Dance with grace comes from experience

By Carol Sorgen
Posted on April 27, 2017

Their legs may not extend as high or their pliés be as deep, but older dancers bring a depth to their performance that younger dancers cannot. That’s the view of Torens Johnson, producer of this year’s “Ageless Grace” dance concert, to be held Sunday, May 7 at the Creative Alliance at The Patterson.​Dance Baltimore, a nonprofit arts organization directed by Cheryl ... READ MORE

Putting on a show for charity

By Carol Sorgen
Posted on April 21, 2017

Judy Kahl, Jody Duke, and Deb Wilson rehearse for the Paint and Powder Club’s upcoming performance on June 2 and 3. The club, which was founded in 1893 and puts on shows to benefit charity, is thought to be the oldest of its kind in the United States.Photo by Jason SaulerBaltimore has many nicknames, including the “city of firsts,” with such claims to fame as the first... READ MORE

Funny? Serious? ‘Well’ is hard to describe

By Michael Toscano
Posted on April 18, 2017

Well, now. How to describe Well — the quirky, perspective-shifting, serio-comic play from New York actor and writer Lisa Kron? That, as they say in the theater, is the question. What you see at 1st Stage, a non-profit theater in Tysons, Va., may depend on what you bring into the theater with you.It’s a mother-daughter play for some. Others may see it as an examination... READ MORE

Venus Theatre focuses on women writers

By Robert Friedman
Posted on April 07, 2017

Deborah Randall says her audiences have an “immersion experience” at the Venus Theatre in Laurel, and this could include, as it recently did, sharing a dinner being cooked up on stage.In Soft Revolution, a play about Afghans in Australia, Venus founder-director Randall felt the recent production needed a sign of authenticity, so a pot of Kabuli palaw, the Afghan national dish,... READ MORE

Novels help heal war’s trauma

By Robert Friedman
Posted on April 03, 2017

For Ellicott City resident Tom Glenn, 80, “Not to write would be to accept damnation. If I gave up writing, my spiritual life would come to an end. I would be a husk, and cease to be a human being.”For Glenn, you see, writing is not only a compulsion — “I’ve been writing since I was 6 years old” — but also a therapy. It eases the post-traumatic... READ MORE

Local writer imagines a Baltimore suburb

By Laura Bogart
Posted on March 28, 2017

St. Bart’s Way could be any affluent suburb in America: rich with the histories — and the secrets — of the families who believe that their opulent homes with well-manicured lawns, and the high-powered jobs that keep the lights on, will somehow protect them from the seedier side of life.However, this well-to-do Baltimore ‘burb comes straight from the imagination of... READ MORE

Shifting shapes at renovated Center Stage

By Dan Collins
Posted on March 27, 2017

Those coming to Center Stage to see award-winning playwright Mary Zimmerman’s adaptation of The White Snake, an ancient Chinese fable, may expect to see dazzling lights and remarkable transformations on the Head Theater stage. But they will also be surrounded by the transformations wrought by the theater’s recent $28 million renovation.The entrance, the lobby, the box office,... READ MORE

Annette Bening moved by her current film

By Lindsey Bahr
Posted on March 13, 2017

In 1979, Annette Bening was 21 years old. A year earlier, she had moved from San Diego to San Francisco to study classical drama. She remembers it as a time of tremendous change and uncertainty — and big moments, like the day Harvey Milk and George Mascone were killed. But for the most part, her head was in Chekov and Shakespeare and Shaw and Arthur Miller.So when she read the... READ MORE

A top-notch Show Boat cruises at Toby’s

By Rebekah Alcalde
Posted on March 03, 2017

With its the soaring score, complicated love stories and realistic portrayal of racism, Show Boat, now on stage at Toby’s Dinner Theatre, treats the audience to an epic story that is both fun and dynamic, but also serious.Show Boat tells the story of those living aboard the Cotton Blossom, a 19th century show boat travelling the Mississippi River. The musical follows the... READ MORE

Women named to Hall of Fame

By Jamie Lee Pricer
Posted on February 27, 2017

Without exception, the five women who will be inducted into Howard County’s Women’s Hall of Fame in March credit others for the support and encouragement that led to their success.The county’s Commission on Women has inducted its honorees each year as part of Women’s History Month since 1996. The women are heralded for their community service. “Once again, I am so impressed by... READ MORE