A Bright New Boise
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Co.
Washington, D.C.
(202) 393-3939
“Faith is a consolation for an unhappy existence” in Samuel D. Hunter’s play about low-wage employees at a craft-store franchise, said Washingtonian. Though the religion theme “feels a little overplayed,” this is an otherwise “extraordinarily thoughtful” look at the average American’s search for meaning.
Don Giovanni
San Francisco Opera
(415) 864-3330
A “cunning new staging” of Mozart’s opera brings out both the drama of the story and the vanity of its lecherous protagonist, said the Contra Costa, Calif., Times. Nearly two dozen mirrors are used “ingeniously” on the otherwise spare stage, while baritone Lucas Meachem sets the standard for the vocal performances, which prove “almost uniformly superb.”
OVERWEIGHT, unimportant: MISSHAPE
Trap Door Theatre
Chicago
(773) 384-0494
The title tells you that “fitting on some Broadway marquee was never a priority” for this previously unproduced Werner Schwab play, said the Chicago Tribune. Likewise, it won’t be a surprise if the rape and cannibalism in this bold satire limit its audience. That’s too bad: It’s an intriguing meditation on social class, and it includes some “astoundingly good” performances.
