Running time 2:50 - one intermission
Two sparkling acts separated by an intermittently decipherable middle section 
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Storyline: Barbara Undershaft is a major in the Salvation Army with the highest of standards as she attempts to convert the poor and unfortunates of London. She's shocked beyond tolerance when her superiors in the Army accept a shelter-saving donation from the distiller of the very whiskey which tempts so many of the souls at the mission away from the straight and narrow. To make matters worse, she is one of three children of Andrew Undershaft, head of the world's most successful munitions factory, whose lack of moral scruples is even more shocking to her. What is more, her mother has been separated from Andrew for twenty years because of his refusal to agree to leave the business to their son. Now, with the three Undershaft children reaching adulthood and marriageable age, Lady Undershaft attempts to persuade her estranged husband to settle dowries on their two daughters and provide for the inheritance she believes her son deserves. Barbara attempts to reform her father with no success, although she does obtain his agreement to visit her shelter. In exchange she is to visit his factory. Both learn something from the exchange.

We have provided a more complete summary in the storyline above in an effort to be of help to those who approach the play cold. Don't arrive early expecting to pore over the synopsis which the Shakespeare Theatre Company usually includes in the program. For some reason, they have omitted it for this production. Those who would like an act-by-act, scene-by-scene rundown can visit www.sparknotes.com/drama/majorbarbara and spend a few minutes with their "plot overview." It will be time well spent.

There's rarely a moment of confusion over the important words or syllables uttered by Carey as she delivers Shaw's delicious lines as Lady Britomart Undershaft, or by Story as her son who has found absolutely nothing to do with his life. Their work together - as he follows her around with a cushion for her back from couch to chair to settee, is as sharp verbally as the physical comedy with the cushion is precise. The fabulous consistency of van Griethuysen, as the munitions mogul who prides himself on arming any side of any contest that will pay the bill, gets most of the plot points entrusted by Shaw to his character across clearly as well. With each, careful listening is amply rewarded with both pleasure and information. In the middle section, while the majority of Catherine Flye's lines as Shaw's "bundle of poverty" land clearly, others, especially those of Andrew Long, as an angry cockney-spouting brute, seem to ricochet around the set and the hall making every fourth or fifth syllable difficult to connect with its neighbor. Relying more on visual humor, as he is want, Floyd King has more success as a down-on-his-luck laborer. Throughout this act, Vivienne Benesch's lines, as the Major of the title, get swallowed up as well, although she's clear as a bell in the scenes in the library.

Robert Perdziola's costumes are a study of class, upper and lower. James Noone's three sets are beautiful to look at and their appearance enhances each of the three locales in this, the first production in the new Sidney Harman Hall to be mounted with the hall in its proscenium configuration. The library set is stunning and the munition factory suitably whimsical, while the Salvation Army shelter looks impressive but is so wide and deep that the difficulty with accents is intensified. David Maddox's sound design does little to overcome this difficulty, especially given the contrast between the dialogue and the overly loud playing of the incidental music he composed for the occasion.

Written by George Bernard Shaw. Directed by Ethan McSweeny. Design: James Noone (set) Robert Perdziola (costumes) Robert Wierzel (lights) David Maddox (sound and music) Scott Suchman (photography) James Latus (stage manager). Cast: Vivienne Benesch, Helen Carey, Leah Curney, Blake DeLong, Leo Erickson, Tiffany Fillmore, Catherine Flye, Adriano Gatto, Kenric Green, Austin Herzing, Karl Kenzler, Floyd King, Andrew Long, Kaitlin Manning, Jennifer Mendenhall, Kaytie Morris, Kevin O'Donnell, Kevin Pierson, James Ricks, Tom Story, Ted van Griethuysen.

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Running time 2:40 - one intermission
A modern slang take on ancient Greek legend
Performances at the Lansburgh
Click here to buy Appollonius' text
Click here to buy Valerius' text

Storyline: To protect himself from a dire prediction, King Pelias of the Greek city of Iolkos sends his nephew Jason off on a quest for the pelt of a ram (the famous "golden fleece") in a far off land on the eastern edge of the Black Sea, knowing that there would be so many dangers to be overcome the chances of Jason's survival would be minimal. But Jason assembles a team of the greatest talents, skills and abilities and sets sail on the then-state-of-the-art vessel - the Argo (thus, the name "Argonauts") - and overcomes every barrier between Greece and the end of the known world. And, with the help of young Medea who has been shot by cupid's amorous arrow, triumphs over almost all odds.

Zimmerman used her unique approach to adapting a classical source in preparing the original production of this piece. Just as she did with the tales of Ovid in the Metamorphoses, which won her a Tony Award when it played on Broadway in 2002, she gathered a cast and developed the piece as a communal exercise at her home facility, Chicago's Lookingglass Theatre. As re-staged here, she has four of the original cast of fourteen, including Atley Loughridge, who raises the level of dramatic interest quite a few notches upon her arrival as Medea. Her impalement by cupid's arrow, which looks like it was borrowed from Steve Martin but rather than worn on the head has been lowered to her heart, not only causes amorous results but begins a slow, steady seepage of rich red blood throughout her costume. One new member of the cast is a standout. Soren Oliver uses both strength and humor to make Hercules a memorable character. Original cast member Lisa Tejero and newcomer Sofia Jean Gomez make a chipper team as the two goddesses Hera and Athena, while Tessa Klein's valley girl of an Athena cavorts delightfully with Ronete Levenson's one-joke version of cupid (oh, but that one joke - her opening line - is a gem as she delivers it).

A key difficulty in this production however is the character of Jason himself. As performed by Jake Suffian, the leader of the greatest expedition to date in the history of western mankind (which, admittedly, wasn't a very lengthy history since this was over three thousand years ago) was a bland, colorless, practically emotionless fellow who only shows much spark when love strikes - and by that time, we're well into act two! Those who saw Suffian's emotionally wrenching portrayal of the inarticulate homophobe in Studio Theatre's Take Me Out in 2004 know of his ability to communicate depth in a character without relying on mere dialogue. None of that is visible here.

Daniel Ostling designed the set for Zimmerman as he did for her Pericles and again he provides an elegant space in which the cast create images through ensemble placement. An elevated platform without a railing, however, finds the actors clinging to the few vertical supports to keep their balance. The costumes are by Ana Kuzmanic in her first Potomac Region outing and they are something of a mixed bag. The raiments of royalty are both impressive and a bit witty, which works nicely for Allen Gilmore's King Pelias and Oliver's second appearance as King Aietes, but the rags of the Argonauts are unimpressive things. Michael Montenegro's mask and puppetry designs, including a towering two-actor giant, a pair of fire-breathing bulls, and vomiting birds are effective and distinctive.

Written and Directed by Mary Zimmerman. Adapted from the texts of the Greek Apollonius and the Roman Valerius. Puppets by Michael Montenegro. Design: Daniel Ostling (set) Ana Kuzmanic (costumes) John Culbert (lights) Andre Pluess and Ben Sussman (sound and music) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Justin Blanchard, Jason Vande Brake, Allen Gilmore, Sofia Jean Gomez, Casey Jackson, Chris Kipiniak, Tessa Klein, Ronete Levenson, Atley Loughridge, Andy Murray, Soren Olver, Jesse J. Perez, Jake Suffian, Lisa Tejero.

