by Karen Tortora-Lee on August 14, 2011
Ampersand: A Romeo & Juliet Story (written by Mariah MacCarthy, directed by Amanda Thompson) is just that … “A” Romeo & Juliet story – not a 100% faithful retelling of THE Romeo and Juliet story. First of all, Romeo and Juliet are both women. So, right away, by making this a gender-issue play and bringing in questions of Juliet’s orientation – questions she must ask herself as much as we the audience must ask of the play – an entirely different layer is added to this tale which is deeper and more complex. And since this layer is deeper and complex, so is the love story. There’s an urgency that doesn’t -can’t- exist in a heterosexual telling of this story, and that adds to the thoughtfulness and despair. And the hope.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on August 13, 2011
Yes, we may have Fringe on the brain, but that doesn’t mean that other things aren’t going on this weekend. And, quite fittingly one of those other things is something called The OTHERS Project. Paul Bedard, co artistic director for Theater in Asylum, took a moment to chat with me about a very exciting evening of theater, music, dance, poetry and drinks that will be going on this Sunday night. Read on as Paul explains their particular definition of “asylum”, how they’re using their themes, and what their version of Frankenstein will look like …
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on August 12, 2011
I like nothing better than being naughty at the Opera. Neophytes might consider this akin to making out in the last pew of church but, actually, it’s not. I mean, really. Generally, no matter which opera you’re attending there’s all this drama unfolding in front of you … all this intense emotion, this deep passion, this hear break, this “I WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN” melodrama. How could it not inspire you to get a little frisky during intermission?
Well, okay, usually it’s kinda impossible to get frisky, but a gal can dream. But wait – hold the phone. What’s this? Morningside Opera is actually encouraging frisky behavior with their latest opera, The Judgment of Paris. Just look at that poster! It’s hotter than a Russ Meyer film. I, of course, will be there. Let’s not forget these are the folks who supplied the fabulous burlesque performer Medianoche to do a strip tease during their Diva Search Karaoke – so you know they’re serious when it comes to sizzle. I chatted with Amber Youell who is a performing in Judgment of Paris, while also serving on Moringside Opera’s board of directors. Listen as she tells me how they intend to push the boundaries and seduce their audience loud and clear. Continue Reading…
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on August 11, 2011
Nothing gets us more excited at THM than a festival, and when it comes to festivals, Fringe is the one we wait for all year … the way other people wait for Christmas. Silly, silly Christmas-waiting people. Sure, getting presents is fun … for a while. But running around from theatre to theatre seeing what very well may be the next smash hit is the kind of thing that REALLY gets a gal excited. So for the next 18 days we, your faithful THM contributors — along with a few guest reviewers — will be covering 44 of the 194 shows that are out there. Here’s where we’re going. Will we see you there?
2 Burn - Ever give an apple to your teacher to get his attention? In this gay, noir drama, one college student is willing to give much more as he and his professor vie for power over language, sex, and each other.
74 Minutes of Stereo Radio Theater - A parlor game escalates into marital warfare. An ancient civilization faces death by over-enthusiasm. Comedy mates with legitimate theater for the amusement of a jaded audience. Stereo Radio Theater: Post-alternative sketch comedy for the non-attention deficit-disordered.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on August 11, 2011
Redd Tale Theatre Company has a knack for taking well-worn stories and delivering them with a fresh perspective. Currently during their “summer of creation” they are exploring the themes of what it means to be human and how our need to connect on a deeper level drives all living creatures. By currently pairing a well-known and time-honored old fashioned horror story – Frankenstein – with a newly written modern sci-fi piece – Gabriel – this talented ensemble is virtually flipping a coin for us and showing two sides of a very complex issue during one ambitious night of theatre.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on August 8, 2011
Imagine if you could re-visit a tragedy and restore the hope; take away the shadows of doubt, the shudders of despair. Imagine if you could re-visit shabby rooms, where stale air does little but circulate the layers of dust and melancholy, and breath in fresh life imbued with optimism and energy.
Imagine if you could see a classic play such as Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie from a whole other persective, one of possibility, where the “bitter” of bitter-sweet is removed and all that is left is a revving of the heart at what is yet to come. The Pretty Trap currently playing at The Acorn Theatre (Theatre Row) does just that. Written by Williams as one of the earlier drafts of Menagerie it is a sparkling one-act starring Katharine Houghton as the matriarch Amanda Wingfield.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on July 24, 2011
All I can ever be to you,
Is a darkness that we knew, And this regret I’ve grown accustom to.
