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Duke Ellington’s Cool Blues, Hot Jazz, Snappy Ragtime and Hip-Popping Swing Set to Shakespeare’s Rom-Com, Twelfth Night at Signature Theatre
Play On!
Signature Theatre
Jordan Wright
August 25, 2025
Special to The Zebra
 Greg Watkins (Duke), Jalisa Williams (Vy), and the cast of Play On at Signature Theatre. (Photo/Daniel Rader)
Where can you find Duke Ellington’s cool blues, hot jazz, snappy ragtime, and hip-popping swing set to Shakespeare’s romcom, Twelfth Night? At Signature Theatre in the musical Play On!. The exclamation point is in the title and it’s there for a reason, because you if you don’t feel like leaping out of your seat to the sounds of tip-top tap dancing and mile-a-minute jitterbug, then you don’t have blood in your veins. Take in the vast double-tiered Art Deco set from stage level at one of the intimate cabaret-style tables or swoon to the tunes from above and prepare to be transported to the 1920’s at Harlem’s famed Cotton Club, where the Duke made his bones and Cupid found his mark.
A bit of history – “The Duke”, as you may recall, was and is a Washington institution. He even had a band he named “The Washingtonians”. A native son, he cut his teeth here writing hits and playing around town, creating his own big band sound which he called “American Music”, a singularly apt nomenclature for the elegant blend of South and North sounds from Black America. Today his legacy lives on at the DC’s Duke Ellington School of the Arts that is still turning out the nation’s top talent.
 Greg Watkins (Duke) Jalisa Williams (Vy) and the cast of Play On. (Photo/Daniel Rader)
The show features twenty-two of Ellington’s compositions dovetailing jubilation, longing, love lost and lusty shenanigans. It’s a brilliant interpretation conceived by the great Sheldon Epps (with book by Cheryl L. West) who with Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner, chose the show’s award-winning director Lili-Anne Brown along with casting director, Charlotte La Nasa, who hired all the best talent to form this wowza cast of hoofers, actors and singers. Take the time to look up the stellar body of work these pros bring to the stage.
The story tells of star-crossed lovers, mistaken identity, gender discrimination, jealousy and mad, passionate, unrequited love, which if you remember your Shakespeare, turns out as fine as frog’s hair split four ways.
When Vy, up from Mississippi toting a suitcase filled with her compositions, finds her Uncle Cootie aka the Jester, at the Cotton Club, he convinces her to pass as a man if she wants The Duke to hear her music, because back then women couldn’t be composers. She becomes Vy “Man”, dons a pin-striped suit and fedora, convincing everyone she’s a he. It’s her music that lifts Duke out of his funk and away from his obsession with the divine Lady Liv, “Harlem’s Queen of the Blues”.
 Jalisa Williams (Vy) and Awa Sal Secka (Lady Liv). (Photo/Christopher Mueller)
“It Don’t Mean a Thing” (if you ain’t got that swing) sung by Jester, Miss Mary and Sweets who try to convince Rev, the club’s manager, to loosen up and dress sharp if he wants to make it with the ladies, especially full-on diva Lady Liv whom he pines for. Miss Mary is Lady Liv’s hot-tempered, outspoken backstage dresser who gets caught up in the whirlwind of unrequited love. Her man is Sweets, a role that sneaks up on you in the hot number, “Rocks in My Bed”, a duet with Jester to include the full ensemble who burn up the stage.
The audience easily recognizes classics like “I Ain’t Got Nothing But the Blues”, “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore”, “Take the A Train”, “Hit Me with a Hot Note and Watch Me Bounce”, “In My Solitude”, “Mood Indigo” and so many more. Twenty-two classic numbers bring the house down showcasing this cast’s remarkable talents.
 Wesley J.-Barnes (Jester) and the cast of Play On. (Photo/Daniel Rader)
The all-Black cast stars Jalisa Williams as Vy; the inimitable Greg Watkins as Duke; Wesley J. Barnes as Jester; Awa Sal Secka as Lady Liv; Kanysha Williams as Miss Mary; Chuckie Benson as Rev; Derrick D. Truby Jr. as Sweets; Alana S. Thomas as CC; with Bryan Archibald, Montel B. Butler, Clara Hargrove, Divine Iweha, Vaughan Ryan Midder, Kalen Robinson and Sean Walton in the ensemble.