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Running time 1:05 - no intermission
An entertaining and involving play for children with active minds

Storyline: In modern day Iran, Young Nazzrin's mother tells her the Persian folk tale of Mushkil Gusha, "remover of difficulties," to help pass the time while they await word of the fate of her father who has been arrested for teaching from prohibited books. The tale is of a young girl in Persia and her father, a poor wood gatherer. As the story unfolds, the characters come to life and Nazzrin is transported to an ancient time, but finds that the concerns of family are the same no matter what century you may be in.

Allen has worked in the genre of theater for and by youngsters for many years. At Signature Theatre he produced a play in collaboration with the students of Wakefield High School nearly every year for almost a decade. Each dealt with an historical event or topic that fascinated both the playwright and his student collaborators, and, as a result, fascinated audiences. The first, Waiting in Tobolsk, The Children of the Last Tsar went on to an expanded professional production. Leaving Monticello dealt frankly with the issues surrounding Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, Jenny Saint Joan with Joan of Arc and The Haight - 1969 with the concerns that spawned the hippie movement in San Francisco. Now he takes up questions of freedom of thought, the value of cultural heritage and the universality of the bonds of family.

Anu Yadav is a presence that the children in the audience find easy to identify with, open and enthusiastic as Nassrin. Judith Delgado and Craig Wallace share narration duties while each remains in character as Nazzrin's mother and the wandering teller of tales, respectively. Both are effective in part because their enunciation is so clear and crisp. Wallace adds a sense of mystery as the storyteller and Neema Atri a touch of youthful humor as "an orphan boy of a millennium ago - and more." The most fun for most of the audience, however, is Tiffany Fillmore as the Princess from ancient Persia who seems a blend of Sherrie Renee Scott's Egyptian princess Amneris in Aida and Laura Bell Bundy's valley girl Ellie in Legally Blond - although it is a measure of Norman Allen's sense of craft that he doesn't put the phrase "Oh my god, you guys!" into her mouth.

David Muse directs with a sure hand, although he does allow the pace to lag just a bit about two thirds of the way through the one-hour performance. The new Harman Hall looks superb and the acoustics are as sharp and clear as in other, more complex productions. James Kronzer's set design features traditional Persian motifs (especially the intricate grill work that forms the fences, walls and gates of various locales) with set pieces appearing from a trap in the stage. So, too, do Erin Nugent's costume designs reflect the cultural heritage of the land.

Written by Norman Allen. Directed by David Muse. Design: James Kronzer (set) Erin Nugent (costumes) Mark McCullough (lights) Daniel Baker (sound) Carol Pratt (photography) Colleen Martin (stage manager). Cast: Neema Atri, Ed Chemaly, Judith Delgado, Tiffany Fillmore, Craig Wallace, Anu Yadav.

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Running time 2:45 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for an emotionally satisfying portrait of a monarch destroyed by his passions
v Includes a disturbing execution scene too strong for young children
Performances in the Sidney Harman Hall
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: The first act of King Edward II of England upon assuming the throne was to call back from exile his favorite, his lover, the Frenchman Piers Gaveston. The lords of the court are scandalized and the powers of the church enraged. Edward is torn between the challenge to his rule and his passion for Gaveston, flip flopping between submission to the demands of his court in order to avoid loosing his crown and outright flaunting of his affair. A nobleman manipulates the crisis to assume power for himself and eventually replaces Edward II with the young Edward III with himself as Lord Protector.

Christopher Marlowe wrote this heart-felt and heart-rending history play only five years after the intellectually dryer sweep-of-history plays that formed his first mega-hits, Tamburlaine Parts I and II. Under Gale Edwards' direction, the emotional impact of this piece is so much greater than that of the intellectually striking but less emotionally involving version of Tamburlaine, which Michael Kahn is directing in repertory with this production, makes one wonder just how Marlowe could have grown so much as a dramatist in such a short time. Much of the key, however, seems to be the directorial touch of Edwards who blends visual spectacle with emotional turmoil to create a fast-paced, fascinating whole.

Wallace Acton makes such a king! His Richard earned him the Helen Hayes Award while his Richard II and Richard III each earned him nominations for the same award. Here he's an astonishingly conflicted monarch. His Edward is not just torn between his passion for a male lover and his sense of royal place. That passion bends his perception of royal prerogative and duty. He gives the audience a view into the torn soul of his subject, one that is both totally understandable and fundamentally tragic. Andrew Long is superb as the nobleman who would manipulate that conflict for his own advancement. It isn't homophobia that motivates the key players, it is opportunism. Vayu O'Donnell, a new face for Potomac Region theatergoers, nudges right up to the edge of overdoing mannerisms as Edward's lover without actually going too far. In Marlowe's text, the story opens with his joy over being called back to England to share the life of its new King whose father had banished him for corrupting his son. O'Donnell makes that scene work in the director's concept as she contrasts joy with the dirge of the funereal court. A host of well-drawn performances from the likes of Floyd King, James Konicek and David Sabin add spice to the brew.

The physical design of the production is striking. The large space of the stage is not cluttered but often impressive sights are created. The flickering of votive candles and the stained glass window of a cathedral, the large bier and coffin of a funeral, the bars of a prison all establish place with a sense of style, while costumes ranging from the sumptuousness of religious robes, elegance of Edwardian formal wear and the outlandishness of gay club-goers in drag carry the story from scene to scene with clarity. Karl Lundeberg provides some original music which blends well with snippets of Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich in creating a sense of classic formality. The use of Tchaikovsky's refrain often called the "Theme of Fate" which has long been associated with the composer's struggle to deal with his own homosexuality added a subliminal layer to the presentation.

Written by Christopher Marlowe. Directed by Gale Edwards. Choreography by Daniel Pelzig. Fight direction by Rick Sordelet.  Design: Lee Savage (set) Murell Horton (costumes) Mark McCullough (lights) Phillip Scott Peglow (sound) Karl Lundeberg (original music) Carol Rosegg (photography) Jeremy B. Wilcox (stage manager). Cast: Wallace Acton, Terence Archie, JJ Area, Michael Bunting, Chris Crawford, Abe Cruz, Danyon Davis, Blake DeLong, James Denvil, Franchelle Stewart Dorn, Adriano Gatto, Kenric Green, Austin Herzing, Anthony Jackson, Robert Jason Jackson, Scott Jaeck, Jair Kamperveen, Floyd King, James Konicek, John Lescault, Andrew Long, Deanne Lorette, David McCann, Kaitlin Manning, Christopher Marino, Kaytie Morris, Vayu O'Donnell, Jonathan Earl Peck, Kevin Pierson, Jeferson A. Russell, David Sabin, Majed Sayess, David Emerson Toney, Kurt Uy, Craig Wallace, Amy Kim Waschke, Jay Whittaker.

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Running time 3:15 - one intermission
An epic pageant of the history of the 14th Century conqueror
 displayed with style
Performances in the Sidney Harman Hall
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: A shepherd from Scythia, along the shores Central Asia's Aural Sea, rises to leadership of an army that conquers territory from the Mediterranean to the Arabian Sea. With each conquest he becomes more powerful and more cruel to the forces he conquers, coming to believe that aggressiveness and subjugation are the keys to martial success. He eventually comes to believe he is not just superior to human foes, he is godlike as well, and, when age and illness begin to overtake him, he launches a war on heaven.

