Category Archives: Plays

Yoon Jae Lee, Neji Pijin and Sung Hee Wi in "God Bless Baseball" by Toshiki Okada | Photo by Asian Arts Theatre (Moon So Young)

JAPAN SOCIETY’s wonder boy pitches “Baseball” in the U.S.

“God Bless Baseball marks the third time for Japan Society to present Toshiki Okada’s work,” said Yoko Shioya, Artistic Director of Japan Society

Yoon Jae Lee, Neji Pijin and Sung Hee Wi in "God Bless Baseball" by Toshiki Okada | Photo by Asian Arts Theatre (Moon So Young)

JAPAN SOCIETY’s wonder boy pitches “Baseball” in the U.S.

“God Bless Baseball marks the third time for Japan Society to present Toshiki Okada’s work,” said Yoko Shioya, Artistic Director of Japan Society

"Persona" | Photo by Jan Versweyveld

WITHOUT BORDERS | Screw Ingmar Bergman’s films. Go see his screen texts on stage, Sept. 3 to 5

What’s the point of seeking to certify a heartbreaking work of stagecraft by comparing it to Bergman’s cinema aesthetics?

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"Persona" | Photo by Jan Versweyveld

WITHOUT BORDERS | Screw Ingmar Bergman’s films. Go see his screen texts on stage, Sept. 3 to 5

What’s the point of seeking to certify a heartbreaking work of stagecraft by comparing it to Bergman’s cinema aesthetics?

___

Altar of a Korean shaman for a private ritual gut held on Yangtze Island | Photo by Randy Gener

SOUTH KOREA | Seeking proposals for Center Stage Korea from presenters, performing arts centers and networks

The Korea Arts Management Service is considering project proposals submitted by international festivals, arts centers, and networks who will implement a project involving Korean performing groups/artists as part of their performance program.

Altar of a Korean shaman for a private ritual gut held on Yangtze Island | Photo by Randy Gener

SOUTH KOREA | Seeking proposals for Center Stage Korea from presenters, performing arts centers and networks

The Korea Arts Management Service is considering project proposals submitted by international festivals, arts centers, and networks who will implement a project involving Korean performing groups/artists as part of their performance program.

Diverse City Theater Company's production of TWO ROOMS by Lee Blessing

Performance review | Diverse City Theater’s nervy revival of Lee Blessing’s “Two Rooms” gives voice to voiceless

Diverse City Theater’s nervy production argues that Two Rooms has not lost an inch of topical relevance. The play has not lost its eloquence. It is a muted cry of rage.

Diverse City Theater Company's production of TWO ROOMS by Lee Blessing

Performance review | Diverse City Theater’s nervy revival of Lee Blessing’s “Two Rooms” gives voice to voiceless

Diverse City Theater’s nervy production argues that Two Rooms has not lost an inch of topical relevance. The play has not lost its eloquence. It is a muted cry of rage.

Jason Grasl, an actor, workshops his new play "Emergency Management" | Photo by Sylvia Mautner Photography

Native American News | Native Voices at the Autry gives “First Look” to suspenseful play by Native American actor, Oct. 25

If you are in the Los Angeles area, you might want to check out this reading, part of Native Voices’ signature FIRST LOOK SERIES: Plays in Progress.

Jason Grasl, an actor, workshops his new play "Emergency Management" | Photo by Sylvia Mautner Photography

Native American News | Native Voices at the Autry gives “First Look” to suspenseful play by Native American actor, Oct. 25

If you are in the Los Angeles area, you might want to check out this reading, part of Native Voices’ signature FIRST LOOK SERIES: Plays in Progress.

Pacific Beat Collective workshop of Kyoung H. Park’s play “TALA” (ToRoNaDa Theater, April 2012) | Photo by Paul Mpagi Sepuya

Currently in production | Play excerpt, models, design sketches for Pacific Beat Collective’s “Tala” at HERE Arts Center, July 28 to 31

“Tala” will perform in a workshop production July 28th to 31st at HERE Arts Center in downtown SoHo in New York City. The play, a work-in-progress, is a critique on the nature of political revolutions. Click here to read a play excerpt and see the work of the designers and actors as they prepare for the production.

