theater

Theater Preview: March
By Diep Tran
March 4, 2011 - 11:11pm
March has a gay Jesus, the coming of the Lord of the Dance and Helen Keller. That's a lot of big names coming to Syracuse.

Sex is power in 'Lysistrata'
By Diep Tran
February 25, 2011 - 1:22am
"Lysistrata" at SU Drama or, how many times can you say "sex" in a review? The answer, not enough.

If anyone is wondering where their socks went, look in the obscenely tight pants of the male cast members in Lysistrata, now being performed by SU Department of Drama. It features numerous male cast members in their underwear, which inevitably gives rise to the question: “Is it real or stuffed?”

For this bawdy sexual comedy, this kind of thinking is necessary to enjoying it. So lay back and get in position.

Theater Preview: February
By Diep Tran
January 31, 2011 - 8:13pm
What's showing on the Syracuse theatrical stages this February? A little love, a little tragedy, some gender battles and Beatles. Apparently, all you need is love if it's February in Syracuse.

'The 39 Steps': Hitchcock, but with a kick
By Diep Tran
October 27, 2010 - 10:11pm
Syracuse Stage's "The 39 Steps" is a smart and slightly unhinged (but in a good way) production.

It’s a political scandal. Oh wait, it’s an unsolved murder. Or it could be the slow caress of an ankle. Quick! It’s on the run.

It’s (pause for effect) "The 39 Steps" (cue dramatic music).

A mixed 'Chorus Line'
By Diep Tran
October 13, 2010 - 12:50am
Review: Uneven performances keep 'A Chorus Line' from great heights at the Crouse Hinds Theater.

Difficulties in the Tuesday performance of A Chorus Line, presented by the Famous Artist Broadway Theater Series and playing at the Oncenter, proved that a chorus line is only as strong as the performers within it.

'A Chorus Line' of SU alums
By Diep Tran
October 9, 2010 - 11:36pm
Three Syracuse University alumni perform in the national tour of "A Chorus Line," coming to the Crouse Hinds Theater.

Syracuse alumnus Nick Nerio got a special Christmas present when he was 10 years old: the original Broadway cast recording of A Chorus Line.

“I wore out the CD listening to it,” Nerio said. “I just love the opening number as the director calling out, ‘step, kick, kick, leap, kick, touch’ and you can hear the dancers doing the steps. I just fell in love with it.”

"No Child..." teaches inspired lessons at Syracuse Stage
By Diep Tran
September 26, 2010 - 1:44am
Review: Reenah L. Golden smoothly transitions between 16 characters in this one-woman play about the deficiencies in American education.

There is a moment in No Child…, the first play of Syracuse Stage’s 38th season, when main character Nilaja sits alone in a chair, lit by a single spotlight. She ponders the deficiencies of the American education system, which has led to apathetic, unqualified teachers and uninspired, underachieving and even cruel students.

FringeNYC's uneven experience
By Diep Tran
August 30, 2010 - 5:29pm
Reviews: Choosing shows at the New York International Fringe Festival is an artistic risk, as two fringe shows indicate.

The New York International Fringe Festival can only be described by one word: random.

Random in shows, random in jokes, and random in quality.

This means that when choosing shows, there’s always the chance that it will either be a questionable decision or it may be the best show that you’ve seen this season.

For me, the two shows I saw during the festival embodied this random occurrence concept.

Sex in a new city: Kim Cattrall in London-town
By Marlei Martinez
March 12, 2010 - 1:13am
Anxiously waiting outside a London theater for the chance to meet the Sex and the City celebrity
...
Welcome to wonderland at Syracuse Stage
By Carren Jao
March 9, 2010 - 10:27am
The Syracuse run of Lookingglass Alice alley-oops, flies and tumbles triumphantly into our hearts — all with just five people on stage.

Lookingglass Alice is writer-director David Catlin’s acrobatic re-imagining of Lewis Carroll’s beloved Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, now playing at Syracuse Stage. Based more on the latter story, Catlin charts Alice’s progression from pawn to queen (or metaphorically from child to woman) and in 90 minutes gives audiences a gasp-inducing, awe-inspiring visual and aural treat.