– “Tears Dry On Their Own” / Amy Winehouse
There’s always a little bit of “what if” and “why didn’t someone” and “stop demonizing / vilifying / glorifying them now just because they’re dead” that goes on right after a controversial celebrity dies suddenly (although never quite unexpectedly). And today is no different, as I watch my friends debate Amy Winehouse some saying ”What a tragedy” and others saying “I’m surprised she lasted this long”. Meanwhile, the ones who like to hear themselves talk, are gratuitously pointing out that she died as she lived and had no one to blame but herself. Yes. We’re all aware of who Amy Winehouse was publicly. The talent. The trainwreck. And ultimately, the tragedy.
I’m not really here to ruminate on her death. I’m just here to memorialize someone who broke my heart.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on April 18, 2011
I’m glad when they arrive and I’m glad when they leave. I’m glad when I hear their heels approaching my door and I’m glad when those heels walk away. I’m glad to fuck. I’m glad to care. And I’m glad when it’s over. And since it’s always either starting or finishing I’m glad most of the time.
– Charles Bukowski
It’s obvious that Austin McCormick’s grasp of creating a theatre experience reaches far beyond what merely happens on stage. The more I attend performances in the Company XIV space at 303 Bond Street in Brooklyn the more I am treated to McCormick’s all-encompassing way of choreographing not only movement but sensation. From the way the space transforms each time into a whole new configuration to the heady red wine that greets you (or bubbly sparking water for those who don’t partake) to the strange set that seems almost unfinished in spots, you know it’s all carefully constructed – nothing haphazard or random ever occurs here – and once the lights go out and the projections appear it all makes sense. More than sense – it all makes magic.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on April 17, 2011
There are so many ways that the notion of gender can be fucked with (or – to continue a theme “f*cked” with) that the idea of throwing it all up there on the stage and cabareting the hell out of is an appealing one. Mariah MacCarthy’s The All-American Genderf*ck Cabaret (directed by Heidi Handelsman) takes a whole lotta gender and then, indeed, fucks with it like crazy.
All the stereotypes are there in full force: as Ms. MacCarthy put it in her interview with me earlier this month “a Feminine Woman, a Feminine Man, a Masculine Woman, a Masculine Man, a Gay Woman, a Gay Man, a Promiscuous Woman, and a Promiscuous Man. Which translates roughly into Girly Girl, Nice Guy/Metrosexual, Tomboy, Meathead, Feminist Lesbian, Gay Best Friend, Slut, and Player.” However, even though these labels are slapped onto the envelopes of these characters, they are soon peeled away with just as much intention. So, just when you think you know what’s what you’ll find that the tough girl, Devon, (Lauren Hennessy) is actually not a lesbian (what?) - she’s just a tomboy. And that sweet guy, Benji (Jordan Tierney)? No, he is not gay (huh?). He’s actually very straight – and the best lover his (promiscuous girlfriend) Gwen (Catherine LeFrere) has ever had. Meanwhile the mouthy guy, Dick (Jamahl Garrison-Lowe) who talks the talk doesn’t walk the walk at all. He’s a (gasp) virgin and would rather talk to his toddler nephew than seriously pursue a woman. But you’d never know it from the way he throws out statistics of his romantic conquests.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on April 14, 2011
Meet Simon and Kim – passionate. About their cause (we’ll get to that in a moment), about each other (when we meet them they’re taking a cozy bath together) and about their work which (currently) is a documentary film they’re shooting called The Un-Marrying Project. As it stands, this play IS the film. Or is it the other way around?
So passionate are they about their work, their relationship and their cause that it all blends together for them in one big ball of “Here we are! Simon and Kim!” (Exclaimed in unison, no less. Well … after some practice). They’re so deeply connected that they even have joint panic attacks. (Awwww – cute). But is all this passion enough to get them through their act of civil disobedience – The Un-Marrying Project: documenting the process of several married couples who willingly get un-married (yes, also known as divorced) in the name of protest … living apart until ALL people can be married EVERYWHERE? In other words … they’ve decided that until Gay Marriage is legal, no marriage should be valid and several brave couples are taking up the cause, allowing their journey to be filmed. So here’s the question … can they all stay committed to the cause? To the film? To each other? Is their committment as strong as their passion?
In The Un-Marrying Project writer Larry Kunofsky has taken a controversial matter and then turned it inside out. This is no easy topic and Kunofsky doesn’t gloss over any of it. With the overarching premise being that we’re watching two documentary film makers (Documentarians!) create a record for posterity, we gain access into nooks of participants lives in ways that perhaps they wouldn’t be so quick to divulge.
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