Aaron Zilbermann

The Academic Theatre and Dance program at Mercer County Community College (MCCC) will combine storytelling, dance and music in the spell-binding production "Blood Wedding." Wildly popular in its day and still performed regularly in Latin countries, this Spanish classic comes to Kelsey Theatre Fridays, April 21 and 28 at 8 p.m.; Saturdays, April 22 and 29 at 8 p.m., and Sundays, April 23 and 30 at 2 p.m. Kelsey Theatre is located on the college's West Windsor Campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road.

Trauma, in all of its forms and embodiments, can affect all of us in a variety of ways. Gloria by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and nominated for the 2016 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play, which opened on Wednesday December 7th at the Dallas Theater Center, explores that unique response to trauma to each individual, and how our experiences affect us moving forward. Gloria is a play about perspectives and stories and who owns those stories. Who has the right to tell them? This dark, dramatic comedy shocks the audience into introspection about life, mental health, and the way we treat each other as a society.

Perhaps it's because I'm a Jew, bringing my two Jew daughters (age six) to a Christmas musical, or perhaps it's the fact that a strong majority of the Christmas songs presented in Broadway Christmas Wonderland were, in fact, written by Jews, however when sitting down to enjoy this show, it quickly becomes obvious that a person doesn't have to be a Christian or celebrate Christmas to enjoy this musical at the Music Hall at Fair Park. The cast is filled with unbelievably skilled dancers and singers, and the stage presence of all six of the leads is delightful and carried with strength.

New York Festival of Song brings back its beloved program "A Goyishe Christmas to You!" on Monday, December 12, 2016 at 10:00 p.m. at HENRY's Restaurantas part of NYFOS's 'After Hours' series.

WINNER OF 2009 PULITZER PRIZE Final Performances - October 28 - 30, 2016 Directed by Phyllis Cicero A haunting, probing work about the resilience of the human spirit during times of war. Set in a small mining town in the Democratic Republic of Congo, this powerful play follows Mama Nadi, a shrewd businesswoman in a land torn apart by civil war. But is she protecting or profiting by the women she shelters? How far will she go to survive? Can a price be placed on a human life?

The 1991 Disney film Beauty and the Beast is a spectacular work of animated musical storytelling. Belle, a type of feminist in a sense (at least within the context of Disney, especially when compared to Ariel, who taught millions of young girls just two years earlier that it is important to change who you are for a man), is an independent, intelligent, and beautiful young woman who reads and finds pleasure in the pursuit of knowledge. She has found her voice and she demands to be heard. So naturally, the whole town thinks she is crazy. A heroine of this caliber is a lot to live up to in any fairy tale and such a fanciful, witty and heartfelt presentation seems impossible to duplicate, but that's what I expect from a Broadway production. I expect seats that can cost a good $120 to rival the magic created by the brilliant animators working with Disney in the early part of that transitional decade. Unfortunately, the touring Broadway musical produced by NETworks Presentations does not live up to this expectation. In fact it falls quite short of perpetuating the wonder and depth established in the original film. I brought my twin 6-year-old daughters to the show and they loved it. Certainly it was quality enough to entertain a kindergartener, but is that really what Dallas should grow to accept as quality theatrical art. We have a booming and continuously growing art scene and so-called 'Broadway' productions such as this should not be tolerated in our community. Broadway is supposed to be a leader in the creation of quality art, not the preservation of an industry that overcharges audiences, underpays artists, undermines unions, and whose primary mission is not artistic success but financial success.

18.1% of adults in the United States are suffering with a diagnosed mental illness. This number does not include substance abuse and it's even higher for women: 21.8%. With these statistics, it's easy to see why so many contemplate how these illnesses might play out in the daily lives of those who are ill, and particularly in the lives of loved ones. The Thrush and the Woodpecker, a play by Steve Yockey and produced by Kitchen Dog Theater in residence at The Undermain Theatre, explores this reality on a deeply personal level as the two primary characters, Brenda Hendricks and Roisin Danner, confront each other with conflicting and often warped realities.

Our parents are the people who raised us. They taught us things, kept an eye on us, bathed us, changed our diapers, and most significantly, they provided us with an over abundance of memories that ultimately helped shape who we are as we age and grow. But, now bare with me for a moment, what if an underground mole could dig its way into your mind and rob you of those treasured memories? This is the crux of the creation myth for Alzheimer's disease developed by Vivienne Avery, the primary character in Steve Yockey's new play, Blackberry Winter, presented by the Kitchen Dog Theatre (KDT) as the first play in their eighteenth annual New Works Festival, in residence at the Undermain Theatre. A one-woman show is a rather difficult undertaking and KDT Artistic Company Member, Karen Parrish, undertook this project with an intensity that left the audience filled with emotion, laughter and tears, sometimes simultaneously.

In 2015, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained and deported 69,478 individuals residing within the United States. More than 1.76 million residents of the United States were brought here as undocumented youth, immigrant children who attend school here, work here, and pay taxes here, but whose existence here is considered illegal. While this is a frightening setting for those living with the constant fear of deportation and divided families, this existence hardly registers with the charismatic politician Dale Jenkins, a principal character in David Lozano and Lee Trull's collaborative, political play, Deferred Action.