Step Afrika!’s Remounted Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence Is Still Good, Could Be Better
In the 13 years since D.C.-based Step Afrika! debuted Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence, the field of percussive dance has grown by leaps and bounds. Black performing artists have benefited from an influx of support, including millions from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. Meanwhile, many historically White arts organizations are continuing to increase racial diversity, both onstage…
Don’t Rain on Her Parade: Funny Girl Goes Girlboss
The funny thing about Funny Girl is that the stories surrounding the musical are often more interesting than the play itself. The plot is loosely based on the life of Fanny Brice, a vaudevillian comedian who became one of America’s first mega-celebrities with the Ziegfeld Follies. (The play doesn’t even cover Brice’s extensive film and…
Is God Is: Unapologetically Twisted, Wickedly Funny, and Wildly Entertaining
Constellation Theatre Company plays with fire in Aleshea Harris’ scintillating tragi-comedy Is God Is. Winner of the 2016 Relentless Award and a 2017 OBIE Award for playwriting, Harris’ play weaves biblical mythology and hip-hop into a road epic about twin sisters on the brink of vengeance. Fiercely directed by KenYatta Rogers, Is God Is is…
Topdog/Underdog: The Story of Two Brothers Battling Abandonment
In an apartment with high ceilings, hardwood floors, and mismatched layers of paint covering water-damaged plaster, Booth (Yao Dogbe) hovers over an improvised tabletop of thick corrugated cardboard held level by six sturdy milk crates. He’s practicing his patter as a dealer at three-card monte, a confidence game by which many a mark has been…
The Hatmaker’s Wife: A Magical World of Melancholia and Schmutz
Lauren Yee may not be the most performed playwright on a national level, but she has had an impressive run here in the DMV: In less than 12 months, Arena produced her Cambodian Rock Band last summer, King of the Yees ran at Signature Theatre in October, and now her 2013 play The Hatmaker’s Wife…