Author: Tarra Gaines

Dinner of Doom: 4th Wall opens its final season with Ayad Akhtar’s Disgraced

Great drama is seldom blatantly didactic, but on occasion theater does gift us with certain…

Glam Makeover: The Hidden Room’s <em>Henry IV</em> in Austin

September 11, 2017

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Austin

Glam Makeover: The Hidden Room’s Henry IV in Austin

Shakespeare, politics, glam rock: these are not terms we often put together, if ever, yet…

Creating Literary Sparks: Inprint’s Authors Reflect Houston’s Diversity

August 11, 2017

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Books

Creating Literary Sparks: Inprint’s Authors Reflect Houston’s Diversity

Inprint, Houston’s literary arts organization, flies like a rare book bird among other Texas arts…

Sister Tarra Goes to Horse Head’s <em>Church</em>

August 8, 2017

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Sister Tarra Goes to Horse Head’s Church

Beloved Brothers and Sisters, I bid you welcome to this Church review, and I ask…

June 20, 2017

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Rec Room’s Punk New Season

“What the heck is a Rec Room?” was the question I set out to answer…

Full Season Ahead for Houston’s Horse Head Theatre

June 15, 2017

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Full Season Ahead for Houston’s Horse Head Theatre

Houston’s Horse Head Theatre company has a reputation for staging intriguing and occasional avant-garde contemporary…

Unwiring from War: <em>Cry Havoc </em>at Houston’s 4th Wall Theatre

May 19, 2017

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Unwiring from War: Cry Havoc at Houston’s 4th Wall Theatre

Can performing Shakespeare become a form of therapy that allows actor and audience to find…

Tragic Puzzles: <em>Luna Gale</em> at Stages Repertory Theatre

May 17, 2017

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Tragic Puzzles: Luna Gale at Stages Repertory Theatre

With a quick glance at the synopsis, playwright Rebecca Gilman’s Luna Gale, now at Stages…

A New Beginning: The Ensemble premieres Melda Beaty’s <em>Front Porch Society</em>

May 9, 2017

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A New Beginning: The Ensemble premieres Melda Beaty’s Front Porch Society

Long before Facebook and Twitter, neighbors exchanged information about the real lives of people making…

Big Dreams: Discovering Latina/o Theater in Texas

April 26, 2017

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Big Dreams: Discovering Latina/o Theater in Texas

What do we mean when we talk about Latina/o theater in Texas? This was the…

Ancient Roads: <em>Shank’s Mare</em> at Asia Society Texas Center

April 24, 2017

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Culture

Ancient Roads: Shank’s Mare at Asia Society Texas Center

The metaphor that life is a journey, a road we trek, and the decisions we…

A Storied <em>Snow White</em> comes to Catastrophic Theatre

March 22, 2017

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A Storied Snow White comes to Catastrophic Theatre

Once upon a time—a strange, tumultuous time called the 1960s—there lived a storyteller named Donald…

The Arts Matter: The 2017 Texas Medal of Arts Awards

March 19, 2017

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Culture

The Arts Matter: The 2017 Texas Medal of Arts Awards

Very few artists create in a cultural or political vacuum, and some of the greatest…

Borders, Ritual and Awesomeness: Five Days of Fusebox

March 19, 2017

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Art

Borders, Ritual and Awesomeness: Five Days of Fusebox

Fusebox, Austin’s contemporary, cross-disciplinary visual and performing arts festival, and all round benevolent force in…

Houston’s Landing Company finds a home at the Docks

February 10, 2017

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Houston’s Landing Company finds a home at the Docks

Like its hometown, the Landing Theatre was born on the banks of Buffalo Bayou and…

Dangerous Journey Through Childhood: National Theatre of Scotland’s <em>Let The Right One In</em> Comes to Texas

January 17, 2017

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Online Exclusives

Dangerous Journey Through Childhood: National Theatre of Scotland’s Let The Right One In Comes to Texas

Depicting the everyday wonders and occasional psychological horrors of childhood and adolescence on stage and…

On Book: Readings Take Center Stage in Houston

November 21, 2016

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On Book: Readings Take Center Stage in Houston

Scene: a bare stage anywhere—in a theater, a rehearsal hall, even on an outdoor platform…

Judging Judgement of Fools at Horse Head Theatre

November 3, 2016

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Reviews

Judging Judgement of Fools at Horse Head Theatre

I’m judging you, Fool.

