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Are You Now or Have You Ever Been?
Arena Stage
Jordan Wright
October 30, 2026
 Greg Stuhr (Man 2), Peter Jacobson (Abe Burrows), Stephen Cefalu Jr. (Man 3), Aaron Bliden (Larry Parks), Edward L. Simon (Man 1), Jason Babinsky (Committeeman 2), John Leslie Wolfe (Chairman), and Philip Earl Johnson (Committee Man 1) in Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? at Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater (Photo/Teresa Castracane).
In a foreboding parallel to our current political climate, Anna D. Shapiro directs playwright Eric Bentley’s gut-wrenching production that is guaranteed to set your teeth on edge. I’m calling these political dramas ‘merging media’. Why? Because our daily headlines are chock-a-block with relevance to the hearings that began in the late 1930’s and continued intermittently through 1975 by the men who created watchlists while unceremoniously trampling on U.S. citizens’ rights to free speech – all under the guise of chasing down communists and, in the process, discriminating against Black Americans. It proved to be a very dark moment in American history and is remembered as a campaign of intimidation, blacklisting, and outrageous government overreach. This docudrama focuses on the hearings conducted in the 1940’s assailing Hollywood and the entertainment industry, though over the years many industries and unions were targeted by these committees.
Known as the “Hollywood Ten”, we are introduced to each witness as they come before this draconian committee. This is the actual transcript of the screenwriters, actors and directors as well as the very real accusatory questioning from their interrogators. [See cast listings below for the characters who appear]. This intensely hostile questioning from the HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) hearings was a terrifying time for many Americans, some who worked together, others who socialized with each other, and still others who toyed with the halcyon concepts floated by Communist operatives who had created slick promotional campaigns to recruit idealists and their friends.
 Kevin Mambo (Paul Robeson) (Photo/Teresa Castracane).
Questions are posed by three prominent politicos – McCarthy, as well as the committee chairman, and one another committeeman. During these hearings cameras had recorded witness testimonies while daily newspapers screeched results in 50-point typeset headlines. (You may recall Richard Nixon made his bones as a member of the committee.) Blasted as “Commies” and “Reds”, industry leaders and well-loved Hollywood actors and screenwriters were hunted down and intimidated destroying careers and reputations as witnesses were forced to name names of anyone they thought were Communists or had met at informal meetings. Many of the witnesses eventually broke down throwing out names to placate the committee and get themselves off the hook.
The parallel here is the current purge of Federal employees by the American Accountability Foundation (funded in large part by the Heritage Foundation). AAF’s activities are responsible for the firing, purging and resulting blacklisting of tens of thousands of Federal employees – disproportionally women and people of color – in their quest to destroy DEI initiatives through their trumped up “watch list”. Sound familiar? Feel free to read more about them. I did a deep dive and was alarmed at their influence.
 Rivka Borek (Lillian Hellman) (Photo/Teresa Castracane).
Are You Now or Have You Ever Been – An American Docudrama is a fiercely important play that should be required viewing by those who remember these terrible times but need a refresher course, and those who think these kinds of attacks on personal freedoms died in the dustbin of history.
Supremely acted by a perfectly in synch cast who bring to life this shameful period in American government.
 Edward L. Simon (Man 1), Rivka Borek (Lillian Hellman), Peter Jacobson (Abe Burrows), Jeff Still (Lionel Stander), Jason Babinsky (Committeeman 2), John Leslie Wolfe (Chairman), and Philip Earl Johnson (Committee Man 1) (Photo/Teresa Castracane).
Man 1 (Sam G. Wood, Sterling Hayden, Elia Kazan, Elliot Sullivan, Arthur Miller) Edward L. Simon; Man 2 (Edward Dmytryk, Tony Kraber, Martin Berkely) Greg Stuhr; Man 3 (Ring Lardner Jr., José Ferrer, Jerome Robbins, Marc Lawrence) Stephen Cefalu Jr.; Committeeman 2 – Jason Babinsky; Chairman – John Leslie Wolfe; Committee Man 1 – Philip Earl Johnson; Larry Parks – Aaron Bliden; Abe Burrows – Peter Jacobson; Lillian Hellman – Rivka Borek; Lionel Stander – Jeff Still; Paul Robeson – Kevin Mambo.
