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Seven Lively Fausts
In honor of the Yale School of Drama production of Gertrude Stein’s Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights—and Halloween!—here are some other colorful Fausts, drawn from the vast Christopher Arnott Collection of Mephistopholean lit.
The Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights Review
Doctor Faustus Lights the Lights Presented by the Yale School of Drama through Oct. 29 at the Iseman Theater. Written by Gertrude Stein. Directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz. Scenic Designer: Adam Rigg. Costume Designer: Jayoung Yoon. Lighting Designer: Masha Tsimring. Sound Designer: Elizabeth Atkinson. Projection Designer: Hannah Wasileski. Composer: Adrian Knight. Dramaturg: Sunder Ganglani. Stage Manager: … Continue reading
Amy Herzog Provides an Eerie Tour of Belleville, her Yale Rep show Which Premieres Tonight
Up close and scary is what Amy Herzog is going for with Belleville, which has its world premiere opening tonight at the Yale Rep. As it did for seven years of her higher education, Yale’s got her back. When Herzog became concerned that the Rep space wasn’t quite intimate for the Belleville of her fitful … Continue reading
How Now, Hibrow?
Check the name on this ubiquitous Halloween costume. The brand name Hibrow looks and sounds a lot like the word Hebrew. I came to this realization entirely on my own, and while researching the item online I find I’m not the first to note the pun. Which only affirms the theory that there might be … Continue reading
Keepin’ Out of Mischief Now: Arthur Faria on Redirecting Ain’t Misbehavin’ for a Regional Theater Revival at the Long Wharf
“This Joint is Jumpin’” Arthur Faria has lost count of how many times he’s directed Ain’t Misbehavin’, the landmark 1970s Broadway hit which celebrates the life and work of Harlem Renaissance icon Thomas “Fats” Waller and which inspired dozens of similar (mostly inferior) historical song revues and jukebox shows on the Great White Way. Faria … Continue reading
Theater-Related New Arrivals on Netflix
I do these quirky lists every month or so, trawling the new Netflix on-demand offerings for shows which are either about the theater or feature familiar theater types. Actresses. Real Korean film stars play themselves in this comedy about animosity and one-upmanship at a Vogue photo shoot. Almost Love. South Korean romance between childhood friends … Continue reading
Telling the Players With a Scorecard: Peter Filicia’s Broadway Musical MVPs
Broadway Music MVPs 1960-2010: The Most Valuable Players of the Past 50 Seasons By Peter Filichia (2011 Applause Theatre & Cinema Books) I can’t say I’m fond of made-up competitions that pit creative artists against each other as if they were playing sports. But with his earlier The Biggest Hit and the Biggest Flop of … Continue reading
Tintin Theater
The Tintin movie has opened in Europe, and opera singer Madame Castafiore is in it! The “Milanesque nightingale” famous for her rendition of “these jewels beyond compare” from Gounod’s Faust, is voiced by Kim Stengel, who has performed the role of Carlotta Giudicelli in Phantom of the Opera over 5000 times. By the way, BBC … Continue reading
Ten Things I Learned From the Fifth Annual Forgot to Laugh Sideshow and Animation Festival
(Saturday night performance; there’s one show left, 8 p.m. tonight—Sunday the 23rd—at Lyric Hall) Tony Juliano sounds exactly like Tony Bennett. Oh, he’s lip-synching. And he looks exactly like a knife-wielding maniac. Oh, he’s acting. “It’s not easy to tape an egg to your forehead.”’Coney Island Chris. Or to smash it with a sledgehammer while … Continue reading
Universoul Stirrings
The Universoul Circus is in town through the weekend. My daughter Mabel went yesterday morning on a field trip with her fourth grade class. Here’s her report: They were giving elephant rides for money; I’m not sure if it was for two dollars or ten dollars. I couldn’t hear. Right before anything, a guy came … Continue reading