This half of the company's Christopher Marlowe repertory is early Marlowe. Tamburlaine The Great which is presented in abbreviated form as Act I, was a big hit for a previously unknown, twenty-three year old Marlowe in London in 1587. It offered something not seen on Elizabethan stages before, a "history play" with drama, scope and passion. Its impact on the local theater scene may have been impressive, but its importance to the future of drama is of equal interest. Another dramatist in town at the time, one William Shakespeare, would put some of the elements of this approach to history plays into practice in works that would be better known over the next four centuries. The success also stimulated a sequel which is the basis of Kahn's Act II. In encapsulating the two, Kahn shows us the power and scope but it is hard to see some of the seeds of emotional involvement in historical topics that Taburlaine is credited with inspiring in subsequent works by Marlowe, Shakespeare and their descendants over the succeeding four centuries.

Avery Brooks strides through the story with the same impressiveness that the real Tamburlaine may well have evidenced as he inspired and frightened populations across Central Asia between 1336 and 1405. He doesn't, however, seem to limp as the original is said to have ... "Tamburlaine" is derived from the derisive nickname for the conqueror, Tamur the Lame. Brooks is the picture of vital, vigorous and virile health over the thirty-five years of military exploits chronicled in the play. His voice fills the hall (more on this later) and his presence dominates the huge cast. No fewer than 38 performers take the stage for the curtain call - many of them regulars that Shakespeare Theatre Company audiences have come to know and respect.

While Brooks is clearly the star of the show, it is the hall that is really the star of the night. This first show to open in the new Sidney Harman Hall (Edward II actually had the first preview performance in the hall, but Tamburlaine had the first official opening) gives Potomac Region audiences their first chance to see this lovely facility with its deep brown slatted walls that disperse sound so well and its large stage that can be used in a number of different configurations. For this production Michael Kahn has chosen an open arrangement without a proscenium, allowing the full extent of the spaciousness to be evident. Set designer Lee Savage avoids filling that space with clutter. Instead, he provides large but isolated set pieces that leave a lot of space unfilled, leaving it to Jennifer Moeller to create the feeling of sumptuousness through her costumes of silks and brocades. There is no credit in the program for "sound design" for the cast is called upon to project throughout the spacious hall. That they do so with highly satisfying results is both a tribute to the skills the Shakespeare Theatre Company, one of the world's great classical theaters, fosters in its casts and to the success of acoustic design consultant Richard Talaske - perhaps his name should in the credits for this show.

Written by Christopher Marlowe. Directed and adapted by Michael Kahn. Fight direction by Rick Sordelet. Design: Lee Savage (set) Jennifer Moeller (costumes) Mark McCullough (lights) Karl Lundeberg (composer) Carol Rosegg (photography), Benjamin Royer (stage manager).  Cast: Terence Archie, JJ Area, Avery Brooks, Chris Crawford, Abe Cruz, Danyon Davis, Blake DeLong, James Denvil, Franchelle Stewart Dorn, Adriano Gatto, Kenric Green, Austin Herzing, Anthony Jackson, Robert Jason Jackson, Scott Jaeck, Jair Kamperveen, Floyd King, James Konicek, John Lescault, Andrew Long, Deanne Lorette, David McCann, Kaitlin Manning, Christopher Marino, Kaytie Morris, Vayu O'Donnell, Jonathan Earl Peck, Kevin Pierson, Jeremy Pryzby, Jeferson A. Russell, David Sabin, Majed Sayess, Mia Tagano, David Emerson Toney, Kurt Uy, Craig Wallace, Amy Kim Waschke, Jay Whittaker.

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Running time 2:30 - one intermission
A modern-dress mounting of Shakespeare's battle of the sexes
Performances in the Lansburgh
Click here to buy the script 

Storyline: A wealthy gentleman of Padua has almost despaired of finding a husband for his headstrong eldest daughter, Katherina, when Petrucio, an out of town suitor, arrives seeking her hand and her generous dowry. Warned of her shrewish nature, he maintains that he knows how to tame a shrew. He arrives dressed inappropriately and late for his wedding and then announces that he and his bride are departing immediately for his home town. There he subjects her to indignities and demands for her acceptance of his commands without question. Depriving her of food and sleep, he breaks her spirit but in the process comes to value her intelligence and a bond is developed. In the meantime, her sister whose hand has been refused by her father to many suitors because he would not have her wed before her older sister, is suddenly becoming available which stimulates a strenuous competition between men who have been longing to "take her to wife." 

The use of misogynistic abuse to enforce masculism, if that is the proper word for the opposite of feminism, isn't the only difficulty this play offers to directors mounting it today. The boorishness of Petrucio, the initial shrewishness of Katherina and the rapidity of her conversion to a "dutiful wife" all complicate the task of director. Taichman's solution to this complication is to cast the striking Woodward and the solid Innvar in these roles. Each creates a strong and consistent character, not an easy thing to do with the shift in Katherina's demeanor, but one that Woodward handles with assurance. Her distinctive enunciation is quite fitting for Katherina and reminds one just a bit of another upper-class Kate, one named Hepburn. Invar is rough and rambunctious, a man of physical solutions to any problem. When he sings rather than simply recites the famous line "Where is the life that late I led" there is a delicious nod to another effort to bring this story forward four centuries, Cole Porter and Sam and Bella Spewack's Kiss Me, Kate.

Lisa Birnbaum is the focus of the subplot as the younger, more sought after sister, Bianca. She is honey to the buzzing bees of a superb set of suitors; the stuffy J. Fred Shiffman, the Johnny Depp-ish Aubrey K. Deeker and the identity switching Michael Milligan/Bruce Nelson. Louis Butelli gives just about the most energetic supporting performance thus far in the relatively young 2007-08 season in the Potomac Region as Petrucio's servant Gumio. Bill Hamlin delivers a silent routine when he enters that is such a wordless delight that I, for one, hoped he would get off stage without ever speaking a line. It would have been such a delectable silent role. Alas, he wasn't there just as a passing gentlemen, but as the rich father of one of Bianca's suitors, and, as such, he had to enter into dialogue scenes. Oh, but his silent minute or two was sublime.

Taichman's sense of visual spectacle is a marvelous aspect of her productions. At Woolly Mammoth she directed memorably visual productions of Dead Man's Cell Phone and The Clean House. As she did with The Clean House, she uses Narelle Sissons to design the set. His sumptuous red, glass and gold-brushed chrome structure features a partially obscured billboard showing the lower part of what looks for all the world like a Vargas Girl painting from Playboy of Bianca. In a nice subtle touch, the bill board has a small plaque showing the name of the outdoor advertising company that owns it: "Minola Publicita," obviously the family company of the shrew, Katherina Monola. The set features a revolving door that Taichman puts to intriguing use for sight gags. The door is flanked by glassed in areas that at one point become a pair of booths for the competition over Bianca in the style of television's $64,000 Question.

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Rebecca Bayla Taichman. Choreographed by Seán Curran. Fight direction by Rick Sordelet. Design: Narelle Sissons (set) Miranda Hoffman (costumes) Robert Wierzel (lights) Daniel Baker and Ryan Rumery (sound) The Broken Chord Collective (music) Scott Suchman (photography) Sarah Bierenbaum (stage manager). Cast: Wyckham Avery, Lisa Birnbaum, Louis Butelli, Aubrey K. Deeker, Andy English, Drew Eshelman, Sean Michael Fraser, Bill Hamlin, Nicholas Hormann, Christopher Innvar, Michael Milligan, Bruce Nelson, Erika Rose, Todd Scofield, J. Fred Shiffman, Nick Vienna, Charlayne Woodward.