Music directed by Jermaine Hill and brilliantly choreographed by Breon Arzell.
This show has it all! Highly recommended!
In the MAX theatre at Signature Theatre through October 5th at Shirlington Village, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA. For tickets and information call the box office at 703.820.9771 or visit www.SigTheatre.org
What’s Onstage in the DMV – September 2025
August 12, 2025
Jordan Wright
 Luzia via Cirque du Soleil
Cirque du Soleil – Luzia – Sept 6th – Oct 19th – www.CirqueduSoleil.com
Arena Stage – Damn Yankees – Sept 9th – Nov 9th www.ArenaStage.org
Everyman Theatre – (Baltimore) – August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson – through Sept 28th www.EverymanTheatre.org
The Little Theatre of Alexandria – Lost in Yonkers – Sept 6th – Sept 27th
www.TheLittleTheatre.com
Round House Theatre – The Inheritance – through Oct 19th – www.RoundHouseTheatre.org
 fire work at Theater Alliance
Theater Alliance – fire work – through Sept 21st – www.theateralliance.com
Creative Cauldron – Summer Passport Music Festival – through Sept 14th – www.CreativeCauldron.org
NextStop Theatre – Dream House – Sept 11th – Oct 5th – www.NextStopTheatre.org
 Firdous Bamji (Lukesh), Dani Stoller (Natalya), and Ethan J. Miller (Harold) in This Much I Know at Theatre J. (Photo/Ryan Maxwell Photography)
Theatre J – This Much I Know – Sept 20th – Oct 19th – www.EDCJCC.org
Signature Theatre – Play On! – through Oct 5th
Strategic Love Play – Sept 23rd – Nov 9th www.SigTheatre.org
Olney Theatre – Red Pitch – through Oct 19th – www.OlneyTheatre.org
Mosaic Theatre – Dodi & Diana – Sept 4th – Sept 28th
Songs of the Goat – Antigone – Sept 4th – Sept 14th
www.AtlasArts.org
Studio Theatre – The Heart Sellers – September opening TBA – Check the website www.StudioTheatre.org
Keegan Theatre – Everything is Wonderful – Sept 13th – Oct 5th www.KeeganTheatre.com
 Kiss of the Spider Woman at the GALA Theatre
GALA Theatre – Kiss of the Spider Woman – Sept 4th – Sept 28th www.GalaTheatre.org
Imagination Stage – The Very Hungry Caterpillar – Sept 4th – October 12th www.ImaginationStage.org
1st Stage – The Logan Festival of Solo Performance – Sept 18th – Sept 28th www.1stStage.org
 Saturday Night Fever at Toby’s Dinner Theatre
Toby’s Dinner Theatre – Saturday Night Fever – through Nov 2nd www.TobysDinnerTheatre.com
Aldersgate Church Community Theater – The Outsider – October 3rd – October 19th www.AcctOnline.org
Colonial Players (Annapolis) – An Ideal Husband – Sept 5th – Sept 27th
www.TheColonialPlayers.org
ExPats Theatre – Cold Country – Sept 27th – Oct 19th www.ExPatsTheatre.com
 The Fully Monty at Arlington Players
Arlington Players – The Full Monty – www.TheArlingtonPlayers.org
Round House Theatre – Sojourner – Sept 11th – Oct 6th www.RoundHouseTheatre.org
Hippodrome Theatre (Baltimore) – The 39 Steps – Sept 12th Sept 28th – www.TicketMaster.com
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company – The Great Privation – Sept 11th – Sept 29th www.WoollyMammoth.net
Shakespeare Theatre Company – Merry Wives – Sept 9th – Oct 5th – www.ShakespeareTheatre.org
Folger Shakespeare Theatre – Julius X: A Re-envisioning of The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare – Sept 23rd – Oct 26th www.Folger.edu
 The Dragon at Spooky Action Theatre
Spooky Action Theatre – The Dragon – Sept 9th – Oct 19th www.spookyaction.org
Capital One Hall (Tyson’s Corner) – The Addams Family – A Musical Comedy – Sept 19th – Sept 21st – www.CapitalOneHall.com
 Jeremy Jordan in Concert at Hylton Performing Arts Center (Photo/Stephanie Diani)
Hylton Performing Arts Center – Jeremy Jordan in Concert – Sept 21st – www.HyltonCenter.org
Ford’s Theatre – The American Five – Sept 19th – Oct 12th www.MyFords.org
Kennedy Center – The Sound of Music – Sept 9th – Oct 5th – www.Kennedy-Center.org