Set Design by Andrew Boyce; Costume Design by Johanna Pan; Lighting Design by Donald Holder; Sound Designers Rob Milburn & Michael Bodeen; Projection Design by Brittany Bland; Hair and Wig Design by Brittany Hartman.
Through December 6th at Arena Stage, 1101 Sixth Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024. For tickets and information call the box office at 202.488.3300 or visit www.ArenaStage.org
Jordan Wright
October 18, 2026
 Mamma Mia! via Broadway at the National (Photo/Joan Marcus)
Broadway at the National
Mamma Mia! through Nov 15
The Hip Hop Nutcracker Nov 17 – 22
Alicia Keys’ Hell’s Kitchen Nov 24 – Dec 6
Waitress Dec 8 – 13
www.BroadwayattheNational.com
Round House Theatre Cult of Love Nov 18 – Dec 13 www.RoundHouseTheatre.org
Constellation Theatre Company The Old Man and The Old Moon Nov 19 – Dec13 www.AtlasArts.org
Workhouse Arts Center Camelot Dec 12 – Jan 2 www.WorkhouseArts.org/theater-performances.org
Mosaic Theater Company with Solas Nua My English Persian Kitchen Nov 12 – Dec 6 www.MosaicTheater.org
Actors Theatre at the ARTfactory The Day Before Christmas Dec 11 – 13 www.VirginiaArtFactory.com
 A Midsummer Night’s Dream via Shakespeare Theatre Company
Shakespeare Theatre Company A Midsummer Night’s Dream Dec 4 – Jan 10, 2027 www.ShakespeareTheatre.org
The Little Theatre of Alexandria Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol Dec 4 – 19 www.TheLittleTheatre.com
Theater Alliance Cold War Choir Practice Nov 19 – Dec 13 www.TheaterAlliance.org
Next Stop Theatre Company The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity Nov 5 – 29 www.NextStopTheatre.org
Theatre J Tropical Secrets Dec 2 – 27 www.EDCJCC.org
Ford’s Theatre A Christmas Carol Nov 19 – Dec 31 www.MyFords.com
Compass Rose Theater It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play Nov 20 – Dec 5 www.CompassRoseTheater.org
 Madama Butterfly via Washington National Opera
Washington National Opera
Madama Butterfly Nov 7, 13, 18, 20
Nixon in China Nov 14, 19, 21
We the People Nov 22
www.WashNatOpera.org
Imagination Stage Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas Nov 21 – Jan 3, 2027 www.ImaginationStage.org
Washington Stage Guild The Last Victorian Nov 19 – Dec 13 www.StageGuild.org
Adventure Theatre Frosty the Snow Man Nov 21 – Jan 3 www.AdventureTheatre-MTC.org
Creative Cauldron Stage
The Emperor’s New Clothes Nov 6 – 22
Madeline’s Christmas Dec 4 – 20 wwwCreativeCauldron.org
1st Stage The Tall Girls Dec 3 – 20 www.1stStage.org
 All’s the World’s a Stage via Signature Theatre (Model/Joe Sandor, Photo/Christopher Mueller, Artwork/Anjali Nanda)
Signature Theatre
All’s the World’s a Stage through Dec 20
The Secret Garden Dec 6 – Feb 21, 2027
www.SigTheatre.org
Keegan Theatre An Irish Carol Dec 5 – 31 www.KeeganTheatre.com
Olney Theatre Center
A Christmas Carol Dec 2 – Jan 2, 2027
Les Misérables through Jan 31, 2027 www.OlneyTheatre.org
Everyman Theatre
Different Words for Happiness through Nov 15
Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d Nov 29 – Dec 30
Voices Festival Productions
The Halal Brothers Nov 6 – 8
Prisoner of Zion Dec 4 – 6
www.VoicesFestivalProductions.com
Momentum Collective Disney’s The Lion King Jr. Nov 12, 13, 14 www.info@Momentumcinc.org
 Wilderness Generation via Studio Theatre
Studio Theatre Wilderness Generation Nov 18 – Jan 3, 2027 www.StudioTheatre.org
Opera Lafayette at the Folger Rameau’s Les Surprises de L’Amour Nov 13 – 15 www.BoxOffice@OperaLafayette.org
Prince Georges County Publick Playhouse The Nutcracker with the National Ballet Company Dec 6 www.PGParks.com/PublickPlayhouse
Prince William Little Theatre at the Hylton Performing Arts Center Dashing Through the Snow Dec 11 – 20. www.PWLT.org
Synetic Theater Sleepy Hollow through Nov 14. www.SyneticTheater.org
