All stories about "Theater"

Helen Schneider may not have immediate name recognition, but this stage siren is nothing short of a legend, especially in Berlin. She was the first American to perform behind the Iron Curtain in the now-defunct Palast der Republik. She was the original Sally Bowles in the first-ever production of Cabaret in Berlin. And she had a hit single in the early 80s off her record Rock 'n Roll Gypsy. Currently she's performing a one-woman show in the west, which will close next Tuesday. Although her resume is impressive in and of itself, the charm of her current stage production, A Voice and a Piano, has as much to do with her powerful renditions of classic songs from musicals like The Threepenny Opera and Evita as it does with her intermittent anecdotes about life on the road early in her career, including narrow escapes from the Mafia in New York, the Hell's Angels in Vermont, and showgirl pimps in Vegas, not necessarily in that order.

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Nestled just north of LA's financial district and a mere three blocks from start to finish, Grand Avenue's row of theatres and museums constitute the epicenter of downtown's artistic world. The LA Phil and Opera are both housed here, as are a decent number of theater and dance groups. If you prefer your art a little more abstract -- or you prefer your company a little more hipsterrific -- there are a couple galleries unlikely to disappoint. And if all else fails, more than one of these places has more than one bar. Because while art is meant to be taken in through sober contemplation, it doesn't really lose all that much ethos after a drink or four.

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If you're looking for a way to celebrate Mardi Gras this year and can't afford a trip to Venice or Rio, you might consider making a trek up to northeastern Paris, formerly the site of Carnaval festivities in the 19th century. At that time, the areas around Belleville and the rue du Faubourg du Temple were not yet part of the city, but were respectively known as the Haute Courtille and Basse Courtille. These neighborhoods attracted city dwellers seeking entertainment and cheap liquor, which they found in the numerous theaters, dance halls, and guingettes (wine bars) in the area. Mardi Gras was an especially popular time to visit the Courtille, and masked celebrants would carouse all night until it was time to return to their homes on the morning of Ash Wednesday. This exodus came to be known as the "descente de la Courtille," and at one time it involved hundreds of carriages traveling down the rue du Faubourg du Temple on their way into the city.

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See Janeane Garofalo, Bebe Neuwirth, and David Strathairn along with other actors in the new play At War, a story about the war in Iraq that combines work from ten different playwrights. The original run was sold out, but you still have a chance to see one of the encore performances off Broadway. Opens tonight. [NYC Agenda]

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This weekend is your last chance to check out this year's Under the Radar Festival, a sampling of excellent new theater from little known artists. Tickets range from free-$15. [NYC Agenda]

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And now for something completely different, we have Foundry Theater's interactive event, "Etiquette." To participate, go to the East Village's Veselka, put on a set of provided head phones, and listen to a half hour long play complete with stage directions in which you are both actor and audience. Tickets here [NYC Agenda]

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Check out the plays of Academy Award-winning director and one half of the incredible Coen Bros team, Ethan Coen. His series of three one-acts, Almost an Evening is presented by the Atlantic Theater Company and runs through January 20. [NYC Agenda]

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Elaine Stritch, famous performer and general all around great old lady, performs a three week residency at Cafe Carlyle until January 19. [NYC Agenda]

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The Under the Radar Festival, a week of events featuring emerging and well established artists hosted by the Public Theater, begins tomorrow January 9 and runs through January 20. Check here for a schedule of events and here for tickets. [NYC Agenda]

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Most of us, tragically, are a long way from the income bracket that would enable serious patronage of the arts. But an easy way to support struggling new writers, directors and actors -- while getting an evening's entertainment out of the deal -- is to check out a show at one of LA's small theaters. Of course, you can't swing a purse in this town without hitting a storefront theater that seats 12 for its avant-garde interpretations of the Greek tragedies, but for the purposes of this discussion, we'll limit ourselves to one street: Santa Monica between La Brea and El Centro, otherwise known as Theater Row. Here's a veritable cornucopia of Theater Row options for getting in out of the December cold and doing something nice for the arts while you're at it.

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What to do on New Year's Eve is always a conundrum for the classic culture hound who doesn't want to party the night away but wouldn't mind getting out of the house, either. In Paris, a host of cultural options awaits the weary reveler who would rather spend a civilized night at one of the city's august cultural venues losing themselves in a live performance than small-talking with strangers or paying for an overpriced meal. In addition to a multitude of cabaret and circus entertainment options on December 31, a special night at the ballet, theater, or the opera can help you while away the last hours of 2007 in high-minded style. And you'll get out just in time for champagne and midnight New Year's kisses.

