A Midsummer's Night Dream

young lovers

William   Shakespeare’s  A Midsummer’s Night Dream is being showcased  by The Lantern Theater Company, 10^th and Ludlow Streets through April 17. This two and a half hour production is a delightful rendition of Shakespeare’s comedy. For those who are unfamiliar with this whimsical tale, suffice it to say that it revolves around the fate of one pair of young lovers who are kept apart by Athenian law and another mismatched pair of young lovers, both of whom dash off to the woods. When some of them are bewitched by a mischievous fairy, the result is uproarious. Charlotte Ford (Hermia), David Sweeny (Lysander), Lee Ann Etzold (Helena), and Bradley K. Wrenn (Demetrius) are the four young lovers who not only excel in their comedic portrayals, but in the physicality of their performances as well. Their chasing each other across the stage and sliding along the floor as one connected entity keeps the audience in stitches. Fortunately for all audience members, the Lantern is in an intimate setting with seats on two sides of the stages so everyone has an equal opportunity to enjoy the facial expressions of these talented young actors. Exaggerated though they might be, they are very effective in eliciting laughter. An equally funny subplot involves the group of men who decide the put on a play for the Prince’s nuptials. Both the costumes and set are very creative. This play is just plain silly so plan to go and have a good time laughing.  On Monday nights most theaters are “dark” but on Monday March 28 and Monday April 7 you can attend a discussion with some of the actors on different themes of the play. The Scholars in Conversation program runs from 7:00PM – 8:30 PM. In March, the topic is SEX- and the panelists will discuss love, power and attraction at the play’s heart. In April the discussion will revolve around how the mayhem of MAGIC drives this production. For more information or tickets, call 215-829-0395 or visit online at www.lanterntheater.org. 

Let Me Down Easy

3 of many portrayals by Anna Deavere Smith

The Philadelphia Theatre Company, housed in the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, Broad and Lombard Streets, is presenting Let Me Down Easy, conceived, written and performed by Anna Deavere Smith, through April 10. Using the results of over 300 interviews, Ms. Smith has been able to weave a brilliant one-woman show. Appearing to change her nationality, gender and age with little more than a flick of a jacket, hat, facial expression and accent, Ms. Smith convinces the audience that she embodies each individual portrayed as she speaks about the tragedies of the poor during Katrina, health issues and the ultimate issue of death. Large supertitles above the stage light up the name of each character as well as a key phrase of the discussion. The audience was enthralled watching Ms. Smith’s many transformations, among them a rodeo Bull Rider; a super model; Ann Richards, the former governor of Texas; Joel Siegel, Movie Critic for ABC news; Trudy Howell, director  of Chance Orphanage in Johannesburg, South Africa, and Matthieu Ricard, a Buddhist Monk. Philadelphia Theatre Company has created three Meet the Experts post-show talkbacks with special guests to address the themes of health care and public health to enhance the theater experience during its production of Let Me Down Easy. -On Thursday March 24, with Rabbi and Professor Nancy Epstein-On Tuesday March 29 with Dr Jonathon D. Moreno, David and Lyn Silfen University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Thursday April 7 with Dr. Natasha J. Davis, Assistant Professor at Temple University College of Health Professions and Social Work.  There will be a variety of other special programs as well. For more information and tickets, call 215-985-0420 or visit online at PhiladelphiaTheatreCompany.org.

Superior Donuts

The Arden Theatre Company, located at 40 N. 2^nd Street in Olde City, Philadelphia, is presenting a truly superior play, Superior Donuts on its Arcadia Stage through April 3. Written by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning playwright, Tracy Letts, this production grabs you before the dialogue even begins with its attention-getting sound effects and doesn’t let you go for a minute, even when you get up for a stretch at intermission. Lighting designer, Michelle Habeck’s and sound designer, Rob Kaplowiotz’s attention to detail are irrefutable.  James IJames is outstanding as college drop-out Franco Wicks. He delivers his many comedic lines with a straight face, but to call Superior Donuts a comedy would be doing it an injustice. Yes, there are many laughs and the timing of each line is very well executed, but the play is so much more than that. While the audience is being entertained by the comedic lines, they are also learning, albeit piecemeal, about the life of the shop’s owner, Arthur Przybszewski, played by Craig Spidle. Spidle does an excellent job ending  his monologues by staring out into space, illustrating with the “freeze frame” technique, that one doesn’t need a curtain to change a scene. By interspersing these monologues with the comedic dialogue of the entire cast, Letts not only enables everyone to acquire information about Arthur’s background and thus have some insight into his present day character, but also presents a work that is both as comedy and a drama in one package. David Mackay, as Max Tarasov, Arthur’s neighbor and nemesis, does a very credible job as someone who is seemingly at odds with Arthur, yet stands by him when he is needed. Each and every cast member engages the audience throughout. this top-notch play. For more information or tickets call 215-922-1122 or visit online at ardentheatre.org.

