Tim Daly and Tyne Daly. Photo: James Leynse Downstairs By Fern Siegel It is an accepted axiom that brutal people often destroy the good. It can result in mental or physical damage, or simply the threat of harm, should you cross them. The legacy of familial violence is the subject of Theresa…
Aoife Kelly and Phil Gillen photos by Jeremy Daniel By Ron Cohen The course of true love never did run smooth. That probably wasn’t big news circa 1598 when Shakespeare wrote that immortal line in his A Midsummer Night’s Dream. And it certainly wasn’t any more astounding some 400 years later when the master…
LR: Leah Curney, James Patrick Nelson, Claire CurtisWard, Dominic Comperatore . Photo by Hunter Canning By Eugene Paul Yasmina Reza, whose plays Art and God of Carnage were huge hits in Paris and London and won themselves each a Tony in New York, returns for a second try with Life X 3 using the same silken translation by Christopher Hampton that did not go down well…
By Ron Cohen Deborah Johnson, a central character in Patricia Ione Lloyd’s impassioned drama, Eve’s Song, has a prominent corporate job as a vice-president of acquisitions. She lives in a well-to-do suburb, and at dinner time holds polite conversations with her two children, Lauren, a college student, and Mark, a smart high-schooler, about…
Raúl Esparza Photos by Joan Marcus By Ron Cohen Ever wonder what it would have been like to be in near proximity to Adolf Hitler with his demonic rabble-rousing in full power? Well, in real life, that’s probably not a consummation devoutly to be wished. But as a theatrical experience, it’s a…
Cast of Gloria. Photo: Joan Marcus By Fern Siegel Gloria Steinem is probably the most recognizable feminist in America. Her impact on politics and culture is profound. So it’s only fitting that her remarkable life be transformed into a play. After all, her story parallels the dramatic fight for women’s rights. The poignant and…
Zonya Love, Matt Servitto and Ilana Becker in ‘Emma and Max’ photos Joan Marcus Emma and Max By David Schultz The Flea Theater has the honor of producing underground filmmaker Todd Solondz’s first foray into playwriting. This subversive filmmaker has many fans that crave his dark, snarky vision of humankind. An acquired taste for…
Hugn Dancy, Stockard Channing photos Joan Marcus By Deirdre Donovan Where to start? Maybe with Dane Laffrey’s convincing set that evokes a rustic cottage somewhere in the English countryside. Or with Bradley King’s lighting that bathes the interior with a pale, sober light. Or with the performance of Stockard Channing, confident yet vulnerable…
Glenn Close and Grace Van Patten photos by Joan Marcus By Ron Cohen The story of Joan of Arc has been told many times, many ways, but playwright Jane Anderson and Glenn Close bring a new and vital dimension as well as sublime emotional depth to the tale in the drama Mother…
DeWanda Wise, Khris Davis Photo: Ahron R. Foster By Fern Siegel Set in September 1963, Fireflies posits the searing personal sacrifices in the struggle for civil rights. This powerful two-hander, with a stunning performance by DeWanda Wise as Olivia, the wife of a reverend and major civil-rights leader, takes a deep dive…