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Taking in a Christmas show here in Berlin isn't just for tourists and the closet Rockette fan. Rather, a holiday-themed performance can be an interesting cultural encounter, or it can take place in a venue you'd planned to check out anyway. Some are serious and highbrow, such as a classical concert in a church, an experience that even the most hardened of atheists can appreciate. Others are a bit rowdy and brazen, like a cabaret performance in the warm glow of glühwein. Here's a selection of Berlin performance options that offer something more than the kitsch and a clichéd story meant to put a sentimental tear in your eye.

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Wednesday December 5 marks the beginning of the Native Theater Festival at the Public Theater. The five day event of Native American art includes plays, readings, workshops, and live music. [NYC Agenda]

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The Broadway stagehand strike tentatively ended last night, though the new five-year contract still must be approved by union members. Shuttered shows will start reopening through next week, inflicting themselves on thousands of unfortunate tourists who have no idea what they're in for. But at least this is good news for every "aspiring actor and practicing bartender" out there. [AP]

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During the holiday season, London theater and dancehalls are stocked with the usual cast of characters, with competing Cinderella, Peter Pan, Pinocchio, and Nutcracker productions around town. Whether it's a cool classic like the English National Ballet's Swan Lake, a camped-out Nutcracker! from star choreographer Matthew Bourne, or the world premiere of Stephen Fry's Cinderella, a kitschy take on the curious holiday tradition of the British pantomime at the Old Vic, here are a few that stand out from the crowd.

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As recently noted over at sister site Gawker, Berlin is awash in puppeteers. It seems marionette-making is experiencing a global resurgence, and whether it's preparing oversized effigies for street battle, hand-carving actors for digital cinema, or developing voracious biomechanical lifeforms, Berlin is leading the way. While the familiar picture of a puppeteer is equal parts social anxiety, poor hygiene, and a suspicious desire to entertain children, today's "puppet-based artists" are more likely to be found sipping Moet with their gallerist, consulting on a new Hollywood vehicle, or backstage with Britney than wasting valuable creative energy trying to amuse a roomful of rugrats. Looking to pull a few strings? Here's a guide for the aspiring Gepetto.

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As the holiday spirit bejewels and bedevils the city, festivities take on an altogether Baroque tenor. Think ornate, eclectic, and dark extravagance. Greek tragedies, bloodthirsty theater figures, sacred rites of passage, and magical fairy tales simultaneously come to life with the nearness of subzero weather. Indeed, Berlin offers so many colorful events you may be hard-pressed to choose. We include here a small sampling for those with especially wolfish appetites and a taste for blood.

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The French held out for quite some time before embracing the cheesy art of la comédie musicale. But a genre that once didn't resonate in the land of the opérette and the opéra-bouffe has slowly found an audience over the last decade, with a mix of local productions and Broadway migrations such as the newly opened Le Roi Lion at the Théâtre Mogador. On now is everything from The Lion King to an homage to Jean Paul II from French director Robert Hussein, N'ayez pas peur! ("Don't be afraid!"). If you believe all French people are snobs with high-minded tastes, book yourself a ticket to one of these shows for a contrary experience.

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"Washington's intellectual life has been supercharged during the Bush years, despite the Decider's aversion to ideas." So sayeth The Economist in "Capital of Culture: An Intellectual and Artistic Renaissance." And while no one is confusing George W. Bush's Washington with the Medici's Florence, the area's offerings have improved of late. No longer are dirty movies playing in small booths at the back of a newspaper stand-cum-tattoo parlor the sole cultural attraction off the National Mall. Now, theater (of the legitimate variety), music, and art thrive in the area. And more venues are set to open soon. The Newseum, the media's 250,000-square-foot museum dedicated to itself, is expected to open in the first quarter of 2008, bucking the downward trend for masturbatory venues. Also, the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History is slated to re-open that summer after a much-needed renovation. Here's a guide to some of the revitalized venues The Economist mentioned, as well as some that it missed.

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It's impossible to think about theater in Berlin without considering dramatist and director Bertolt Brecht. The enormity of his influence on the theaterscape of the city is incontestable. But he's also a character in the story of 20th-century Berlin, trapped by the political and social crisis that consumed the German capital. His professional years, with Berlin as the stage for the opening and closing acts, plays out something like a Brechtian script, as the staging of a historical social-political condition. He lived in opposition to states and was chased through Europe and America before finally negotiating a middle ground for himself on the east side of the Berlin Wall.

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