The Little Prince

The Little Prince is being performed at the Bristol Riverside Theatre, 120 Radcliffe Street, Bristol, Pa, through February 13. Based on the children’s book by Antoine de Saine-Exupéry, this production is not one that should be relegated to children only. Produced in association with Monkey Boys Productions, the puppet builders who brought us Avenue Q and Little Shop of Horrors, the show features puppets by multiple Emmy Award-winning designer Michael Schupbach of Jim Henson’s Muppet Workshop. The Little Prince leaves his home planet and visits many planets while discovering the not so pleasant idiosyncrasies of man. It is not until he comes to “earth” that he learns his most important lesson: “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly.  What is essential is invisible to the eye.” He shares his lessons with his friend the aviator, played by Lenny Haas. While the lessons he learns may be insightful, perhaps they are not the most important part of the production. One can not help being enthralled by the magic of the puppetry. The puppeteers are on stage with the puppets and yet, even though they can be physically seen, it is possible to be totally immersed in the story and forget that that the actors who speak for the puppets are even on the stage. Leila Ghaznavi, the alter ego of the Little Prince, morphs into the character.  Her hands are his hands. Although you can see her mouth moving, you are convinced the words come from the Little Prince himself. Michael Schupback gives the fox a delightful personality as the fox explains to the young boy the importance of being tamed. The set cannot be overlooked. It is an excellent example of less is more. At first glance, the stage looks like a circus ring but the sand filled area becomes a desert, and later rises in parts to simulate a mountain chain. It claims an all purpose oval which serves as the sunset, a well, the starry heavens, and a framework for silhouettes of characters speaking off stage. This is a production that you won’t want to miss no matter what your age. For more information or tickets call 215-785-2762 or visit online at www.brstage.org.  

 

Race

The Philadelphia Theatre Company is proud to present the Philadelphia premiere of David Mamet’s Race, running through February 13, 2011 at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 280 S. Broad Street, Philadelphia. Although peppering his work with another four letter word, Pulitzer Prize winning playwright and Tony Award nominee David Mamet tackles the biggest four-letter word of all…..race! Two lawyers, one black, one white, are offered the chance to defend a wealthy white executive who is charged with a shameful crime against a young black woman. Not eager to take on the case but somewhat tempted by the money it will bring into the practice; the partners discuss the pros and cons in Mamet’s signature short, clipped dialog. It’s not until a series of “mistakes” are made by their young black female associate that the partners realize they no longer have a choice in taking on the case. Although one partner is convinced that the client is innocent and the other is unsure, the matter of innocence or guilt is less important than the building of a case to divert the jurors’ attention. When the young assistant becomes involved, raw emotions bubble to the surface. The dialog is gripping; the acting is first rate. The set, reminiscent of an office in a well established law firm, is stream-lined but efficient in its simplicity. Don’t miss a chance to see this explosive production.  The ending might knock you off your seat.  For tickets or further information, call 215-985-0420 or visit online at PhiladelphiaTheatreCompany.org.  

Lidless

Rhiannon, yelling at mother, Alice and Bashir

Interact Theatre Company, located at 2030 Sansom Streets, Philadelphia, is producing a provocative new drama which will be produced in both the UK and Scotland later this year and will be published by the Yale University Press as well. Kittson O’Neill, as Alice, has the unenviable task of portraying both a soldier who tortures prisoners in Guantanamo and a contented housewife who has forgotten all the horrific details of her wartime experiences. Sarah Van Auken portrays her curious teenage daughter whose emotions get the best of her when her demands are not immediately met. J. Paul Nicholas appears as Bashir, the soldier who was tortured by Alice during the war and demands a portion of her liver as repayment to save him from a certain death from the hepatitis he contracted during the war. By play’s end, he has lost his prisoner’s angst. Only Alice’s husband Lucas, played by Ed Swidley, and Riva, portrayed by Gamze Ceylan, remain constants. The set is simplistic, thus enabling the audience to concentrate upon the characters. Lidless questions the authenticity of forgiveness from many characters’ points of view. With some surprising twists comes the revelation that singular acts can have long term consequences that can’t be anticipated. During Lidless  InterAct will host a series of post-performance talk-backs to encourage discussions on the issues it raises. Sunday, January 30 features Charles Doerrer, Special Agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco , Firearms and Explosives. Sunday, February 6 will feature Dr. Salman Akhtar, Professor of Psychiatry, Jefferson University and Sunday February 13 will feature David McColgin, Supervisory Assistant Federal Defender, Appeals Unit, Federal Community Defender Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. For more information or tickets, call 215-568-80079 or visit online at www.InterActTheatre.org. 

A Skull in Connemara

Mick, digging grave as Mairitn looks on

Lantern Theater Company, located in St. Stephen's Theater, 10th and Ludlow Streets, is producing the Philadelphia Premiere of A Skull in Connemara through February 13. Written by acclaimed Irish playwright Martin McDonagh, this show is being offered as part of the Philadelphia Irish Theatre Festival. Six Philadelphia-area theatre companies are presenting works by Irish playwrights between now and May 2011. With the Irish Mix-Tix, available only on www.phillytheatretix.com, you can order tickets to two or more plays and save 20% off the ticket prices. The festival is featuring 3 works by McDonagh, and if A Skull in Connemara is representative of his work, you’ll want to avail yourself of the discount so that you can see this play as well as others. Stephen Novelli, as Mick, the widower who is hired each fall to disinter old bones from the small local cemetery, is excellent in the  portrayal of his complex character. (You can easily be fooled by his initial laid-back charm.) While wondering if anyone can actually be so backward, you’ll marvel at Jake Blouch’s portrayal of the young Mairtin. Unlike the persona of Mick, Mairtin’s character is simple throughout, and Blouch never deviates from this simplicity. Despite this, or perhaps enhanced by it, there are several plot twists along the way. Set designer Dirk Durosette won a 2008 Barrymore nomination for Skylight at the Lantern, and he deserves another for A Skull in Connemara.  It can’t be easy to design a set which includes two locations when there is not curtain on the stage, but to say that Durosette was successful would be an understatement. The audience is privy not only to a cozy fireplace enhanced living room, but to a very credible cemetery as well. Come prepared laugh as you enjoy this somewhat macabre creation. Enjoy post-show Artists in Conversation if you attend the Sunday, Jan 23 matinee at 2:00PM.  A Directors: In Conversation will be held at 700: PM, prior to the performance on Friday January 21. You will have an opportunity to speak with the Artistic Director at 7:00 PM on Friday, February 4. For tickets call 215-829-0395 or visit online at www.lanterntheater.org