This weekend, I spent two nights in a row at The Crane Theater, seeing two completely different shows. Friday night I saw a spooky pair of short plays, Ghoulish Delights'
Bonehouse / Outsider, in the small studio space, and on Saturday I went back to see a new work by nimbus theatre, who owns/operates the space, in the main theater. nimbus almost exclusively does new work, often developed by the ensemble. Their newest work,
The Brontide, was born out of an idea by co-Artistic Director Mitchell Frazier and company member Ernest Briggs (who also co-direct). An idea about stories, who tells them, who needs to hear them, who owns them. The result, by playwright Josh Cragun (another co-Artistic Director) is a modern and fantastical story about a tech company mogul who tries to buy up all of the stories in the world, and the scientist and filmmaker who try to stop him. As if often the case with new work, it could use a bit of editing and tightening up, but there are some interesting and relevant ideas discussed, and some great performances.
The Brontide continues through June 9,
Bonehouse / Outsider closes on May 25, and Skylark Opera Theatre's production of the Sondheim revue
Marry Me A Little opens at the Crane on June 20.
