Neil Simon’s Gift to Us
• August 30, 2018

Hearing of the Broadway playwright’s death, on Aug. 26, our writer remembered laughter of all sorts: the guffaw, the broad burst of noise, the laughter that sounds like a soundtrack, even the silent laughter.

Sen. John McCain, Gone Too Soon at 81
• August 27, 2018

McCain had qualities that might have inspired us moving forward: humor, the experience of suffering, a heroic nature, principles and honor, a natural optimism about American virtues and the nation’s future.

Sondheim’s ‘Passion’ at Signature
• August 21, 2018

Running through Sept. 23, “Passion” takes something of a commitment, a willingness to open ourselves to feelings not usually accessed by a musical.

Farewell to the Queen of Soul
• August 16, 2018

Aretha Franklin died today, Aug. 16, at age 76 while in hospice care for pancreatic cancer. Whatever the ebb and flow of her career and her popularity, her music never lost its power.

A Rich ‘Color Purple’ at the Kennedy Center
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Running through Aug. 26, “The Color Purple” has a strong cast and strong music, which overcome a dearth of physical stagecraft by going to the heart of character, situation and emotion.

In Praise of Dogs
• August 9, 2018

Among the heroic and famous, there really is only one dog we cherish until our last breath. It is the one who shared our lives with us, always, no matter how long, all too briefly.

The Life and Lives of Alice Walker’s Celie
• August 8, 2018

One is amazed by the life and lives Celie has led and embodied. She was born in triumph, often accompanied by controversy, the aura of which sometimes still remains. Writer […]

Mike Daisey’s ‘The Story of the Gun’
• July 30, 2018

The one-man show, with one table, one chair and many glasses of water, opens tomorrow, July 31, at Woolly Mammoth and has already been extended through Aug. 9.      

The Kennedy Center Honors: From Astaire to Cher
• July 26, 2018

There has been no word, yea or nay, from the White House as to whether the president and the first lady will attend the Dec. 2 dinner and ceremony.        

Glimmerglass: Summer Opera in Cooperstown
• July 25, 2018

Even with the presence of the open-air performance treasure house of Wolf Trap, and various summer offerings from Washington area theaters — the new musical “Dave” at Arena Stage, for […]