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Criticism

Here, you’ll find content about the art and practice of theatre criticism. Many pieces grapple with questions of how to diversify the field, making it more accessible for young people, queer folx, and critics of color. This section also contains all the pieces of criticism in the Journal, which we call “NewCrits.” NewCrits analyze productions and go beyond “thumbs up, thumbs down” reviews, placing the work(s) in question in a larger, broader context—whether that’s the context of the time or place it’s done in, the artists’ body of work, or its genre. Are you interested in writing a NewCrit? Check out our guidelines and best practices!

The Latest

On Between Two Knees, or About Other Futures
Essay
On Between Two Knees, or About Other Futures
by Sebastián Eddowes-Vargas
17 April 2024
Viewpoints for Achieving Authentic Representation of Roma Communities on Stage
Essay
Viewpoints for Achieving Authentic Representation of Roma Communities on Stage
by Tímea Éva Bogya, Márton Illés
27 March 2024
Should We Write Differently About Roma Theatre?
Essay
Should We Write Differently About Roma Theatre?
by Noémi Herczog, Éva Moharos
25 March 2024
Photo for Abominable.
The Hub Theatre’s Abominable Sheds Light on the Beast Within
Essay

The Hub Theatre’s Abominable Sheds Light on the Beast Within

21 August 2014

Patricia Davis reviews Hub Theatre’s Abominable, by Helen Pafumi, discussing how the play looks at violence and bullying.

Photo from Backyard.
Wrestling with Character and Theatricality
Essay

Wrestling with Character and Theatricality

Thoughts on Mickey Birnbaum’s "Backyard"

19 August 2014

Cory Hinkle reviews Mickey Birnbaum's Backyard, which used wrestling both literally and metaphorically to create "lurid storytelling" 

Photo from The Dance of Death.
Love and Torture in Conor McPherson’s The Dance of Death
Essay

Love and Torture in Conor McPherson’s The Dance of Death

14 August 2014

Dani Snyder-Young writes about Conor McPherson’s new version of August Strindberg’s The Dance of Death, at the Writers Theatre.

Photo of Corona Park.
The World’s Fair Play Festival
Essay

The World’s Fair Play Festival

Remaking the Space-Time Continuum in Queens

12 August 2014

Brant Russell writes about The World's Fair Play Festival in 2014 at the Queens Theatre, which premiered 12 short plays about the 1964 and 1939 World's Fairs, where those fairs happened.

The cast of Urban Momfare.
The Seven Secret Ingredients of The New York International Fringe Festival
Essay

The Seven Secret Ingredients of The New York International Fringe Festival

7 August 2014

Jonathan Mandell writes about seven tropes of the NY Fringe Festival, highlighting productions which fit into the reoccuring genres.

Portrait of Daniel Talbott.
Committing to Theater
Essay

Committing to Theater

Making Art and Making Family

5 August 2014

Martha Steketee writes about Daniel Talbott and Samantha Soule looking at the work and companies they've created in New York's off-Broadway scene since meeting at Juilliard in 1998.

Participants of the One-Minute Play Festival.
Race, Gender, Sex, and Rights Pulse Through DC’s One-Minute Festival
Essay

Race, Gender, Sex, and Rights Pulse Through DC’s One-Minute Festival

31 July 2014

Patricia Davis writes about Roundhouse Theater's first One-Minute Play Festival, which featured ninety new plays from over sixty local playwrights.

Celebrating the Audience
Essay

Celebrating the Audience

Approaches to Participatory Performance

27 July 2014

In his essay, Josh Sobel investigates interactive theatre.

Portrait of Johnny Blazes.
Chosen Family
Essay

Chosen Family

A Festival of Plays, for Pride Week in Boston

24 July 2014

Allison Vanouse writes about Sleeping Weazel's 2014 festival of plays, trans cabaret, and solo performance coinciding with Boston Pride Week.

Photo from endofplay/7.
endofplay/7
Essay

endofplay/7

Gender Stereotypes and Their Subversion

17 July 2014

Alice Stanley Jr. reviews Chris Danowski’s endofplay/7, a wild ride of gender exploration, narcissism, and longing

Photo from Generation Sex.
Generation Y Feminism at Teatro Luna
Essay

Generation Y Feminism at Teatro Luna

15 July 2014

Dani Snyder-Young writes about Generation Sex, a devised piece from Teatro Luna looking at misogyny, violence, Latina identities, modern femininity, and more.

