Upcoming Shows

IRVINVILLE

By Theatre LUDU

Irvinville is a daring new play following a town besieged by a rampaging circus elephant, and the generational trauma resulting from its demise. Weaving the fantastic seamlessly within a collage of our nation’s greatest blunders, the line between history and legend is blurred. Using fireside storytelling traditions, Irvinville becomes a modern American myth of ridiculous proportions, daring the audience to question their complicity in their own destruction.

Written and performed by Lucius Robinson and Kevin Duvall, and using no technical elements whatsoever, Irvinville explores how we use performance to reflect upon our shared past, and reveal how we become the stories we tell.

With nothing more than themselves, Robinson and Duvall share a story spanning several decades and over a dozen characters. At the center is Jaxson Sallow, a decrepit old boy, and the only person left in Irvinville, tasked with maintaining the archaic machinery which powered this once great town; and Mary, the circus elephant responsible for triggering Irvinville’s slow, hard decline. Together they make flesh the terrible tragedy of the “Evening of the Tusk Moon,” when Mary revolts at the circus, the ensuing “Terrorphant Siege,” where Irvinville faces the constant threat of the elephant in the woods, and Mary’s Trial when she is convicted before the entire town. It is her story that entangles Irvinville into the hearts of a nation, but she brings the town to ruin all the same. Through a sculpted whirlwind of characters, stories, memories, and lies, the truth of this place is gradually revealed: violence is easy; more than easy, it is natural.

Irvinville is the first project by Theatre LuDu; the collaboration of Lucius Robinson and Kevin Duvall. They are creators of award-winning original theatrical works You’re in Danger! and LIVE NUKES! respectively and have, combined, over 4 decades of experience working in theatre as actors, writers, directors, producers, teachers, and collaborators.

LUDU is a two-person ensemble composed of Kevin Duvall and Lucius Robinson. They believe in weird stories, well-told. They also believe theater should be available and accessible to all persons, not just to attend, but also to create. Irvinville is their first show.

Showtime:
April 26th @ 7:30pm

Tickets are FREE!

Click below to reserve your tickets.

---

 

2024 Baker Artist Award Finalist Showcases

Presented by Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance

April 27 & 28

---

The Baker Artist Awards are the largest art prize in the Baltimore Region.

Every year, from hundreds of artist portfolios on the Baker Artist Portfolios Website, finalists are selected in each discipline because of their mastery of craft, unique vision, and depth of artistic exploration.

Join us to experience a taste of the incredible talent of the finalists in Film/Video and Music, Performing, and Interdisciplinary Arts.

---

April 27th @ 7pm

2024 Baker Artist Award Finalist Film & Video Showcase

Featuring the work of Albert Birney, Eric Cotten, Marnie Ellen Hertzler, Corrie Parks, Jimmy Joe Roche, and Lynn Tomlinson.

Tickets are free!

Click here to reserve your tickets.

---

April 28th @ 4pm

2024 Baker Artist Award Finalist Music & Performance Showcase

Featuring the work of Geffery Cassuto, Katie Hileman, Melissa Hyatt Foss, Daniel Ryan, Wordsmith, and Allen Xing.

Tickets are free!

Click here to reserve your tickets.

The Baker Artist Portfolios and awards were established by the William G. Baker, Jr. Memorial Fundand are a program of the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance.

 

---

 

Cindy of Arc

By Cynthia Kaplan

May 2 – 4

---

Production poster courtesy of Intiman Theatre. Designed by Cade Roach / Hey Atlas Creative. Photo by Bill Westmoreland.

Why are there no Jews in Whoville?

What is a scold’s bridle?

What is the song Delta Dawn really about?

Should we rethink Dr. Deborah Birx?

Why is the Holy Ghost a ghost?

In this brand new work of comedy and music, your guide, Cindy of Arc, will answer these and other pressing questions. She will take you through an abridged history of lying in such popular areas as religion, politics, sex, songwriting, Nazis, and, of course, dogs. Think American Utopia but with expletives, a three man backup band all named Mike, no David Byrne, and no Utopia. And no choreographer. And no money. And it’s a comedy. And they wear their shoes. But otherwise, very similar.

