All stories by J. Robert Williams on BroadwayStars

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Grounded at Studio Theatre by J. Robert Williams

Now through the end of June, Studio Theatre concludes its “New British Invasion” series by presenting the Gate Theatre of London’’s acclaimed production of Grounded. The winner of th…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 08:22AM
Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Nero/Pseudo by J. Robert Williams

The stomping ground for Capital Fringe fanatics does not lie dormant this spring: Through June 1, WSC Avant Bard is rocking the Shop at Fort Fringe with an adventurous offering that exemplif…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 10:41AM
Wednesday, February 26, 2014

The Cole Porter Project: It’s All Right With Me by J. Robert Williams

There are few things more charming, more chic, more certain to please than a Cole Porter song. These time-tested pleasures, as tuneful as they are clever, do not tend to disappoint. As such,…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 07:10AM
Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Turner triumphs as Mother Courage by J. Robert Williams

Thinking versus feeling, politics versus pathos, pleasure versus instruction—these dialectics often arise in discussing Bertolt Brecht’s revolutionary “epic theatre”, and the idea th…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 11:58AM
Thursday, December 19, 2013

Building bombs in a bugged apartment: Edgar and Annabel at Studio Theatre by J. Robert Williams

Who wouldn’t want to watch a gang of political insurgents belt out 90s power-ballads in a karaoke faceoff while simultaneously building a bomb?  I begin with this irresistibly nerve-wrack…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 12:49PM
Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Giselle by J. Robert Williams

Intricate cut-outs of luscious trees arch over the stage, and a painted drop shows rolling hills through a gap in the woods.  Warm golden light beams into the forest glen, and a little cott…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 11:34AM
Thursday, October 31, 2013

The Night Watcher by J. Robert Williams

Oscar Wilde said that the aim of art is “to reveal art and conceal the artist.” As I approached The Night Watcher at Studio Theatre, I had to wonder if the one-woman show was exempt from…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 03:36PM
Thursday, October 24, 2013

Special Agent Galactica and Peter Fields at L’Enfant Cafe by J. Robert Williams

At the crossroads of Adams Morgan and Dupont, L’Enfant Café spills candlelight and savory aromas onto the street corner.  Tureens of onion soup and buttery mussels steam up the snug litt…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 10:36AM
Friday, September 27, 2013

Measure for Measure by J. Robert Williams

Measure for Measure is not a play that deals in easy answers, but Jonathan Munby’s new production at the Shakespeare Theatre makes no problem of losing yourself in a night of spectacle. Wh…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 12:37PM
Thursday, September 26, 2013

Special Agent Galactica holds court at the Black Fox Lounge by J. Robert Williams

Special Agent Galactica, a regular on the DC club scene, seen here at the Black Fox Lounge. Special Agent Galactica sashays up to the stage and looks out at the narrow cavern of the Black Fo…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 11:58AM
Tuesday, September 17, 2013

The Marriage of Maria Braun by J. Robert Williams

SCENA Theatre continues to mount vital international works in its 26th year, kicking off the season with a stage adaptation of the 1979 film by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, The Marriage of Mari…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 04:43PM
Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Torch Song Trilogy by J. Robert Williams

Do we still need Torch Song Trilogy? We’ve come a long way since 1981, when Torch Song Trilogy broke new ground with its presentation of homosexual men who wanted (gasp!) the option to hav…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 04:37PM
Friday, August 23, 2013

Nijinsky rises at the National Gallery and onstage at Cultural DC by J. Robert Williams

In a year of incessant tug-of-wars on the national stage, outsiders may be shocked to see how Washington’s art, theatre, and diplomatic communities are working in tandem.  While the Natio…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 12:35PM
Saturday, August 17, 2013

Don’t tell mama: DC theatre community exposed at upcoming Summer Hummer by J. Robert Williams

This Monday at Signature Theatre, more than 65 DC theatre artists will bare all in Summer Hummer 2013: The Second Coming, a burlesque variety show to benefit theatreWashington’s “Taking …

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 10:56AM
Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Salomé by J. Robert Williams

Oscar Wilde renounced convention with his tales of decadence and beautiful corruption—preferring the treacherous beauty of the poisoned apple to Victorian moralism.  In their production h…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 12:50PM
Wednesday, July 17, 2013

The Book of Mormon by J. Robert Williams

In it’s month-long stop in Washington, The Book of Mormon’s national tour delivers earnest charm and gleeful irreverence in a crude send-up of organized religion.   This may be the lewd…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 02:22PM

The Young Wife by J. Robert Williams

The unpainted concrete staircase to Redrum at Fort Fringe may not convey the import of grand opera, but don’t let the modest context fool you — Unmanned Stagecraft is presenting …

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 08:36AM
Monday, July 15, 2013

Hello, You Assholes! by J. Robert Williams

Like me, you may enjoy watching young people have fun. There’s your one reason to see Hello, You Assholes!. You may also like for theatre to “make sense” or have a “p…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 09:36AM

Bedroom Mirrors by J. Robert Williams

Whether or not a relationship can make it is a persistent question in art as in life. But whether the relationship is good fodder for a play–or a text message conversation, for that ma…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 02:02AM

The Tragical Mirth of Marriage and Love at Capital Fringe 2013 by J. Robert Williams

Think Chekhov. Sub-zero winters, utter hopelessness, and suicide in Act III.  In other words, Russia, and on a sunny July Saturday, beer in hand, Russia may not be your destination of choi…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 12:55AM
Thursday, July 11, 2013

Who is storming the Kennedy Center? Photos from pre-show at Book of Mormon by J. Robert Williams

The first national tour of The Book of Mormon began its stint in Washington this Tuesday evening.  The Kennedy Center has experienced unprecedented demand for the musical, with a mad rush s…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 08:07PM
Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Frankenstein – a mixer for the heavy metal and musical theatre crowds. Fear not. by J. Robert Williams

I’ve been instructed to enter GALA Hispanic Theatre from the roof of a neighboring grocery store.  I’m on my way to a tech rehearsal for Landless Theatre Company’s world premiere of R…

SOURCE: DC Theatre Scene at 11:58AM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards