Posts in Connecticut
Review: World Premiere “El Huracán” at Yale Repertory Theater
Review: World Premiere “El Huracán” at Yale Repertory Theater

Yale Repertory Theater’s stunning season opener “El Huracán” begins with a series of magic tricks. Valeria (Adriana Sevahn Nichols, captivating) finds herself on stage in front of large, billowing curtains. She’s elderly, frail and seems more than a bit confused about how she ended up there. She wanders around for a moment and then, poof, a black-and-white cane appears in her hand. The curtains come down and we are in The Tropicana nightclub. It is the early 1950s in Havana and a magic show is in progress. Colored scarfs vanish and white doves appear out of thin air, all to the strains of “Fly Me To The Moon.” The magician is a beautiful young woman in a blue dress. Valeria watches all of this from the sidelines, mimicking the magician’s moves until you slowly realize the two women are the same. Set-up, presentation, reveal. Repeat.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonNoah Golden, Yale Repertory Theatre
Review: "Man of La Mancha" at Westport Country Playhouse
Review: "Man of La Mancha" at Westport Country Playhouse

Inspired by the Miguel de Cervantes’ literary masterpiece, Don Quixote, Westport Country Playhouse brings us the classic musical, Man of La Mancha. It tells the story of a man, Alonso Quijano, who is convinced that he is “Don Quixote de la Mancha,” a determined and valiant knight-errant. The tale is told as a play-within-a-play by Cervantes himself, as part of a mock trial of the prisoners he is detained with, waiting to be questioned by the Spanish Inquisition.  Truth be told, I am not a fan of “old-school” musicals, but this production feels contemporary thanks to its choreography, staging, and casting. 

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Westport Country Playhouse, Man of La Mancha
Review: "Make Believe at Hartford Stage"
Review: "Make Believe at Hartford Stage"

air warning: this is a play that will be difficult for parents to watch. Knowing how our actions can affect our children permanently and profoundly is difficult for many to swallow. While the scenario presented here is extreme and (I presume) fictitious, it still demonstrates how what we do in front of our children will shape who they become. And often few people want to take on the burden of that kind of responsibility.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Hartford Stage
Review: "The Understudy" at Westport Country Playhouse
Review: "The Understudy" at Westport Country Playhouse

“Sometimes fate is like a small sandstorm that keeps changing directions. You change direction, but the sandstorm chases you. You turn again, but the storm adjusts. Over and over you play this out, like some ominous dance with death just before dawn. Why? Because this storm isn't something that blew in from far away, something that has nothing to do with you. This storm is you.” – Franz Kafka

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Westport Country Playhouse
Review: "Hand to God" at TheaterWorks
Review: "Hand to God" at TheaterWorks

I always appreciate TheaterWorks’ selections being edgy and unconventional, and their latest offering, Hand to God, meets the mark.  All the advertising warning about its content is there for a reason; this is not your grandmother’s Sunday matinee. Hand to God is outrageous beyond measure; so much so that at times it’s difficult to catch your breath either from laughing or sheer awe. What makes this play unique is its layering of profane absurdity; just when you think its ungodly cup hath spilleth over, more impious antics flow forth.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTheatreWorks
Review: "Oliver!" at Goodspeed Musicals
Review: "Oliver!" at Goodspeed Musicals

Director Rob Ruggiero appears to have a special place in his heart for Lionel Bart’s iconic musical, Oliver! Based on Charles Dickens’ classic Victorian novel, Oliver Twist, Mr. Ruggiero tells us what he feels the story is about in his director’s notes: “…the change that Oliver provokes comes from him simply being: his special connection to the people he meets stimulates change and action.” I would agree with his assessment; the role of Dickens’ title urchin does not require much acting beyond simple presence. Oliver is a catalyst for action taken by others, otherwise, it would be a dull story of an orphan made legitimate through chance.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Goodspeed Musicals
Review: "A Flea in Her Ear" at Westport Country Playhouse
Review: "A Flea in Her Ear" at Westport Country Playhouse

In its second offering this season, Westport Country Playhouse has teamed up with the Resident Ensemble Players at the University of Delaware to bring us a new translation of Feydeau’s A Flea in Her Ear, considered by many to be his exemplar work. Directed by Mark Lamos and translated by David Ives, this production is no cheap, floozy farce, but high-brow satire complete with the familiar hallmarks of the theatrical style, (refined): multiple doors, (clever) physical comedy, confusion, misunderstandings, and (smart) bawdy humor.  I like my jokes served with a sharp wit rather than a lazy tongue, and A Flea in Her Ear delivers.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy
Review: “Cabaret” by The Harpers
Review: “Cabaret” by The Harpers