Wonder & A Whale: Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer Transform American Classics into Opera

October 24, 2016

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Dallas/Ft Worth

Wonder & A Whale: Jake Heggie and Gene Scheer Transform American Classics into Opera

This November, Moby-Dick journeys safely back to its home port, as the Dallas Opera once…

Power Study: Main Street Theater’s Rebecca Greene Udden on <em>Wolf Hall</em>

October 20, 2016

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Power Study: Main Street Theater’s Rebecca Greene Udden on Wolf Hall

This month, Houston’s Main Street Theater becomes the first U.S regional company to attempt the…

New Theater New Audiences: Lott Entertainment Presents Moves to the Alley

October 17, 2016

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New Theater New Audiences: Lott Entertainment Presents Moves to the Alley

A year ago, Lott Entertainment Presents, introduced Houston to cabaret and theatrical performances rarely seen…

Stephanie Wittels Wachs and Matt Hune Launch the Rec Room

September 26, 2016

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Stephanie Wittels Wachs and Matt Hune Launch the Rec Room

Though only two months old, Houston’s latest performing arts venue, the Rec Room, has established…

Deep Woods & The Courage To Question: <em>De Kus (The Kiss)</em> at Stages Repertory Theatre

September 26, 2016

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Deep Woods & The Courage To Question: De Kus (The Kiss) at Stages Repertory Theatre

A woman takes a walk through the woods. She travels with a destination weighing heavy…

Bare Bones Shaw: <em>Bedlam</em> Comes to Stark Naked

May 23, 2016

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Bare Bones Shaw: Bedlam Comes to Stark Naked

This summer, Houston drama-lovers need to brace themselves for bedlam— stark naked bedlam that is,…

Digital Detectives Probe a Dystopian Future in <em>The Nether</em> at the Alley

May 19, 2016

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Digital Detectives Probe a Dystopian Future in The Nether at the Alley

A cop and suspect stare at each other from across a table in a stark…

Wrestling on the Blue Carpet: Nancy and Tarra on <em>The Christians</em> at the Alley

May 4, 2016

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Wrestling on the Blue Carpet: Nancy and Tarra on The Christians at the Alley

Arts + Culture editor Nancy Wozny and Houston theater writer Tarra Gaines take a break…

This Page Left Intentionally Blank or Not: Big Dance Theater at CounterCurrent

April 27, 2016

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Art

This Page Left Intentionally Blank or Not: Big Dance Theater at CounterCurrent

“Don’t look at that. That’s not part of the tour,” is a phrase used by…

Caught up in the Action: The Audience Gets To Work on Texas Stages

April 10, 2016

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Caught up in the Action: The Audience Gets To Work on Texas Stages

As adults, we understand the classic theater relationship between play and audience.

March 21, 2016

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Rude Mechs Take Texas (for a Change)

Whether they’re airily dodging swinging theatrical lights or brawling in the melted cheese of an…

Albee on Edge: A Visceral Virginia Woolf at Stark Naked

March 7, 2016

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Albee on Edge: A Visceral Virginia Woolf at Stark Naked

The morning after seeing Stark Naked Theatre’s new production of Edward Albee’s classic marriage horror…

Virginia Grise’s Poetic Manifesto at Meca Performing Arts

March 6, 2016

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Virginia Grise’s Poetic Manifesto at Meca Performing Arts

Your Healing Is Killing Me, written and performed by award-winning New York and San Antonio…

Privilege & Unnamed Anxiety at Work in <em>Straight White Men</em> at Stages

February 19, 2016

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Privilege & Unnamed Anxiety at Work in Straight White Men at Stages

Four straight, white men walk into a rumpus room somewhere in suburban America. This isn’t…

Merging Music & Literature: A <em>Proust Sonata</em> at Da Camera

February 2, 2016

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Film

Merging Music & Literature: A Proust Sonata at Da Camera

Sarah Rothenberg, artistic director of Da Camera and Houston’s great maestro of performances that blend…

Love and Loss: <em>The Bridges of Madison County</em> at TUTS

January 22, 2016

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Love and Loss: The Bridges of Madison County at TUTS

I might very well be the last American woman over the age of 25 who…

December 18, 2015

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Becoming Nannerl: The Other Mozart

The story begins with a portrait by Johann Nepomuk della Croce of a family: father,…

The Rat King has Spoken: Holiday Foes Pick Faves

November 20, 2015

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Dance

The Rat King has Spoken: Holiday Foes Pick Faves

I was blindfolded, thrown into a car and driven for hours before we reached their…

Tumbling Through Time and Memory: Sharr White’s The Other Place at the Alley Theatre

November 2, 2015

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Tumbling Through Time and Memory: Sharr White’s The Other Place at the Alley Theatre

Somewhat lost amid all the hullabaloo and celebrations surrounding the Alley Theatre’s grand reopening and…

Ringside Emotional Head Butt: Stages Repertory Theatre’s The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity

October 20, 2015

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Ringside Emotional Head Butt: Stages Repertory Theatre’s The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity

I have a (admittedly unoriginal) theory that sooner or later, no matter what the perceived…

October 16, 2015

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Song of Houston: Story of HGOco

In the September world premiere of O Columbia, the new chamber opera from HGOco, a…

September 8, 2015

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Shadow Tale: BooTown’s White Raven

Shadow puppetry is one of the most ancient forms of dramatic storytelling, and a kind…