Inquirer - Howard Shapiro http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro RSS Feed for Inq Col Howard Shapiro en-us Tue, 23 Oct 2012 10:06:43 GMT 'Theatre Philadelphia: A Celebration' - and then the plot thickens http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121023__Theatre_Philadelphia__A_Celebration__-_and_then_the_plot_thickens.html Monday night signaled a turning point for Philadelphia's ever-expanding theater community in a region with 50-plus professional stage companies, almost 1,000 members of the professional Actors' Equity union, more new theater spaces under construction, plus audiences with seemingly insatiable appetites for live stage work. Ebb, flow, drift of dementia http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121019_Ebb__flow__drift_of_dementia.html The prolific Philadelphia playwright Bruce Graham must be leading a charmed life. In a matter of months, The Outgoing Tide, his funny and searing exploration of dementia and its effect on a family, has been given not one but two terrific productions here. Sort-of sisters playing with fire (in the kitchen) http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121016_Sort-of_sisters_playing_with_fire__in_the_kitchen_.html Mamma mia! Ladies, wazza-matta you? Ufff! Is this any way to behave in the kitchen? That flour's not for throwing. That ladle's not for bashing. And - yikes! - put down those guns! 'Stars of David' turns words into a musical http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121014__Stars_of_David__turns_words_into_a_musical.html How do you turn a book of interviews - clearly a piece of nonfiction - into, of all things, a stage musical? Stop the press: This silly show is a lot of fun http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121012_Stop_the_press__This_silly_show_is_a_lot_of_fun.html This review is reprinted from The Inquirer of Sept. 18, 2012, edited to reflect the new venue of the coproduction. RFK play plunges audience convincingly into the era http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121009_RFK_play_plunges_audience_convincingly_into_the_era.html The history play RFK, which opened Saturday, is special in several ways. Unlike most one-person plays, its two acts feel genuine, not like the usual forced conversation with unearned extremes. Also, it puts us easily into another era - with time-machine force. Hedgerow Theatre's 'Sherlock Holmes' off the mark http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121008_Hedgerow_Theatre_s__Sherlock_Holmes__off_the_mark.html From: Mr. Sherlock Holmes To: Dr. Watson I say, my dear Watson, we can make immediate deductions from our visit to Sherlock Holmes and the Crucifer of Blood at the indubitably pleasant Hedgerow Theatre in Rose Valley - you know, just down the lane from the county town they call Media. 'This Is the Week That Is' spoofs the presidential race http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121005__This_Is_the_Week_That_Is__spoofs_the_presidential_race.html It was only two hours until Wednesday night's presidential-race debate, and another political debate was just beginning on the stage at Plays & Players Theatre, where the six cast members of This Is the Week That Is had declared themselves undecided voters, and set out to explore the issues. "The Giant Squid" is back onstage http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20121002__quot_The_Giant_Squid_quot__is_back_onstage.html The Giant Squid, a great homegrown goof of a show that was a dark-horse hit of the 2008 Philly Fringe festival, is back in a version that's eerier and a little less playful than the original. Yet it comes together with more polish - especially in Mark Valenzuela's spooky sound design and the lighting by David O'Connor and Terry Brennan, both aspects of the show that are essential to the fun. 'Oleanna' cast is likably unlikable http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/howard_shapiro/20120929__Oleanna__cast_is_likably_unlikable.html Theater Oleanna Through Oct. 14 at Bristol Riverside Playhouse, 120 Radcliffe St., Bristol. Tickets: $10-$45. Information: 215-785-0100 or www.brtstage.org.