Connecticut Theaters

Hartford Stage Goes Darko

PHOTO FROM DARKO TRESNJAK’S 2007 PRODUCTION OF JOHN VAN DRUTEN’S PLAY BELL, BOOK AND CANDLE AT THE OLD GLOBE SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL THEATRE IN SAN DIEGO. PHOTO BY CRAIG SCHWARZ. When announcing Long Wharf’s impending co-production of John Van Druten’s Bell, Book and Candle, that theater’s artistic director Gordon Edelstein mentioned that the deal was struck … Continue reading »

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Foundering is fun at the Long Wharf

LONG WHARF FOUNDERS AWARD RECIPIENTS CHARLES KINGSLEY (PARTNER IN WIGGIN & DANA LAW FIRM), ANNE SCHENCK (LONGTERM LONG WHARF SUPPORTER AND WIDOW OF LONG WHARF FOUNDING BOARD MEMBER NEWT SCHENCK, WHO WAS HIMSELF A WIGGIN & DANA PARTNER), VAL CAPOBIANCO (OF BRAZI’S), GORDON EDELSTEIN (WHO’S BEEN ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF THE LONG WHARF THEATRE FOR A … Continue reading »

Categories: Connecticut Theaters, Long Wharf Theatre, Previews | 5 Comments

A Pained Pause

YOUR HUMBLE REPORTER IN EDVARD MUNCH MODE, REACTING TO THE PROSPECT OF THE RETURN OF MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL TO THE LONG WHARF MAINSTAGE THIS SUMMER. For a body (like the Long Wharf Theatre) to grow and mature and challenge itself, there need to be adjustment periods which unfortunately may sometimes bring extraordinary discomfort, awkwardness, confusion … Continue reading »

Categories: Connecticut Theaters, Long Wharf Theatre, Previews | 1 Comment

The Long Wharf 2011-2012 Season Announcement, annotated with awe

GABRIEL KAHANE PERFORMING AT THE LONG WHARF THEATRE’S 2011-12 SEASON ANNOUNCEMENT. PHOTO COURTESY OF LONG WHARF THEATRE. The Long Wharf Theater’s 2011-12 season looks pretty good on paper—two musicals, a Shakespeare, a Christmas show, a supernatural comedy set in the 1950s and a dark human drama set in the ’40, plus one show still to … Continue reading »

Categories: Connecticut Theaters, Long Wharf Theatre, Previews | 1 Comment

The Italian-American Reconciliation Review

Italian-American Reconciliation By John Patrick Shanley. Directed by Eric Ting. Set design by Scott Bradley. Costume design by Lindo Cho. Lighting design by Russell Champa. Sound design by Sarah Pickett. Stage manager: Megan Scwarz Dickert. Performed by John Procaccino (Aldo), Lisa Birnbaum (Janice), Mike Crane (Huey), Stephanie DiMaggio (Teresa) and Socorro Santiago (Aunt May). Through … Continue reading »

Categories: Connecticut Theaters, Long Wharf Theatre, Reviews of Shows | 1 Comment

Coffee with the Carlotta Playwrights: Christina Anderson, Dipika Guha and Meg Miroshnik

Tonight marks the start of the sixth annual Carlotta Festival of New Plays at the Yale School of Drama. I had coffee this morning at Willoughby’s on York Street with the three playwrights for whom the festival marks the end of their three years in the School of Drama program. No tech-week anxiety or opening-night … Continue reading »

Categories: Connecticut Theaters, Previews, Yale School of Drama | 7 Comments

The Perks: A Rite of Spring Review

April 1 4-16 at the Yale Cabaret, 217 Park St., New Haven. 8 & 11 p.m. Directed by Michael McQuilken and “created by artists from the Yale Schools of Music, Art and Drama.” Performed, designed and executed by Samuel Adams (bass), Sunder Gangliani (actor, viola), Yun-Chu Chiu (percussion), John Corkill (percussion), Marcus Henderson (actor), Adrian … Continue reading »

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The Coming Summer Cabaret of Shakespeare Arises with Roses

The Yale Summer Cabaret is a distinct entity from the school-year Yale Cabaret. In the fall and spring semesters the shows change weekly, and so do the directors and casts. There are some 20 such shows in that manner, each given six performances. Only the artistic director and managing director are constant for the whole … Continue reading »

Categories: Connecticut Theaters, Previews, Shakespeare, Uncategorized, Yale Summer Cabaret | 1 Comment

Water Works

The current issue of the Atlantic—the first annual “Culture Issue” for the 153-year-old magazine—features a short discussion with playwright Sarah Ruhl and set designer Scott Bradley about how she conceived, and he brought to vivid stage life, this stage direction from her mythic update Eurydice: The sound of an elevator ding. An elevator door opens. … Continue reading »

Categories: Books & Magazines, Connecticut Theaters, Yale Repertory Theatre | 1 Comment

The Yale Rep Season Announcment

This site is still brand new, so there’s some catching up to do. Back on March 10, the Yale Rep announced five-sixths of its 2011-2012 season: While it doesn’t exactly stream light into the room after so many dark, downbeat shows over the last couple of seasons, the slate promises much amusement—of the introspective, culture-satire … Continue reading »

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