Stage Write

  Empathy is often in short supply when it comes to how we feel about people on the opposite side of the political divide. Heroes of the Fourth Turning, a Pulitzer-prize finalist, explores that tricky topic in an intense and memorable way. The show is perfectly in line with American Lives Theatre’s mission to provide provocative and entertaining plays to Indy. With a cast of five people, director Andrew Kramer tackles a difficult premise. Former students and friends from a Catholic college in Wyoming reunite to celebrate an old professor. Late at night the talk turns to politics and even though it’s a very conservative group, emotions run hot as the lines that divide them become evident. I loved how each new pairing offered a unique point of view. Individuals popped in and out of the house allowing for conversations to shift and new tensions to appear as they challenged each other’s beliefs. The set, designed by Daniel McCullough, is incredible. The IndyFringe’s normal layout is ...

One of the highlights of this year‘s Bard Fest is the rarely-produced King John. There are whispers of other Shakespeare plays echoing in the heartbreaking history All the classics are there but presented in a show that’s often overlooked. There are warring families, devious brothers, and vindictive paranoid monarchs, all grasping at power with greedy fingers.    The show is produced in a new space for the festival. The Shelton Auditorium is breathtaking in its layout. Doug Powers’ direction takes advantage of the incredible facility to stretch the action up the stairs to create the fiction of a fortified city. The battles often happen off stage which keeps the snarky banter front and center. It is a verbally dense play rich with prose. Georgeanna Smith Wade is a revelation as Duchess Constance. Like so many of the other actors, she plays multiple characters, but it’s her turn as a grieving mother that is worth the price of admission. Unfortunately, her character disappe...