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Running time 3:15 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for a fresh take on a classic role 
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: The prince of Denmark discovers that his uncle has murdered his father, the king, and wed his mother, the queen. The quest for vengeance results in the deaths of guilty and innocent alike.

While Hamlet's age isn't specified, he has been off studying in Germany when he gets the word to come home to Denmark, and in Shakespeare's day, college kids weren't very old. Carlson impresses with the vigor, barely-contained energy and natural insouciance of youth in a performance that is all twitch and tumble and which places the emphasis on the hormone-driven body at the expense of the workings of the tortured mind. It is that mind, however, that is given glorious expression in some of the finest soliloquies Shakespeare ever wrote, and here Carlson isn't quite as satisfying as others have been. Compare and contrast two moments in the first act separated by a split second. When Hamlet is left alone after having controlled himself with great difficulty in the presence of his uncle's court, Carlson collapses to the floor in one of the most most demanding and impressive moves a physical actor can pull off. It is the essence of youthfulness. It is also all pain and anguish. Just a moment later he launches into one of Shakespeare's most impassioned soliloquies: "O, that this too too solid flesh would melt." What is missing is the sense of transition. We get no chance to see the inner workings of the young prince's mind. All evening long, Carlson gives one of the most physically impressive - and probably most exhausting - of performances. It adds to our collection of notable Hamlets - but does not supplant others in the pantheon of great performances of the role.

Robert Cuccioli, who co-starred with Carlson in Lorenzaccio here in 2005, brings a highly virile approach to the role of Claudius, Hamlet's uncle.  His bond with his new wife, Hamlet's mother Gertrude is sexual and Janet Zarish makes a very sexual Gertrude. Ted van Griethuysen doesn't double, he triples as the Ghost of Hamlet's Father, the First Player in the troupe that performs the play within a play, and as the Gravedigger. Michelle Beck matches Carlson's emphasis on youth. She's an Ophelia that seems even younger than Hamlet. As her father, Polonius, Robert Jason Jackson puts both his fabulously mellifluous voice and his imposing stage presence to good use.

Humor is a major factor in the way this productions seems to fly by over its three and a quarter hours. Laughter punctuates scene after scene in this modern dress production with I-Pods, Cell Phones with distinctive ring tones and digital voice recorders. These touches add to the sense of youthfulness that is at the center of Carlson's performance and Kahn's direction. Strangely, the climactic battle scene - the famous fight with poison tipped swords - seems rushed, leaving the evening to end on a less satisfying note than much of what has gone before. It isn't so much that David Leong's fight direction seems lacking, but that the events of the scene seem to be compressed without enough focus drawn to specific plot developments which lead up to the climax. No such feeling affects the play within a play in Act III which Kahn stages as a combination kabuki live-action and bunraku puppetry with the delightful creations of Aaron Cromie.

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Michael Kahn. Fight direction by David Leong. Incidental music by Adam Wrenick. Design: Walt Spangler (set) Murell Horton (costumes) Aaron Cromie (puppets) Charlie Morrison (lights) Martin Desjardins (sound) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: J. Clint Allen, Michelle Beck, Kenajuan Bentley, Jeffrey Carlson, Robert Cuccioli, James Denvil, Robert Jason Jackson, Maria Kelly, Bill Largess, Kenneth Lee, David Murgittroyd, Pedro Pascal, Erskine Ritchie, Ben Rosenblatt, David L. Townsend, Ted van Griethuysen, Nick Vienna, Craig Wallace, Chris Whitney, Janet Zarish.

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Running time 2:35 - one intermission
Shakespeare's equivalent of a slasher flick
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: A conquering general returning in triumph to Rome is immersed in the politics of the empire in the wake of the death of the emperor. He is proclaimed the new emperor but refuses the post, naming one of the former emperor's sons in his stead, but unleashing a flood of jealousies that involve his five remaining sons, his daughter, the family of the late emperor and the queen of the land he conquered whom he has brought home in chains along with her entire family. Each act of violence begets another, gorier and more inventive, an escalation that includes rape, maiming, mayhem, torture, disfigurement and cannibalism.

Shakespeare, turning out a blood-and-gore play that predates the horror films of today by about 400 years? Yes. Early in his playwriting career, he took up the then highly popular genre of the revenge play and gave it all the bloody awful details that Londoners could want. The body count may not equal that of  the recent box office hit movie 300, but it probably comes close to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. To what end? Shakespeare found a theme that, like many screenplays of our day, tries to tie horrible events to honorable intentions - duty, honor, family ties. Ah, but it is all in support of a story that has multiple horrific events. In this version a general who has waged bloody and, one assumes, horrible combat for a decade (loosing twenty-one of his twenty-six sons) makes the emotional journey from one who sees carnage as a normal state of affairs to one who is capable of rage when it is inflicted on him and his family - but, of course, his response is to exact even bloodier and more horrific revenge.

As is often the case with Shakespeare, a towering performance in the title role is the best guarantor of success. Here, it is Sam Tsoutsouvas who plays the general Titus Andronicus, and he's good. But good isn't enough. He's not mesmerizing and that is what the evening needs. The strongest performance comes from Peter Macon as Aaron, a Moor who is the slave and lover of the Queen of the Goths whose plea for mercy toward her son is denied by Titus, setting off the chain of events that leads to the blood bath. That queen is a stately Valerie Leonard doing a fine job on short notice (she stepped in when Lynnda Ferguson had to pull out of the production). Colleen Delany is also satisfying as Titus' daughter who is pretty and self-contained before her horrible treatment from the queen's sons. It isn't giving away too much to say that she's raped and then has both her tongue and her hands cut off so she can't name her attackers. It is that atrocity that drives Titus over the edge to find an even more heinous reprisal.

Edwards is working here with the same design team she had on both Hamlet and Richard III, so any criticism of the visual impact of the production cannot be laid at the feet of the designers. It was the vision of the director. There are some very sharp individual images. It opens on Titus making his entrance striding down a path made of coffins. It closes with the next generation exhibiting the same faults that had proven fatal for their elders. The blood-letting death of the queen's sons is intriguingly staged and the simple but effective image of the forest with reflective tree trunks works well too. These pleasures are too infrequent but enjoyable when they appear.

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Gale Edwards. Design: Peter England (set) Murell Horton (costumes) Rick Sordelet (fight direction) Mark McCullough (lights) Martin Desjardins (music and sound) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: C. Travis Atkinson, Bob Barr, Danny Binstock, Michael Brusasco, James Chatham, Colleen Delany, Julie-Ann Elliott, Andy English, Ryan Farley, Chris Genebach, Bill Hamlin, Maria Kelly, William Langan, Valerie Leonard, Peter Macon, Kyle Magley, David Murgittroyd, Alex Podulke, Robert Rector, Ben Rosenblatt, Christopher Scheeren, Matthew Stucky, David L. Townsend, Sam Tsoutsouvas, Nick Vienna.

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Running time 3:15 - one intermission
Visually striking and often thrilling performances mark the Company's
 second III in four years
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: As Edward IV approaches his death late in the fifteenth century, his brother Richard sets about to remove all those who might gain the throne in his place. He arranges the deaths of his other brother and his children, his own nephews and others who stand in his way while those he doesn’t kill he imprisons. But insurrection mounts and Richard faces his foes on the battlefield. He is out maneuvered and slain, bringing an end to the War of the Roses and to what the victor refers to as “these bloody days.”

