Rachel Dulude News

Lillian Hellman's THE CHILDREN'S HOUR is a classic play, which premiered in 1934 and is just as timely and relevant today.  The Gamm's production is a near-flawless retelling of this disturbing story about how much words matter and how the power of a lie can have repercussions far greater than expected.  The intricate and methodical script comes to life under the talents of Madeleine Lambert and Gamm resident actor Karen Carpenter and as two women who run an all-girls boarding school and find themselves with a pupil who seeks to destroy anything that gets in the way of her agenda.

THE FLU SEASON is a darkly funny, incredibly touching and thoroughly strange production.  At its core, it's a simple story about love and relationships. The setting of a mental hospital, with additional commentary from two men known as Prologue and Epilogue, who are dueling over creating the story as it unfolds for the audience, complicates things and interjects unexpected twists and turns.  Burbage Theatre Company has never been afraid to take on the surreal and strange, and with The Flu Season, they have proven once again that odd little stories are in very good hands.  Under the expert direction of Wendy Overly, this simple premise becomes wholly immersive and heartbreaking.

Burbage Theatre Company continues their sixth season with the Rhode Island Premiere of 'The Flu Season' by Will Eno, directed by Wendy Overly, which opens previews Today November 4.

Burbage Theatre Company continues their sixth season with the Rhode Island Premiere of 'The Flu Season' by Will Eno, directed by Wendy Overly, which opens previews Friday November 4.

There is a current trend in Hollywood to combine movies in a way that creates a 'cinematic universe.' This allows studios to create a number of movies that are all connected and can be tied together, usually because of a shared world of characters, think Marvel superheroes or the famous Universal Studios movie monsters. In an ingenious sort of experiment, Wilbury Group is kicking off its season with a production that creates a kind of 'theatrical universe,' by linking together three plays that would otherwise be thought of us very different and entirely separate. With masterful execution, Wilbury manages to create a fascinating and frightening world in which we can really believe these three disparate works might coexists.

There's a moment in the play Stupid F#%*ing Bird, currently playing at The Wilbury Group, where a character talks about how contemporary theaters adapt and reimagine Shakespeare. Certainly, it's always a tricky proposition, reconfiguring a classic work and attempting to bring it into the current era while maintaining all the aspects, themes and characteristics that made it great. Or, at least, finding a way to reshape it so it will hold up in front of today's audiences, keeping them engaged and entertained within of our modern-day context. As written by Aaron Posner, adapted from the classic Anton Chekhov play The Seagull, Bird is a play that more than holds its own as a thought provoking, entertaining and hilarious modern take on a theatrical classic.

Aaron Posner's STUPID F-ING BIRD begins performances tonight, January 21, and runs until February 6, 2016 at The Wilbury Group. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Aaron Posner's STUPID F-ING BIRD begins performances this Thursday, January 21, and runs until February 6, 2016 at The Wilbury Group. BroadwayWorld has a first look at the cast in action below!

Rhode Island's theater community had much to celebrate in 2015.  Outstanding productions graced stages from the East Bay to South County, up-and-coming theatrical companies left their mark on the arts scene, and excellent concerts and dance events made for some of the best performances of the year.

There are some plays that are easily categorized. They fit a very specific label, nice and neat and tidy. Hamlet is a tragedy. Noises Off is a comedy. There's little room for doubt or debate. On the other hand, some plays defy definition. They challenge you to put them into a category or give them a label. When that happens, you can sometimes get a muddled, confused mess that never really works. Or, as in the case of The House of Blue Leaves, currently playing at the Gamm Theatre, you get an exciting and entertaining piece of theater that surprises in part because of just how well it works.

Since the earliest shows produced by The Wilbury Group, the company has grown by leaps and bounds, becoming a force in the Rhode Island theater scene. They've established themselves a fine young professional theater company and arrive now at the end of a theatrical season they can and should be proud of. On the other hand, their final show of this season seems to be a bit of a step backwards. Or, perhaps, a missed opportunity, as their production of the classic musical Cabaret is surprisingly and disappointingly safe and rather dull.

Current world events, financial realities and personal readiness are concerns all couples grapple with when deciding if the time is right to start a family together. However, most couples do not discuss these issues with the hilarious, unrestrained animation of M and W, the engaging young duo at the center of Duncan MacMillan's LUNGS.