Epic Battle of Epicness: Round 1: Metropolis: Lady Macbeth v. Wonder Woman

Name: Lady Macbeth A.K.A.: Lady The Scottish Play Hometown: Scotland Known For: Cleaning spots Strength: Inspiring weak men into action Weakness: Guilt Wins: -

VS

Name: Wonder Woman A.K.A.: Diana of Themyscira; Diana Prince Hometown: Themyscira Known For: Not being able to star in her own movie Strength: Super Strength Weakness: Compassion Wins: -

Very strong female character against another strong female lead. Lady M is passionate and always looking out for herself and for her husband. She isn't afraid to get her hands dirty and push her boundaries beyond the acceptable. Wonder Woman stands up for justice and truth, and between her invisible jet and lasso of truth she would not fall for any of Lady M's platitudes or pushy plots. This round goes to Wonder Woman
Conclusion: Lady Macbeth v Wonder Woman

Theatre Ketchup

So this weekend I saw a lot of theatre! And it's time to play "catch-up"

Thursday 10/8: A Flea In Her Ear presented at Source Theatre. This French farce was hilarious! All because of a pair of suspenders, one household in France is thrown upside down as one spouse thinks the other is cheating! The show was great, I saw a Pay What You Can. The space is awkwardly long, so some of the action was far from me, but because of the intimate seating, I could deal with it. The acting was great too!

Friday 10/9: The Alchemist by Ben Jonson at Shakespeare Theatre Company. I have a subscription to the Shakespeare Theatre Company this season, and so far, I'm enjoying it. The Alchemist is about two swindlers who's plans unravel as the play draws to an end. This was my first show by Jonson (A Shakespearean contemporary) and was very enjoyable! The acting was superb and I really enjoyed the show (other than sitting next to a woman who thought the show was WAY more laugh out loud than it really was).

Saturday 10/10: Mike Birbiglia at Warner. This man is so funny! I love him, he quickly became my favorite comedian! But I did have some problems with the show as a "Show." I see a lot of theatre. But I've never seen a show start 20 minutes late! That was crazy. Then there was a crappy singing comedian who performed for 20mins! I expected some sort of warm up act, but this guy just never made me laugh. Then there was a 15 min intermission! (Which seemed like a waste of time. )

Monday 10/12: Laramie Project Epilogue presented locally by Arena Stage. Is a look back at what Laramie is like now. This play was presented in 150 cities across the world last night (free). The actors/actresses were amazing as was the script. It still asks the tough questions of what is life like after a hate crime; what can we do to make life easier for GLBT people all over the world. I was in complete tears the entire first act!

Julius Caesar

This past summer I got to spend a glorious week in the NYC metro area. I partied the weekend away and saw two Free Shakespeare Shows.

I saw Julius Caesar performed Gorilla Style by the Gorilla Repertory Theatre. It was performed WAY uptown near the Cloisters. It took about an hour on metro just to get up there, but it was worth it. This Gorilla style was performed in a beautiful setting in a park. There were many different playing areas, but the three most powerful were: the cliff walk way - used in a vital into scene where the conversation began  before the audience could see the actors, so it truly felt like we were eves dropping on a scene; the stair - two stories high at least, was used to make powerful statements about power and its inequities; and the tunnel - again, another long walk way that really made it seem that we were eves dropping.

The cast of mostly men were powerful and moving, and didn't allow this sometimes slow moving play to drag.

I was worried about not sitting in a seat to experience theatre, but because each scene took place in a different location, I wasn't on the ground too much, and there were lots of leaning places.

I hope that next summer, I'll be able to catch another show by them.

Much Ado About Nothing

So I saw a bunch of plays in my quest to see all of Shakespeare, before I started the blog, so I'll back track and review them.

On August 28, 2009 I saw Much Ado About Nothing at Olney Theatre. This was another free performance (a preview). It was supposed to be outside, but Hurricane Daniel pushed it inside, I assume this space was once a barn.

The show was standard good. Nothing to write home about.

Much Ado is about the misunderstanding and eves droppings that occur around two sets of lovers: Claudio/Hero, Benedict/Beatrice; with a minor plot involving Jon the Bastard (the Prince's brother); and random guards-men.

Much Ado in general, although a good plot, lacks a certain something that I like about Shakespearean comedies (It has all the grace and charm of Midsummer but lacks fairies). I'm not sure what it's missing, but hopefully by the time I've seen all of Shakespeare, I'll have a more defined view of it.

As for the performance itself, like I said, it was generally good, with no one thing standing out as great/amazing. There was a surprise of double casting the Prince and the Bastard. It took a few moments before I realized he wasn't the same person (and I'm highly familiar with the play). But after it was understood, the transitions between characters were clear.

All-in-all I'm happy this was a free event.

Taming of the Shrew

Wow! Just Wow!

The Shakespeare Theatre Company STC, presents their 20th season of "Free For All" and what a 20th is was!!!!

Last night, in my quest to see all of Shakespeare, I saw this production of Taming of the Shrew. And it was probably one of the best performances of not only free Shakespeare, but any Shakespeare, I've ever seen!

I'd like to reflect on one down side, then move to the Amazingness of the rest of the play. The set. Although it was beautiful, it was reflective (think department store storefront windows with mirrors behind them). I just personal don't like being able to see the audience. Also, something the theatre couldn't help, I was quite literally surrounded by people using listening devices; so I would hear the actors on stage and then a second delay, I'd hear them again in my neighbors ears :(

But now to what worked! The chemistry between all the actors! This is what really made the play amazing. Even the energy of the ensemble seemed to mesh well to make this a great experience.

Senor Babtista was a loving father throughout, wanting only the best for his daughters. While a plethora of guys (three of way varying ages) woo his youngest daughter; the highly attractive  Bianca; Petruchio tries to tame Kate into a more obedient wife. With very few subplots to keep tract of, this Shakespeare story is simple and easy to follow.

The play calls for quick wit and a decisive tongue.  And the actors playing Petruchio and Katherine (Kate) was amazing! When their characters first met, the actors were given the task to continue to deliver Shakespearean text while having a physical fight, and making it all funny! Every slap, every kick, every thing, was just perfectly timed to get the most laughs!

If you're in the DC area, I recommend that you check this show out!