MELODRAMA MAIL
Theatrics will ensue.
It seems as though the winter might finally be exiting stage left, thank God. Still, there is nothing quite like the darker months for trudging to your local theatre in a heavy coat to get stuck into some Shakespeare (or whatever tickles your pickle). Whilst times are dark, the Winter Olympics gave us some moments of exquisite light. With the opening ceremony proving that everything good in this life is, in fact, theatre. Singing Moka pots anyone? Rossini, Verdi and Puccini dancing around with inflated heads? The correct amount of absurd. Our interview with impresario Whitney White reminded us of the miracle that is live performance: “Every night when the lights come back up and you realize that you’ve been sharing space and time with wonderful strangers for two to four hours, that’s the miracle of it. That we all have made a contract to be together in the same place and time to see the same story. That’s a very special thing in today’s fractured world.”
So on that uplifting note, let us inspire you with the following list of theatrical endeavors across London and New York. Please report back.
On right now
New York
[DANCE] Romeo and Juliet Suite at the Park Avenue Armory. LA Dance Project’s R+J serves a condensed version of Shakespeare’s story told in contemporary-classical dance, set to the exquisite music of Sergei Prokofiev (banger after banger). Featuring video transmitted live from the gorgeous Armory halls to onstage screens it feels very Ivo van Hove or Kip Williams-esque (and if those names mean nothing to you, please ignore the wanky theatre-talk) and is rather thrilling in the dance context. On through March 21. Book Now.
[CABARET] Justin Vivian Bond: Heated Revelry at Joe’s Pub. The beacon of wonder that is Justin Vivian Bond - the veteran performer and cabaret icon is “coming to the cabaret” with a Heated Rivalry inspired show. Grab the gays & girls and book yourself in for a delicious night of revelry. No one does it better. PSA: JW Anderson just created the costumes for Bond’s new opera. March 25-29. Book Now.
[THEATRE] You Got Older at The Cherry Lane Theatre. At one of our favourite downtown theaters, a revival of this (pretty dark) play starring the epic Alia Shawkat and Peter Friedman (otherwise known as Frank in Succession). A tender piece about family, illness (and cowboys). It’s pretty heavy subject matter - about a young woman, Mae, who returns home to help her father with cancer treatment - so don’t come expecting (many) laughs. On through April 12. Book Now.
[THEATRE] Mother Russia at Signature Theatre. St. Petersburg in 1992: The Soviet Union has collapsed, McDonald’s has risen and the meek Evgeny, son of a former powerful bureaucrat, stumbles into a job working surveillance with his old friend Dmitri. A riotously hysterical farce. You just have to see it to understand it. On through March 22. Book Now.
London
[THEATRE/MUSIC] Manic Street Creature at the Kiln Theatre. This show in the guise of a gig is beautifully composed by Maimuna Memon. It first rose to fame at the Edinburgh Fringe and has had much success since. On through March 28. Book Now.
[THEATRE] Broken Glass at The Young Vic. Not among Arthur Miller’s most successful (or beloved) plays, but this production by the director who brought us Fiddler on the Roof last year (divine) is worth seeing. It’s about a Jewish-American woman living in Brooklyn on the brink of the Second World War in 1938. She loses control of her lower body while obsessively consuming news about Nazi Germany. It feels painfully relevant today. On through April 17. Book now.
What you should be booking
New York
[MUSICAL] The Rocky Horror Show at Studio 54. The legendary cult rock ‘n’ roll musical created by Richard O’Brien is getting a Broadway revival at the legendary Studio 54 (yes that Studio 54). GiveTime Warp a listen and if you still aren’t convinced, we don’t know what to say. Masterminded by the director who gave us Oh Mary! you can expect a wild & weird tour de force. March 26-June 21. Book Now.
[THEATRE] Uncle Vanya at LaMaMa. Uncle Vanya is adapted by the Russian (in exile) theatre practitioner and director Dmitry Krymov for his theatre company Krymov Lab NYC. In their words: “As our own world burns with despair, longing, and betrayal — it is time for the Lab to take up Chekhov’s masterpiece, transforming it into a grotesque elegy, a wasteland vaudeville.” Jolly stuff. If you’re into experimental heavy hitters, and this sounds as thrilling as it should, then you won’t want to miss it. Their productions are WILD events (including below image for reference). March 28-April 12. Book Now.
