Buffalo Theatre Ensemble’s Season’s Greetings may just be the ticket for those looking for a different take on what the holidays mean to people. Written by the highly prolific British playwright Alan Ayckbourn, the slightly farcical, oddly dark play digs into the relationships of nine adults who’ve come together to celebrate Christmas in the English …
Season’s Greetings Tucks Hidden Treasures in Laughter Read More »
A long stretch of silence opens The Island. Two men stand facing the audience; providing a good look of their outer selves. Young, vital, Black. Their faces appear resolute. Quietly determined. Eventually, still in silence, they move more deeply into character. Hands cross at the wrist as if they’re handcuffed. Their feet move as if …
By striking the right balance in nearly every aspect, the Lyric’s current production of Verdi’s Don Carlos may be the perfect opera. The most transfixing element in the mix may be Robert Jones’s magnificent set. Color and lighting soften its dramatic dimensions, but they don’t detract from its galvanizing impact. Jones’s set is the constant …
Even when you think you’ve seen the best of the best, you can still be surprised with new heights of perfection. One of those epiphanies detonated Saturday night on the Auditorium stage when Deeply Rooted Dance Theater obliterated the psychological barrier that separates audience and performance. From the first sound of Mikel Rouse’s soul stomping …
Even though our culture seems deluged with music megastars, we can only wait and see how many will maintain their resonance decades after they’ve taken their last bow. A half century after her death in 1975, the singularity of Mahalia Jackson’s voice and influence still course through our musical universe. Vocalist Tammy McCann, who usually …
Yes, Mahalia! Brilliantly Fuses Two Musical Forms Read More »