Toby’s supports sharing the love of theater with young people. Despite, or perhaps because of, its macabre nature, the embedded message of THE ADDAMS FAMILY is about radical acceptance and inclusion, and always has been, from long before “inclusion” was a buzzword. Every member of your family, weird or not, can enjoy this positively creepy show.

A CHORUS LINE at Toby’s in Columbia through March 10th, 2024- Staff are warm and helpful, the atmosphere is welcoming and the production is wonderful. If you’re a fan of musical theater, A CHORUS LINE will resonate. It’s a visual and auditory delight, with complex dance numbers and Marvin Hamlisch’s memorable melodies.

If you're looking for a night of light-hearted comedy disguised as a noir, this is the show for you.

Best Medicine Rep's production of America's Sexiest Couple, directed by Kathleen Barth, explores the relationship between Susan and Craig, and how Residents impacted their lives.

A multi-talented cast in a unique, romantic setting makes for a lovely summer evening. Shakespeare's MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING is the progenitor of the modern rom-com. Maybe this is why it has been placed in so many different eras of civilization from its original Renaissance setting to Edwardian England to the Roaring Twenties to its present incarnation in Post-World War II France. No matter where it travels, audiences will recognize the bickering protagonists, gossipy friends, meddling family, village buffoons, and broad comedy with a touch of tragedy.

The Catastrophist, co-produced by Round House Theatre and Marin Theatre Company, and directed by Jasson Minadakis, is a surreal and emotional glimpse into Dr. Wolfe’s passion of preventing catastrophe before it happens.

This first installment of Round House Theatre's Original Webseries Homebound is now live, with new episodes premiering every Monday through June 29. The 10-episode series is written by a different local playwright each week, and features 9 DC-area actors who would have performed on the Round House stage this spring.

Colonial Players production of Lanford Wilson's play THE BOOK OF DAYS, is a creative take on one of the playwright's lesser known works. The piece, which tells the story of the townsfolk in Dublin, Missouri, is billed as a murder mystery, though I think it's less about the mystery of who, and more about how it came to this. Events in the work unfurl unusually, with characters informing the audience of each passing day. It's quite a different way to tell a story and allows the audience to see just how easily and quickly action escalates.

A recent article in The New York Times declared that Ezra Jack Keats's The Snowy Day and Other Stories is the most widely borrowed book in the Big Apple's public library collection. It's popular not only for the way it evokes the wonder and innocence of childhood but for breaking the color barrier in children's literature. 

The new play RICHARD & JANE & DICK & SALLY, written by Noah Diaz and directed by Taylor Reynolds, had its world premiere at Baltimore Center Stage Thursday evening. The play is a simultaneously quirky and heartfelt look at grief, loss and accessibility.  While the Dick & Jane stories, the characters names and play's title have been derived from, have been around for decades, this play is entirely new and definitely of today. It depicts a family dealing with grief, past and future, and the struggles of those with differing abilities.

With very few exceptions stage musicals based off of comic books and horror movies are never truly successful. You're a Good Man Charlie Brown and Little Shop of Horrors are two very rare examples where those genres succeeded commercially.

Imagination Stage's Zomo The Rabbit: A Hip-Hop Creation Myth, directed by Raymond O. Caldwell, brings back old school hip-hop for a fun, interactive show for kids and adults.

This veddy British tale of the undying love between a child and her lop-eared, sawdust-filled velveteen rabbit is a storybook treat to look at --  pretty enough to honor the classic children's book on which it is based and well played by a cast adept at posh British accents and lots of hopping. 

DC Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) visionary Michael J. Bobbitt left us to start a new artistic chapter in his life a few months ago. The season opener at Adventure Theatre shows that even though he isn't here physically his vision for the company will be felt all season. Bobbitt made his picks for the company's 19/20 season before his departure.

