Romeo and Juliet Comes to Life at the ACT Mainstage
The ACT Theater has brought Romeo and Juliet to invigorating life in a deaf-accessible interpretation. The play, directed by John Langs, is […]
ACT
Blanket of Fear at ACT
The 21st century challenges faced by Muslims, immigrants, people of color and their loved ones are explored in Blanket of Fear, currently on stage at the Eulalie Scandiuzzi Space in the ACT’s theatre complex. The original production debuted in 2003 and was created by a writing team emerging from the creative ensemble Tribes Project. Though the quality of the production’s acting is uneven, the taut fifty-five minute show offers a number of effective moments highlighting the difficulty of finding truth and justice within the tense arena of counter-terrorism.
The 14/48 Project: Saturday night World Premiere Show
Two days, fourteen new plays. With lots of laughs and some moments of compelling drama, the second night of “The 14/48 Project” is just as skillfully executed and fun as the first.
If you’ve been to the festival or read my review from Friday’s 10:30 p.m. show, you know how “The 14/48 Project” works. The plays I saw at the Saturday 8 p.m. show were written between the playwrights receiving the prompt “Taking a Shot” on Friday night and 8 a.m. the next morning. After being assigned to plays by random drawing, the directors and actors tackled seven more new plays. The pieces I saw on Saturday night premiered after forty-eight hours of new theatre creation by an adventurous group of artists.
The atmosphere in the Gregory Falls Theater was significantly different at this Saturday World Premier show. The audience was larger and older on average. An audience member could overhear conversations between friends of the performers, or between middle-aged, male theater figures scouting talent…
The 14/48 Project: Friday night Final Performances
Two days, fourteen new plays. “The 14/48 Project: The World’s Quickest Theater Festival” is as fun as it is impressive.
First performed in 1997, 14/48 is an even more challenging spin on the traditional 48-hour theater festival format. On Thursday evening, the artists involved kick off the festival by tapping the ceremonial 14/48 keg. A theme is then chosen at random for the writers. The seven playwrights get started on a ten-minute play on that theme (this time, “Who’s Watching Who”), which is due the following morning at eight.
On Friday, each of the seven directors is randomly assigned one of these plays. The casts are chosen (also by random drawing) soon after. The directors and actors rehearse the pieces for the rest of the day. They are joined by the not-to-be-underrated design team. The festival band contributes music and other sound. The seven new plays have their world premieres at 8 p.m. on Friday, and their final performances at 10:30 the same night.
Comedians Don Their Gay Apparel in Genderbending Sketch Show “Ham for the Holidays”
Seattle comedy staples Lisa Koch and Peggy Platt are back with their irreverent, gender-bending sketch show. Ham for the Holidays is two hours of wacky characters, catchy songs, and clever satire, perfect for any lefty in need of a laugh.
The Holler Sessions: Jazz Athlete Sheds Blood, Sweat and Tears
Jazz DJ spins plates and jangles the marrow in your bones. The Holler Sessions was flawless: a mind-bending, soul-stretching deep-dive
Bernie’s Apt.
The Seattle theater community is severely lacking in Spanish works, which is why I was so eager to attend Bernie’s
“Threesome” – The Art of Omission
ACT’s just-opened “Threesome,” by Seattle writer Yussef El Guindi, daringly explores volatile territory at the intersection of sex, politics, and
ACT Celebrates Its 50th Birthday with Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
The performing area is dominated by a tousled bed. What happens and more importantly doesn’t happen there will be the focus of the next three hours of ACT’s stirring revival of Tennessee Williams’ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. The sixty-year old classic features the turmoil of Brick and Maggie’s unhappy marriage, wonderfully brought to life by Broadway stars Brandon O’Neill and Laura Griffith. While Brick’s struggle with his homosexuality may seem dated and merely quaint today, the couples’ fight to find a survivable path through their lives is as captivating as it must have been when ACT featured the play in its inaugural year.
5 by Beckett
Deep in the bowels of the ACT Theatre Building lies the Eulalie Scandiuzzie Space. Herein, the Central Heating Lab and Sound Theater Company are presenting five short one acts by Samuel Beckett as part of the Seattle Beckett Festival. The quality of the pieces varies wildly from focused takes on Beckett’s grim and incomprehensible world to some meandering drama with shaky acting. Fans of Beckett, opening night had nearly a full house, should find the trip worth it.