Bracingly original, astonishingly resourceful and daringly theatrical. These are phrases I often associate with artists like John Doyle, Ivo Van Hoe or Michael Arden, directors who reinvent and reinvigorate everything they touch. These aren’t phrases, however, I often associate with the local theater scene. I’ve kvetched before on OnStage about the tendency for companies to offer cut-and-paste productions that assemble their musicals solely based on the italic notes offered in the libretto. Yet bracingly original, astonishingly resourceful and daringly theatrical is exactly how I’d describe the sublime and innovative production of “Cabaret” offered by the new New Haven-based troupe The Harpers.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonNoah Golden
Review: “Hairspray” by the Shoreline Theatre Company
Review: “Hairspray” by the Shoreline Theatre Company

Welcome to the neighborhood, Shoreline Theatre Company. Unlike the Maryland community where “Hairspray” is set, the shoreline of Connecticut (Branford, Guilford, Madison and into New Haven County) isn’t particularly known for rats or flashers or barstool bums. It isn’t particularly known for active community theater either. While other parts of Connecticut have thriving theater scenes, the shoreline has always seemed strangely hesitant to join into that conversation. There are exceptions of course (like the Roundtable Players and the Whitney Players), but a gap for great summer community theater in this neck of the woods is surely present. In comes the Shoreline Theatre Company [STC], a brand-new group making a big splash of a debut with “Hairspray,” which played June 29 and 30 at the Branford High School auditorium.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonNoah Golden
Review: “Flyin’ West” at Westport Country Playhouse
Review: “Flyin’ West” at Westport Country Playhouse

Pearl Cleage’s “Flyin’ West” was written in the early 1990s and set in 1898, yet the show has an ardent topicality that will surely resonate with audience members at the Westport Country Playhouse. The themes of discrimination, racial identity and the legacy one generation leaves for another in this segregated nation of ours are of the utmost timeliness, and the female-driven, anti-domestic violence narrative lies right at the heart of the current #MeToo movement. The moments in Seret Scott’s handsome and well-acted production where the characters speak freely and lyrically about the struggles they face as free black women stuck in an era between the Civil War and the end of the Jim Crow laws are moving and fascinating. Problem is, they’re buried in a boilerplate script that undermines the subtlety and intellect of its themes with one-dimensional characters and a series of contrived set-ups that would feel more at home in a Lifetime movie.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonNoah Golden, Westport Country Playhouse
Review: "The Invisible Hand" at Theaterworks
Review: "The Invisible Hand" at Theaterworks

The works of Ayad Akhtar walk a fine line between irony and stereotype; they are swan songs to the Islamic spirit, promoting audiences to examine preconceptions while not shying away from dark, uncomfortable political themes. If in the wrong hands, this kind of subversion can go terribly wrong, underscoring rather than subverting Islamic stereotypes. For the most part, TheatreWorks’ production of The Invisible Hand, directed by David Kennedy, navigates this tightrope walk with impressive poise.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonMaegan Clearwood
Review: "A Lesson from Aloes" at Hartford Stage
Review: "A Lesson from Aloes" at Hartford Stage

Hartford Stage’s final offering for its 2017/18 season, A Lesson from Aloes by Athol Fugard, has a setting that is at once dated and timely: during Apartheid in South Africa. For those unfamiliar with Apartheid, it was a legal system instituted after World War II to suppress nonwhite citizens of South Africa; think of it as a combination of the Jim Crow laws against the Blacks in America’s southern states and the Nuremburg laws against the Jews in Germany. It was an oppressive, extreme form of racism and social injustice, finally lifted in 1994, after negotiations following the release of Nelson Mandela in 1990.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Hartford Stage
Review: "Kiss" at Yale Rep
Review: "Kiss" at Yale Rep

When I was asked to review “Kiss,” Guillermo Calderón’s Rubik’s cube of a political play now appearing at the Yale Repertory Theatre, I assumed that the most difficult part would be having to type out the piece one-handed due to a pesky finger injury. As it turns out, my bum knuckle is the least of my problems. “Kiss” is a fascinating play. It’s an ambitious and inventive work with a lot on its mind. It’s the kind of play I’d love to discuss and analyze at length, but “Kiss” contains a myriad of twists and turns I have been asked to not talk about. It’s probably for the better. The surprises in store at the Yale Rep are among the key pleasures of seeing “Kiss.” So, forgive me if I seem like I’m skirting the matters at hand. I am.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonNoah Golden, Yale Repertory Theatre
Review: "The Will Rogers Follies" at Goodspeed Musicals
Review: "The Will Rogers Follies" at Goodspeed Musicals