Pacific Beat Collective workshop of Kyoung H. Park’s play “TALA” (ToRoNaDa Theater, April 2012) | Photo by Paul Mpagi Sepuya

Currently in production | Play excerpt, models, design sketches for Pacific Beat Collective’s “Tala” at HERE Arts Center, July 28 to 31

“Tala” will perform in a workshop production July 28th to 31st at HERE Arts Center in downtown SoHo in New York City. The play, a work-in-progress, is a critique on the nature of political revolutions. Click here to read a play excerpt and see the work of the designers and actors as they prepare for the production.

"4 Alice" by Saviana Stanescu | Photo by Randy Gener

Play excerpt | Saviana Stanescu’s “4 Alice,” part 2 of “The Window” at Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

And you thought these actors were just making things up as they went along. Didn’t you? Admit it. You did. This is an exclusive excerpt from Saviana Stanescu’s play “4 Alice” for THE WINDOW installation/performance project

"4 Alice" by Saviana Stanescu | Photo by Randy Gener

Play excerpt | Saviana Stanescu’s “4 Alice,” part 2 of “The Window” at Romanian Cultural Institute in New York

And you thought these actors were just making things up as they went along. Didn’t you? Admit it. You did. This is an exclusive excerpt from Saviana Stanescu’s play “4 Alice” for THE WINDOW installation/performance project

Teatro El Público of Havana's "Caligula"

From Havana, Teatro El Público re-casts “Caligula” as gay tyrant

This Cuban take on “Caligula” “consciously uses Albert Camus’s play to subvert cultural norms and our concept of masculinity. Why can’t a homosexual be portrayed as possessing as much violence and cruelty as a stereotypical heterosexual male chauvinist character? What does it mean to be gay and masculine? And why are these two terms still thought of as mutually exclusive?

Teatro El Público of Havana's "Caligula"

From Havana, Teatro El Público re-casts “Caligula” as gay tyrant

This Cuban take on “Caligula” “consciously uses Albert Camus’s play to subvert cultural norms and our concept of masculinity. Why can’t a homosexual be portrayed as possessing as much violence and cruelty as a stereotypical heterosexual male chauvinist character? What does it mean to be gay and masculine? And why are these two terms still thought of as mutually exclusive?

Ricci/Forte's "Macadamia Nut Brittle" | Danielle Virginia Antonelli

Performance review (NSFW) | Italy’s Ricci/Forte serves up queer fantasia in “Macadamia Nut Brittle”

Macadamia Nut Brittle is excoriating, sexy, hallucinatory, viciously funny. The plot steals from the mode of a reality-TV show, but its stance is subversive and punk. As the noisy evening unfolds, Ricci/Forte detonates, again and again and again, the illusory logic of this TV genre

Ricci/Forte's "Macadamia Nut Brittle" | Danielle Virginia Antonelli

Performance review (NSFW) | Italy’s Ricci/Forte serves up queer fantasia in “Macadamia Nut Brittle”

Macadamia Nut Brittle is excoriating, sexy, hallucinatory, viciously funny. The plot steals from the mode of a reality-TV show, but its stance is subversive and punk. As the noisy evening unfolds, Ricci/Forte detonates, again and again and again, the illusory logic of this TV genre

"The Window 2": Saviana Stanescu's "4 Alice" | Photo by Randy Gener

Performance review | Seeing the Romanian Cultural Institute’s “Window” through Alice’s looking glass

The Window is a unique theatrical experience, because enigma is a principal aspect of its charms. An inspiring two-part site-specific performance-design project created and directed by Ana Mărgineanu for the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York (RCINY), The Window asks you to pay close attention if you happen to stroll by RCINY’s storefront spaces.

"The Window 2": Saviana Stanescu's "4 Alice" | Photo by Randy Gener

Performance review | Seeing the Romanian Cultural Institute’s “Window” through Alice’s looking glass

The Window is a unique theatrical experience, because enigma is a principal aspect of its charms. An inspiring two-part site-specific performance-design project created and directed by Ana Mărgineanu for the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York (RCINY), The Window asks you to pay close attention if you happen to stroll by RCINY’s storefront spaces.

