What Sounds Cool: March 2009

Nerve (3/5 - 6/18) - One of the neat tricks of a repertory company is that the strength of one member suggests equal strengths from the others. Jason Howard (currently appearing in Universal Robots) makes me want to see his company's "dark, metaphysical thriller," as does the location (Brooklyn's Lyceum), not to mention their "recession" special: $10 tickets (in March) with the code "Nervy" here: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/53358.





Red-Haired Thomas (3/7 - 3/28) - I caught a glimpse of this intriguing show in its '08 ICE Factory run (on account of director Oliver Butler, of The Debate Society), but I stuck around for Robert Lyons' intriguing script, which jumped through time to deal with identity, capitalism, terrorism, and other topically irrelevant issues.





Rambo Solo (3/19 - 4/12) - Every time I hear a description of a Nature Theater of Oklahoma show, I'm generally dismissive--a silent, comic dance piece? a six-hour recitation of transcripts? Dismissive, that is, until I see the shows, which are always transcendent. This time Zachary Oberzan delivers a one-man rendition of Rambo: First Blood, a piece that, albeit obsessed, is certain to out-Stallone Stallone.






Rods and Cables (3/20 - 4/11) - The small, intimate fashion of cabaret seems, at first, to be at odds with the extravagant spectacle of 3LD's high-tech multimedia spaces. Until you think about all the "vulgar" stuff they've done there, from Renaldo The to Chuck Mee. That this is a first-time work by designer Allison Keating just means that there will be fewer boundaries and more cartoons. (Rods and cables, yes, strings attached, no.)



Housebreaking (3/24 - 4/4) - Part of Cherry Lane Theater's Mentor Project, so you can be forgiven for not recognizing the name Jakob Holder. However, he's paired up with mentor Charles L. Mee, and his director is the very talented Daniella Topol. He's also got an original plot, involving a restless man who decides to "reform" a homeless man by bringing him into his family. These things, for the record, tend not to end well--at least for dramatic purposes.