Arts & Entertainment
Shadows of war
Compelling character study crackles at Signature
‘Dying City’
Signature Theatre
Through Nov. 25
4200 Campbell Ave.,
Arlington, VA
$39-$75
703-820-9771
Rachel Zampelli as Kelly and Thomas Keegan as Peter in ‘Dying City,’ a charged drama playing at Signature through Nov. 25. (Photo by Scott Suchman, courtesy Signature Theatre)
In gay playwright Christopher Shinn’s quietly compelling “Dying City” (now making its D.C. premier in a smart, effective production at Signature Theatre), a trio of young characters negotiate emotional battlefields in the shadow of the Iraq War.
Set in New York, far from Baghdad, the play begins with Kelly (an aptly reserved Rachel Zampelli) watching TV alone in her comfortable New York City apartment (compliments of set designer Daniel Conway) when suddenly she receives an unexpected and not wholly welcomed evening visitor. It’s Peter (Thomas Keegan), the identical twin brother of her late husband Craig, a Harvard graduate student who was killed the previous year during military service in Iraq. Kelly and Peter haven’t spoken since the funeral.
A successful Hollywood actor in town doing theater (O’Neill’s classic portrait of family dysfunction, “Long Day’s Journey Into Night”), Peter is all ingratiating charm as he coaxes Kelly, a therapist, to talk about their shared loss. Guarded and at times visibly anguished, Kelly reluctantly enters into conversation. Together, they revisit the night before Craig’s departure for training camp in Georgia, the murky circumstances surrounding his death and their disparate backgrounds (Kelly’s rich parents were emotionally absent, the twins’ father was a violent Vietnam vet and their mother held ambitions for her sons to escape the confines of their modest Midwestern upbringing).
An intimate play, “Dying City” is ideal for the Ark, Signature’s smaller black box. The fast-paced drama’s action alternates between Peter and Kelly’s strained visit and flashback scenes involving Kelly and Craig (also played by brawny Keegan). This casting trick requires a lot of quick exits and entrances. Fortunately, gay director Matthew Gardiner’s shrewd staging along with Colin K. Bills’ lighting and Matt Rowe’s transporting sound design make time travel smooth and not the least bit hokey. By changing shirts and adding a little swagger, Keegan morphs from the more effusive, self-absorbed Peter to his butcher, more reticent straight brother Craig.
Slowly, Kelly becomes more comfortable. The in-laws are getting along. Conversation strays to backstage gossip and the latest on Peter’s tumultuous love life. But when Peter unexpectedly pulls out a cache of beautifully crafted emails sent to him from Craig while in Iraq, the intentions of Peter’s visit become suspect. While both Kelly and Peter have always dismissed the Iraq War as destructive and senseless adventure, the once pro-war Craig demonstrates in his eloquent missives that during the last days of his life, he joined the anti-war ranks with his brother and wife. Other revelatory passages (but less well-received by Kelly) come to light as well. Layers of truths and untruths, and who knew what when, are explored.
Since her husband’s death, Kelly spends a lot of time holed up at home watching TIVOed episodes of “Law and Order.” After seeing scores of episodes, she has figured out the secret to the cop show’s success: Kelly believes that people find comfort in the idea being remembered after their death. We like the notion that if we’re murdered, a team of detectives and forensic experts will convene to remember us and give closure. Nothing about Craig’s death has been neatly closed. And while Kelly’s future is uncertain, she seems to be getting stronger.
Theater
Out dancer on Alvin Ailey’s stint at Warner Theatre
10-day production marks kickoff of national tour
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Through Feb. 8
Warner Theatre
513 12th St., N.W.
Tickets start at $75
ailey.org
The legendary Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is coming to Washington’s Warner Theatre, and one of its principal veterans couldn’t be more pleased. Out dancer Renaldo Maurice is eager to be a part of the company’s 10-day stint, the kickoff of a national tour that extends through early May.
“I love the respectful D.C. crowd and they love us,” says Maurice, a member of esteemed modern dance company for 15 years. The traveling tour is made of two programs and different casting with Ailey’s masterwork “Revelations” in both programs.
Recently, we caught up with Maurice via phone. He called from one of the quiet rooms in his New York City gym where he’s getting his body ready for the long Ailey tour.
Based in North Newark, N.J., where he recently bought a house, Maurice looks forward to being on the road: “I enjoy the rigorous performance schedule, classes, shows, gym, and travel. It’s all part of carving out a lane for myself and my future and what that looks like.”
Raised by a single mother of three in Gary, Ind., Maurice, 33, first saw Alvin Ailey as a young kid in the Auditorium Theatre in downtown Chicago, the same venue where he’s performed with the company as a professional dancer.
He credits his mother with his success: “She’s a real dance mom. I would not be the man or artist I am today if it weren’t for the grooming and discipline of my mom. Support and encouragement. It’s impacted my artistry and my adulthood.”
