2 by Tennessee Williams
by Tennessee Williams
starring Katheryn Luce Garfunkel
directed by Marilyn Fried
St. Lukes Theatre
July 17, 2016
Production website

💉 out of 5.

I am caught in a vortex of bad theatre. I am rethinking my whole idea of checking tdf.com for discount tickets. “You get what you pay for.” >> I am truly learning it this week!  The motivator to see this production was that I have taught the one act plays that are part of the collection of Tennessee Williams one act anthology, 27 Wagons Full of Cotton for over 20 years. It is my favorite group of short plays that teach good sound playwriting structure. The kids do NOT think they will love these “old” plays – but after a bit of study – they love them. I was excited to see these seldom done gems by pros! Continue reading 2 by Tennessee Williams →

Incognito
written by Nick Payne
directed by Doug Hughes
Manhattan Theatre Club
June 26, 2016
Production website

💉💉 out of 5.

I need to apologize to all upfront – I had trouble being attentive to this story. Rack it up to age or the being the 15th show in a week – but some of this story just slid on by me.   The brain is no easy story – and this play is all about the brain. (I found it ironic that my first play on this trip to NYC was The Effect and my last show of this trip was Incognito: one trying to medicate the brain and the other walking around and taunting it. Continue reading Incognito →

The Effect
by Lucy Prebble
directed by David Cromer
Barrow Street Theatre
June 25, 2016
Production website

💉💉💉 out of 5.

Is it dopamine or is it love? That is a new question for the stage. The Effect is a fascinating story of a drug trial clinic that uses both a male and a female as guinea pigs. They are both (?) given increasingly larger doses of a new, experimental anti-depressant to test its effect and side effects. And as they become attached to each other, they question the source of this attraction . . . Continue reading The Effect →

Shining City
book by Conor McPherson
with Matthew Broderick
directed by Ciaran O’Reilly
Irish Repertory Theatre
June 25, 2016
Production website

💉 out of 5.

I love the wonderful ghost stories of Conor McPherson – but, lordy, I didn’t find much to enjoy here. Matthew Broderick, in the pivotal role , just falls flat for me. I couldn’t figure out if he was a flat and plastic actor content to just be himself for this withdrawn character or whether he was actually working to be flat and plastic – but the result was certainly flat and plastic. Continue reading Shining City →

The Purple Lights of Joppa, Illinois
written and directed by Adam Rapp
Atlantic Theatre Company
June 22, 2016
Production website

💉💉💉 out of 5

This is one brutal little play. From the beginning of the play that finds a man meticulously picking up unseen specks from a carpet to the end in which that same man stares at his torchiere light – afraid that it will move. The premise is rather simple. A man has just been released from a psychiatric correctional institute to return home and plan for a special meeting. Soon the door rings and two teenage girls enter – – danger, danger – we know something bad is going to happen. Continue reading The Purple Lights of Joppa, Illinois →