Can it really be 20 years since the events of 9/11, a day so etched in our memories that it feels like yesterday? Perhaps by now Audrey Batten’s well-earned anger and bitterness have subsided, but in Bruce Graham’s world premiere play, The Duration — which initially takes place mere days after the destruction of the Twin Towers — her grief has the highly rational history … [Read more...]
World premiere ‘The Duration’ at Dramaworks takes on 9/11 legacy
As we continue to deal with the dark cloud of the COVID pandemic, Palm Beach Dramaworks wants us to look back 20 years to another tragic time in our history — September 11, 2001 — the day two airplanes flew into the Twin Towers in Lower Manhattan and 3,000 lives were lost. It is the event that motivates Bruce Graham’s drama The Duration, receiving its world premiere at PBD on … [Read more...]
‘Almost, Maine’ at Dramaworks: Dramatic fare takes pleasant backseat to whimsy
Palm Beach Dramaworks likes to say that it traffics in “theater to think about.” But if you are looking for an entertaining night out without much thinking required, the West Palm Beach stage company has a lightweight slice of whimsy on view now that certainly fills that bill. Called Almost, Maine, it consists of nine brief vignettes on the subject of romance, … [Read more...]
COVID cancellations: Detroit and Cleveland orchestras, GableStage
Cancellations and rescheduling from the COVID-19 pandemic continue to alter South Florida’s art season. Two major American symphonic ensembles that had planned appearances at the Kravis Center have canceled their concerts. The Detroit Symphony Orchestra, which was to have played the Kravis on Jan. 15 and 17, called off their concerts last week, citing COVID. Cellist … [Read more...]
Dramaworks opts for lightness, warmth with ‘Almost, Maine’
Almost, Maine, is a tiny rural town in the northern part of the state, about 150 miles from the coast. But do not look for it on a map, for it exists only in the imagination of playwright John Cariani and, for the next two-and-a-half weeks, onstage at Palm Beach Dramaworks. (Because of production complications from COVID-19, the first show has been moved back three days, to … [Read more...]
‘The People Downstairs’ is a smart new take on Anne Frank’s story
One of the great works of literature of the 20th century is The Diary of Anne Frank, a saga of courage and endurance in the form of a journal by a 14-year-old Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis with her family and others in a cramped Amsterdam attic. But what about those non-Jews in the office below who heroically risked their lives abetting these stowaways? That is the … [Read more...]
Season Preview 2021-22: The season in theater
This was supposed to be the first post-COVID theater season in South Florida, but the delta variant took care of that wishful thinking. Most stage companies are optimistic that they can produce something this season. Whether the audience will show up is another story. If all goes well, it could be an exciting year at the theater, with a new artistic director at … [Read more...]
Dramaworks emerging from lockdown with robust 2021-22 season
Early last year, when the pandemic we have come to know as COVID-19 first hit, disrupting the nation’s live theaters, closing their doors and halting their seasons, Bill Hayes of Palm Beach Dramaworks did the opposite of almost every other non-profit stage company. “One thing I had noticed very early on is many non-profits were immediately soliciting for funds,” says the … [Read more...]
Dramaworks returns, virtually, with Dickinson show ‘Belle of Amherst’
There are two plays that feature Emily Dickinson and by early April Margery Lowe will have played the reclusive poet in both. Three years ago, the area actor appeared at Palm Beach Dramaworks in the world premiere of Edgar and Emily, Joseph McDonough’s fanciful and improbable meeting of Dickinson and Edgar Allan Poe. Lowe returns to the character April 2- 6 in the better … [Read more...]
Season Preview 2020-21: Theaters mostly in hiding for season
Although Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared the state’s playhouses safe to reopen, the area’s theater companies are less than comfortable with the notion of getting up and running again. Most have canceled their 2020-2021 seasons, some in favor of a presence online with streaming options. A few have pushed their openings to next year with a shortened season of offerings. And … [Read more...]