Kinky Boots Pulls Out All the Stops at
The Little Theatre of Alexandria
Kinky Boots
The Little Theatre of Alexandria
Jordan Wright
July 29, 2025
 Cast of Kinky Boots at The Little Theatre of Alexandria. (Photo/Matt Liptak)
In this warm-hearted story of tolerance, love and self-acceptance, Lola (Clayton Alex James), is a Black drag performer. Together with her chorus line of queens dubbed ‘The Angels’ they perform in a drag club on the seamier side of London. When, in a stroke of fate, she meets Charlie (Matthew Rubin), the reluctant scion of Price & Sons, a fourth-generation shoe factory in the hinterlands of England. Lola schools him in ‘dragdom’ and what it means to be absolutely fabulous in six-inch high-heeled boots. When Lola tells Charlie the challenge of strutting her stuff in ladies’ boots, ill-designed to support the weight of a man, Charlie becomes sympathetic to her plight and seizes on the idea of making flashy boots with 6-inch heels.
Intrigued by Lola, soubriquet “Kinky”, and the idea of making boots for a new niche market, he offers her the job of Head Designer at his factory. Unfortunately, the factory is run by a crew of narrow-minded blue-collar workers. Lola, bullied by the male workers tries to fit in by wearing suits to work instead of her sexy outfits – a transition that falls flat. Hoping to present Lola’s racy designs at the pinnacle of shoe shows in Milan, the female workers, who are enamored of Lola’s sassiness and feminine chutzpah, get on board. Macho man Don (Dino Vergura) the floor manager and George (Michael Blinde) the firm’s accountant are reluctant to veer from their standard men’s shoe line. And therein lies the conundrum.
 Keenan Parker (Lauren), Carla Wheaden (Pat), Maia Potok-Holmes (Ensemble), David Reph, (Ensemble), Clayton Alex James (Lola), Matthew Rubin (Charlie), Cara Stankewick (Ensemble), Maria Ciarrocchi (Trish), Karen Toth (Ensemble), Cooper Sved (Harry/Ensemble). (Photo/Matt Liptak)
James is fierce and fabulous with a leggy Amazonian frame that complements his versatile voice, especially in the solo “Hold Me in Your Heart”, a show-stopping performance tinged with raw emotion. His duet with Kaplan in “Not My Father’s Son” is especially tender. And should you ever question what drives men wild, Lola (aka Simon) sets us straight in “Sex Is in the Heel”, adding, “Red is for sex, and sex shouldn’t be comfy.” Throw in a slew of sexy gams and plenty of flashy dancing and you’ve got a winner.
Contrary to what you may imagine, the romance in Playwright Harvey Fierstein’s six-time Tony Award winning musical is not between Charlie and Lola, but with Charlie’s fiancée, Nicola (Sophie Page), who has grander ideas for their future turning the factory into condominiums and one of his employees Lauren (Keenan Parker) who believes in his dreams. Guess who wins out.
Through it all, pop diva Cyndi Lauper’s show-your-true-colors, 16-number score is as sustaining as a hummingbird’s heartbeat and her emotionally stirring ballads and electrifying show tunes add up to a night of crazy, hilarious theatre. Fun for all, especially, according to Lola for, “Ladies and Gentlemen, and those who have yet to make up their minds.”
 Cast of Kinky Boots. (Photo/Matt Liptak)
Music and Lyrics by Cyndi Lauper; Book by Harvey Fierstein; Orchestrations and additional arrangements by Stephen Oremus; Written by Geoff Deane and Tim Firth; Directed by Kevin Stockwell; Choreography by Michael Page; Costume Design by Jean Schlichting and Kit Sibley; Scenic Design by Julie Fischer; Lighting Design by JK Lighting (Jeff Auerbach and Kimberly Crago); Music Director and Conductor, Aimee Faulkner with a 10-piece orchestra; Dance Captain, Maia Potok-Holmes; Sound Design by Alan Wray; Hair and Makeup Design by Jennifer Finn.
