http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield RSS Feed for Inq Col Wendy Rosenfield en-us Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:44:31 GMT http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20120207_A_closer__more_intimate_view_of__quot_Becky_Shaw_quot_.html It might be a tough sell, getting audiences out to Souderton's Montgomery Theater to see Becky Shaw. After all, Gina Gionfriddo's acerbic, witty, Pulitzer-nominated drama collected four Barrymore Awards for the Wilma Theater in 2010, and that production - with its bigger house and budget, and largely imported cast - seems as if it ought to be the definitive one for our region. http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20120202__Rain__drops_welcome_nostalgia_on_Beatles_fans.html I'm not sure Rain, the touring Beatles revue that has also made its home on Broadway since 2010, meets the standard for theater. A knockoff of a knockoff (all four cast members are Beatlemania vets), it's more like watching a Fab Four drag show, or a really expensive cover band. It's a decent cover band, mind you, without lip-syncing, but the only narrative is signaled by the band's musical development, tracked chronologically, and its members' hair growth. http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20120127__The_Scottsboro_Boys___Minstrels_and_music_help_tell_a_tale_of_racism.html Let's make one thing clear: The Scottsboro Boys is not a minstrel show. It's a musical, yes, the last by John Kander and the late Fred Ebb (book by David Thompson). It revives the characters and conventions of minstrelsy - there's even a tap dance - and i http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20120117_Overstuffed_with_metaphor.html The trouble with Kenneth Lin's Fallow, receiving its world premiere at People's Light & Theatre Company, begins at the beginning. Elizabeth Hayes (Mary Elizabeth Scallen), on a quest to visit her son Aaron's murderers in prison, first travels to Californi http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20120113__Body_Awareness___A_domestic_tale__from_kitchen_table_to_pillow_talk.html 'Body Awareness Week," as Professor Phyllis explains at the start of the Wilma Theater's production of Body Awareness, offers "a chance for everyone at Shirley State to just check in." But in Annie Baker's compassionate comic drama about a http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20120105_In_yesterday_s__Hair___glimpse_of_tomorrow.html Somehow, Hair just keeps growing. After sweeping every Broadway award-giving outlet's Best Musical Revival category in 2009, its national tour doesn't smell the least bit of mothballs, occupying Philly with more enthusiasm - and much better music - than a Dilworth Plaza drum circle. http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20111223_Jewish_hero__8_nights__worth_of_creative_goblins.html Eric Kimmel's children's book Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins is a story that, aside from being engaging, is also gently subversive and proudly ethnic. http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20111220_Show_lets_emotions_of_Christmas_flow.html Theatre Horizon's musical revue Voices of Christmas engages in no rockin' around the Christmas tree. It doesn't rock anything, really, jingle bells or otherwise. There's a little bit of John Lennon ("Happy Xmas, War Is Over"), and some Elvis Costello by way of Nick Lowe ("What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love and Understanding"), but generally, this is a low-key affair that believes home is where the heart is, and makes a convincing case. http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20111216_A_merry_holiday_grab_bag_of_improv__impressions__gags.html Tony Braithwaite is committed to Johnny Carson. Younger talk-show hosts may come and go - and by younger, I mean anyone post-Letterman, including Letterman - but in Laughing All the Way, his family-friendly variety show at Act II Playhouse, Braithwaite once again pays homage to his hero with a variety show that even includes a segment featuring Carnac the Magnificent. http://www.philly.com/philly/columnists/wendy_rosenfield/20111212_Bilingual_children_s_production_hard_to_follow.html As someone who neither speaks Spanish nor celebrates Christmas, I'm probably a tough sell for Walking Fish Theatre's Un Viaje: A Christmas Journey. But as a parent looking to expand my children's cultural horizons, I'm also probably an ideal audience.