By Mark Edelman
April showers may come your way—a great opportunity to get out that umbrella and traipse over to one of the many theaters in our metro where you’ll find great theater just pouring down.
THE SCENARIOS
Studio Theatre
Now thru April 6
Sarin Monae West dazzles as an actress hired to improvise high anxiety, close encounter scenes with active-duty cops. Is she there to help train them to respond to people in acute mental crisis or is there another agenda in play? Joey Collins as her scene partner, Joel Ashur and Keeley Miller as the police trainees and Alyssa Keegan as the facilitator wend their way adroitly under Tiffany Nichole Greene’s taut direction. Tickets at http://www.studiotheatre.org
A ROOM IN THE CASTLE
Folger Library Theatre
Now thru April 6
In this parallel retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Ophelia, her handmaid, Anna, and Queen Gertrude find themselves on the wrong end of the wild prince’s antics. Sabrina Lynne Sawyer is perfect as Hamlet’s off and on love interest, mixing spunk and attitude with the rectitude required of a monarch’s subjects. Oneika Phillips is appropriately regal as Queen Gertrude and Burgess Byrd makes a fun foil to them both. Playwright Lauren Gunderson’s take on the proceedings makes for an intriguing “what if” evening in the theater. Tickets at http://www.folger.edu
YOUR NAME MEANS DREAM
Theater J
Now thru April 6
Aislin relies on Stacy, an AI robot-caregiver designed to look and sound human. The unexpected relationship that blossoms between them sparks questions of what it means to be human and what happens when that definition begins to shift. Written and directed by Academy award nominated screenwriter Jose Rivera (The Motorcycle Diaries). Tickets at http://www.edcjcc.org/theater-j.
CHICKEN & BISCUITS
Next Stop Theatre
Now thru April 6
When a tight-knit family gathers to mourn the passing of their patriarch, old wounds are reopened and secrets spill out. Fueled by love, laughter and the eponymous good old comfort food, this is one show that may make you hungry for more. Tickets at http://www.nexstoptheatre.org
AMERICAN FAST
Theater Alliance
Now thru April 13
March Madness meets Ramadan when a basketball phenom finds herself in the spotlight as a young Muslim balancing the pressures of faith, fame and family. In the process, she takes a few steps in the paint to examine what it means to be true to oneself. Theater Alliance continues its tradition of new, socially conscious theater in its new, temporary home around the corner from the Waterfront metro stop. Tickets at http://www.theateralliance.com.
CHARLOTTESVILLE
Keegan Theatre
Now thru April 13
Award-winning solo artist Priyanka Shetty’s tour-de-force performance about the power of witnessing, constructed from interviews with residents of Charlottesville impacted by events surrounding the infamous “Unite the Right” rally and counter-protests. Tickets at http://www.keegantheatre.com
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
Little Theatre of Alexandria
Now thru April 19
The Bard’s favorite rom-com pits sharp-tongued Beatrice against her suitor Benedick, this time set in the Big Easy. Will their playful banter hide the growing affection between them as their friends conspire to bring them together? Find out when LTA becomes Stratford-on-Potomac for this updated classic. Tickets at http://www.thelittletheatre.com
UNCLE VANYA
Shakespeare Theatre Co
Now thru April 20
Chekov’s classic, adapted by award-winning Irish playwright Conor McPherson, stars Hugh Bonneville of Dowtown Abbey fame as the elderly owner of a rural estate who returns home one day with a new young wife. Chaos erupts, marriages reach their limits, confessions—and vodka—flow freely, and weapons are drawn in this heartbreaking comedy about the eternal battle between futility and change. Tickets at http://www.shakespearetheatre.org
IN THE HEIGHTS
Signature Theatre
Now thru May 4
Before Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda celebrated his Washington Heights heritage with this tuneful treasure, which earned him his first Tony ® Award. Settle back with this tale of his ‘hood, cause Hamilton ain’t comin to the Kennedy Center anytime soon. Tickets at http://www.sigtheatre.org
SISTER ACT
Ford’s Theatre
Now thru May 17
Based on the hit 1992 Whoopi Goldberg film, a nightclub singer takes refuge with a group of nuns to escape retribution from a couple of goodfellas (i.e. mobsters). Cooped up in the convent, she helps her new Sisters discover their powerful voices while, inevitably finding her own. Tickets at http://www.ford.org
BAD BOOKS
Round House Theatre
April 2-27
Kate Norris and Holly Twyford, so wonderful in Studio Theatre’s recent production of Summer 1976, return to a DMV stage for this new play about “appropriate” reading material in the public library. Reasonable discussion quickly turns into heated confrontation, sparking a dramatic chain reaction of unintended consequences. Can the characters see past political divisions to what it means to care for our children? Tickets at http://www.roundhousetheatre.org
FAKE IT UNTIL YOU MAKE IT
Arena Stage
April 3- May 4
Renowned playwright Larissa FastHorse’s comedy about a collision of friends and foes, ensnaring colleagues and bystanders and unraveling secrets that highlight the absurdities of ambition and authenticity. Amidst the laughter, genuine connections form, emphasizing the value of unexpected paths to success. Tickets at w
BEOWULF: A RETELLING
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop
April 5-19
DC’s favorite avante garde theater company Taffety Punk makes the old new again, unearthing the original English epic poem to examine the idea of the hero. A bar-like environment provides the intimate setting for this new ensemble, capturing the compelling voice of the bards of old in the process. Tickets at http://www.taffetypunk.com
ANNIE
National Theatre
April 11-20
Everybody’s favorite red-headed mop top returns to DC, where she was born oh so many years ago at the Kennedy Center (Ken Cen honcho Roger Stevens was a producer, lucky he). She’s right on time, with what’s going on in the District. I know I’d sleep better knowings “the sun will come out tomorrow”—you, too? Tickets at http://www.broadwayatthenational.com
CHARLOTTE’S WEBB
Adventure Theatre MTC
April 25- May 25
Take the kids and celebrate the power of friendship and the enduring impact of kindness—a virtue sorely missing in public life these days—as eight-legged Charlotte saves her friend Wilbur with her miraculous web. Tickets at adventuretheatre-mtc.org
About the Author: Mark Edleman is a playwright who loves writing about theater. He is a lifetime member of the Broadway League and a Tony® voter. Catch his monthly podcast at http://www.onstagedmv.org.
Photo credits: Sister Act photo by Scott Suchman. In The Heights photo by DJ Corey. The Scenarios photo by Margot Schulman. Annie photo by Matthew Murphy.