Maureen Butler News

Mad Horse Theatre Company presents Dying to Know by David Butler in a special limited engagement December 2-12. Directed by Mad Horse Company Member Nick Schroeder.

When Nora Helmer slammed the door behind her 139 years ago, the fallout from her rebellion not only heralded the bold beginnings of modern drama, but they also chartered a future for feminism. Henrik Ibsen's play A Doll's House has remained a classic of the stage, as fresh, relevant, and provoking as it was in the late 19th century. And because the issues raised then remain ones still to be reckoned with today, Lucas Hnath's 2017 sequel, A Doll's House Part 2,continues to fascinate and audiences. The new production at Portland's Good Theater brings the characters and their crises to life with incisive power.

Good Theater presents the Portland premiere of the recent Broadway hit, A Doll's House Part 2 by Lucas Hnath. The show opens February 20 and plays through March 17. Good Theater is the professional theater company in residence at the St. Lawrence Arts Center, 76 Congress Street, Portland.

It is the winter doldrums here in North Country, but what better way to combat those blues than to take in an entertaining, moving, or inspiring evening at one of Maine's fine theatre companies? And if not in winter, why not plan ahead by subscribing to some of these companies or buying seats for one of the many exciting upcoming events for 2019? To assist you in your planning, BWW offers these picks of the ten productions and company repertoire to which we look forward most.

Portland Stage announces two works by Monica Wood.

It may not be among the most highly regarded of Shakespeare's plays. But 'Richard III' has proved to be a popular one. In recent times, big name actors have sought out the lead role and fans have flocked to see how Al Pacino, Kevin Spacey, Kenneth Branagh and Ian McKellen, for example, have embodied this fascinating, if repulsive, character.

Bask in the warmth and enchantment of Italy without leaving Maine during Theater at Monmouth's production of Enchanted April. Elizabeth Von Arnim's resplendent 1920s novel comes to life on stage in this Tony Award-nominated play by Matthew Barber. Enchanted April runs from Thursday July 19th, at 7:30 p.m. throughout the season including matinee and evening performances on both weekdays and weekends.

William Shakespeare's stunning portrait of a Machiavellian genius and his murderous quest for absolute power, comes alive on Theater at Monmouth's stage July 12 at 7:30 p.m. through August 18 with matinee and evening performances on both weekdays and weekends throughout the summer. Crowned by means of shameless seduction, lies, and bloodshed, Richard Plantagenet makes the happy earth his hell as he carves a bloody swath through all that stand in his way. Shakespeare's "game of thrones" concludes the "War of the Roses" play cycle with one of literature's most ruthless, remorseless, and relentless characters.

William Shakespeare's stunning portrait of a Machiavellian genius and his murderous quest for absolute power, comes alive on Theater at Monmouth's stage July 12 at 7:30 p.m. through August 18 with matinee and evening performances on both weekdays and weekends throughout the summer. Crowned by means of shameless seduction, lies, and bloodshed, Richard Plantagenet makes the happy earth his hell as he carves a bloody swath through all that stand in his way. Shakespeare's "game of thrones" concludes the "War of the Roses" play cycle with one of literature's most ruthless, remorseless, and relentless characters.

Theater at Monmouth's 2018 Family Show is The True Story of Little Red a new adaptation of the Brothers Grimm classic fairy tale. The run starts on Saturday, June 30th, at 1:00 p.m. and continues throughout the season including matinee performances on both weekdays and weekends. This modern-day twist on a century's old classic, traditionally warning us not to trust strangers or to stay on the straight and narrow path, asks modern audiences to consider different points of view in an effort to avoid stereotypes and to better understand people different from ourselves.

Love makes the world go around, even when it seems to have stopped in its tracks. Such is the message of 'Outside Mullingar,' a romantic comedy that's perfect for the return of the American Irish Repertory Ensemble (AIRE).

This winter, Portland Stage unveils the Dark Week Project, three staged readings of beloved playwright Sarah Ruhl's Dear Elizabeth while the Mainstage is 'dark', a technical term to signify that the theater is in a transition week between regularly scheduled productions. Dear Elizabeth will be performed by a rotating cast of Portland Stage Affiliate Artists and is directed by Todd Brian Backus.

Portland Stage's second season offering, Kate Hawley's 2015 play about siblings and their mother confronting dementia, Complications from a Fall, addresses an issue of consequence but while it has its moments of warmth and truth, never quite rises to the challenge of truly articulating something significant about the aging process.

Complications From A Fall begins previews Tuesday, October 24, opens Today, October 27, and runs through November 12 at Portland Stage.

Complications From A Fall begins previews Today, October 24, opens Friday, October 27, and runs through November 12 at Portland Stage.

Complications From A Fall begins previews Tuesday, October 24, opens Friday, October 27, and runs through November 12 at Portland Stage.

With its winter production of Joseph Kesselring's classic comedy, Arsenic and Old Lace, Portland Stage's serves up a delightful vintage cocktail - complete with more than one amusing twist. The 1947 play, people with a cast of loveable, zany misfits who cheerfully engage in murder and mayhem retains its appeal seven decades later in this stylishly directed and colorfully acted production.

The theatrical scene continued to be lively in Maine this year, with the Portland-area theatres presenting a number of stunning world premieres and the musical theatre scene gloriously vibrant. These are my personal choices of the best in Maine, grouped by theatre company and show: Because their repertoires are so vastly different, and because both companies produced outstanding seasons, my vote for highest honors goes to both Maine State Music Theatre and the Good Theater.

South Portland's Mad Horse Theatre Company closes its 2014-2015 season with a gripping rendition of Jon Robin Baitz's 2011 drama, Other Desert Cities. The play explores the painful bonds and conflicts in a family whose relationships have are strained by differences in political thinking, by the loss of their oldest son, and by their daughter's desire to recount the truth as she sees it. The drama, set largely in 2004 in the bellicose post 9/11 America of George W. Bush, is about the fine line between acting and reality, the dark depths of deception, and the devastating, yet healing consequences of discovering the truth.

Mad Horse Theatre Company closes its 29th Season with Pulitzer Prize Finalist OTHER DESERT CITIES, by John Robin Baitz.