This month I saw three different plays in Washington, DC! I have always been a big fan of the theater, and that love of the arts has grown even more since the pandemic, since we weren't able to see shows for so long!
Here's what I saw:
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| Image found here |
I really only knew that Gloria Steinem played a major role in the feminist movement in the 1960's and 1970's. So I was very excited to see this show all about her life! I enjoyed how the play took you through her whole life's story, and I learned a lot. I had no idea that she had basically lived in abject poverty with her mother after her parents divorced; the two of them lived in a house with no heat, and Gloria had to take care of her mother, since it sounds like her mom had several mental health issues. I also learned that the Constitution of the United States is based off of that of the Iroquois Nation: our states were like their tribes, and representatives from those smaller groups would make decisions for the larger population. That was brought up in the show because, supposedly, when a few Iroquois representatives went to Philadelphia to help with the creation of our Constitution, they asked where the women were, since only men were at the meeting; in their culture, men and women are equal, and they don't even use different pronouns to differentiate between the sexes. Facts I never knew! The play of course focused on Gloria, but it also pulled in other feminists of the time, such as Dorothy Pitman Hughes, Flo Kennedy, and Wilma Mankiller. It was empowering to learn about all these women who helped fight for women's rights so I can lead the independent life I have now, although it's quite disappointing how our society is moving backward on that front (donate to Planned Parenthood!). I thought Susan Lynskey as Gloria did an amazing job and really embodied the character. I highly recommend this play. There are just a few more days to catch it, so get your tickets now!
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| The Wolf and Little Red Riding Hood, just a few of the fairy tale characters in this show! Image found here. |
Into the Woods at the Kennedy Center
I was able to get discounted tickets for this show, so I sort of bought these on a whim. I didn't know much about the story; I think I saw the movie years ago, but all I could remember is that it's a mix of fairy tales put together. I thought the cast of this show did a great job; I especially liked Katy Geraghty, the pudgy, sassy Little Red Riding Hood, because she could emote so well! I also appreciated the creativity the show, like the puppeteering of the cow and the big shoes representing the giant's wife; so clever! I will admit that I was really tired that night, so after the first act, I went online to read what happened in the second act so I could decide whether to stay the whole time. Essentially the first act has a happy ending for all the characters, and then the second act is the not-so-happy side of fairy tales. The first act could truly be it's own story, like with the Nutcracker ballet: you can leave after the first act and feel satisfied with a full-circle story. But I stayed for the second act, which of course was darker. A lot of the music is actually the same in both acts, but the notes are different to give a spookier vibe in the second one. I'm not the biggest fan of musicals (except for Disney), but I still liked this show.
Here's a video of Katy singing:
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| Image found here |
Beauty & The Beast at the Synetic Theater
This is one of my favorite fairy tales of all time, mainly because the female protagonist actually gets to know the man she falls in love with (instead of just seeing Prince Charming once and falling head over heels). I saw a play of this famous story at the Warner Theatre in 2015 (read that blog post here), which had all the songs from the Disney movie (the original cartoon, I mean. Sure, I saw the Emma Watson live-action movie (I wrote a blog about that, too), but nothing compares to the good-ol' 90's version). Anyway, since I love this story, I was excited to see that Synetic was doing this show. I was able to get $20 tickets (winning!), and since I was already in Crystal City for the Junior League's Tossed & Found trunk show that day, it was super-easy to go right to the theater afterward.
My favorite part about Synetic's plays is that they are so creative! As you can see from the photo and video above, in this show they use lots of silhouettes throughout the entire play, showing the castle in the distance, or showing how the prince turned into the beast (and vice versa), and more. There were also two large ramps on stage that were moved around and used in multiple ways: as chairs, as hiding places, as spots for parkour moves. That was neat! I also liked how two of the actors were under the table during Belle and the Beast's dining scene, and as the Beast would bang on the table, the actors under the table would move up and down to enhance the movement of the table, jostling it to the point that Belle storms off. It's just fun to see what people's imaginations can create!
And Synetic is known for its silent shows, so the movement of the actors is so important. The dancing was wonderful (Irina Kavsadze as Belle is a beautiful dancer), and the fight scene at the end was very well choreographed (Irina Tsikurishvili is the playhouse's choreographer). And while most of the characters are silent, Rachael Small as the witch was the narrator, and she was so good! She was kind of creepy but in a graceful way, playing the scorned lover of the prince (although it was really the prince's dad who banished the witch, not him, but anyway...). Even though we all know how the story goes, having the narrator pop up throughout the show almost like a fairy or nymph kept all the parts of the story cohesive. I really enjoyed watching this show (90 mins, no intermission). You can still get tickets for a few more showings!
I can't wait to see what next month brings!
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