Mikhail Bulgakov, whose Black Snow is currently in the midst of a run by Tutto Theatre Company at the Salvage Vanguard Theater, is one of those figures it's hard to criticize on his work's merits, which is unfortunate. It's much safer to insist that the work's author is fully deserving of his exalted status, and that the flaws in the production belong to Tutto and director Dustin Wills. But the fact is that it's hard to imagine a better interpretation of Bulgakov's cranky, cartoony piece about what a bummer working in the theater was for him. more ›

Oh. My. God. People—you must, mustmustMUST go see The Clean House at Zach Scott Theater immediately. Whether you literally have some sort of OCD that prompts you into unstoppable cleaning sprees or are more of the metaphorical sort who's forever trying to tidy up this wicked, funny, messy thing called life, this show is for you. Smaranda Ciceu plays Mathilde, the hilariously sad twentysomething Brazilian housekeeper who hates to clean. This proves to be problematic for her power-achiever MD employer, Lane, played to perfection by Lauren Lane. On the other hand, it provides a thrill for Lane’s neatnik sister, Virginia (Barbara Chisolm) who lives to dust, scrub and rearrange. Tom Green who doubles as both the ghost of Mathilde’s father and as Charles, Lane’s nutty husband—also an MD— has got obsessions of his own. And Ana (Alicia Kaplan) also pulls double duty as the ghost of Mathilde’s mother and, among other things, Charles’ distracting (to put it mildly) patient. more ›