Tosca with Angela Gheorghiu (Metropolitan Opera, 29 October 2015)
When a critic friend invited me to the Met Tosca, I jumped at the chance. I wanted another opportunity to hear Angela […]
DF Previews Kiss of the Spider Woman (11th Hour Theatre)
The rise of 11th Hour is one of Philly theatre’s great success stories. Now in their 11th season, they’ve grown from a […]
DF Reviews Thérèse Raquin (Roundabout Theatre, New York)
Thérèse Raquin is a woman of few words, but definitely A Presence. At least, she is in Helen Edmundson’s adaptation of Émile […]
DF Reviews Rizzo (Theatre Exile)
A special theatrical alchemy happens when a great actor plays a bigger-than-life, flawed but charismatic personality. Think of Orson Welles’s Charles Foster […]
DF Reviews Antigone (Wilma Theater)
When I was a theatre student, I was fascinated by stories of the Greek tragedies in their earliest performances – multi-day outdoor […]
DF Reviews Juno and the Paycock (Irish Heritage Theatre at Plays & Players)
At Irish Heritage Theatre, Juno and the Paycock seems to begin even before the actors come onstage. There’s mournful fiddle music playing […]
DF Reviews Winterreise with Mark Padmore and Kristian Bezuidenhout (Alice Tully Hall)
I’m a great lover of Schubert, and I’ve attended a number of memorable Lieder recitals. Yet I haven’t been to many live performances of […]
DF Reviews Disgraced (Philadelphia Theatre Company)
Good news first. After several difficult years, the Philadelphia Theatre Company has regained ownership of their beautiful Suzanne Roberts Theatre, which they […]
DF Reviews The Children’s Hour (EgoPo Classic Theater)
Dramatist or melodramatist? The jury is still out on Lillian Hellman, whose play, The Children’s Hour, is onstage now at EgoPo, directed […]
DF Reviews Metamorphoses (Arden Theatre)
Even before I saw Arden’s drop-dead gorgeous Metamorphoses, I knew I’d face a challenge. You see, we critics always want to come […]
reclining standards 