A disarming duet of duos….FIT20, the Festival of Independent Theatres, opened this past weekend with a dynamite pair of two person shows that emerge from separate ends of the universe but make an entirely simpatico evening of theatrical whimsy for audiences into experiencing sensory immersion perched on the edge of daring. Catch this pair together … Continue reading
Tagged with Susan Sargeant …
FIRST WEEK Ruminations on FIT 2017
The three productions that round out Festival of Independent Theatres 2017’s opening volley (aside from Risk Theatre Initiative’s brilliant Stiff, reviewed separately) are standard fare for appropriate inclusion. David Meglino and his brainstorming crew know what they are doing in assembling this yearly puzzle. This enduring niche festival has a devoted audience; many will enjoy … Continue reading
Criticalrant’s Final “First Choices” of 2015
2015 unfolded as a stunner of a thespian year, from classics to new work, dynamic paradigm-shifters to re-invigorated audience favorites, ensemble achievements to compelling solo work. Youth to senior artists. And music? Glorious music! Performance art in our region thrives with energy, respect, initiative and genuine variety. Dedicated, impassioned creative people form the backbone … Continue reading
Making the Hard Sell: Fun House Theatre’s “Death of A Salesman”
Fun House Theatre and Film. Would Willy Loman approve? I should hope so. Anybody who mounts a production of a prestigious, iconic three-act drama like Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman takes on a sales job of imposing proportion. “The play’s a downer.” “It goes on FOREVER.” “Why can’t we see something funny?” Sometimes you … Continue reading
Salesman Lives at FunHouse Theatre: Pull on Your Grown-up Bloomers
Arthur Miller. Tennessee Williams. Eugene O’Neill. David Mamet. Edward Albee. Giants of the modern stage. You had better pull on your grown-up bloomers if you’re going to mount any of these icons’ plays, right? Pretty intimidating. Only for “real” pros, surely not for youth actors. Consider Miller’s Death of A Salesman, for instance. In its … Continue reading
Sisterhood of Synchronicity: “Manicures and Monuments” at WaterTower Theatre
“Life comes in cycles, appearing when we’re ready for them,” muses Dallas area leading stage director Susan Sargeant. Stepping out of her customary role as Producing Artistic Director of WingSpan Theatre, Sargeant helms the production of local playwright Vicki Cheatwood’s play “Manicures and Monuments”, opening on Water Tower Theatre’s Main Stage June 5, 2015. … Continue reading
Happy Days for Stephanie Dunnam: Sparking A Thespian Connection
As ephemeral, astonishing and palpable as a sudden flare-up of aurora borealis: bask in the glow of the special chemistry some actors brew up on stage. When WingSpan Theatre Company’s Producing Artistic Director Susan Sargeant decided to mount Samuel Beckett’s two person play “Happy Days” (opening October 11 at the Bath House Cultural Center), she … Continue reading
The Lesser God’s Children at Contemporary Theatre
Contemporary Theatre of Dallas presents a compelling, if often tortured and torturous, production of Mark Medoff’s 1980 Tony Award-winning issue romance Children of a Lesser God. Directed by WingSpan Theatre’s Producing Artistic Director Susan Sargeant, the show features powerful performances by its leads, Marianne Galloway (playing a temperamental, difficult non-speaking deaf woman) and Ashley Wood … Continue reading
2012 in North Texas Theatre: From A Feminist Lens
Why feminist? We women make up over half of the US populace and purchase more tickets to theatre yearly than men, even with our 77 cents to any man’s dollar earned salaries. Feminism is the radical notion that women are people. Some amazing, creative people, who happen to be women, enlivened regional theatre here in … Continue reading
A Natural Fit: Festival of Independent Theatres 2012
Attending the yearly FIT Fest (Festival of Independent Theatres) at the Bath House Cultural Center feels like “coming home” to a soul-inspiring balance between art and nature. It’s hazy, humid summertime, July in North Texas. Dallas’ concrete highway loops and treeless boulevards lined with retail hawkers fairly sizzle with speed, isolation and the drive to … Continue reading
criticalrant.com Alexandra Bonifield 