Egon Wellesz’s Weimar era critique of the cruelty of nations that are victorious in war still rings hauntingly true.
Bertolt Brecht
Opera Review: BLO’s “Threepenny Opera” — Neither Fish Nor Fowl
It would have been wonderful to have seen either a faithful version of Threepenny Opera in German or a boldly conceived contemporary version.
Opera Preview: Boston Lyric Opera’s “Threepenny Opera” — A Reflection of Brutal Times
“You can be certain that when the show begins and you hear “Mack the Knife,” the choreography will suggest scenes of slashing and murdering.”
Fuse Theater Review: The Wilbury Theatre Group Mashes-up Politics
Authoritarianism is at its most chilling, at least in the theater, when everyone, the weak and the strong, takes it for granted.
Theater Review: Yale Rep’s “Caucasian Chalk Circle” — Singing Well About Our Dark Times
Those who want to experience the brilliance of Bertolt Brecht at its mellowest should head down to Yale Rep’s lively and moving production of The Caucasian Chalk Circle.
From the Editor’s Desk: Lessons from Bertolt Brecht — and Highlights of the Week
Today’s increasingly corporate-approved theater stays within safe, civic-minded boundaries.
Theater Review: Shakespeare & Co Mounts a Powerful Staging of “Mother Courage”
Olympia Dukakis makes good on her desire to evoke the weakness the indomitable Mother Courage fights so hard to cover up: the actress conveys the highs and lows of this gargantuan character with enormous power.
Fuse Theater Review: New York Theater Roundup — “Clive,” “The Dance and the Railroad” and “The Flick”
By planning ahead, and purchasing one flexpass, I was able to see a trio of plays in New York during a single weekend for well under $200 — a bargain price for world-class theater productions.
Theater Commentary: Drums in the Night — A Glimpse of the Real Weimar
“My condition was like that of a man who has fired a gun at people he dislikes, and finds these same people coming and giving three cheers for him: inadvertently he had been firing loaves of bread. – Bertolt Brecht, “Drums in the Night’s Success With the Bourgeoisie” By Bill Marx Granted, some of Brecht’s […]
World Books Review: How To Sing in Dark Times
I am one of the judges for the Best Translated Book Award (fiction division) sponsored by Three Percent. The five finalists will be announced in New York on February 16th. Three Percent honcho Chad Post needed help to meet his goal of posting a commentary on each of the 25 volumes on the BTB’s fiction […]