Almost…. almost… photo via pjs_photo/flickr
Spring has sprung early in D.C., with peak bloom expected unusually early (almost in time for St. Patrick’s Day). It’s finally time to cast off your winter clothes, venture out into the world, and do something. As always, we humbly suggest that you consider a play; here’s some great ones on our radar this month:
*Plays with a “?” are certified Irish
LAST CHANCE
>> A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM: Director Aaron Posner finds new life and a whole lot of modern humor in one of Shakespeare’s most approachable plays. You can check out our review here. At Folger through March 13.
>>ROAD SHOW : A much-evolved Sondheim musical (it’s gone though two name changes and several more revisions) about brothers on a trip about America. We spoke with the director about this most recent version, hitting D.C. by way of Chicago. At Signature Theatre through March 13.
>>COLLABORATORS: Stalin and a playwright play with some role reversal in this play that explores the power of words to shape the world. Check out our review here. At Spooky Action Theater Through March 13.
NOW PLAYING
>>CONSTELLATIONS : This intimate two-hander explores the many, many versions of a single relationship between two people, imagining all the ways they could come together or be torn tragically apart. At Studio Theater Through March 20.
>>for colored girls who have considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf: Ntozake Shange’s 1975 classic is more a collection of poignant monologues than a play, exploring the lives of several African American women and the world they live in. From Theater Alliance at Anacostia Playhouse Through March 26.
>>WORD BECOMES FLESH: Playing as a kind of companion piece/foil to for colored girls, this concurrently running play is a highly physical and visual examination of African American masculinity. At Theater Alliance at Anacostia Playhouse through March 26.
>>OTHELLO : Shakespeare’s tale of scheming and betrayal gets some modern dressing, but perhaps more vitally, a rugged, “silver fox” looking Iago. So that’s nice. At Shakespeare Theatre Company at Sidney Harmon Hall Through March 27
>>ROMEO AND JULIET One of the earliest “wordless Shakespeare” productions that Synetic has come to hang their hat on, this remount is high on tightly-choreographed action and light on wordplay, in case you always thought the bard was too wordy. At Synetic Theater through March 27
>>THE PILLOWMAN : Irish Playwright Martin McDonagh might be best known as a director (In Bruges) but his pitch-black dark comedies are gaining a lot of traction in D.C. lately. The latest to hit the area is his 2003 play about a writer of equally dark stories who finds himself interrogated by a fascist state. At Forum Theatre through April 2.?
>>THE LION: Benjamin Scheuer plays six guitars (alas, not all at the same time) in his one man show, a project he kicked off in the midst of a fight against cancer. At Arena Stage through April 10
>>MARJORIE PRIME: From Black Mirror to The Stepford Wives, tales of robotic spouses tend not to end terrifically well. Marjorie doesn’t care; in Jordan Harrison’s comedy, she lives with the hologram of her dead husband who is (bonus) set to look 50 years younger. At Olney Theatre Center through April 10
>>THE FLICK: Four characters spend three hours in a movie theater talking about not much at all in this surprising, Pulitzer-winning comedy from Annie Baker. At Signature Theatre through April 17
OPENING SOON
>>110 IN THE SHADE: If you can’t stand the heat, get out of Texas. This musical based on The Rainmaker has been singing through the sweltering heat since the 60’s. At Fords Theatre from tonight, March 11, through May 14
>>1984: This international touring production is an adaptation of the classic novel about a society under constant surveillance from Big Brother. At Shakespeare Theatre Company at Lansburgh Theatre from tonight, March 11, through April 10
>>AMERICAN IDIOT: The musical of the Green Day album that aimed to encapsulate every complaint Billie Joe Armstrong had about life in Bush’s America. At Keegan Theatre , opening March 12, through April 9
>>FALLING OUT OF TIME: This play— which the Theater J media team is currently pushing via buzzfeed community posts, advertising guidelinessbe damned, — offers a discount for audience seats on stage for this play about a community seeking to regain the things and people they’ve lost. At Theater J , opening March 17, through April 17
>>AFTER THE WAR: A world premiere from Israeli playwright Motti Lerner, Mosaic describes this play as exploring “an artist’s responsibility to his embattled country, and his family’s tough response to calls for peace in the wake of a costly war.” At Mosaic Theater, opening March 24, though April 17.
>>ANNIE: The touring production of the little orphan that could. Be sure to drink your ovaltine. At National Theatre March 15-20
>>MOMENT: Another contemporary Irish crime drama— perhaps Ireland’s chief export these days— this one a deep exploration of family from playwright Deirdre Kinahan. At Studio Theatre, opening March 16, through April 24. ?
>>CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF: The Tennessee Williams classic, starring Gregory Wooddell and Alyssa Wilmoth Keegan. At Round House Theatre, opening March 30, through April 24.
>>PROOF: Another Pulitzer winner, this drama from David Auburn is about mathematical geniuses and (in Broadway and movie form) has starred the likes of Neil Patrick Harris, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jake Gyllenhaal. At 1st Stage Tysons, opening March 31, through May 1.
