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M. Lance Lusk

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Articles by M. Lance Lusk

  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Christopher Dontrell Piper’s Absorbing Performance One of Free Man of Color‘s Many Strengths

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    February 13th, 2012 9:38am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    DeSoto Corner Theater 211 East Pleasant Run DeSoto, TX 75115 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Feb 3 thru Feb 26

    There is a scene in Charles Smith’s Free Man of Color at the African American Repertory Theater where the character of John Newton Templeton stands shirtless, resolute and defiant in the face of his white mentor, that sends the powerful message that this is a play, actor, and theater that will not be overlooked.

    Smith, an Emmy Award-winning playwright and distinguished professor has written a play that is based on the fascinating true story of Templeton (Christopher Dontrell Piper), “the first ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Sometimes Shaky, Kitchen Dog’s Collapse Applies Deft Hand to Trauma

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    February 13th, 2012 9:17am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Kitchen Dog Theater 3120 McKinney Ave. Dallas, TX 75204 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Feb 3 thru Mar 3

    Bridges usually represent safety and stability. They tend to extend over troubled waters, or span the gap between warring factions to bring peace. How tragic, then, when these bulwarks of constancy fail and leave us broken, literally and figuratively. Kitchen Dog Theater offers an engaging look at that dichotomy in their production of Allison Moore’s healing through humor play, Collapse.

    The play is the third in Kitchen Dog’s 21st season, and in a symmetrical twist, it is the third of three ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: World Premiere Translation of The Game of Love and Chance Nuanced and Racy

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    February 6th, 2012 10:37am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Addison Theatre Centre: Stone Cottage Theater 15650 Addison Rd. Addison, TX 75001 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Feb 2 thru Feb 18

    Ah, February. Romance and comedy are in the air.  Fortunate for us that the romcoms of the 18th century are timeless treasures waiting for a unique little theater to reintroduce them.  Mark-Brian Sonna Productions presents their charming take on Pierre Mariveaux’s The Game of Love and Chance.

    For seven years, MBS’ mission has been to bring “either brand new works for the stage, world premiere translations of classic works, or adaptations of classic works.”  This mission allows the company to run ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Ebony Marshall-Oliver Rises to the Challenge of Pretty Fire‘s Solo Load

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    February 6th, 2012 8:50am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Jubilee Theatre 506 Main St. Fort Worth, TX 76102 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Jan 27 thru Feb 26

    One-actor shows can be dicey propositions under the best of circumstances.  Their seeming lack of variety, personalities, and action can put off jaded modern audiences with short attention spans.  However, when the right material in the right venue meets a transcendent performer it becomes a miracle of solo magic.  Jubilee Theatre provides just the right alchemy in their resplendent production of Charlayne Woodard’s Pretty Fire.

    This is actor and playwright Woodard’s (better known for her film and television roles) first of ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Poe and Popcorn Combine for Laughs at Pocket Sandwich Theatre

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    January 31st, 2012 8:27am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Pocket Sandwich Theatre 5400 E. Mockingbird Ln., Ste. 119 Dallas, TX 75206 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Through Feb 18

    Take equal parts Edgar Allan Poe, and H.G. Wells, a dash of Frankenstein, and throw in some popcorn (literally), and you have a recipe for a “super shocker” of a play, the electrifying concoction that is Pocket Sandwich Theatre’s production of Dennis G.W. Millegan’s Murders in the Rue Morgue. Millegan, who also directs, uses Poe’s short story with the same title (widely considered the world’s first detective story) and Wells’ The Island of Doctor Moreau as his jumping off points to ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Quality Ibsen From a Fort Worth Discovery

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    January 30th, 2012 9:14am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Pantagleize Theatre 1115 Rio Grande Ave. Fort Worth, Texas 76102 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Through Feb 5

    Who knew that tucked away in a little building in the historic Ft. Worth Public Market Complex one could see obscure plays from a widely studied, yet rarely performed playwright done with passion and skill? Now I know, and I am here to spread the word about the amazing work Pantagleize Theatre Company is doing, particularly with their production of Henrik Ibsen’s When We Dead Awaken.

    Founding Director Violet O’Valle describes Pantagleize (from the Greek meaning “always” and “shining”) as the ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: WaterTower Gives The Diary of Anne Frank a New Twist

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    January 11th, 2012 8:28am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Addison Theatre Centre\ 15650 Addison Rd. Addison, TX 75001 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Jan 6 thru Jan 29

    Sometimes “important” stories lose their effectiveness no matter how many times we are reminded of why they are so. But then there are works that transcend redundancy and endure even bad iterations. What a nice surprise, then, when a fresh adaptation of a stalwart original receives a remarkable production with an incredible cast and crew. WaterTower Theatre’s The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett, and adapted by Wendy Kesselman makes a crucial play come alive.

    The tremendous ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Stage West’s New Jerusalem Brings the Wit of Spinoza to the Masses

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    January 9th, 2012 10:39am

    Rating

    G Y R

    Location

    Stage West 821 W. Vickery Blvd. Fort Worth, TX 76104 Buy Tickets

    Dates

    Jan. 5 thru Jan. 29

    “All good stories start with a Jew” quips the character of Baruch de Spinoza in New Jerusalem.  Stage West Theatre bears that particular truth out in its provocative brain tickler of a production of David Ives’ play about the 17th century Jewish philosopher.

    New York City-based playwright Ives (All in the Timing, The Liar, Is He Dead?) is primarily known for his adaptations and one-act comedies. New Jerusalem represents a more sober, Tom Stoppard-esque intellectual exercise presented in the style of a ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    The Best in Dallas Theater 2011: Lance Lusk’s Picks

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    December 20th, 2011 9:11am

    To look back at the year in theater, we asked our three theater writers to tell us the plays and performances that stood out for them in 2011. Here are Lance Lusk’s picks.

    Plays

    As You Like It / Macbeth (Trinity Shakespeare Festival): Three years into its run, and the Trinity Shakespeare Festival continues to provide stellar Bard work. Last summer’s repertory double-shot of a contemplative and beautiful As You Like It (dir. T.J. Walsh) and a spooky stunner of a Macbeth ..read more

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  • Theater & Dance

    Theater Review: Can Broadcast Performances Translate Great Theater to the Screen?

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    December 19th, 2011 9:11am

    Location

    Angelika Film Center 5321 E. Mockingbird Ln. Dallas, TX 75206

    Unless one lives in New York or London, often the best theater is just too far away. Fortunately, there is National Theatre Live, an initiative following in the footsteps of New York’s Metropolitan Opera to broadcast live performances from London’s famed National Theatre to cinemas worldwide. NT Live continues the experiment in its third season with John Hodge’s Collaborators. The play is being shown locally at the Angelika Film Centers (Dallas and Plano), and a one-time only screening at The Modern ..read more

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