GALA Hispanic Theatre XXII Fuego Flamenco Festival Nov 5 – 22 www.GalaTheatre.org
 Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? via Arena Stage
Arena Stage
Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? through Dec 6
Step Afrika’s Magical Musical Holiday Step Show Dec 4 – 23
www.ArenaStage.org
Woolly Mammoth Hanukkah Spectacular Nov 14 – Dec 13 www.WoollyMammoth.net
Toby’s Dinner Theatre Irving Berlin’s White Christmas Nov 6 – Jan 10, 2027
www.TobysDinnerTheatre.com
Rorschach Theatre Sparked – The Vanishing Point at Buzzard Point through Nov 16 www.RorschachTheatre.com
Port Tobacco Players The Great Christmas Cookie Bake-Off! Nov 20 – Dec 13 www.PTPlayers.com
Hippodrome Baltimore Holidays at the Hipp Dec 7 – 22 www.TheHipp.org
Frida… A Self Portrait
Shakespeare Theatre Company
at the Klein Theatre
Jordan Wright
October 16, 2026
 Vanessa Severo (Frida Kahlo) in Frida…A Self Portrait (Photo/Michael Brosilow).
In a powerful personal journey of self-discovery, Brazilian playwright and actor Vanessa Severo, channels the life of notable Mexican artist Frida Kahlo through a monologue. Based on an imagined interview, the story has a continuous thread that creates an interview Frida might have had with a journalist visiting her at La Casa Azul her home in Coyoacán, Mexico. Although this story is fictitious, it serves as a framework for the performance. Frida did give interviews at her home, and on a recent visit to take in an extensive exhibit of her work at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, I watched an archival home movie of her and Diego giving a tour of La Casa Azul to a visitor.
Contracting polio as a child and later in her teens physically impaired by a horrific accident while impaled by a metal handrail from a trolley, Frida had an unusual and complicated life, yet her indomitable spirit coupled with her unique artistic abilities and penchant for describing her pain through haunting and revelatory self-portraits she embellished with depictions of Mexican culture and nature, show a woman in constant turmoil.
 Vanessa Severo (Frida Kahlo) (Photo/Michael Brosilow).
To tell Frida’s life story, clotheslines hold dozens of items representing the characters or specific moments in the turmoiled life of the artist – some items are clearly for girls, some for men, while others reflect clothing worn at various stages of Frida’s life. As she tells the story, Severo dons each piece inhabiting whichever character she is portraying. To add to the power of these items she speaks in a range of voices mirroring their disparate personalities to include her husband, the renowned Mexican muralist Diego Rivera; her boyfriend at the time of the accident; and her stern German father.
Severo identifies with Frida’s interior life because of her own physical deformity. As an artist born with a partially deformed right hand, Severo was given the choice of having her toes severed and reconnected to her hand when she was a child, Severo demurred as she tells the audience, asking the surgeon, “But how will I dance?” before turning down the operation. Severo’s lyrical dance movements highlight the story. Occasionally breaking the Fourth Wall to speak directly to the audience, checking in to see if we are understanding Frida’s grief and empathizing with her suffering.
 Vanessa Severo (Frida Kahlo) (Photo/Michael Brosilow).
A story delivered with humor, grace and emotion, Severo’s desire to reveal her own truth through Frida is absorbing and deeply affecting.
Written and performed by Vanessa Severo; Directed by Joanie Schultz; Scenic Design by Jacqueline Penrod; Costume Design by Katherine Davis; Lighting Design by Rachael Cady; Sound Designer & Composer Thomas Dixon; Stage Manager Janine Vanderhoff.