Photo from The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise.
Talking About The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise by Toshiki Okada at JACK
Essay

Talking About The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise by Toshiki Okada at JACK

10 July 2014

Morgan Gould reviews The Sonic Life of a Giant Tortoise, and also interacts with the idea of revealing her tastes as a critic before reviewing.

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Critics & Playwrights: In It Together
Video

Critics & Playwrights: In It Together

Tuesday 8 July 2014
San Francisco, CA, United States

3Girls Theatre Company in San Francisco presented Critics and Playwrights: In It Together livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Tuesday 8 July at 7:30 p.m. PDT (San Francisco) / 9:30 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 10:30 p.m. EDT (New York).

Director Stevie Zimmerman Brings Fresh Energy to DC
Essay

Director Stevie Zimmerman Brings Fresh Energy to DC

8 July 2014

Patricia Davis interviews DC-based director Stevie Zimmerman, discussing casting, directing styles, and the challenges of new work.

A scene from Orange is the New Black.
Is Orange The New Black? The Truth Behind Prison Shows
Essay

Is Orange The New Black? The Truth Behind Prison Shows

3 July 2014

Jonathan Mandell writes about Joseph Assadourian, his solo performance The Bullpen  based on his 12 years in jail — and how his narrative counters sensationalized prison dramas.

Photo from Faust.
Dialogue, Diversity, and Quality—A Report From the Sibiu International Theatre Festival
Essay

Dialogue, Diversity, and Quality—A Report From the Sibiu International Theatre Festival

1 July 2014

Mark Jackson reports on the "format and the values" he witnessed in Romania at the Sibiu International Theatre Festival, which is the third largest theater festival in the world.

A scene from Speakeasy Dollhouse.
A Murder Mystery and a Party in Cynthia von Buhler’s Speakeasy Dollhouse
Essay

A Murder Mystery and a Party in Cynthia von Buhler’s Speakeasy Dollhouse

26 June 2014

Bertie Ferdman writes about her experience at Speakeasy Dollhouse, and the context of the production's creation.

A person waving out of a window.
Community Building with the Chicago Home Theater Festival
Essay

Community Building with the Chicago Home Theater Festival

24 June 2014

Dani Snyder-Young writes about the 2014 Chicago Home Theater Festival, which places participatory performances inside private homes.

Photo from The Mysteries.
Just to the Side of History
Essay

Just to the Side of History

Creating The Mysteries

19 June 2014

Martha Steketee interviews dramaturg Jill Rafson about the process of developing The Mysteries, described as “48 playwrights and 54 actors retelling the entirety of the Bible in a single night.”

Learning from the Gamification of Theater
Essay

Learning from the Gamification of Theater

18 June 2014

Megan Reilly sheds insight on the gamification of theatre.

Photo from Red Planet Respite.
Space Travel in Red Planet Respite
Essay

Space Travel in Red Planet Respite

17 June 2014

Alice Stanley Jr. writes about Red Planet Respite by Katherine Harroff a play about "the first luxury space vacation to Mars in 2044" and the balance of its value as entertainment and as encouragement for audiences to engage with science and education

Photo from Silkworms (a nun play).
Burning Down the House at Theatre Unbound
Essay

Burning Down the House at Theatre Unbound

10 June 2014

Chris Garza reviews Theatre Unbound’s Silkworms (a nun play) and takes a look into the director Isabel Nelson's devising process.

The Broadway Season Seen Through Its Cross-Dressing
Essay

The Broadway Season Seen Through Its Cross-Dressing

5 June 2014

Jonathan Mandell looks at the 2013-2014 Broadway season and the six productions which featured men cross-dressing

South Coast Repertory’s Pacific Playwrights Festival
Essay

South Coast Repertory’s Pacific Playwrights Festival

3 June 2014

Holly L. Derr writes about SCRC's 2014 Pacific Playwrights Festival, and the goals of the organization's new play development initative.

Rules and Rewards of Participatory Theatre
Essay

Rules and Rewards of Participatory Theatre

The 7 Layers of Bastian Bachman, City Council Meeting, and Appointment.

27 May 2014

Alice Stanley Jr writes about three site-specific and interactive and/or immersive theatrical experiences.