Written and performed by Cynthia Kaplan

Directed by Dani Davis

With Michael Hunter, Mike Rosengarten, and Mike Lunoe

Music supervision by Nate Patten
Orchestrations/arrangements by Christopher Jahnke
Music Direction by Michael Hunter
Lighting Design by Bob Bonniol
Sound Design by Justin Brown
Projection Content Creation by R. Sikoryak
Projection Design by Tristan DiVincenzon
Associate Producer – Georgia Monroe

Cindy of Arc was a 2023 finalist for the Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater.

“If you’re lucky, Kaplan will sing and play guitar, and then you’ll laugh until you can’t breathe.”  – Time Out NY

“Brilliant and blistering…Cindy of Arc is like a special blend of the poppiest of Jello Biafra and Mojo Nixon’s Prairie Home Invasion political satire cuts, folded into Lauren Weedman’s comedic musical commentary and storytelling, whipped with the stalwart feminist political devotion of The Raging Grannies.” – NWTheatre.org

“Cynthia Kaplan is the funniest, funkiest white girl I’ve seen. Cindy of Arc takes you on the hilarious journey (with rockin’ songs) of an unapologetically smart-ass woman.” – Nancy Giles, Emmy- winning contributor, CBS News Sunday Morning

“The perfect convergence of rock and roll trop and middle class Jewish psyche…Witty, angry, sparkling…Transcendence happens.” – Bob Garfield, Bully Pulpit

“Cindy of Arc is amazing. The band is so hot. You are going to have a ball. Cynthia Kaplan is a genius.” – Comedian Judy Gold

“Ms. Kaplan is epically funny, and hyper-intelligent…The show is filled with politics of the left wing sort, word play, and a world view shaped in equal parts by being a woman and a Jew…Make sure to buy for your friends that might want to go. If your friends don’t then find better friends and go with them.” – Gordon Nash, Folk Music Notebook Radio

---

Showtimes:
May 2 @ 8pm
May 3 @ 8pm
May 4 @ 3pm and 8pm

Tickets:
General Admission: $30
Students and Seniors: $20

Click below to purchase tickets.

 

 

Please consider supporting the Women’s Health Center of Maryland. You can donate when purchasing your ticket, or donate at the door when you arrive for the show. Suggested donation amount: $30 or give what you can.

 

The Women’s Health Center of Maryland was founded in early 2023 in response to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court decision that revoked nearly 50 years of legal abortion rights in this country. The central Appalachian region swiftly became an abortion care desert. We aim to fill the void for not only Mountain Maryland, but the central Appalachian region with high-quality, comprehensive reproductive health care including both medication and procedural abortion.

 

LOOKING BACH…

By VTDance/Vincent E. Thomas
May 11 & 12

An evening of provocative movement stories intertwined with musical lines of J.S. Bach.

Showtimes:
Saturday, May 11 @ 7:30pm
Sunday, May 12 @ 4:00pm

Tickets:
General Admission: $25
Seniors/Artists: $20
Students: $15

Please click below to purchase tickets.

BALTIMORE STORY FEST

by Phill Good Stories

A mic, spotlight and a good story is all you need to take a room full of people on a journey. Storytelling is one the most entertaining and impactful forms of live performance. Baltimore Story Fest will highlight the best and brightest storytellers in the region. Storytellers create a tapestry with their words that bring audiences into their worlds. Sometimes you laugh. Sometimes you cry. Sometimes you do both.

EACH DAY OF THE FEST IS ALL NEW!
Curated by different storytelling producers, every show will be unique. See all four shows and immerse yourself in the art of storytelling!

Thursday, May 16th
The Stoop Storytelling Series
Hosted by Jessica Henkin and Aaron Henkin

Everyone has a story. What’s yours? The Stoop Storytelling Series is a Baltimore-based live show and podcast that features “ordinary” people sharing the extraordinary, true tales of their lives.

Friday, May 17th
Perfect Liars Club: the storytelling interrogation show
Produced by Cara Foran & Pierce McManus

Four people tell a story. Three are true but one is a lie. Listen. Laugh. Interrogate. Vote.
Can you spot the liar?