Wyn Davies's Richard is a captivating creation. He's a deformed lump, both physically and morally. His hump back, his club foot and his scarred face (he quickly tells us he's "rudely stamped ... Deformed, unfinish'd, sent before my time into this breathing world") are but the physical manifestations of inner deformity. Wyn Davies takes to prosthetics with brio, clomping around with a sense of the extra energy it takes for him to move his frame. But he is also a charmer. He uses his deformations of body and of soul to manipulate people and events. If, indeed, his Richard was "unfinish'd" at birth, he certainly had become all that he could be by the start of the show. During the three plus hours traffic of this stage, Wyn Davies' Richard remains unchanged, unaffected by either the astonishing successes of his dastardly plots that raise him from Duke of Gloucester to King of England, or by any sense of guilt. When, at the end, he intones that other oft-quoted (or impersonated) line "My kingdom for a horse," he seems the same man he did at the beginning. It is an engaging, fascinating but strangely static portrayal.

Kahn has surrounded Wyn Davies with a terrific supporting cast in tremendous costumes on a superbly designed and lit set that not only lists to one side, it tilts downward as well. It is an industrial structure of pipes and girders, not an attempt to recreate the London of Richard's time at all, but not anything like the modern setting for Edwards and Acton's version here, or of the version Sir Ian McKellan brought here year's ago which was famously updated to Nazi-threatened England. Chief among the pleasures are the strength of Edward Gero's Duke of Buckingham, and the personal pride of Claire Lautier's Lady Anne, who faces the prospect of marriage to the deformed monster with a bearing that seems to affirm the possibility of human dignity.

The program for this production includes a one-page message from the Richard III Society, the group trying desperately to erase the damage this play has done to the reputation of its namesake. After all, they rightly point out, most of the evil doings that  Shakespeare shows Richard III doing were almost surely not done by this Richard, or, for that matter, even during the time he lived. He was the last of his line, the house of York and no one who had been one of his supporters was in a position to defend his reputation after he had been deposed. Instead, history was written by the victors. His successors, the Tudors, included Elizabeth who sat on the throne when Shakespeare wrote this play. The Richard III Society points to the lack of evidence that Richard III was even deformed. They espouse a faith that "the truth is more important than the lies" - oh, but the lies are so very much more entertaining!

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Michael Kahn. Fight direction by David Leong. Design: Lee Savage (set) Jennifer Moeller (costumes) Charlie Morrison (lights) Martin Desjardins (sound and music) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Jeff Allin, Ian Bedford, Matthew Cardenes, Donald Carrier, Kenny Cooper, Ralph Cosham, Dan Crane, Aubrey Deeker, James Denvil, Margot Dionne, Andy English, Edward Gero, David Gross, Bill Hamlin, Tana Hicken, Keith Irby, Kent Jenkens, Maria Kelly, Floyd King, Melora Kordos, Claire Lautier, Andrew Long, Sean McCoy, David Murgittroyd, Carl Palmer, Pamela Payton-Wright, Robert Rector, Lawrence Redmond, James Ricks, Ben Rosenblatt, Theodore M. Snead, Matthew Stucky, Raphael Nash Thompson, Nick Vienna, Matthew Williams, Geraint Wyn Davies.

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Running time 2:25 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for comic style and pure fun
Click here to buy the original script

Storyline: Two down-on-their-luck English gentlemen (known as "gentlemen of broken fortune") head off to the hinterlands to find a wealthy woman to wed. It doesn't matter which one wins the prize for they have agreed to share any fortune they strike. One pretends to be the servant of the other, but, of course, both fall for local ladies. Complications are added by a band of brigands led by a rogue impersonating a pastor. To provide further laughs, the authors throw in a ditsy mother in law, her drunk of a son and a swishy French minister.

The Beaux' Strategem began in 1707 as a comedy by George Farquhar, one of the acknowledged masters of the style known as "restoration comedy" that was so popular at the time. It was successful in its day but it is rarely performed in modern times. Thornton Wilder began an adaptation in 1939, but did not complete the project. Now Ken Ludwig takes up Wilder's fragment to produce a new version for modern audiences. Apparently Wilder had collapsed some of the stories, discarded some of the extraneous characters and tightened up the original five act script. He hadn't gone much beyond the first of a two act structure he adopted for the adaptation, so much of Ludwig's work is evident in the second act. There's a very real change in the level of energy and the frequency of laughs in that second half which plays much more like Ludwig. However, Michael Kahn's steady hand meshes the disparate portions of the resulting Farquhar/Wilder/Ludgwig comedy so that the differences aren't bothersome at all.

Christopher Innvar is often hilarious as the gentleman posing as a servant in the ploy, and Veanne Cox brings a touch of Carol Burnett style timing to the role of the lady he woos. Christian Conn teams up with Julia Coffey as the other couple, making more of the roles than just comic foils. Throughout the evening Hugh Nees and Nancy Robinette spice things up beautifully. A complicating subplot is introduced early on with Rick Foucheux as "a man of two professions, highwayman and minister." The role never really takes off, however. A second act creation of the modern re-write is a real crowd pleaser in the hands of Floyd King. He plays the minister brought in at the end. In Farquhar's original text, the role had about three lines of dialogue. Here, in a touch very much in the Ludwig manner, he becomes a running gag as the wedding he's supposed to perform is an on, off and on again thing. King makes the most of it.

James Kronzer's sets are not actually part of the Farquhar/Wilder/Ludwig script, but they are very much a part of the audience enjoyment of this production. With two counter-revolving turntables, the large structure of the English Tudor-style inn breaks into pieces which rotate and reassemble as an equally large, imposing Georgian-style manor house. The first time the turntables swirled the audience applauded. The second time, they oohed and aahed. Add the sumptuous period costumes of Robert Perdziola, and Martin Desjardins' selection of the proper period music, and you have the opulent feel Shakespeare Theatre Company audiences have come to expect.

Written by George Farquhar, Thornton Wilder and Ken Ludwig. Directed by Michael Kahn. Choreographed by Peter Pucci. Fight direction by Paul Dennhardt. Design: James Kronzer (set) Robert Perdziola (costumes) Joel Moritz (lights) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Ian Bedford, Julia Coffey, Christian Conn, Veanne Cox, Dan Crane, Colleen Delany, Dew Eshelman, Rick Foucheux, Daniel Harray, Christopher Innvar, Maria Kelly, Floyd King, Diane Ligon, David Murgittroyd, Hugh Nees, Nancy Robinette, Anne Stone, Matthew Stucky, Nick Vienna.

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Running time 2:55 - one intermission
A solid production of a stark morality play

Storyline: A respected medical doctor who serves on the staff of a Norwegian health spa discovers the presence of contaminating bacteria in the spa's water supply, and tries to get the town officials, including his brother the Mayor, to undertake the necessary corrective actions. They, on the other hand, see the discovery more as a threat to their economic well being than to the health of their patrons, and conspire to silence him.

This is the first time the Potomac Region has had the opportunity to see the work of Norwegian director Bang-Hansen. He elegantly moves his forces about the stage, placing them in position to draw attention to key revelations and avoid unnecessary distractions. The pacing is similarly elegant without seeming at all sluggish. Indeed, a few plot points seem to fly by rather too rapidly, but that seems to be more a function of Mr. Ibsen's occasional brevity than the director's lapse. Bang-Hansen finds the humor in some of Ibsen's constructs and uses it to leaven the piece, counteracting some of Ibsen's weightier, more dour views of human nature. The approach makes the evening quite a bit more entertaining, even if it doesn't make the characters less off-putting.