Just Off Broadway's (JOB) delightful production of Neil Simon's RUMORS includes exactly what we all need right now - an evening full of plenty of laughs. From the setup to the final pay off, this cast brings the chuckles (and a few guffaws) to a decades old script, that still holds up today. The story begins, how every great story should, with a party. In this instance, it's in a fancy house in New York, circa 1990. However, from the start, things seem a little off. The man of the house, may have tried to end his life, and the woman of the house is missing. Also, all of their closest friends are gathered for their anniversary party. From then on, things go spectacularly awry. Basically, it has all the makings of a fabulous farce.

There is an old expression in theater about knowing when to shut up and sing. Some performers refuse to subscribe to that theory. If I use Wednesday's concert at the Music Center at Strathmore as a basis, multi-award-winning singer/activist Alan Cumming is – or at least can be or is prone to be – one of those performers.

As in most great mysteries, a murder has been committed. Yet in the case of Artistic Synergy of Baltimore's new show, a murder has also been announced. Their production of Agatha Christie's A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED is an enjoyable treat for any mystery-lover or fan of one of the great writers of all time. The play, adapted from the Christie novel of the same name, is set in a small village in England just after the war.

Sometimes a singer just needs a microphone and a killer accompanist to create a fine evening of music. Of course, it helps if the singer's material is good as well. Tony and Emmy Award-winning singer/actress Kristin Chenoweth combined these few simple ingredients, walked out onto the stage of The Music Center at Strathmore, and treated her audience to an audible feast.

Oh bother! Adventure Theatre is currently presenting a hunny of a show with Le Clanché du Rand's delightful stage adaptation of A.A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh.  Under the fine direction of Shirley Serotsky, Milne's 100 Acre Wood and its inhabitants magically come to life with a story of lost tales, huffalumps, and much more.

Under all the pressure of finishing the novel, Myra finds herself having to explain her circumstances to an inquisitive visitor. Quotidian Theatre Company (QTC)'s Ghost-Writer, written by Michael Hollinger and directed by Laura Giannarelli, is a slow-paced, yet unexpected "love" story with a layer of mystery.

Friday's opening performance of DINNER WITH FRIENDS was a family affair at Everyman, attended by many of the resident company, as well as season-ticket holders and friends of the theatre. The production of the Pulitzer prize winner is stellar; as one comes to expect from the talented team at Everyman. The play, by playwright Donald Margulies, tells the story of two married couples in the wake of divorce.

Oooh la la, the good folks at Imagination Stage have a Parisian musical spectacular in store for you with the non- cheesy story about a couple of mice out to save the cheeses of Paris. Anatole: Mouse Magnifique features a dynamic and fun score by James Valcq (Music), book and lyrics by John MacLay and Lee Becker, and a terrific no-holes-like-a-piece of-Swiss-cheese-staging from Tom Story.

Over the years, Charles Dickens' works have been turned into many stage and film adaptations. I'm sure we've all seen A Christmas Carol or Oliver Twist in one form or another. While both are set against some bleak backdrops, they feature some larger-than-life characters that make them ripe for theatrical presentation.

The 1985 Broadway season might have been one of the weakest on record for musicals; in fact, only three shows were nominated for Best Musical at the Tony Awards that year. We had an Ellie Greenwich jukebox musical (Leader of the Pack), one of Harold Prince's big budget disasters (Grind), and a musical based on Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Big River). Needless to say, at least in my opinion, Big River won the Tony Award for Best Musical and several other awards in part due to a lack of competition. Despite some catchy songs by Roger “King of the Road” Miller the show suffered, in my opinion anyhow, from there simply being too much of it. William Hauptman's book tried to focus on multiple stories as opposed to having Huck and his relationship with runaway slave Jim be the true heart.

We all know how stressful the holidays can be, especially finding the perfect gift for friends and family. But what about the perfect accoutrement, - that's a fancy word now isn't it - for the top of your Christmas tree? Yes, the tree topper can make or break any holiday celebration and you won't find a better illustration of this fact than Adventure Theatre's super splendid (that's a fancy word for really excellent) production of Fancy Nancy: Splendiferous Christmas. The show boasts a score by Randy Klein (music), Matthew Hardy (lyrics) and Cara Lustik and Matthew Hardy (book).