Though at times provocative, this modernization of “Miss Julie” suffers from a contrived setup.

Don’t let the heat slow you down. Our calendar is teeming with food events this week, including the return of a heritage pig cook-off, the ultimate tiki quest, and more

Studio’s latest play is worth seeing for the gospel music that forms its emotional backbone

When seeing a play that’s ostensibly about two crazy cat ladies, you expect that you’re going to be a little disturbed. But the first jarring image of Studio Theater’s production of Grey Gardens comes unexpectedly; in the form of, “Jesus Christ, that little girl playing her looks exactly like Jackie O.” The uncanny looks and precocious talents of young Simone Grossman aside, it is the ties of those aforementioned old ladies to the American…

“How could I lie about who I really am to the person I love the most?” It seems almost a rhetorical question when coming from the mouth of one of the supporting characters in Studio Theater’s All That I Will Ever Be. But it’s the question that writer Alan Ball, of “Six Feet Under” and American Beauty fame, meditates on throughout the play. Ball has created Omar (Carlos Candelario), a man whose back story, nationality,…

Thank god for the Capital Fringe Festival. The event, now in its second year, makes sure that our July isn’t totally barren when it comes to edgy, exciting theater. We’ll be giving you a more detailed report on what the Fringe has to offer this year (hint: Avenue Q and Harry Potter parodies, Chocolate Jesuses and an operatic Lysistrata are among the choices), but here’s what the less fringified theaters around here will be up…

>> Fort Reno continues tonight with LeJeune, Pup Tent and Engine Room. There’s a bit of a chance of isolated showers this afternoon and evening, but nothing that should prevent the free concert from going on around 7:15. >> There’s a stand-up comedy benefit show tonight starring Seattle comic Yoram Bauman –“the world’s first and only stand-up economist” — and four local comics: Tyler Richardson, Aparna Nancherla, Jason Weems, and Erin Jackson. Shows at…

It’s definitely not hard to find a postmodern take on a Shakespearean work. But it’s hard to find one injected with as much wit and wisdom as Tom Stoppard’s classic, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. Though Studio Theater director Kirk Jackson has assembled a pair of convivial leads, a standout supporting player and an inventive set, the star in their latest production is really the work itself. Stoppard’s famous work focuses on two very minor…

As April was the month of 80 zillion new play openings, we kind of thought things would slow down a bit for the theater community in May. Not the case – we’ve got lots of exciting productions to share with you, from post-modern Hamlet comedies to, well, Hamlet itself. Plus, something new from the guy behind “Schindler’s List”. Here’s what’s playing. Catalyst Theater impressed all its larger competitors by taking home the award for best…

So the big winners at last night’s Helen Hayes awards were… puppets? Indeed, Aaron Posner’s unique vision for Measure for Measure, produced at the Folger this year, where puppets took on many of the play’s roles, earned him a best director trophy (he tied with Michael Kahn, for his zany take on Love’s Labor Lost), as well as the award for Outstanding Resident Play. Signature Theater’s Assassins won the most awards of the night with…