With The Angels – Marc Barbet, David Maeng, Danny Seal and Tyler Ward; Maria Ciarrocchi as Trish; Josh Katz as Simon, Sr./Ensemble; Zuri Luis as Young Simon/Young Lola; Brian Lyons-Burke as Price, Sr./Homeless Man; Maia Potok-Holmes as Milan Stage Manager/Ensemble/Featured Dancer/Dance Captain; David Reph Ensemble; Cara Stankewick Ensemble/Featured Dancer; Cooper Sved as Harry/Ensemble; Karen Toth Ensemble/Featured Dancer; Carla Wheaden as Pat.
Through August 16th at The Little Theatre of Alexandria, 600 Wolfe Street, Alexandria, VA 22314. For tickets and information call the box office at 703.683.0496 or visit www.TheLittleTheatre.com.
What’s Onstage in the DMV – August 2025
Jordan Wright
 Play On! via Signature Theatre
Signature Theatre – Play On! – Aug 12th – Oct 5th – www.SigTheatre.org
Arena Stage – Damn Yankees – Sept 9th – Nov 9th – www.ArenaStage.org
 The Inheritance, Parts One and Two via Round House Theatre
Round House Theatre – The Inheritance, Parts One and Two – through Aug 27th – Oct 19th – www.RoundHouseTheatre.org
Toby’s Dinner Theatre – The Little Mermaid – through Aug 17th
Saturday Night Live – Aug 22nd – Nov 7th – www.TobysDinnerTheatre.com
Keegan Theatre – Apropos of Nothing – through Aug 10th – www.KeeganTheatre.com
 Merry Wives via Shakespeare Theatre Company
Shakespeare Theatre Company – Merry Wives – Sept 9th – Oct 5th – www.ShakespeareTheatre.org
Creative Cauldron – Summer Passport Music Festival – through Sept 14th – www.CreativeCauldron.org
Theatre J – The Rise of the Superhero – through Aug 25th – www.EDCJCC.org
 Kinky Boots via The Little Theatre of Alexandria
The Little Theatre of Alexandria – Kinky Boots – through Aug 16th – www.TheLittleTheatre.com
Dominion Stage – Everything is Wonderful – Aug 8th – Aug 23rd – www.DominionStage.org
 August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson via Everyman Theatre
Everyman Theatre – August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson – Aug 31st – Sept 28th – www.EverymanTheatre.org
Olney Theatre – A Midsummer Night’s Dream – A Synetic Theatre Production – through Aug 10th
Red Pitch – Sept 17th – Oct 19th www.OlneyTheatre.org
 Dodi and Diana via Atlas Arts Mosaic Theatre
Atlas Arts Mosaic Theatre – Dodi & Diana – Sept 4th – Sept 28th – www.MosaicTheater.org
MetroStage at the Lyceum – Soulmates in Song: A Musical Journey with Roz and Shanti – Aug 18th – www.MetroStage.org
Adventure Theatre – The Lightning Thief – through Aug 17th – www.AdventureTheatre-MTC.org/shows
 Julia Nightingale (Delphi Diggory), Aidan Close (Scorpius Malfoy), and Emmet Smith (Albus Potter) in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the National Theatre DC. (Photo/Matthew Murphy)
Broadway at the National – Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – through Sept 7th – www.TicketMaster.com
The Puppet Company – New Squid on the Block – through Aug 10th – www.ThePuppetCompany.org
 Max Chernin and the company in the National Tour of PARADE. (Photo/Joan Marcus)
Kennedy Center – Sesame Street the Musical – through Aug 31st
Parade – Aug 19th – Sept 7th
Opera in the Outfield – Porgy and Bess – at Nationals Park – Free – Aug 23rd – www.Kennedy-Center.org
The Gaithersburg Arts Barn – The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee – through Aug 10th – www.GaithersburgMD.gov
The Magical, Fantastical Epic Production From J. K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” Soars into the National Theatre DC and You Don’t Want to Miss This!