"Yue Madeleine Yue | Courtesy of Gazeta Express & Express Online

Play excerpt: Jeton Neziraj’s “Yue Madeleine Yue,” a tragicomedy about anti-Roma discrimination

The play tells the story of a Roma family that was forcedly expelled from Germany to Kosovo. In their new reality, this family confronts the challenges of living in a recently newborn state. One day, a Roma girl named Madeleine falls in a hole that was created by a construction company. The girl falls in a coma. As she fights for her life, her father strives to pursue justice. He faces bureaucratic officers, businessmen, policemen and embassy workers.

"Yue Madeleine Yue | Courtesy of Gazeta Express & Express Online

Play excerpt: Jeton Neziraj’s “Yue Madeleine Yue,” a tragicomedy about anti-Roma discrimination

The play tells the story of a Roma family that was forcedly expelled from Germany to Kosovo. In their new reality, this family confronts the challenges of living in a recently newborn state. One day, a Roma girl named Madeleine falls in a hole that was created by a construction company. The girl falls in a coma. As she fights for her life, her father strives to pursue justice. He faces bureaucratic officers, businessmen, policemen and embassy workers.

"hotink at the Lark" in New York City

Plays from Scotland, Canada, Cyprus, Israel, Bulgaria, Latvia dip hotINK at the Lark, March 22-26, in NYC

NEW YORK CITY: I first met the Montreal-based playwright Suzie Bastien in Limoges, France, in 2005. At the time, she was developing a new work, Après. Her second play, LukaLila (Éditions Comp’act, 2002), had just received an award from the

"hotink at the Lark" in New York City

Plays from Scotland, Canada, Cyprus, Israel, Bulgaria, Latvia dip hotINK at the Lark, March 22-26, in NYC

NEW YORK CITY: I first met the Montreal-based playwright Suzie Bastien in Limoges, France, in 2005. At the time, she was developing a new work, Après. Her second play, LukaLila (Éditions Comp’act, 2002), had just received an award from the

Hieronymus Bosch's painting "The Garden of Earthly Delights"

Review: Strange forms and cautionary parable flicker in Nic Ularu’s “Hieronymus Bosch”

“Hieronymus” pulses in that liminal space in between dramatic representation and visual abstraction. It’s a picture book of a play. It’s a meditation of the plight of the artist today and a hybrid re-composition that celebrates that artist’s singular voice.

Hieronymus Bosch's painting "The Garden of Earthly Delights"

Review: Strange forms and cautionary parable flicker in Nic Ularu’s “Hieronymus Bosch”

“Hieronymus” pulses in that liminal space in between dramatic representation and visual abstraction. It’s a picture book of a play. It’s a meditation of the plight of the artist today and a hybrid re-composition that celebrates that artist’s singular voice.

Marko Mandić in Ivica Buljan

's production of Heiner Müller’s “
Macbeth After Shakespeare”  |  Photo by Miha Frass and SONDA

“Macbeth After Shakespeare” (Slovenia/Croatia) muscles its way into brilliance

A collaboration between Mini Teater Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Novokazalište Zagreb (Croatia), director Ivica Buljan’s Macbeth After Shakespeare forces us to viscerally come face to face with the naked and overbearing fact that the pornography of power is both beautiful and disturbing to look at. It seduces and repels and provokes.

Marko Mandić in Ivica Buljan

's production of Heiner Müller’s “
Macbeth After Shakespeare”  |  Photo by Miha Frass and SONDA

“Macbeth After Shakespeare” (Slovenia/Croatia) muscles its way into brilliance

A collaboration between Mini Teater Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Novokazalište Zagreb (Croatia), director Ivica Buljan’s Macbeth After Shakespeare forces us to viscerally come face to face with the naked and overbearing fact that the pornography of power is both beautiful and disturbing to look at. It seduces and repels and provokes.