Bang-Hanson certainly has accomplished a great deal with the first task of a director, his selection of a cast. Joseph Urla is a fine, virtuous Dr. Stockman. Just watch his physical reaction to Philip Goodwin's marvelously unctuous pronouncement of regret that it "was not in my power to prevent some of the excesses of last night" that he had himself committed! Goodwin's mayor is a tower of pride, totally unused to any challenge to his authority. Rick Foucheux is his polar opposite, a shaky gelatinous blob of a man who reacts to every passing shift in public opinion. It is not entirely clear if it is Bang-Hanson's attention to detail or the talents of some of his actors, but the use of hand gestures to signal tensions by Urla, Goodwin and Foucheux is fabulous, and, at least on opening night, the tiny parts of the two young sons were given marvelously natural portrayals by youngsters Benjamin Schiffbauer and Connor Aikin. Only the few women in the piece seemed a bit unfocused in Bang-Hansen's scheme of things. Caitlin O'Connell's portrayal of the good doctor's wife nearly fades away into the background, while Samantha Soule flares on occasion as their daughter.

The only shades of grey to be found here are in the sets and costumes designed by Bang-Hanson's Norwegian colleague Timian Alsaker. Alsaker breaks with the general drabness of the design to spark the finest sight gag in the evening, one that may have escaped the attention of some. Note the color scheme of the back wall in Act IV, the chair railing which echoes that of the theater itself, and, finally, the lamps on the top of the wall which are replicas of those along the top of the wall of the Shakespeare Theatre. It gives new meaning to the line in the play about not being able to find a suitable hall for the meeting and being stuck in "this godforsaken place." Both Alsaker and sound designer Martin Dejardins underline the dilemma facing Urla's virtuous doctor with water pipes framing the proscenium and a rather too prominent drip-drip-drip sound cue at predictable moments. The image one carries away from the play, however, is precisely that which Ibsen himself intended - the mass of broken windows in what had been the hero's happy home.

Written by Henrik Ibsen. Translated by Rick Davis and Brian Johnson. Directed by Kjetil Bang-Hansen. Design: Timian Alsaker (set and costumes) Charlie Morrison (lights) Martin Desjardins (sound) Carol Rosegg (photography) Amber Wedin (stage manager). Cast: Connor Aikin or Sam Zarcone, Rich Foucheux, Robin Gammell, Philip Goodwin, Tyrone Mitchell, Derek Lucci, Caitlin O'Connell, Peter Rini, Benjamin Schiffbauer or Sean McCoy, Samantha Soule, Joseph Urla, Nick Vienna.

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Running time 2:20 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for a tie-dyed take on Shakespeare that rocks - literally
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: A king and his three lords, having sworn off love to pursue truth, fall head over heels for a princess of a neighboring land and her ladies in waiting. They promptly pair up, but must keep their infatuations secret because of their vows of temporary chastity. The secret-keeping goes too far, however, as mixed up communications and disguises lead to pledges of eternal devotion to the wrong parties.

Shakespeare's play breaks down into two separate programs - the story of the youths and their amorous diversions and the strange assortment of comedic characters whose subplot adventures provide additional diversions. The 60s motif is clearest in the central story of Amir Arison, who may strike you as Ringo Starr in disguise, and his followers, Hank Stratton, Erick Steele and Aubrey Deeker, each funnier than the other in their quest for karma as well as Claire Lautier, as the Princess with her court astride their Vespas. When the band strikes up sonnets set to a rock beat by composer Adam Wernick, the approach takes flight. But Shakespeare provided his own set of diversions from the main text - comic roles for a schoolmaster, a curate, a constable and a don - and the Shakespeare Theatre Company calls on some favorites who have fun with the puns, gags and malapropisms. David Sabin and Ted van Griethuysen compete with each other in a sort of verbal challenge dance that delights, and Geraint Wyn Davies breaks everyone up with his Dali-esque Don Adriano de Armado. Floyd King is the attendant to the Princess. All participate in the pageant of the worthies sequence which takes the gags just a bit too far and starts to drag.

While Ralph Funicello's colorful and airy set with its pagoda and a sky filled with psychedelic forms, and Mark Doubleday's bright and often orange-tinted warm lighting go a long way toward creating the mood for the piece.  It is Catherine Zuber's absolutely delightful, whimsical costumes that take the concept to its zenith. Bell bottoms, Nehru jackets, sandals for the men and vinyl platforms for the women, and every color on the wheel make the show a delight for the eye as well as the ear. Her costumes can often be fun when the show call for it (consider Two Gentlemen of Verona at CENTERSTAGE) or sumptuously gorgeous when appropriate (her Tony Award costumes for Light in the Piazza on Broadway come to mind), but here she gets to do both and she does it with a consistent sense of style that is a joy.

The production is a milestone for Michael Kahn and the company. When it closes here at the end of July it will transfer to Shakespeare's home town, Stratford-upon-Avon, to perform in the Swan Theatre in the home of the Royal Shakespeare Company. It will be part of that legendary company's year-long Complete Works Festival which will see productions by seventeen international companies (including the Tiny Ninja Theater's Hamlet) and fourteen British companies as well as the hosting RSC which will perform twenty-three. The locals may not know what hit them when Erik Steele unveils his drum set and bangs out the rhythm for "Thou A Heavenly Love!" The only thing this production lacks is an original cast album.

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Michael Kahn. Music composed by Adam Wernick. Design: Ralph Funicello (set) Catherine Zuber (costumes) Mark Doubleday (lights) Martin Desjardins (sound) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Jolly Abraham, Amir Arison, Nick Choksi, Jordan Coughtry, Aubrey Deeker, Colleen Delany, Blake Ellis, Leo Erickson, Floyd King, Rock Kohli, Claire Lautier, Sabrina LeBeauf, Michael Milligan, Kunal Nayyar, Angela Pierce, James Rana, David Sabin, Brian Q. Silver, Erik Steele, Hank Stratton, Nicholas Urda, Ted van Griethuysen, Geraint Wyn Davies, Ryan Young.

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Reviewed April 12
Running time 1:20 - no intermission
A splendid presentation of the world's oldest play

Storyline: Little by little, the leaders of the government of Persia, then the most powerful nation on earth, try to absorb the reality of their force's defeat at the hands of a tiny city-state, Athens. The first word arrives as a soldier from the army stumbles home with an incomplete but devastating view of events. By the time their defeated king arrives, they know of the extent of the disaster and have had time to assess its consequences.

This new new translation and adaptation by Ellen McLaughlin uses some of the conventions of modern theater to make it easier for today's audiences to feel comfortable with this two and a half millennium old play. The most notable change is in the use of the chorus. In classic Greek drama, the chorus was a group of actors chanting explanations and observations on the fate of the mortals involved in the action. Here, instead, the chorus has been split up into individuals. They are all "counselors" and seem to constitute something akin to the Persian cabinet - Interior, State, Religion, etc. Their observations and explanations become the interjections of a political body under extreme pressure rather than a theatrical device. Company regulars such as Floyd King, David Emerson Toney and David Sabin each establish a specific persona as Treasury, Army and Navy.

