The Wooster Group does Tennessee Williams

Liz LeCompte and The Wooster Group's ongoing trek through the theatrical canon has now landed at Tennessee Williams' Vieux Carre. William's mostly-expressionistic slice of life is set in a New Orleans boarding house, where the Williams-like writer (think Tom after he leave The Glass Menagerie) crosses paths with a cross-section of characters, including and elderly homosexual, the landlady and a woman and her drunk boyfriend among others.

As much as The Emperor Jones is Kate Valk's show, and Hamlet is Scott Shepherd's show; Vieux Carre is Ari Fliakos' show and he does a fine job. Shepherd, in the duel roles of the drunk boyfriend (Tye McCool, seriously) and the old homosexual (Nightingale, I kid you not) dives in to both parts head first with terrific results. Only the usually amazing Kate Valk seems adrift, going for broad humor and even broader accents as both the Landlady and Jane Sparks, the lost lady with the crappy boyfriend.
Clocking in a just about two-hours without an intermission, the show grabs the audience and doesn't let go until the final thirty minutes, especially during what felt like a very long scene between the embattled couple. That scene could use a touch of the usual Wooster Group magic, inspired tricks.
But these are all minor quibbles, for Vieux Carre is still better than just about anything happening in New York theater right now. Given that the Group is based in New York, we don't seem to see enough of them. Don't miss this or any chance.

The Wooster Group's Vieux Carre has just been extended through March 13 at Baryshnikov Arts Center.

For Tickets: CLICK HERE

Ohio Theater Goes West

According to an article in The New York Times, Robert Lyons announced that the Ohio Theater will relocate to the Archive Building at 666 Greenwich Street in the West Village. A ten-year lease has been signed on what will now be known as OHIO WEST. While the Ohio Theater presented great work, it was the former space at 66 Wooster Street that made it very, very special - and still a huge loss.

The full NY Times article is HERE.

10 Favorite Shows of 2010

So here, in the order in which Ludlow Lad saw them, are the top 10 Favorite Shows of 2010:

#1. LEAR
@ Soho Rep
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#2. L'effet de Serge
@ 3LD/Under The Radar Festival
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#3. The Divine Sister
@ Theater For The New City
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#4. Alice in Slasherland
@ HERE/Vampire Cowboys
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#5. Milk
@ HERE/New Georges
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#6. The Zero Hour
@ Walkerspace/13P
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#7. The Little Foxes
@ New York Theater Workshop
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#8. Laurie Anderson's Delusion
@ BAM/Next Wave
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#9. That Hopey Changey Thing
@ The Public/Public Lab
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#10. Middletown
@ The Vineyard Theater

William Eno's MIDDLETOWN

Currently at the Vineyard Theater, through December 5th, William Eno's MIDDLETOWN is a must-see. Like a contemporary version of Thornton Wilder's OUR TOWN, MIDDLETOWN tells universal truths vis a vie everyday details and it is at once hilarious and heart-breaking. The cast is absolutely perfect and a few, James McMenamin, Heather Burns and Georgia Engel being sublime! This should definitely be on the Pulitzer short list.

For tickets & info: www.vineyardtheatre.org

A Puppet Rock Opera (in one act)

Love is Like Mud is a story about the romantic misadventures between city dwellers Jon and Anne. After meeting on the subway they have an awkward first date, followed by a torrid night of sex. Before they know it they are in the midst of a relationship, wondering if they have fallen in love.

Love is Like Mud:
A Puppet Rock Opera (in one act)

October 15 @ 9:30pm
October 22 @ 9:30pm
October 29 @ 9:30pm
November 7 @ 7:30pm
November 14 @ 7:30pm
November 21 @ 9:30pm
November 28 @ 7:30pm
December 3 @ 7:30pm
December 10 @ 9:30pm
December 17 @ 9:30pm

@ The Tank
354 W. 45th Street
New York, NY 10036

For Tickets & Info: www.thetanknyc.org

Target Margin Lab @ The Brick

Target Margin Theater is celebrating their 20th Season this year, and kicking things off is their LAB SERIES at The Brick in Williamsburg:

THE YELLOW SOUND
by Wassily Kandinsky
Lead Artists-Kate Sinclair Foster & Mary Neufeld

A visual soundscape of giant puppets, psychedelic colors and indistinct beings.