“Storytelling at its finest” – Washington Post
“Delightful” – DC Metro Theater Arts
“Our favorite night of the month” – TokyoCheapo

Saturday, May 18th
Mortified
Produced by Alex Hewett and Adam Ruben

Witness a night of adults telling stories about their lives by sharing their most mortifying childhood artifacts (diaries, letters, lyrics, poems, home movies)… in front of total strangers.

Sunday, May 19th
The Goode Practice presents: What I Learned in Therapy
Produced by Ronald Young Jr. and Tuere Ganges

Listen to stories that range from heartwarming to the absurd, as storytellers examine their experiences with therapy, healing and wellness.

The Goode Practice provides culturally aware and clinically responsive care to clients and offers services to expand the knowledge of therapists in the community. We are the premier practice for nurturing therapists who wish to deepen their expertise in working with clients of color, and gender and sexual minorities. We strive to provide a healing space for clients, staff, and community.

In addition to the 4 evenings of storytelling, there will also be a Solo Storytelling Short Film Showcase at 2pm on Saturday, May 18th. Join us for an afternoon of short films featuring solo storytellers, telling true stories. Screenings will be followed by a discussion on the impact of storytelling across all genres.

About the Founder/Creative Director:

Phill Branch is the founder and Creative Director of Baltimore Story Fest. Phill is a storyteller working in film, creative nonfiction and theater. An alumnus of the American Film Institute, he recently directed the documentary “Hampton University: One of the Wonders of the World ” about the history of HBCUs. The film is currently streaming on PBS. His previous film, “Searching for Shaniqua,” a documentary about the impact names have on our lives, won the HBO Best Documentary award at the 2016 Martha’s Vineyard African-American Film Festival. His upcoming memoir tentatively titled “The Double Dutch Fuss” will be released by HarperCollins/Amistad in 2025. The book examines the ways that rigid notions of masculinity impacted Phill’s life. He is a 2023 recipient of the Maryland State Arts Council’s Creativity Grant and a 2019 Rubys Artist Award grantee for storytelling and performance. He was the 2018 GrandSLAM Champion of The Moth in DC. His debut solo storytelling show “Juneteenth Tilapia Rainbows” premiered at Baltimore Theatre Project in 2021. He has performed all around the country and appeared on podcasts with many storytelling organizations including Story District, The Stoop, Story Collider, Perfect Liars Club, and Dear Diary, Currently, Phill is a Resident Artist at the Howard County Center for the Arts.

Hope I Die Before I Get Old

Written & Performed by John Feffer

It is Sherlock Holmes’s last case.

A poet lies dead in a Moscow apartment in the cold spring of 1930. Everyone knows who killed Vladimir Mayakovsky, the bard of the Russian revolution. The poet shot himself through the heart that April morning. No one knows why he did it. The Soviet authorities have brought in Sherlock Holmes to answer that question.

But only Mayakovsky himself can really solve the mystery. Resurrected and forced to relive his life backwards, the poet delves into his past to figure out why he ultimately pulled the trigger.

Hope I Die Before I Get Old, written and performed by John Feffer, brings together the famous detective and infamous poet in a solo show that probes the mysteries of creativity and political collaboration.

EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE

Book & Lyrics by Tom Macrae
Music by Dan Gillespie Sells
From an idea by Jonathan Butterell

Iron Crow Theatre
June 14 – 30

Based upon the true-life story of 16-year-old British schoolboy Jamie Campbell, Jamie New is a 16-year-old who doesn’t quite fit in. Instead of pursuing a traditional career, he dreams of becoming a professional drag queen. Uncertain about his future, Jamie knows one thing for sure — he’s going to be a sensation. Supported by his brilliant, loving mum and surrounded by his friends, Jamie overcomes prejudice, beats the bullies, and steps out of the darkness into the spotlight. Sixteen: the edge of possibility. Time to make your dreams come true.

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie premiered at the Crucible Theatre, Sheffield, on February 13, 2017, directed by Jonathan Butterell. In November 2017, the musical transferred to the West End at the Apollo Theatre, with most of the Crucible Theatre cast returning. 20th Century Studios released its film adaptation of the musical, directed by Jonathan Butterell, on September 17, 2021. Iron Crow Theatre’s production is one of the first in the United States.