The principal roles are in the always capable hands of Helen Carey, who is very good as the dumfounded Queen of Persia attempting to absorb the idea that her son, King Xerxes, could have lost his country its power and wealth, and Ted van Griethuysen as the ghost of the former King, Darius, father of Xerxes, astounded at the actions of his son. Both give the kind of impressive performances that should set up the final appearance of their son for maximum effect. Unfortunately, Erin Gann's Xerxes gets the surface suffering right but misses some of the depth of pain that was the focus of Aeschylus' play. That focus was and remains astonishing, given that Aeschylus himself was a soldier in the victorious army which utterly destroyed everything Xerxes treasured. The amazing thing about the play is the humanity and understanding underlying Aeschylus' script which portrayed the agony of defeat of his opponents without stooping to victorious gloating.

The show begins with a briefing for the audience in the form of a multi media presentation using maps, satellite photographs and artwork on a curved, Cinema-Scope-like screen. It places the events in perspective. After all, the original audience would have been made up of veterans of the war and their families who had stayed behind in the homeland. They would be as familiar with the history being portrayed as would an American audience today for a play about the war in Iraq. The curved screen is raised to reveal a desert of bloody sand behind the circular playing space. The connection to today's world is emphasized by the chorus entering in modern street clothes and donning robes. Xerxes, when he arrives in pained defeat, is wearing contemporary camouflage fatigues. The costuming is not devoid of splendor, however. Carey makes her entrance as the Queen of Persia in a spectacular golden gown and crown befitting the wealth of the pre-defeat Persia, and van Griethuysen appears in a subdued leather and mesh costume of timeless tone. The stage is flanked by two percussionists providing the rhythmic pulse of the performance. During the performance a cellist joins the ensemble to add a mournful touch.

Written by Aeschylus. Adapted by Ellen McLaughlin. Directed by Ethan McSweeny. Music composition, music direction and sound score by Michael Roth. Choreography by Marcela Lorca. Design: James Noone (set) Jess Goldstein (costumes) Michael Clark (projections) Kevin Adams (lights) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Dacyl Acevedo, Emery Battis, Helen Carey, Jordan Coughtry, Ed Dixon, Blake Ellis, Erin Gann, Stephen Graybill, Floyd King, Don Mayo, Scott Parkinson, John Livingstone Rolle, David Sabin, John Seidman, David Emerson Toney, Nicholas Urda, Ted van Griethuysen, Ryan Young. Musicians: Orlando Cotto, Caroline Kang, N. Scott Robinson. 

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Reviewed January 29
Running time 2:35 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for a hugely entertaining adaptation of an outrageous comedy
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: The famous libertine not only violates polite society's supposed strictures on the relations between the sexes, he refuses to adhere to rules of behavior or give even lip service to the hypocrisies of the nobility in the capital city of the France of Louis XIV, the Sun King. He rejects chastisements from noblemen, creditors, his father and even the implied criticism of his own valet. But, when a giant statue comes to life to correct him, he seems to waiver. It is just a momentary lapse, however, and he sticks to his unorthodox principles even as he  goes to hell rather than reject all he has lived by.

As translator, adaptor and director, Wadsworth puts a distinctive stamp on a play that has delights of its own. He is often quoted as being a great believer in theatrical style, and that shows in this production which is completely stylistic. It is not, however, a simple replication of an historical style. There is a contemporary freshness to Wadsworth's blocking and pacing, and the stage pictures that he creates. This much is clear from the opening moments -- a curtain call that has the audience applauding even before there is a show. A prologue delivered with unctuous sincerity by Laurence O'Dwyer clearly stamps the piece as something being performed before the Sun King himself. Since much of the material of the play is a thinly disguised excoriation of the sovereign's court, the calling forth of the presence of the monarch gives the entire evening a bite it might not otherwise have. And, since Wadsworth is trying to show us what the play would have been on its opening night before the censors got their hands on it, it is a piece of historical accuracy to have the players acutely conscious of the royal presence.

The cast Wadsworth brought with him is quite strong and their work is thoroughly enjoyable. Still, it is the work of the two male leads that carry the night forward. Jeremy Web is the brightly decadent Don himself, prancing through life with every intention of sampling all the pleasures he can, and never holding his tongue when discussing the proprieties he rejects. Much of the time, he is in conversation with his valet, played by Michael Milligan with equal energy but with the added delight of asides to the audience that pierce the platitudes he's mouthing for his employer.

The designers Wadsworth brings with him are new to the Shakespeare. On the basis of this striking work it is to be hoped that they will return from time to time. Kevin Rupnik's sets capture the look and feel of seventeenth century French theater but use all the technology of the twenty-first to create striking effects. Most notable is his creation for the dining room of the Don with its use of classic scenery painting techniques to give depth to flat surfaces and tiered panels to form a ceiling overhead that seems seamless but gives access for chandeliers and the sharp lighting of Joan Arhelger. Anna R. Oliver's costumes are as sumptuous as the court of the Sun King and fit the tradition the Shakespeare Theatre Company requires.

Written by Molière. Translated, adapted and directed by Stephen Wadsworth. Choreography by Daniel Pelzig. Fight direction by Geoffrey Alm. Design Kevin Rupnik (set) Anna R. Oliver (costumes) Joan Arhelger (lights) Christopher Walker (sound consultant) Martin Desjardins (resident sound designer) Richard Termine (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Dacyl Acevedo, Jordan Coughtry, Gilbert Curz, Burton Curtis, Francesca Faridany, Daniel Harray, Laura Heisler, Laura Kenny, Michael Milligan, Laurence O'Dwyer, Nicholas Urda, Jeremy Webb, Ryan Young.

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Reviewed November 22
Running time 2:25 - one intermission
A colorful and energetic version of
 Shakespeare's comedy
Winner of the Ushers' Favorite Show Award
 for November 2005
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: A gentleman of Syracuse is condemned to die when captured in the city of Ephesus, but his story touches the Duke’s heart. The story is that he and his wife had identical twin sons. A pair of identical twin slaves born at the same time were assigned as servants to the boys. While on a trip the family was separated as their ship sank with one twin and his slave going with the father and the other with his slave going with the mother. The father raised his one son in Syracuse not knowing that the mother had raised the other son in Ephesus. The father has come following one pair who have gone searching for the other, not knowing that it was a capital crime for a citizen of Syracuse to enter the city of Ephesus. As the play continues, each of the sons is mistaken for the other while their slaves likewise can’t be told apart.

Of course, putting a director's "interpretation" on this staple of the Shakespeare cannon is a time-honored tradition. Not two years ago Joe Banno gave us a version set in Brooklyn with lots of Godfather and Sopranos gags, but he usually stopped short of taking over for the playwright. Not so Mr. Wager. Wager even interpolates a song into the action. "Happy Ephesus" doesn't match any of the Rogers and Hart songs written for their classic updating of the play into the musical The Boys from Syracuse, however. Wager and Banno aren't the only ones to impose a concept on this warhorse. A few years ago we had one set in New Orleans - during the American Civil War, no less - at the Little Theatre of Alexandria, and the year before that there was a salsa-beat version in mixed English and Spanish. Next year the show is slated to be set in Egypt for a production in Manassas.

LeRoy McClain has the un-enviable task of being Breaker's counterpart as the other twin servant. He's funny in his own right and holds his own in the scampering about involved in the plot. Paul Whitthorne and Gregory Wooddell are the two free brothers. Each succeeds in seeming a reflection of the other. The regulars of the company get their moments although David Sabin hasn't been so underutilized in recent memory. Still, Ralph Cosham has a real chance to shine as the father of the twins and he makes the most of it, and Bill Hamlin gets to sport a marvelous costume and ham it up more than a bit as the merchant Balthazar.

