Arts and Culture (Theatre Reviews)

Article - Theatre Reviews; by Davina Grace Hill - 6/14/12

Moonlight and Magnolias

Colonial Players explores what It took to make Gone with the Wind

Margaret Mitchell’s publishing blockbuster Gone with the Wind became an iconic American film, but first a screenplay had to be written. Playwright Ron Hutchinson whimsically, hysterically and sometimes seriously turned the Hollywood lore of the scriptwriting into Moonlight and Magnolias, now playing at Colonial Players of Annapolis.
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Article - Theatre Reviews; by Davina Grace Hill - 6/7/12

Stones in His Pocket

Two actors expand themselves into 15 characters in this Dignity Players performance

Stones in His Pockets, now at Dignity Players, has a wonderful premise: an American film crew comes back to the Irish town where The Quiet Man was filmed decades ago to make another movie. The return provides for a clash of cultures and nationalities, heightened by the incongruities of filmmaking and stereotypical star and fan behaviors.
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Article - Theatre Reviews; by Jane C. Elkin - 5/31/12

Anything Goes

Shining stars illuminate the night with great singing, dancing, Vaudevillian humor and escapist glamour in Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre’s opener

If you hear thunder in historic downtown one of these balmy evenings, don’t run for cover. It might just be the thunder of a synchronized 21-tap salute. The heat is on and so is Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre, opening a 46th season with Cole Porter’s 1934 nautical classic Anything Goes.
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Article - Theatre Reviews; by Jane C. Elkin - 5/10/12

Going to St. Ives

You’ll see Colonial Players at its best in the cat-and-mouse game of two women

What could be more suitable for Mothers Day than the tale of two mothers sharing tea and sympathy over Blue Willow china: helping each other deal with life’s unexpected twists and turns, bartering favors tit for tat — life for death? Over the past three years, Annapolis stages have featured four plays by the prolific Pulitzer- and Tony-nominated playwright Lee Blessing: Chesapeake, Two Rooms, Fortinbras and now Going to St....

Article - Theatre Reviews; by Jane C. Elkin - 5/3/12

Compass Rose Studio Theater’s Oliver!

I was choked up from the moment the somber workhouse orphans marched onstage

Lionel Bart’s musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ classic Oliver Twist has seen a lot of action in 50 years: 10 Tony nominations and five Oscars, including 1969’s Best Picture. It’s the tale of an innocent orphan among a den of thieves in Victorian London, a story I’ve seen and performed countless times....

Article - Theatre Reviews; by Jane C. Elkin - 4/26/12

The Belle of Amherst

This Bay Theatre Company show will appeal to any with emotion and ears to hear

“How was the play?” my son-in-law, the family sports, poker and comics buff, asked.
“Good,” I said, “but two hours of Emily Dickinson wouldn’t be your style.”
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Article - Theatre Reviews; by Leigh Glenn - 4/19/12

The Rocky Horror Show

It’s easy to have a good time at this Theatre at Anne Arundel Community College showing

Every generation has its rites of passage, not to be confused with steps up on the ladder of maturity. For 40 years, seeing and participating in The Rocky Horror Picture Show has been one of those rites. Part of the rite is dressing up. Part is talking back. Part is making rain with water pistols and tossing bread crusts every which way. Not least is doing The Time Warp.
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Article - Theatre Reviews; by Leigh Glenn - 4/5/12

Twin Beach Players’ The (Female) Odd Couple

It’s all out in the open in this very funny comedy

In 1985, playwright Neil Simon revised his original The Odd Couple for the ladies and called it The (Female) Odd Couple. It’s essentially the same storyline as the original 1968 comedy, but instead of two divorced fellows, there are two divorcees, Olive Madison, a slob and savings-and-loan to her ex-husband; and Florence Unger, a neat-freak whose husband wants a divorce....

Article - Theatre Reviews; by Davina Grace Hill - 3/29/12

Colonial Players’ The Spitfire Grill

Slow change and a bit of redemption in Gilead, Wisconsin

The Spitfire Grill is a musical about redemption that isn’t preachy. Written by James Valcq (book and music) and Fred Alley (book and lyrics) it is a musical with only one dance number, albeit a very effective one. It has a comedic touch yet only a few laugh-out-loud lines. It has one powerful song about frustration, made so by the actor who sings it....

Article - Theatre Reviews; by Jane C. Elkin - 3/22/12

Bowie Community Theatre’s Art

An abstract painting sets cast and audience wondering how well you know your friends — and yourself

In 1994, French playwright Yasmina Reza wrote an intellectual comedy about friendship, the foundations upon which it’s built and the walls we erect to preserve it. Three Moliere Awards, one translation and a Tony later, Art entertains audiences with a message that seems more relevant than ever in this era of cyber friendships....

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