20th century performing arts
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REVIEWS
Little Murders Always restrained, TACT never gilds the vintage lily and this production is no exception… …delivers on Feiffer's clever and amusing fantasy of an urban middle-class meltdown…. - Metro Weekly Arlington’s provocative American Century Theater [has] opened its latest intriguing blast from the American past… ---bizarrely witty comedy-drama… ...if you can withstand annoying but riotously funny characters, constantly flickering lights and blackouts, and loud gunshots when you least expect it, Little Murders is just the play for you... …Slick, brave, and fearlessly acted… …well worth your time and attention… - D.C. Theatre Scene …introduces us to one of the first modern dysfunctional families on the verge of a nervous breakdown… …a dark farce full of caustic humor… - Washington Examiner Director Ellen Dempsey keeps tensions high by creating an uneasy sense of danger throughout... As the play progresses, the exaggerations stretch more, resulting in a climax that, while rather predictable, is simultaneously funny and disturbingly violent. There’s something cathartic about seeing a dysfunctional family act out their foibles onstage (versus watching it happen in your parents’ living room). However acrimonious your own clan’s antics may be, they’re unlikely to give much competition to the Newquists, the frustrating, funny, and flawed family at the center of Jules Feiffer’s Little Murders, currently playing at American Century Theater. - Washingtonian Ellen Dempsey does a fine job of directing her talented and energetic cast, who all give tireless performances. Bill Gordon is hilarious as Henry Dupas ...His stunning speech about the meaninglessness of societal institutions, including marriage is the highlight of the production. If you love dark comedy and are dying for one of those murder mysteries about a dysfunctional family . . . .come see the hard-working cast try to figure it all out in Little Murders at American Century Theater. - Maryland Theater Guide |