Thinking Theater NYC

A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa, Happy Ramadan Adapted and directed by Vít Hořejš Presented by Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre at Theater for the New City 155 1st Avenue, Manhattan, NYC December 19-January 5, 2020 Vit Horejs and Scrooge puppet. Photo by Jonathan Slaff. By the late nineteenth century, Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol had already been adapted for the stage, and it has remained perennially popular and frequently adapted ever since, most recently for the screen by Steven Knight in a dour reimagining for FX. Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre's version, A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa, Happy Ramadan , now playing at Theater for the New City, is something like its opposite, a genial, humorous, inclusive production created by founding company member Vít Hořejš. Hořejš stages this Carol using an array of marionettes, most of which hail from Prague and which include some new puppets, some 200 ...

ray gun say0nara Written by Steven Mark Tenney Directed by Janet Bentley Presented by Nylon Fusion Theatre Company at New Ohio Theatre 154 Christopher Street, Manhattan, NYC December 4-22, 2019 Alexa Elmy. Photo by Al Foote III ray gun say0nara , Steven Mark Tenney's new "sci-fi play with songs" has evil twins, interstellar portals, immortal beings, and alien princesses, as well as rampant in-universe cosplay, cosmically significant proms, and, yes, ray guns. What we're saying is, ray gun is a lot of fun. But its pulp sci-fi adventure trappings are also a conduit for themes about storytelling, mythologizing, and existential duality. Playing in repertory with The Listening Room (reviewed by us here ) at New Ohio Theatre, ray gun say0nara takes audiences on a retro-futurist journey to the stars in which dreams are as important as spacecraft and connection as important as conflict. In the universe (or Metaverse) of ray gun say0nara , aliens called ...

Everything is Super Great Written by Stephen Brown Directed by Sarah Norris Presented by New Light Theater Project in association with Stable Cable Lab Co. at 59E59 Theaters 59 E. 59th St., Manhattan, NYC November 22-December 14, 2019 L-R: Xavier Rodney, Lisa Jill Anderson, Will Sarratt, Marcia Debonis. Photo by Hunter Canning. Celebration of the self-reliant individualist remains deeply rooted in American culture, such that a need for mental or emotional support can be regarded as weakness or inadequacy. This dynamic is on clear display in Stephen Brown's Everything is Super Great , a play in which 19 year-old protagonist Tommy (Will Sarratt) denies that he has any "problems," "[j]ust like, anger and depression" and his co-worker Alice (Lisa Jill Anderson) insists, "I'm fine" even as she cannot locate the neurologically deteriorating mother for whom she acts as sole caretaker. Everything is Super Great explores the role of these...

Virgo Star Written by Daniel Diaz, Annabella Lenzu, Gian Marco Riccardo Lo Forte,  Agosto Machado, and Philip Treviño Directed by Gian Marco Riccardo Lo Forte Presented by Pioneers Go East Collective at La MaMa's Downstairs Lounge 66 E 4 St., Manhattan, NYC November 14-December 1, 2019 Daniel Diaz. Photo credit: Jon Burklund/Zanni Productions Queer cowgirls and boys. What could be more exciting than an experimental romp through a Manhattan basement with guns “firing,” men licking other men’s boots, getting blindfolded and made to listen to others’ sexual fantasies, and the cackling of a crazed Spanish-speaking madam resonating over the whole thing? Well, that’s exactly what you will get at Virgo Star , an experimental, interactive performance piece performed by Pioneers Go East Collective and running at La MaMa in the East Village through Dec 1. From the beginning, the performance frustrates definition and convention. The audience is asked to remain in th...

Unsex Me Here: The Tragedy of Macbeth Written by William Shakespeare Directed by Maggie Cino Presented by Obvious Volcano at The Brick Theater 579 Metropolitan Ave, Brooklyn, NYC November 8-23, 2019 L to R: Kimberly Singh, Kristen Vaughan, Ivanna Cullinan, Kiebpoli Calnek, Alex Guhde, Moira Stone. Photo courtesy Kampfire PR. William Shakespeare's Macbeth is no stranger to productions that experiment with gender. Fab Marquee Productions' 2015 Macbeth (of the Oppressed) ( reviewed by us here ), which gave Macbeth a husband and cast several of the other lead characters as women, and Red Bull Theater's 2019 Mac Beth , in which all the roles were played by a small cast of young women, come to mind as recent examples. No doubt the play's strong gender-oriented throughlines invite such reimaginings: from the start, for instance, Lady Macbeth—never identified other than by her title and her husband's last name—leverages constructions of masculinity again...

Cyndi Freeman As part of the Gotham Storytelling Festival, FRIGID New York and The Story Studio are presenting two storytelling master classes with Story Studio Instructor Cyndi Freeman. Freeman has over 20 years of experience as a storyteller and 10 years of experience as a storytelling instructor, leading classes in storytelling for business, performance, and personal growth. An expert teacher of storytelling for business, she has presented storytelling workshops for a range of organizations including Fortune 500 companies, small businesses and nonprofit groups around the world. Past clients include GE, ZenDesk, Janssen: Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, UNICEF – USA, The 9/11 Tribute Museum, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and The New York Public Library. In addition to her work with The Story Studio, an organization that teaches the art of storytelling with help from some of the most accomplished storytellers across the country, Freeman has won num...

the wild project presents Linda Simpson in Conversation with Alan Cumming Proceeds from this intimate and frank conversation benefit wild project’s mission and programming This weekend, wild project will host Linda Simpson in Conversation with Alan Cumming, one of the absolute favorites of this site's editors. The event takes place on Sunday, October 27 at 7:30 PM at the wild project (195 E. 3rd Street, between Avenues A & B). Tickets are $20 - $50 and will benefit the Wild Project’s mission and programming. Advance tickets can be purchased online at http://www.thewildproject.com . The event promises a "frank and intimate conversation between two of downtown’s iconic performers, Alan Cumming and Linda Simpson. These two legends of New York City nightlife dish on the creativity, grit, and spirit that keeps the East Village a vital creative incubator." Cumming is a Tony Award winner, has hosted the Tonys and been nominated for an Emmy for doing so; he ...