Full disclosure: I have never read Stephen King’s "Misery," nor have I seen the film version of it. But I’m familiar with the story, and was excited to hear that Blackfriars would be producing the stage adaptation for its current season. It’s a work custom-made for the theater – two meaty characters, basically one setting, […]
Blackfriars Theatre
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Animals have human souls
There is an audible “Oooh!” of expectation as the lights dim and the curtain rises. A stunning sun ascends and the powerful voice of PhindileMkhize rings out. Pounding percussion introduces a parade of animals down the aisles. Children scream gleefully, witnessing a life-sized elephant stomp its way toward the stage. It’s all-encompassing: Technicolor sights and […]
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‘Shear Madness’: the ride
‘Shear Madness’: the ride Warning to those suffering from vertigo: Do not ride Shear Madness. The largely improvisational comedy, now at Geva, runs at a frenzied pace, thrusting the audience through an enervating and hilarious trip. The evolution of the play began in Rochester in 1976 when Geva put on a play called Who Dunnit?. […]
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It takes four to make a marriage
What do you get when you cross the distinctive dialogue of David Mamet with a Victorian drawing room comedy? One obscenely funny, complicated play. Once dubbed the “poet of the f-word,” Mamet’s signature clipped tone and often vulgar style makes a surprisingly believable (if occasionally awkward) marriage with the florid turns of phrase that proper […]
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Onstage 8.10.05
Hard to sell Except for the enchanting double-bill with three divas in the small Studio Theatre, Stratford’s new productions of modern plays may be hard-sells. James Reaney’s The Donnellys: Sticks and Stones is a seminal play in modern Canadian drama, admired for its historical and social significance. But this play is the first in a […]
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Expectations overturned in a triumph of the old
I’m interested in new, creative theater more than rehashed favorites, so a challenging new play by an unfamiliar, award-winning playwright sounded exciting. Geva’s production in a stop-and-stare setting stars an actor I’ve admired here before. But it’s all disappointing. Race of the Ark Tattoo by W. David Hancock pretends to be a flea market sale. […]
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Too far up the Irish
Given its remarkable show of ability by local actors David Jason Kyle and Peter J. Doyle, I’m sorry to report that Blackfriars’ production of Marie Jones’ Stones in His Pockets is attempting more than anyone involved can handle. The overall outlines of the comedy emerge intact, and the actors’ commitment and understanding of their roles […]
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Music of the heirs
Conceived, designed, and directed by John Haldoupis, After Sondheim, a new musical revue, is a collection of songs from musical theater pieces by newer and younger composer-lyricists. Haldoupis considers them possible successors to Stephen Sondheim, the current king of American musicals. With three unlikely exceptions, they all write both words and music for their shows. […]
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Moving with grace from jig to waddle
John Haldoupis, artistic director at Blackfriars Theatre, recently introduced a showing of May God Strike Me Dead… (If I’m Telling a Lie)! with: “We’re thrilled to have a little-known performer — perhaps you’ve heard of her — Adele Fico.” The audience twittered in knowing anticipation. Patrons who for years have enjoyed Fico’s acting and comedy […]
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Wanna buy some aspects?
Once again a brave theater group is giving a surprisingly effective revival to a difficult cult musical which its admirers insist was never properly appreciated. And once again I’ve belatedly been introduced to a well-known old show and impressed by the performance. But again I’ve had to admit that I think the thing deserved to […]
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Crossing time, the Channel, and convention
Tina Howe’s romantic play Pride’s Crossinghas something for everyone: re-creation of historic periods and events, Upstairs Downstairs-style social reflections on the role of women, time-shifts from 1920 to the present day, realistic New England local color, fantasy dalliances, and a climactic, exciting swim across the English Channel. Blackfriars Theatre has assembled an attractive, strong […]
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Learning to speak Southern
When I taught a hilarious play, The Nerd, in a comedy course, several people told me that Larry Shue, who wrote only a few plays before dying young, wrote an even funnier farce called The Foreigner. Blackfriars Theatre is producing a rollicking version of The Foreigner that proves their point. Not as polished and […]