[THEATRE] Kenrex at The Lucille Lortel. From three acclaimed, sold-out runs across London this true-crime thriller, which picks apart the details of a notorious small-town murder in 1980s America is soon to arrive in New York. GO. SEE. IT. It’s an exquisite one-man performance by (co-writer) Jack Holden who shape-shifts in and out of 35 characters with bedazzling skill. The music by John Patrick Elliott is epic too. April 15-June 27. Book Now.
[THEATRE] The Maids at St Anns Warehouse. Director of the moment Kip Williams follows his astounding production of The Picture of Dorian Gray (starring Sarah Snook) with this reimagining of Jean Genet’s classic play which was a smash-hit in London. An absurdist drama about two role-playing sisters who act out the master-servant relationship like an elaborate game of Dom/Sub make-believe pushed to the extreme. May 17-June 17. Book Now.
[CONCERT/THEATRE] Clara: Sex, Love and Classical Music at 59e59. The history of classical music (as with most other fields of human endeavour) sadly too often omits the presence of great women from its memory. Fortunately, writer and performer Elena Mazzon challenges this with her one-women show devoted to vividly bringing Clara Schumann, the brilliant classical composer and pianist who is perhaps better-known as Robert Schumann’s wife, back to life. An intimate one-woman play incorporating beautiful live music. April 22-May 10. Book Now.
[OPERA] Moby Dick at BAM. Widely recognised as one of the all time great American novels, Herman Melville’s Moby Dick is brought to life in an avant-garde, visually spectacular staging. Created by the completely seminal and extraordinary director (as well as visionary performance artist, designer – of furniture, stage sets & costumes) Robert Wilson (RIP). GRAB this chance to see a piece by one of the world’s foremost theater and visual artists. April 29-May 3. Book Now.
London
[DANCE/CONCERT] Unnatural Harmony: Sounds of Lee Alexander McQueen at The Southbank Centre. A show (which marries film, dance & music) about the 20 years of music that shaped Lee Alexander McQueen’s life and work?? Say less. Performed by The London Contemporary Orchestra and will include classical masterpieces by Mozart and Philip Glass, as well as tracks by Bjork and Lady Gaga. Heaven. 29 April. Book Now.
[THEATRE] 1536 at The Ambassadors Theatre. This brilliant historical drama set against the impending execution of Anne Boleyn is being transferred to the West End following a pretty electrifying debut at the Almeida Theatre. Margot Robbie has even thrown her weight behind its young playwright Ava Pickett and is one of the shows producers. May 2-August 1. Book Now.
[IMMERSIVE] Ionesco/Dinner at the Smiths at Riverside Studios. In the category: “I’m not a complete theatre novice and would like to try something potentially weird…’ Please take a seat for this absurdist dinner based on the words and works of Eugène Ionesco (master of French avant-garde theatre, whose work interrogated the strangely meaningless yet terribly poignant fact of human existence). The concept: audience members are seated around an enormous long table, with a glass of French wine and a blindfold. So far, so… good? At one end sits Lucy Russell’s Mrs Smith, at the other end sits Sean Rees’s Mr Smith and the audience are complicit in the absurdity that ensues. April 7-May 9. Book Now.
[THEATRE] Jaja’s African Hair Braiding at the Lyric Hammersmith. We cannot wait for the UK premiere of this (Tony Award-winning) rich ensemble comedy. Set in a braiding salon in a pre-pandemic, mid-Trump Harlem where neighbourhood women come to have their hairstyled by a tight-knit group of West African, immigrant braiders. It feels a little like a sitcom in a great way: something you’d want to watch play out week after week. March 18-April 25. Book Now.
Ok, so that should keep you all going for a bit. Remember to make a MY MELODRAMA account to share your musings and opinions on the shows you see. Lets get the discourse going.
Further reading for those who can’t! get! enough!
Our Interview with the New York based director/performer/composer Whitney White on her pilgrimage to the the Bards place of birth and burial.
Our Interview with Wooster Group / Elevator Repair Service veteran Downtown actor Scott Shepherd.
Our Interview with the sublime Viennese opera costumier Hannah Oellinger about her ruffled universe.