila (Mirian Katrib), who grew up in Kabul and likely would have been one of those... READ MORE
Silent Sky shines a light on female scientists
You don’t need a degree in astronomy to enjoy Ford Theatre’s production of Silent Sky. All you need is your humanity. Silent Sky, written in 2015 by Lauren Gunderson, the most produced American playwright, showcases the life of Henrietta Swan Leavitt, a partially deaf astronomer from the 19th century. This is a story not about science but about the obstacles and sacrifices people,... READ MORE
My Fair Lady hits all the right notes
The Kennedy Center Opera House has become a time machine through January 19, with the Lincoln Center Theater production of Lerner and Loewe’s My Fair Lady that will “take you back” to the Broadway musicals of yesteryear. There is nothing edgy or contemporary about this production. It’s not meant to draw out new meaning or to highlight characters or actions that might be looked at ... READ MORE
Agatha Christie’s tale of delicious revenge
We all know the meaning of the phrase, “Revenge is a dish best served cold.” Vengeance is more satisfying when exacted sometime after the original offense, when least expected. Perhaps one of the finest examples of this proverb may be found in Agatha Christie’s famed 1934 mystery, Murder on the Orient Express. If you’ve never read Christie’s book, chances are you’ve seen... READ MORE
Ingenious play about an autistic genius
Imagine — or allow the Round House Theatre’s excellent cast and stage crew to imagine for you — the story of a 15-year-old math genius with Asperger Syndrome (a form of autism), whose attempts to solve the murder of a neighbor’s dog leads him to delve into the mysteries of the human mind and heart. The boy, whose relations with others of the human species are, at best, on the... READ MORE
Illuminating life by making light of death
Death is in the air this fall at the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of Everybody. In fact, Death is even in the theater. But Death, played by Nancy Robinette, is a far cry from the creepy, cloaked Grim Reaper who usually comes to mind. Playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Death is amicable, even funny. Like a stand-up comedian, Death heckles the cast’s five other members ... READ MORE
Dracula offers dark humor with its gore
Theatrical productions of Dracula are a sure sign that autumn and Halloween are upon us. The famed vampire tale is playing now through Nov. 2 at the downtown Baltimore location of the Chesapeake Shakespeare Company (CSC). The production, adapted by Steven Dietz, mingles the bloody Bram Stoker novel of 1897 with its 1927 adaptation for Broadway, which starred Bela Lugosi. It has its... READ MORE
These flawed, funny cabbies have character
August Wilson’s play Jitney takes Arena Stage audiences on a hilarious, heartfelt, soul-searing, tragic and deeply human ride through life, as lived by the drivers, and other frequenters, of an unlicensed cab station in the African-American Pittsburgh Hill District in 1977. Jitney is the eighth play in the Pulitzer Prize-winning Wilson’s cycle of 10 plays about the lives of African... READ MORE
Family dynamics plus mystery in “Proof”
One of the most wonderful things about theater is that it isn’t math. That said, there is a sort dramatic arithmetic to theater, an equation where the figures are living, breathing human beings and the final answer (hopefully) results in a standing ovation, as was the case at the opening performance of Proof, at Everyman Theatre through October 6. Proof earned the Pulitzer Prize for... READ MORE