Virginia Rep’s current production of Tennessee Williams’ play Summer and Smoke opens by paying tribute to the founders of Barksdale Theatre who invested every penny they had to start a professional theater organization. Their first venture? A private reading of Summer…
When Disney’s The Lion King first came to town in 2012, it set new attendance records at the Altria (then Landmark) Theater. Look for the wildly popular musical to do that again this run. The award-winning show, presented by Broadway in…
King Lear, William Shakespeare’s tragic tale of self-betrayal, deceit, and loyalty, presented by Quill Theatre in partnership with VMFA, depicts two parallel cautionary tales of parents caught in sibling rivalry, a theme as old as Cain and Abel. When dividing…
With modern enhancements to a classic fairy tale (Frog Prince, by Brothers Grimm), this coming-of-age story holds lessons for us all. Packed with humor, Croaker, The Frog Prince Musical opens with the entire company singing the super-catchy “It’s Your Birthday…
I’m a huge fan of safe adrenaline rushes – activities that feel scary but have next-to-no chance of injury and absolutely no chance of ending my fun times completely. Zip lines and challenge courses, one of the best examples,…
Director Bruce Miller was on the right track when he decided to cast Virginia Rep’s latest musical I Do! I Do! – now playing at Hanover Tavern – with a married couple. Who better to play a married couple than a…
I’ve always been a fan of Peter Pan, and watching CharacterWorks’ adaptation brought to life by a cast of twenty-five talented young actors and a supporting company of seventy-five Lost Boys, Indians, and pirates, was amazing. Peter Pan is a tale of swashbuckling fantasy…
The Mountaintop, presented by Cadence Theatre Company in partnership with Virginia Rep, opens a window to reveal a side of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. you likely haven’t seen before. The hour-and-twenty-minute production speculates what King was experiencing the night…
Swift Creek Mill Theatre’s current world premiere of The Little Lion tackles one of the darkest and most devastating times in history – the Holocaust. The play, written by local playwright Irene Ziegler, is based on the historical novel by…
Hollywood portrays family drama at holidays when relatives reunite. Multi-generational meals. Amusing misunderstandings. And dysfunctional dynamics. For Italians, this is every Sunday. Having grown up in an Italian American family, who ate delicious dinners on Sunday afternoons, I couldn’t wait…
