Nobody in these parts does activist theater quite as well — or with as much enthusiasm — as Boulder’s Vox Feminista, an ever-changing collective of radical women that’s been at it now for more than twenty years. “It” constitutes a heady mixture of sharp satire, poetry, feminism, leftist rant and…
While tickets to Saturday night’s showing of cult classic The Rocky Horror Picture Show at the Landmark Esquire sold out more than a month ago, plenty of people still showed up looking for tickets. Westword photo intern Teal Nipp was one of the lucky ones with tickets to the midnight…
It’s not too often that you come across a play that is also a thriller, but the Curious Theatre’s world premier of Astronomical Sunset, by Robert Lewis Vaughan, is just that: According to Curious’ playwright-in-residence Meridith Friedman, it’ll make you “jump in your seat — and that’s really hard to…
There’s a little uneasiness before The Container starts: a shuffle for the restrooms, some groping in purses for water bottles. We’ve already signed a release saying we understand the experience will be claustrophobic, and we know we’ll be closed in, seated along the sides of a large shipping container for…
The 39 Steps. This show is uninhibitedly silly — a take-off on a 1930s Hitchcock film, which itself was based on a novel by John Buchan. The plot didn’t make much sense in the movie, and it makes even less sense in this farcical comedy by Patrick Barlow, who takes…
Forget the rugged beauty and natural splendor of the small, windswept islands off the west coast of Ireland. The Arans’ isolation and foul, monotonous weather can render life dull and dreary; their brutal elements and rocky shores can make everyday routines monotonous and maddening. That’s the impression, at least, that…
The ladies of Burlycute have put together Zombielesque — taking place for one night only at Bender’s Tavern, 314 East 13th Avenue, tonight promptly at 8 p.m. We caught up with bad-ass burlesque madame/emcee Reyna Von Vett — whose alter ego, Cora Vette, will be introducing the ladies of the…
They juggle chainsaws, bowling balls and eggs — or at least they did until recently. A long-time fixture in the scene of local vaudeville-inspired oddball damsel-in-distress shows (if indeed there is such a scene), The Handsome Little Devils are in the business of capturing the heart of anyone who appreciates…
Art. Yasmina Reza’s cool, witty, much-celebrated and much-performed play is ostensibly about art, but it’s more about friendship. At the center of the action is an all-white painting, purchased by Serge, a dermatologist, for a huge sum of money. Perhaps he feels a genuine affinity for the piece, perhaps he’s…
Marina Carr’s Woman and Scarecrow is about the impending death of a character she calls Woman, a woman of spirit and passion trapped in a miserable marriage in rural Ireland. The story isn’t linear, but pieces of the protagonist’s life emerge through the dialogue. Her mother was given to volcanic…
Vampires are trendy right now, but they’ve been around in one form or another — seductive, repellent, take your pick — for centuries, because the idea of a dead creature that maintains some form of vitality by sucking human blood is so resonant and evocative. It’s a kind of immortality,…
There’s no expensive special effect or fancy set piece that can match the evocative power of a good storyteller. That was the resounding message at the Stories on Stage “New Frontiers” performance Sunday at the Denver Performing Arts Center. The performance was the third offering in the Stories on Stage…
Art. Yasmina Reza’s cool, witty, much-celebrated and much-performed play is ostensibly about art, but it’s more about friendship. At the center of the action is an all-white painting, purchased by Serge, a dermatologist, for a huge sum of money. Perhaps he feels a genuine affinity for the piece, perhaps he’s…
A few years ago, my daughter used to be all about Grease, 24/7. She watched it all the time and knew all the songs. So how was I to know that in the ensuing years, wherein she became a full-on middle-schooler and teen-in-training, everything had changed? Yet she still inexplicably…
The power of The House of the Spirits, playwright Caridad Svich’s take on Isabel Allende’s celebrated novel, lies in the accumulation of images, actions and passionate words that the play pours out into the audience, as well as the bitter sadness at its heart. Consider the scenes separately, and they…
Charles Morey adapted The Ladies Man from a farce by Feydeau — pretty loosely, by Morey’s own account. In the original, Tailleur des Dames, the beleaguered protagonist is guilty of adultery; Morey, surmising that the more puritanical American audience wouldn’t empathize with an adulterer, makes his hero the victim of…
As we reported here last week, Boulder dancer/choreographer Mary Wohl Haan is dancing solo on the Pearl Street Mall for ten minutes at 10 a.m. every single day of this, the tenth month. So far, stage fright hasn’t gotten the better of the intrepid performer, who says she’s been there…
Half the reason — at least — to love Halloween is because of all the crazy tie-ins in pop culture, from television specials to candy to costumes. And Burlycute, a local burlesque venture, is getting into the spirit (Ha! Get it?) of things with Zombielesque, which will play for one…
Hey there, hepcat, wondering why your old lady’s so down on you? Probably because the flame has gone out of your relationship and your wardrobe options have been reduced to sports-themed warm-up pants — but it also might just be because you haven’t taken her out dancing in a while…
There’s far more playing area than there is room for the audience: We’re seated on a few rows of chairs at each end of the space, while the wide floor between is marked out like a Pacman game. On the opposite wall from where I sit, a screen shows a…
The 39 Steps is uninhibitedly silly — a romp, a trifle, a takeoff on a 1930s Hitchcock film (which, in turn, was based on a novel by John Buchan) The plot, which didn’t make much sense in the previous versions, has something to do with an attempt by foreign spies…
Art. Yasmina Reza’s cool, witty, much-celebrated and much-performed play is ostensibly about art, but it’s more about friendship. At the center of the action is an all-white painting, purchased by Serge, a dermatologist, for a huge sum of money. Perhaps he feels a genuine affinity for the piece, perhaps he’s…