Thursday, 11/4 at 8pm
Friday, 11/5 at 8pm
Saturday, 11/6 at 8pm
Sunday, 11/7 at 7pm
Monday, 11/8 at 8pm

THE MAGIC FLUTE (A Sound-Op Era)
adapted from the opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Lead artist-Kate Marvin

Kann Musik bezaubern? Could a flute be the key? Does the “flöte” put the “zauber” in TMT? (And what’s going on with the Freemasonry?)
A zauberoperatic journey through fire, water, and glitter starring theremins, opera singers, ukuleles, dictaphones, melodicas, maestros with big hair, speakers of Transrational German, wind-up dolls, toy pianos, Stage Managers in tights, Sound Demons in tuxedos, Freemasons in fake beards, and the sound of magic.

Wednesday, 11/10 at 7:30pm
Thursday, 11/11 at 8pm
Friday, 11/12 at 8pm
Saturday, 11/13 at 8pm
Sunday, 11/14 at 7pm

THE MOTH AND THE FLAME
by Clyde Fitch
Lead Artist-Yuri Skujins

Written in the late 19th century, this relentlessly chatty and darkly comedic play looks at the strivings--financial, social, and otherwise--of that era's plucky New Yorkers and their curiously modern concerns and timely dilemmas.

Tuesday, 11/16 at 8pm
Wednesday, 11/17 at 8pm
Thursday, 11/18 at 8pm
Friday, 11/19 at 8pm
Saturday, 11/20 at 8pm

Tickets are only $12 if you buy before Halloween!

Click Here for tickets.

2010 Fall Preview

Here are 13 shows that Ludlow Lad is excited about seeing this fall:

underneathmybed: A new play by Florencia Lozano in which ghosts of a dirty foreign war haunt a family. Rattlestick Theatre; starts September 1. www.rattlestick.org

Roadkill Confidential: This new play by Sheila Callaghan is described as a noir-ish meditation on brutality. 3LD Art & Technology Center; starts September 7. www.clubbedthumb.org

Orlando: Sarah Ruhl takes on Virginia Woolf. Classic Stage; starts September 8. www.classicstage.org

Brandywine Distillery Fire: Matthew Freeman and Matthew Gardner promise to develope a theater work in the "wrongest" way possible which may never delivers on its promises. Incubator Arts Project; starts September 9. www.brandywinedistilleryfire.com

Down There: Based on the real-life 1965 torture murder of Sylvia Likens, Down There is a new play from Axis Company, written and directed by Randy Sharp. Axis Theatre; starts September 9. www.axiscompany.org

The Little Foxes: Director Ivo van Hove, who has previously taken on Williams, Ibsen and Moliere now turns his talents to Lillian Hellman's famous play. New York Theatre Workshop; starts September 10. www.nytw.org

The Divine Sister: Charles Busch gets back to his roots in this hilarious new comedy that was workshopped at Theater for the New City earlier this year. Soho Playhouse; starts September 12. www.divinesisteronstage.com

Angels in America: Michael Greif directs Tony Kushner's gigantic play. Parts one and two run in rep from September 14th through January 30th. signaturetheatre.org

Orange, Hat and Grace: Artistic Director Sarah Benson directs this new play by Gregory S. Moss that is described as a funny, fierce and provocative inquiry into our relationship with the natural world. Soho Rep; starts September 15. www.sohorep.org

Three Sisters Come and Go: Anton Chekhov vs. Samuel Beckett vs. Julia Kristeva in this beautifully designed piece that gets a return engagement at Theaterlab; starts September 29. www.theaterlabnyc.comli

Middletown: A new play by Will Eno, directed by Ken Rus Schmoll that explores the universe of a small American town. Vineyard Theatre; starts October 13. www.vineyardtheatre.org

A Free Man of Color: The amazing John Guare's new play, described as a "freewheeling epic" set in 1802 New Orleans. Lincoln Center Theater @ the Vivian Beaumont; starts October 21. www.lct.org

(oh my god I am so) THIRST(y): Little Lords bring back their great adaptation of Eugene O’Neill’s play. October 21 - 30, 2010 @ Incubator Arts Project www.littlelord.org