Maurice is also part of the New York Ballroom scene, an African-American and Latin underground LGBTQ+ subculture where ball attendees “walk” in a variety of categories (like “realness,” “fashion,” and “sex siren”) for big prizes. He’s known as the Legendary Overall Father of the Haus of Alpha Omega.
WASHINGTON BLADE: Like many gay men of his era, Ailey lived a largely closeted public life before his death from AIDS-related complications in 1989.
RENALDO MAURICE Not unusual for a Black gay man born during the Depression in Rogers, Texas, who’s striving to break out in the industry to be a creative. You want to be respected and heard. Black man, and Black man who dances, and you may be same-sex gender loving too. It was a lot, especially at that time.
BLADE: Ailey has been described as intellectual, humble, and graceful. He possessed strength. He knew who he was and what stories he wanted to tell.
MAURICE: Definitely, he wanted to concentrate on sharing and telling stories. What kept him going was his art. Ailey wanted dancers to live their lives and express that experience on stage. That way people in the audience could connect with them. It’s incredibly powerful that you can touch people by moving your body.
That’s partly what’s so special about “Revelations,” his longest running ballet and a fan favorite that’s part of the upcoming tour. Choreographed by Alvin Ailey in 1960, it’s a modern dance work that honors African-American cultural heritage through themes of grief, joy, and faith.
BLADE: Is “Revelation” a meaningful piece for you?
MAURICE: It’s my favorite piece. I saw it as a kid and now perform it as a professional dance artist. I’ve grown into the role since I was 20 years old.
BLADE: How can a dancer in a prestigious company also be a ballroom house father?
MAURICE: I’ve made it work. I learned how to navigate and separate. I’m a principal dancer with Ailey. And I take that seriously. But I’m also a house father and I take that seriously as well.
I’m about positivity, unity, and hard work. In ballroom you compete and if you’re not good, you can get chopped. You got to work on your craft and come back harder. It’s the same with dance.
BLADE: Any message for queer audiences?
MAURICE: I know my queer brothers and sisters love to leave with something good. If you come to any Ailey performance you’ll be touched, your spirit will be uplifted. There’s laughter, thoughtful and tender moments. And it’s all delivered by artists who are passionate about what they do.
BLADE: Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of your life. Thoughts on that?
MAURICE: I’m a believer in it takes a village. Hard work and discipline. I take it seriously and I love what I do. Ailey has provided me with a lot: world travel, a livelihood, and working with talented people here and internationally. Alvin Ailey has been a huge part of my life from boyhood to now. It’s been great.
Catfish Comedy will host “2026 Queer Kickoff Show” on Thursday, Feb. 5 at A League of Her Own (2319 18th Street, N.W.). This show features D.C.’s funniest LGBTQ and femme comedians. The lineup features performers who regularly take the stage at top clubs like DC Improv and Comedy Loft, with comics who tour nationally.
Tickets are $17.85 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
Arts & Entertainment
Catherine O’Hara, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ star and celebrated queer ally, dies at 71
Actress remembered for memorable comedic roles in ‘Beetlejuice’ and ‘Home Alone’
Catherine O’Hara, the varied comedic actor known for memorable roles in “Beetlejuice,” “Schitt’s Creek,” and “Home Alone,” has died at 71 on Friday, according to multiple reports. No further details about her death were revealed.
O’Hara’s death comes as a shock to Hollywood, as the Emmy award-winning actor has been recently active, with roles in both “The Studio” and “The Last of Us.” For her work in those two shows, she received Emmy nominations for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series and outstanding guest actress in a drama series.
In 2020, O’Hara won the Outstanding Lead Actress in a comedy series award for her work in the celebrated sixth and final season of “Schitt’s Creek.” She was also known as a queer ally and icon for her theatrical and often campy performances over multiple decades. In “Schitt’s Creek,” she played Moira Rose, the wig-loving mother of David Rose (played by series creator Dan Levy). David is pansexual, but the characters around him simply accept him for who he is; the show was embraced by the LGBTQ community with how naturally David’s sexuality was written and portrayed. That show ran from 2015 to 2020 and helped bring O’Hara and her co-stars into a new phase of their careers.
In a 2019 interview with the Gay Times, O’Hara explained why the show got LGBTQ representation right: “Daniel has created a world that he wants to live in, that I want to live in. It’s ridiculous that we live in a world where we don’t know how to respect each other and let each other be. It’s crazy. Other shows should follow suit and present the world and present humans as the best that we can be. It doesn’t mean you can’t laugh, that you can’t be funny in light ways and dark ways. It’s all still possible when you respect and love each other.”
Additional credits include “SCTV Network” (for which O’Hara won a writing Emmy), “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Six Feet Under,” “Best in Show,” “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” and “Dick Tracy.” O’Hara also lent her voice to “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” “Chicken Little,” “Monster House,” and “Elemental.” O’Hara was expected to return for Season 2 of “The Studio,” which started filming earlier this month.
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