Theater companies to mount intricate winter productions
In the thick of the 2018-19 South Florida theater season, four companies in MiamiDade County are getting ready to open intricate productions that reflect their strengths and missions.
Miami’s Zoetic Stage, which performs in the Arsht Center’s Carnival Studio Theater, is tackling Simon Stephens’ “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” (Thursday through Sunday, Feb. 3), about a brilliant British 15-year-old on the autism spectrum who becomes determined to solve a mystery: Who murdered the neighbor’s dog?
Another British hit, Richard Bean’s “One Man, Two Guvnors” (Wednesday, Jan. 23, through Sunday, Feb. 10), brings the riotously farcical adaptation of Carlo Goldoni’s “Servant of Two Masters” to the main stage of Coral Gables’ Miracle Theatre in an Actors’ Playhouse production featuring 11 actors and a four-man skiffle band.
GableStage in Coral Gables’ Biltmore Hotel offers its interpretation of “Indecent” (Saturday, Jan. 26, through Sunday, Feb. 24), Paula Vogel’s intense and shattering piece about the artists involved in Sholem Asch’s daring, controversial Yiddish play “God of Vengeance.”
Carmen Pelaez, the author and star of the hit solo show “Rum & Coke,” turns to the art world for a multicharacter play involving the work of her real-life great aunt, 20th century Cuban painter Amelia Peláez. Miami New Drama presents “Fake” (Saturday,
In the thick of the 2018-19 South Florida theater season, four companies in Miami-Dade County are getting ready to open intricate productions that reflect their strengths and missions.
Jan. 26, through Sunday, Feb. 17) at Miami Beach’s Colony Theatre as the first in a trio of world premieres this season.
Opening first is Stephens’ Tony Award-winning adaptation of Mark Haddon’s 2003 novel “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.” Artistic director Stuart Meltzer is staging the play, which is performed by 10 actors, a half-dozen of them playing multiple characters.
As with the company’s production of “Fun Home” last season, Meltzer didn’t see the New York production of “Curious Incident,” nor did he watch the video of it at Lincoln Center’s New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
“Coming at a play in a fresh way is a big component of doing it,” Meltzer says. “It’s very methodical and organic. It challenges me, along with allowing me a sense of freedom.”
Actor Ryan Didato, who stud-
the scuffed but comfy black flats in my closet, the plastic rose a granddaughter gave me, the toy giraffe that belonged to my late sister, the tiny Don Quixote statue my son brought back from Spain, and — oh, but I digress.
Marie Kondo is hardly the only authority telling us to reduce, winnow out, pare down, and keep everything in its place. If my email inbox is any indication, minimalism is most popular with people and places where there’s plenty.
“Bye bye, clutter” reads the subject line of one, which offers to organize my makeup, particularly all those brushes and lipsticks I don’t own but maybe should get now that I need more help to look presentable. The e-commerce website Etsy also sent me an email for storage and organization solutions, including a thingamajig to organize ribbons (so pretty!), a very nice basket to hold magazines (perfect for my living room), and a set of wood hooks that could be useful for something, if I thought about it long enough.
This past week I even read a fascinating essay by a fellow writer about tidying up his desk, a weekly task that I ruthlessly stick to for my peace of mind. I long ago discovered that, contrary to popular belief about a messy desk being a sign of genius, I need to have a clean space to work more productively. In fact, a recent study in Current Psychology added to a growing body of evidence that shows clutter negatively affects our well-being — not to mention it really prevents you from finding what you need when you need it.
Women, by the way, react more negatively to home clutter than men do, with higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol. This may explain, though not excuse, why The Hubby ignores the stacks of papers on his nightstand and after all these years still can’t figure out why I’m hyperventilating about his piles on the dining room table. That said, don’t look for any more order and organization from me in 2019.
Right now I’m focusing on something simpler: Not buying anything more in the first place.
Ana Veciana-Suarez writes about family and social issues. Email her at avecianasuarez@gmail.com or visit her website anavecianasuarez.com. Follow @AnaVeciana.