What’s the latest on Philadelphia’s theater scene? Metro has the scoop.
Theatre Exile
Everybody knows that when it comes to classic film directing-acting teams, there’s always Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio, Quentin Tarantino and Samuel L Jackson and Ryan Coogler and Michael Jordan. For theater, however, when you think of longtime teams, you can’t beat the local pair of Matt Pfeifer and Scott Greer, now playing at South Philly’s Theatre Exile in playwright John Logan’s ‘RED‘.
In this art world drama, Greer plays legendary abstract expressionist Mark Rothko after having landed the biggest commission in the history of modern art, a series of murals for New York’s Four Seasons Restaurant. Despite such master status, ‘RED’s Rothko doesn’t just get to enjoy the fruits of his labor as his young assistant, Ken (played by fellow Philadelphian Zach Valdez), questions what it means to sell out for commerce’s sake, rather than that of artistic purity.
“I think we find ourselves at a critical moment in time, now, where young people want to dismantle the long-held systems of oppression,” says ‘RED’ director Pfeiffer. “Older generations both resist and question these demands, largely on the ground of ‘What do you know?’ Rothko and his assistant Ken engage in a high stakes’ litigation of access, control, and progress… I think the debate of the play feels timelier now than when it premiered.”
On the topic of the present-day commodification of art and the co-opting of Rothko’s genius for commercial purpose in ‘RED’, Pfeiffer muses how today, “the most dynamic, relevant, progressive artist will never reach as many people as TikTok or the HawkTuah girl. So, what does “selling out” even look like now? Commodity in art is as old as time, but set against our own time, it feels right to talk about the emotional and psychological transaction of making something to provoke, rather than profit.”
But what about this forever artistic marriage between Pfeif and Greer? The director states that ‘RED’ represents his 15th collaboration with Greer – the most that Pfeiffer has shared with any other actor.
“I think we have a short hand about how to get at the truth of a moment,” he says. “My strong desire as a director is to get an actor to trust an intention so specifically that they can use it to explode what’s possible. To surprise themselves and an audience. Scott has a level of artistry that can supernova. So the key to our collaboration is trust and knowing when we can push for more. Every collaboration has yielded different versions of that, from highly comic to the deepest depths of despair.”
For more information and tickets, visit theatreexile.org
Arden Theatre
Fans of HBO-Max’s ‘The Gilded Age‘ and its dramatic take on the life of the Upper East Side of New York (and its costumes) are thrilled to see that same period’s dress and drama – on the Lower East Side – examined by ‘Intimate Apparel’, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage’s look at an African-American seamstress and the lives of her patrons.
Opened at Old City’s Arden Theatre in October, directed by Philly’s Barrymore Award-winner Amina Robinson, and starring top-tier local thespians Jessica Johnson, Zuhairah and Akeem Davis, the success of ‘Intimate Apparel’ has been anything but intimate – so crowded on a nightly basis, that its run has been extended until Dec. 9.
For more information and tickets, visit ardentheatre.org
Bristol Riverside Theatre
For those seeking an unforgettable theater experience, Bristol Riverside Theatre presents a sharp, darkly funny exploration of privilege, power dynamics, and sexuality with David Ives’ ‘Venus in Fur‘. Seasoned actors Lea DiMarchi and Atticus Shaindlin bring this provocative play to life, delving into themes of submission and sadomasochism like never before.
“My first reaction when reading ‘Venus in Fur’ was discomfort, even bewilderment,” says DiMarchi who, in her past, performed in David Mamet’s controversial ‘Oleanna’. “There was also excitement as it deals with such heavy topics. So it scared me a little bit as I haven’t dealt with such issues of sexuality and power dynamics in the past.”
Like DiMarchi, Shaindlin too was thrilled by the challenges of the text.
“This was a real page-turner from the start, because there is so much tension – the building of suspense – created by David Ives throughout the play,” he says. “You spend the entire show waiting for that tension to snap. So, you can’t wait to work on this with creative people to collaborate with in a curious, but sensitive way.”
For more information and tickets, visit brtstage.org