Through November 8th at the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s Klein Theatre, 450 7th Street NW, Washington, DC 20004. For tickets and information call the box office at 202.547.1122 or visit www.ShakespeareTheatre.org.
The M.A.K.A.DO: Make America Kingly Again!
IN Series
at Arena Stage
Jordan Wright
October 15, 2026
 Greg Sliskovitch (Yankee-Poo), Andrew Adelsberger (Koch-Co.), and Teresa Ferrara (Num-Num) in IN Series production of The M.A.K.A.DO: Make America Kingly Again! at Arena Stage (Photo/IN Series).
Straight out of the gate, the title gives away its irreverent intent. The M.A.K.A.DO is a grandiose spoof and bitingly clever take off of Gilbert and Sullivan’s well-loved operetta The Mikado. IN Series describes it as “An Operatico-Politico-Buffo-Satirico” which if there were such a term, pretty much sums it up. Think off-the-wall, high octane hilarious with new lyrics provided by legendary spoof-masters, The Capitol Steps. I laughed my tail feathers off at the absurdities, shamelessly guffawing along with the rest of the audience at this collection of colorful characters who deliver songs and patter at lightening pace. Keep up as best as you can. It’s a damn good thing there are seats, otherwise you could fall down laughing and hurt yourself. Don’t hurt yourself.
Skewering a presidential administration, its cabinet, political appointees and elected officials has become an art form. We saw it earlier this year with 44 The Musical and I can only assume there will be more delightfully flippant follies in the works. Because, ladies and gentlemen, as you well know, there lies a wealth of current comic + drama material to glean from (insert daily slap to the forehead emoji here).
 Robin McGinness (Poo-Bah), Greg Sliskovitch (Yankee-Poo), and John Solomon Collins (Pish-Tush) (Photo/IN Series).
I’ll try not to give too much away, but the dramatically lit opening features the Presidential Resolute Desk, a golden toilet and a hefty blond man in a dark suit with his back facing the audience as the orchestra plays the intro. It is in the Oval Office that we are introduced to Koch-Co. (Andrew Adelsberger) and his boot-licking assistants who quickly arrive to assist POTUS in his dark plans. Golden banquet chairs hang in clusters like chandeliers, and a character named Yankee-Poo (Greg Sliskovitch) arrives on a mission to find his long-lost love, the irresistible Num-Num (Teresa Ferrara), who is currently engaged to marry Koch-Co. the wicked slum lord and red ball cap-wearing leader – aka ‘The Lord High Retributioner’ – easily recognized as our current American president. His sycophantic aides, Poo-Bah (Robin McGinness) sporting a shiny leather sash reading “The Man, The Myth, The Legend” and cohort Pish-Tush (John Solomon Collins) who deliver epic hilarity as they bow and scrape to serve their fearless leader.
 Hayley Abramowitz (Peep-Bo), Teresa Ferrara (Num-Num), and Melanie Ashkar (Pitti-Sing) (Photo/IN Series).
An “anti-flirtation law” condemns our Boy Scout hero Yankee-Poo to death by execution for canoodling with Num-Num who still loves him but is in a bit of a pickle with her untimely upcoming nuptials. A trio of MAGA babes, Peep-Bo (Hayley Abramowitz), Pitti-Sing (Melanie Ashkar) and Num-Num, arrive in matching tight red business suits and wavy blond hair cavorting and shooting an Insta reel and singing “How Cool Are We” to the tune of “Three Little Maids from School Are We”.
 Cecelia McKinley (The Maqado) and Hunter Shaner (Kitty-KatiShaw) (Photo/IN Series).
Outlandish characters soon arrive to quell the dangers the young couple faces. A drop-dead fabulous Kitty-KatiShaw (Hunter Shaner), who damn near steals the show as the femme fatale who has a few gossipy weapons up her sequined sleeve as she slinks onto the stage to put a fly in the nuptial ointment. And oh, my dear, if we don’t remain seated, we could tumble onto the stage in stitches when The Maqado (Cecelia McKinley) arrives in all her splendor and French accent – no spoilers here.
