1,519 stories by "Peter Marks"
In college, Zach Appelman heard voices. And they convinced him that he was on the right track. They came to him through speakers and ear buds: the honeyed sounds of great Shakespeareans, act…
As plans for the new Washington theater season take shape, the lineup across the region is looking ever nervier. Although an occasional company is going for the tried-and-true " witness the …
Synetic Theater is up to its old tricks. Which, of course, is very good news. It's added a few new tricks, too, in its never-ending quest for acrobatic dazzle, with a wet-and-wild version of…
Idina Menzel, one of the original cast members of "Rent" and a Tony winner for the role of Elphaba in "Wicked," will star in a new Broadway-bound musical by the creators of "Next to Normal" …
With a disarming disregard for theatrical convention, the actor playing the weak-willed Jorgen Tesman in the National Theatre of Norway's radically pared-down "Hedda Gabler" performs about 1…
How's this for casting coups? Kathleen Turner as Mother Courage! The earthy Turner must have had a blast at Arena Stage last summer playing the tart-tongued liberal columnist Molly Ivins, be…
"Canterbury" is what might happen to Chaucer's raucous 14th-century pilgrims if they stopped for a brewski or three at an English major's dorm party. Draped in Natalie Drutz's wittily cartoo…
It was one of those calls that can set aflutter the heart of the toughest showbiz veteran, even one accustomed to the wearying whims of the most demanding of Broadway directors and producers…
The first word uttered in Mary Zimmerman's luminously liquid pageant of ancient myths is "Bodies," and how fitting that proves to be. Over the 100 shimmering minutes of "Metamorphoses," a fl…
Theater lovers might want to get out their global positioning systems and plug in the settings for Montgomery County, because a new sense of dramatic direction is taking hold in the capital'…
It isn't every dramatist these days who can sustain a nuanced narrative through a full three hours and two intermissions " a feat that makes all the more impressive Danai Gurira's absorbing …
It's the most famous teenage kiss of all time. "O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do. They pray," Romeo declares on that fateful night of love at first sight at the Capulets' masked…
It's the most famous teenage kiss of all time. "O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do. They pray," Romeo declares on that fateful night of love at first sight at the Capulets' masked…
The distance between Round House Theatre in Bethesda and Theater J on 16th Street NW is only about seven miles, yet at the moment, that trip covers a large patch of David Mamet's polarizing …
Fear not: The power surges occurring frequently and without warning inside Signature Theatre present no cause for alarm. They are, in fact, the reason you want to get as close as possible to…
The people of "Good People" aren't all that good " which is partly why the play is better than good. As consequences of David Lindsay-Abaire's wisdom-filled script and Jackie Maxwell's super…
Jason Loewith, an award-winning musical writer, stage director and national leader in the development of new American plays, has been appointed artistic director of Olney Theatre Center, the…
David Lindsay-Abaire, author of the most-produced play in America this season, is sitting in a Brooklyn coffee shop, marveling at his excellent fortune. It isn't a mere five or six professio…
The stark visual eloquence of Ford's Theatre's revival of "Our Town" informs Thornton Wilder's portrait of the ordinary joys and sorrows of fictional Grover's Corners, N.H. But the picture p…
Let's stipulate right off the bat that Danny Gavigan makes for a dashing caped crusader. No, not the one with the souped-up car and the sidekick and the high Hollywood profile. This other gu…
Demonstrating decisively that a hero can always be found waiting in the wings, a young actor by the name of Zach Appelman has come along to grab hold of the oratorical reins of "Henry V" and…
Curious about which topics, people and offerings might achieve hotness in #DCTheater this spring? Here are my prognostications about what's likely to be trending onstage in the coming months…
NEW YORK " Imagine one of the plucky little orphans of "Annie," all grown up and fixing her sights on a sprawling Delta plantation, and you get an idea of the impression Scarlett Johansson m…
Out in the Negev, an Israeli scientist has discovered the dark side of an industrial miracle. A bustling complex of factories that has brought prosperity to the desert is creating ecological…
"Taking Care of Our Own" is the name of a financial aid effort for local actors and other artists run by a regional advocacy group, Theatre Washington. But this week, it also characterizes a…
