American Repertory Theater

Named ?one of the top three theatres in the country? by Time magazine, this world-renown drama house has been associated with Harvard for twenty-eight years. Its dramatic works ? which have won the Tony Award and the Pulitzer Prize ? have featured premieres by luminaries such as Don DeLillo, David Mamet and Robert Wilson. And the resident company includes Oscar-nominated movie stars Marisa Tomei and Debra Winger. A.R.T. features new American plays, updated productions of the classics, and music/theater hybrids like ?The Onion Cellar? with the punk duo, the Dresden Dolls. Their avant-garde plays are also infused with modern technology, marked by video projections, over-the-top music and arresting visuals. New and old clash in their unconventional productions - their interpretation of Samuel Beckett's Endgame angered the author by setting the play in a subway. The artistic staff teaches Harvard undergraduate classes in acting, playwriting and directing. Located at the 556-seat Loeb Drama Center at Brattle Street, A.R.T. also recently opened the Zero Arrow Theatre in Harvard Square for dramas that appeal to a younger audience. more

The two female leads overacted throughout the play, exhibiting no variation in tone or inflection, and movement-wise best described as inoffensive. Yelena yelled monotonously through almost every single line. The male actors, especially Uncle Vanya, were better. But the production as a whole projected the bizzare feeling of puritan evangelicism. Aside from the apt portrayal of Uncle Vanya, none of the other characters exhibited any of the repressed stoicism that I had expected from a Checkhov play. The set looks like the inside of a tavern -- right out of Robert Rodriguez's Desperado. In the second half, you began to think that the production would be redeemed by a very clever ending-- ending on a dramatic climax. But, alas, it is not the end. And the audience is forced to sit in confusion through more bad acting. Pros: Student Discount, Nice Atmosphere, Convenient Location Cons: Horrible Acting, Over Directing, Odd Interpretation more