Did I mention the eight-piece orchestra who accompany lampoons of familiar ditties from the opera plus a few marches from John Phillip Sousa. I damn near collapsed from laughing so hard at the wacky lyrics written for the well-known “On a Tree by a River (Tit-Willow)” sung by Koch-Co. attempting to convince Kitty-KatiShaw of his undying love? Ohmygawd, the irony, the idiocy! Absolutely delectable!
 Cast of The M.A.K.A.DO: Make America Kingly Again! at Arena Stage (Photo/IN Series).
See it! Revel in the laughter, the gorgeous operatic voices and the delightful music. But do not fall out of your seat when you are doubled over with glee!
Stage Director, Timothy Nelson; Musical Director Dana Scott, Costume Design by William Linares; Lighting Design by Paul Callahan; Wig and Makeup Design by Andre Hopfer.
Through October 18th at Arena Mead Center’s Kogood Cradle, 1101 Sixth Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024. For tickets and information visit www.INSeries.org or www.ci.ovationtix.com
P. S. Before the curtain, Artistic Director Timothy Nelson announced InSeries’ new shared multi-disciplinary theater complex. Named the Revada Arts Center, it is set to open late October a few blocks from The Wharf and Arena Stage at 340 Maple Drive, SW. The Center will host two other production companies – Theater Alliance and 4EYE Film Center. Check it out here www.RevadaArtsCenter.org.
Magic and Illusion at the Fairmont DC
Jordan Wright
October 8, 2026
 Theatre of Magic (Photo provided by Fever)
A few weekends ago, I found myself at a magic show at DC’s elegant Fairmont Hotel. Now I can’t claim to know one single thing about magic shows, but I thought this would prove a good introduction. Before the show began, there were themed cocktails for the adults, and the reception area held six or seven magicians doing live tricks with guests. As guests entered the intimate Kennedy Ballroom to be seated, I was led to a small, round, candle-lit table in front of the stage.
While waiting for the one-man show to begin, I chatted up an attractive 40-something couple at the table beside mine. They were eager to talk about their love of magic shows, describing for me two of the strictly magic-centric venues in Chicago – especially one such venue housed at the back of an actual laundromat and which, once you have surrendered disbelief to the unusual directions, is set up as a real nightclub.
 Theatre of Magic (Photo provided by Fever)
My entire knowledge of magic shows is based on occasional viewings of TV specials by Penn & Teller, David Blaine and of course, David Copperfield, all of whom have been wildly successful drawing huge audiences to their extravaganzas. And speaking of Teller, he recently wrote the magic part of a production along with actor/magician Nate Dendy who was the architect for the magic in the huge hit The Tempest at Round House. Dendy also played Ariel in the play. Dendy later returned to Round House for Nothing Up My Sleeve, a solo hit show.
Over the years, I have seen and loved illusions incorporated into theatre – such as Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – a huge Broadway success; also, anything by Cirque de Soleil; and even a recent show at Signature Theatre that used illusion quite effectively in Pippin. I have since learned there is another side to magic shows and that’s the smaller more intimate shows that include audience participation, and that is how they are presented in this ongoing series at the Fairmont Washington.
 Magician Francis Menotti performing some preshow magic tricks for audience members (Photo/Jordan Wright).
Presented by FEVER, the world’s leading tech platform for culture and live entertainment, and the Theatre of Magic, the Saturday afternoon’s show starred Francis Menotti, who performed a riveting combination of sleight-of-hand, mentalism, restoration and prediction tricks with the assistance of randomly selected audience members. Though I was seated less than six feet from the stage, I still wasn’t close enough to suss out how he performed these mesmerizing feats. And I’m even a bit embarrassed to report my fascinated oohs, aahs and gasps were noted and mentioned during his act by Menotti himself. I just couldn’t keep my jaw from dropping!
If you want to attend one of these super fun and fascinating, off-the-grid, intimate magic shows, they are centered around our upcoming holidays. The dates are October 10, 24, 30 and 31; November 14 and 28, and December 23, 24 and 27. The hotel invites ticketed guests to take advantage of 20% off pre- or post-theatre dining in the hotel’s lobby or Loggia Lounge.