Zack Brown's set is a geometric delight. The structures in the ancient city of Ephesus look like some of the etchings of M. C. Escher without the impossible architectural reversals, while the playing space is set in a false proscenium about 35 degrees catawampus from the actual arch with a floor that projects into the audience. This works particularly well for a sight gag that Wager has added in which a chase scene ends with the escape of the twins from the world of the play into the world of the audience, leaving the rest of the cast to break into a soft shoe. You don't remember that from the Shakespeare script? Well, it isn't in Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors. It is in Wager's.

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Douglas C. Wager. Choreographed by Karma Camp. Fight direction by Brad Waller. Design: Zack Brown (set and costumes) David M. Glenn, MD (illusions and pyrotechnics) Allen Lee Hughes (lights) Martin Desjardins (sound) Fabian Obispo (musical compositions) Richard Termine (photography) Brandon Prendergast (stage manager). Cast:  Dacyl Acevedo, Daniel Breaker, Victoire Charles, Ralph Cosham, Jordan Coughtry, Blake Ellis, Ted Feldman, Stephen Graybill, Bill Hamlin, Tana Hicken, Walker Jones, Floyd King, Don Mayo, Katie Mazzola, LeRoy McClain, Sandra L. Murphy, Marni Penning, David Sabin, Nicholas Urda, Chandler Vinton, Paul Whitthorne, Gregory Wooddell, Ryan Young.

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Reviewed September 4
Running time 3:20 - one intermission
A handsome mounting of one of the standards of the tragedy repertoire
Click here to buy the script

Storyline: Othello, a black man, has risen to the rank of General in the army of Venice. While racial tolerance in that city-state may extend to public office, it is strained beyond the limits of his subordinate, Iago, when Othello secretly marries a white Venetian lady named Desdemona. Iago plots the downfall of Othello by nurturing suspicions of infidelity that eventually drive Othello to strangle his love in a rage of jealousy, and then, realizing both his error and its consequences, to take his own life.

Patrick Page's Iago, completely devoid of any compunction or moral principals, is fascinating to watch. In every movement and deed there is an element of calculation that not only fits the demands of the plot but which is visible to the audience as the workings of a mind that calculates only immediate responses, not long term consequences. It is a mind that has but one care: self. No affection, loyalty, duty or obligation gets in the way of an immediate goal.

The title of the play, however, is Othello and not Iago. It is the story of what Iago's scheming does to Othello that must be compelling and that seems to be missing here. Part of that may well be in the script, for Shakespeare gives the titular general precious few opportunities to react subtly to the events that overwhelm him, and few moments to contemplate before taking his irreversible, terrible actions. Brooks follows that script without very much elaboration, switching from besotted lover and newlywed to suspicious to jealous to remorseful in rapid succession with all too brief transitions. For example, the key moment when he realizes that the wife he has just murdered was in fact innocent doesn't knock the breath from his body or buckle his knees - he simply moves on to the state of extreme remorse. We needed to see and feel the thought process in order to see this General as a man.

Supporting performances range from very good to superb -- Gregory Wooddell is a very good Cassio, Colleen Delany a great Desdemona and David Sabin a superb Brabantio. The physical production is solid as well. James Noone's wooden set creates a timelessness that works well for this classic and Jess Goldstein's costumes compliment rather than conflict with the feel, although offering a bit more grounding in the period of the piece. Charlie Morrison's lighting is memorable for its spot lit marriage/murder bed and the fine use of candles, lamps and torches for night scenes, although in one effect the back lit David Sabin doesn't seem to cast a shadow.

Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Michael Kahn. Design: James Noone (set) Jess Goldstein (costumes) Charlie Morrison (lights) Martin Desjardins (sound) Adam Wernick (music) Carol Rosegg (photography) M. William Shiner (stage manager). Cast: Avery Brooks, Lise Bruneau, Michael John Casey, Andrea Cirie, Ralph Cosham, Colleen Delany, Laurence Drozd, W. Alan Nebelthau, Patrick Page, David Sabin, Erik Steele, Joris Stuyck, David Emerson Toney, Gregory Wooddell.

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Reviewed June 12
Running time 2:25 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for a sumptuous delight
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Storyline: A lady suspects her husband of infidelity when she learns that he has been making large payments to a woman, but discovers her error just in time to avoid making a terrible mistake, thanks to the carefully delivered advice of the very woman she had suspected of doing her wrong.

The women dominate the top of the billing, for both Dixie Carter as the suspected "other woman" and Tessa Auberjonois as the titular Lady are such a delight to watch that Andrew Long's solid performance as Lord Windermere almost gets lost in the background. That's "almost" as in "not completely," for there is much to admire in the way he manages to support both so gallantly and provide a certain heft to the household of which he is the head. Still, the performances of Carter and Auberjonois are the solid center of the evening, Auberjonois for her ability to find the sweetness Lord Windermere saw in her underneath a shell of judgmental rigidity dictated by her understanding of social status (an understanding that changes as a result of the events of the evening), and Carter for the combination of pride, honesty, devotion and generosity which she uses to distinguish her "Mrs. Erlynne" from all the other women who parade about under the title Lady this and Lady that.

The deep pool of talent that makes up the company's long list of regulars is on display here as well, and there are treasures among them. There's Nancy Robinette whose wonderfully assured twittering is made all the more delightful by being contrasted to the gliding dutifulness of Tonya Beckman Ross as her daughter. There's Helen Hedman who makes class distinction and society's rules of conduct sound like revealed truth. But mostly there is David Sabin, under a most outlandish hairpiece, holding forth with all the assurance that station and presumed wealth can provide.

As could have been confidently predicted, the Shakespeare Theatre adds to the long list of sumptuous designs that have marked their productions in the Landsburgh. Baxter again uses Simon Higlett, Robert Perdziola and Peter West to create the look of the upper class British at the height of the Victorian era as they did for The Rivals and The Country Wife. This time they have topped even themselves with a series of sets that just seem to get better and better. First there is the elegant morning room, light and airy with a lace curtain catching a breeze from the garden from which come so many gorgeous flowers. Then there is the reception room where the guests for an evening's ball arrive in finery that bespeaks a life style long gone. Finally there is the private chambers of a gentleman in Piccadilly, all burnished oak and burgundy tapestry. Each a sight worth seeing even if they didn't have such marvelous performances of such a genuinely funny and absorbing script.

Written by Oscar Wilde. Directed by Keith Baxter. Design: Simon Higlett (set) Robert Perdziola (costumes) Peter West (lights) Martin Desjardins (music and sound) Karma Camp (movement consultant) Brad Waller (fight consultant) Ellen O'Brien (voice and text consultant) Carol Rosegg (photography) Lloyd Davis, Jr. (stage manager). Cast: Katie Atkinson, Tessa Auberjonois, Emery Battis, Dixie Carter, Louis Cupp, Danielle Davy, Steve Douglas-Craig, Matthew Greer, Cornelia Hart, Helen Hedman, Patricia Hurley, Teresa Lim, Andrew Long, Stephen Patrick Martin, Hugh Nees, Nancy Robinette, Tonya Beckman Ross, David Sabin, Todd Scofield, Adam Shatarsky, Kim Stauffer, Anne Stone, Adam "Chip" Suritz, Darius Suziedelis, Ellen Warner, Gregory Wooddell.

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Reviewed March 27
Running time 2:35 - one intermission
t A Potomac Stages Pick for visual splendor, comedy and romance
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