Extra Criticum

A Small Craft Warning

I think it's a glorious thing when art, in whatever form, returns from the depth of your memory to offer comfort beside some experience occurring in present life. This week, as I was feeling quite sorry for myself at having allowed myself to be drawn in by a man, a piece from Tennessee Williams' Small Craft Warnings did just that for me.

Critic on the Spot: Matthew Gilbert v.1

As our 3rd Critic on the Spot, we welcome Matthew Gilbert, television critic for the Boston Globe. Among the shrines at which he has worshipped during his tenure: The Sopranos, Freaks and Geeks, Six Feet Under, Scrubs, Lost and The Office. He has written celebrity and author interviews for the Globe, served as literary and managing editor at Boston Review, clerked at a number of local bookstores, and gotten his MA in Literature. He has had other jobs and assignments, too, but he can no longer remember them because TV has destroyed his brain. Our first two questions—both on Reality TV—come from Gary Garrison and Marissa Danielle Duricko.

Stage Presence is a Universal Language — Part 2

After Western Night, Heather and I decided we had to go back to every show for the duration of our stay. The next night was the haunted house thingy and when we got to the teatro we saw the handsome gent from the night before at the back of the house, getting ready to start the show. He gave us high-fives and seemed pleased to see us. The show that followed, this time, had no audience participation. What it did have were special effects, pyrotechnics, all those talented dancers, and oh – that choreographer? Turns out he’s not just “not half bad,” he’s really damn good. The whole thing was a festival of cheese but we ate it up and licked the plate. After the show I went to the ladies room and returned to find Heather chatting with handsome gent’s handsome friend, Jery. Handsome gent himself soon joined us and we learned his name was Rodolfo and that they’d all be heading over to the resort’s disco for some obligatory dancing with the tourists. We went and spent the night dancing merengue, a little salsa, and learning bachata. We also got to meet a number of the other cast members. Rodolfo and Jery spoke a little English and there was one lovely young lady, Pippa, who is actually from England (she and her mum went on vacation and stayed) but the rest of the gang didn’t really speak much inglés, if at all. It didn’t matter. Language barrier? Bah. They were performers – we had found our people!

Stage Presence is a Universal Language — Part 1

So recently my dear friend Heather and I had the wonderful opportunity to cast off our cares, our worries, and our hectic daily schedules to spend a week basking on beautiful beaches and experiencing the lively culture of the Dominican Republic.

Both of us being passionately of the theatre, Heather and I decided that our first objective for the trip... well, okay, our first objective was to relax and get a really great tan. It was vacation, after all!... But our second objective was to attend an evening of theatre in a completely foreign culture.