Theatre of Magic at the Fairmont Washington, DC at 2401 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037. For tickets and information visit www.FeverUp.com.
Measure for Measure
Folger Theatre
Jordan Wright
September 29, 2026
 Renea S. Brown (Isabella) in Folger Theatre’s production of William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure (Photo/Erika Nizborski).
Measure for Measure is a rare commodity and not one of Shakespeare’s much-produced plays. It’s scandalous and politically charged, so it fits right in with our times. Director Psalmayene 24 sets the play in the American South in 1950’s a time not so socially different than the early 1600’s when an unwed pregnant woman was shunned. In the 1950’s she would be sent off to a home for ‘unwed mothers’, forced to wed before she ‘showed’ or, if the family had connections, sent to a convent to give birth in secrecy. In this story Claudio is sent to prison for “fornication” and sentenced to death – his lover Juliet shunned by society. It’s not difficult to find the hypocritical relevance to our current political state.
 Nathan Darrow (The Duke), Renea S. Brown (Isabella), and Holly Twyford (Escalus) (Photo/Erika Nizborski).
A comic drama, it tells the story in rhyme and dialogue of Isabella, a valiant novice who speaks truth to power, standing up to the elites who hide their own failings through their positions of power. One in particular is Angelo, whom Vincentio, the Duke of the province, has appointed to serve as his proxy while he travels. Angelo’s aide, Escalus, a prim and proper schoolmarm, place sentence on Claudio, the father-to-be, in a kangaroo court trial. Though Claudio and Juliet are deeply in love and had planned to be wed, Angelo’s brutish and lecherous nature refuses to take that into consideration and demands Claudio be beheaded. I should note that both Angelo and Escalus are cast as White while Isabella and Claudio, brother and sister, are Black – a most intriguing interpretation. Juliet is played by a White actor suggesting a crime of miscegenation. It may be difficult to comprehend how there could possibly be comic relief in this romantic tragedy, but the lesser characters are so broadly and humorously drawn that there is plenty of humor to lighten the serious nature of the plot. When Mistress Overdone, the flashy Black owner of a brothel, dresses down Elbow and Master Froth, two naughty White teens who make jokes about sex and disease in the bawdy houses, it is riotously funny.
 Ahmad Kamal (Pompey) and Chinai Routté (Mistress Overdone) (Photo/Erika Nizborski).
With a purposely muted set, Psalmayene emphasizes the discrimination of the era with ‘Colored Only’ and ‘White Only’ drinking fountains. His not inconsiderable sway as a much celebrated director in the DMV gives him a huge talent pool in which to draw from for his casts and creatives. This production proves that to be true. The sheer glory of this production is the electrifying performance by Renea S. Brown as Isabella. Brown shows her talents as one of the fiercest, bravest and most confident actors I have seen on any stage, and it gobsmacked me to witness her powerhouse soliloquies. All in all, the casting is as superb as the direction, but Brown’s performance is award-winning and I am sticking my neck out here to predict it.
Highly recommended!!!
 Lee Osorio (Angelo) and Renea S. Brown (Isabella) (Photo/Erika Nizborski).
With Nathan Darrow as The Duke; Holly Twyford as Escalus; JaBen Early as Claudio; Jonathan Feuer as Lucio; Sean Fri as Provost; Maryanne Henderson as Juliet; Ahmad Kamal as Pompey; Lee Osorio as Angelo; Chinai Routté as Mistress Overdone and Francisca; Ryan Sellers as Elbow and others; John Sygar as Froth and others.
Choreographer, Tony Thomas; Composer, KOKAYI; Adaptor, Mekala Sridhar; Scenic Designer, Debra Booth; Costume Designer, Mika Eubanks; Lighting Designer, Jesse Belsky; Sound Designer, Matthew M. Nielson; Casting Director, Danica Rodriguez.
Through November 1st at the Folger Theatre, 201 East Capitol Street, SE, Washington, DC 20003. For tickets visit www.Events.Folger.edu
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