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
National Theatre DC
Jordan Wright
July 18, 2025
 Cast of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (North American Tour) at the National Theatre DC. (Photo/Matthew Murphy)
For all you Potter fans out there, and there are legions of you who have read all the novels, (some of you have pored over them multiple times in search of clues) this masterful, come-to-life production is for you. Do not miss it. I say this up front because once the word gets out, you’ll be mightily crushed if fellow Potterheads tell you how amazing it is, and you neglected to hop on board and hit that “order tickets now” button. So, brush up on your British accents and go!
The good news is the production is not a matinee plus an add-on return for the evening show as it was in its two-part Broadway incarnation. It has been condensed into two and half hours, which makes it fly by along with the dialogue that’s at racehorse pace and so are the set changes, but you’ll easily follow it if you’ve boned up on the plot in advance.
 John Skelley (Harry Potter) and Emmet Smith (Albus Potter). (Photo/Matthew Murphy)
John Skelly plays the lead. He’s Harry Potter all grown up and the father of young, Albus Severus Potter (Emmet Smith), who is off to Hogwarts to make his mark into Slytherin and create new friendships which, as you may have experienced, is tricky at best in any new school. Soon he meets and bro-befriends Scorpious Malfoy (Aidan Close), who may or may not be the son of Voldemort, the Dark Lord. Although their parents strive to keep them apart, this oddest of friendships becomes their strongest connection as arm-in-arm the boys fight the dark forces. Through thick and thin, the boys stick together through countless dangerously fraught adventures as they try desperately to solve the riddle.
Julia Nightingale (Delphi Diggory), Aidan Close (Scorpius Malfoy), and Emmet Smith (Albus Potter). (Photo/Matthew Murphy)
All the notable characters are here in this massive cast as the years toggle back and forth – Severus Snape, Hagrid, Dumbledore, Lord Voldemort, Hermione Granger, Rose Granger-Weasley, Ron Weasley, Ginny Potter, Draco Malfoy, James Potter Sr., Hagrid, Professor McGonagall, Amos Diggory, Delphi Diggory, Cedric Diggory, Polly Chapman, Madam Hooch and more.
Battles have the characters airborne, capes swirling, chairs flying and wands clashing. The wizardry is spectacularly unimaginable. Every pyrotechnic trick is employed, plus aerial components, a revolving stage, magical fireplaces, bookcases that talk, a spinning sink for Moaning Myrtle, flying suitcases, Dumbledore morphing into a talking portrait, countless illusions, rotating stairways, a disembodied narrator and terrifyingly ghostlike spirits that float from on high. Whenever there is a time warp (bear in mind the twenty-year gap), the backdrop shimmers and there is a powerful bass drone that literally rattles your seat.
 Matt Mueller (Ron Weasley), Ebony Blake (Hermione Granger), and the Company of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. (Photo/Matthew Murphy)
Christine Jones’ design of the Wizarding World is miraculously clever as we are led through a myriad of intriguing settings – Hogwarts’ library, a cavernous Romanesque structure with flying buttresses and massive arches, to include a hazy underwater scene as Harry and Scorpious dive into a lake and swim to the bottom, and that’s just in the first act!
All will be revealed in this monumental interpretation of J. K. Rowling’s classic novel which Rowling notably said would “explore the previously untold story of Harry’s early years as an orphan and outcast” and which unsurprisingly won “Best Play” at the Tony Awards.
Wear your capes and bring your wands. Highly recommended!!!
