Author Archives: burdreviews

            Thurgood Marshall was the 76th associate justice appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States after the Court was created by the Constitution over 175 years before. He was also, the first African-American to serve there. His story of fighting to end racism, beginning with growing up in segregated Baltimore, Maryland, is theContinue reading “Thurgood at People’s Light”

With a title like “Lifespan of a Fact,” I knew I had to see the latest production by Lantern Theater Company. There seemed to be so many possibilities. It turned out those possibilities or facts, were the fabrication used to enhance an essay that John D’Agata wrote for a magazine. And when fact-checker Jim FingalContinue reading “The Lifespan of a Fact at Lantern Theater”

I recently received an invitation by a theater company in Camden, New Jersey, that I’d never heard of to see a play I’d never heard of. I was hesitant but also curious, even more so when I learned that the theater, Camden Repertory Theater performed in the living room of a row home. But uponContinue reading “Unfinished Women Cry in No Man’s Land While a Bird Dies in a Gilded Cage at Camden Repertory Theater”

Set in a beauty salon in a small Louisiana town in the 1980’s, “Steel Magnolias” by Robert Harling, revolves around its owner Truvy, her new assistant, Annelle, and four other women, who come regularly to the salon to get their hair done, but more significantly, to talk. One is a wealthy widow, Clairee, who hasContinue reading “Steel Magnolias at Act II Playhouse”

When we think about immigrants trying to come to the U.S., we immediately conjure up images of Latinos at our southern border trying to get into the country. Over the years, immigrants have sought to come to America to escape their difficult lives and start anew. Quotas to keep foreigners out have regularly stopped them.Continue reading “The Last Parade at InterAct Theatre”

Four years ago, 1812 Productions began their season with a comedy revue called “Broads.” It was a compilation of bits curated by their Producing Artistic Director, Jennifer Childs from the careers of women comics, from the 1920’s to the 1960’s.  The multi-talented Childs also added new material to the mix of jokes, routines, and songs.Continue reading “Broads at 1812 Productions”

“Waiting for Lefty” is a short play, consisting of seven scenes that revolve around a taxi driver’s strike that occurred in 1934. . Written a year later, playwright Clifford Odets has put together vignettes of the lives of those at that initial union meeting. Though the play is only an hour long, it is aContinue reading “Waiting For Lefty at Quintessence Theatre”

Let me get right to the point. “Mary Poppins,” which is currently on the stage at Quintessence Theatre is a spectacular tour de force and a must see. I don’t usually begin a review like this, but when I went to see the show, I expected a variation of the movie that was full ofContinue reading “Mary Poppins at Quintessence Theatre”

Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, was First Lady of the United States for 12 years and redefined that office. She was an intelligent, dynamic, active woman who, because of her relationship with her husband,  helped shaped American politics and history. Act II Playhouse has brought to the stage Mark St. Germain’s one-womanContinue reading “Eleanor at Act II Playhouse”