Goodspeed Musicals’ sparkly The Will Rogers Follies pays heavy homage to the titular cultural icon, plastering its stage with black-and-white photos and bombarding the audience with sequins and glitter. For all its self-awareness, however, this production feels like a recreation of early 20th century entertainment rather than a 21st-century spin, resulting in a revue that feels dated and wildly out of touch.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonMaegan Clearwood, Goodspeed Musicals
Review: "Crowns" at Long Wharf Theatre
Review: "Crowns" at Long Wharf Theatre

There is something about gospel music that I find irresistible: It’s uplifting and redeeming; it moves you to tap your foot or clap your hands.  Mix that with blues and hip hop and you have the multi-generational musical story, Crowns.  Inspired by the book, Crowns: Portraits of Black Women in Church Hats, Regina Taylor creates and directs a musical jubilee that brings to life the portraits of six African-American women through triumphant song, movement, story, and, of course, hats. First performed in 2002, the Long Wharf production is a revision of the original, updated in conjunction with Emily Mann’s McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton where Crowns was first produced.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Long Wharf Theatre
Review: The Lipstick Project's "Cabaret" at the Darien Arts Center
Review: The Lipstick Project's "Cabaret" at the Darien Arts Center

History was made on April 27th, 2018 in Darien, CT as twenty-two woman took the stage for the first-ever performance of Kander & Ebb's Cabaret, with an all-female cast. Under the direction of Carin Zakes and choreography by Caitlin Roberts, this was a strong production with every bit the risque and reflection you'd want out of this material. 

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonChris Peterson, The Lipstick Project
Review: "The Age of Innocence" at Hartford Stage
Review: "The Age of Innocence" at Hartford Stage

When I heard that Hartford Stage was putting an Edith Wharton novel on stage, I jumped for joy. Wharton was one of my favorite novelists in my late teens and early twenties. Having started with Ethan Frome in high school, I quickly devoured her other novels and short stories. I found her descriptions of beautiful, rich interiors and high society manners engrossing, mostly due to my interest in historical fiction at the time. I also adored the tragedy that befell on her characters, and the sacrifices made by them (usually for love – because I was a typical swooning young woman at the time). For me, film adaptations vary from excellent (House of Mirth with Gillian Anderson) to mediocre (Age of Innocence with Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Winona Ryder), but lucky for us, Douglas McGrath’s smart, concise adaptation of Age of Innocence definitely leans toward the former: It is a worthy reworking of Wharton’s Pulitzer-prize winning novel with standout performances and stunning staging.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy, Hartford Stage
Review: "The Legend of Georgia McBride" at TheaterWorks
Review: "The Legend of Georgia McBride" at TheaterWorks

Grab your false eyelashes, size 12 pumps, and Judy Garland quips, and go see Theaterworks’ latest offering, The Legend of Georgia McBride. Written by Matthew Lopez (The Whipping Man, Reverberation), it relays the journey of a young man finding his place in the world in the last place he probably ever thought of: in a drag show. I will tell you how much I liked this show: After curtain call, a woman behind me in the audience commented that I appeared to be enjoying myself; apparently, I couldn’t hide my enthusiasm. It’s hysterical and heartfelt, provided you have no problem with men dressing up as women and lip-syncing. Obviously, I don’t.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy
Review: "Father Comes Home from the Wars, Parts 1, 2 & 3" at Yale Repertory Theatre
Review: "Father Comes Home from the Wars, Parts 1, 2 & 3" at Yale Repertory Theatre

Suzan-Lori Parks’ first triptych in her 12-part epic journey, Father Comes Home from the Wars, a co-production with the American Conservatory Theater, explores the journey of a slave during the Civil War. It’s part ode to Greek theater, and part racial commentary that leaves you wondering if we’ll ever cure ourselves of the scourge of racial injustice, given our sordid history with slavery.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy
Review: "Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery" at Long Wharf Theatre
Review: "Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery" at Long Wharf Theatre

Playwright Ken Ludwig is making the rounds here in Connecticut with another piece that originated at the McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton in 2015. This time, it’s an adaptation of another mystery writer, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his illustrious pipe-smoking sleuth, Sherlock Holmes, with a reworking of one of Doyle’s most famous Sherlock Holmes stories, The Hound of Baskerville.

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ConnecticutChristopher PetersonTara Kennedy