 Cast of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child North American Tour. (Photo/Matthew Murphy)
Kaleb Alexander as Sorting Hat; Julianna Austin as Polly Chapman; Aidan Close as Scorpius Malfoy; David Fine as Yann Fredericks; Simon Gagnon/Travis Patton as Teacher; Alexis Gordon as Madam Hooch; Ebony Blake as Hermione Granger; Caleb Hafen as Cedric Diggory, James Potter Jr., James Potter Sr.; Matt Harrington as Ron Weasley; Nathan Hosner as Voldemort; Chris Jarman as Voice of the Phonebooth/Voice of the Bookcase; Torsten Johnson as Professor Mazoni; Katherine Leask as Professor McGonagall, Professor Umbridge; Mackenzie Lesser-Roy as Moaning Myrtle, Lily Potter Sr.; Trish Lindstrom as Ginny Potter; Naiya Vanessa McCalla as Rose Granger-Weasley, Young Hermione; Julia Nightingale as Delphi Diggory; Zach Norton as Karl Jenkins, Viktor Krum; Maren Searle as Trolley Witch; Timmy Thompson as Craig Bowker; Paul Thornley as Voice of Ludo Bagman; René Thornton, Jr. as Station Master; Benjamin Thys as Draco Malfoy; and Larry Yando as Albus Dumbledore, Amos Diggory, Severus Snape.
Based on an original new story by J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne & John Tiffany. Directed by John Tiffany; Movement Director, Steven Hoggett; Costume Designer, Katrina Lindsay; Composer & Arranger, Imogen Heap; Lighting Design by Neil Austin; Sound Design by Gareth Fry; Illusions and Magic by Jamie Harrison.
Through September 7th at Broadway at the National, 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. For tickets and information call the box office at 202.628.6161 or visit www.TicketMaster.com.
An Imaginative and Daring Romeo and Juliet
in Circus Form at the
Shakespeare Theatre Company
Duel Reality
Shakespeare Theatre Company
Jordan Wright
July 6, 2025
 Gerardo Gutiérrez (Romeo) and Michelle Hernandez (Juliet) in Duel Reality at the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Harman Hall (Photo/Zemi Photography)
Director Shana Carroll’s version of the feud between the Montagues and Capulets takes it to the next level reflecting a circus-like version with tumblers, acrobats and jugglers. The show opens with eleven acrobats and a referee who calls out, “Let the games begin!” It’s a playful boxing match with two teams – red and blue. Red or blue colored wristbands have been handed out to audience members based on which side of the theatre we’re seated. The performers encourage us to root for “our” team and the audience gets into the spirit from the get-go.
The fight consists of competitive leaps and dives and fake boxing feints as the competitors outdo each other to huge applause when their team is named the winner. Daring athletic pole work is involved while quotations from The Bard are projected over the participants. Expect to see splits, lifts, hoop diving and somersaults as Romeo and Juliet play out their romance along with the acrobats. The more complex aerial feats like the Chinese pole and the trapeze build the momentum when the rigging is revealed, and the battles and challenges escalate.
 The cast of Duel Reality (Photo/Jean Francois Savaria)
Carroll has the props. As the co-founding Artistic Director of this contemporary circus company The 7 Fingers, she directed, wrote and choreographed over a dozen of their touring and resident shows. As Co-choreographer and Circus Designer for the Broadway show Water for Elephants she earned Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle noms for “Best Choreography”. Carroll honed her skills at Cirque du Soleil, and if you are familiar with those spectacles, you’ll recognize many of this show’s acts from hula hooping to the diabolo, aerial silks, teeterboard, juggling, trapeze, complex lifts and more. I swear Juliet turned herself inside out in a trapeze act with her Romeo!
The playbill describes the company’s international cast’s tours staging original productions from intimate one-man shows scaling up to large arena performances, Broadway musicals, artistic collaborations with renowned international artists and companies, special events, Olympic ceremonies, televised performances, fashion, art and music events, immersive experiences and so much more.
Originally produced and created with Virgin Voyages. This international cast stars Nino Bartolini, Daniela Corradi, Adam Fullick, Gerardo Gutierrez, Michelle Hernandez, Miliève Modin-Brisebois, Einar Kling Odencrants, Carlos Francos Péré, Anton Persson, Méghane Poulet, Santiago Rivera, Ashleigh Roper, Vitor Martinez Silva, and Colin Vuillème.
Musical Director and Composer Colin Gagné; Lighting Design by Alexander Nichols; Costume Design by Camille Thibault-Bédard; Benoît Rouillard, Rigger.
This exciting show is perfect for families or date nights.
Through July 20th at the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Harman Hall, 610 F Street, NW, Washington, DC 20004. For tickets and information call the box office at 202.547.1122 or visitwww.ShakespeareTheatre.org
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