Email Author Ronald Mangravite

2002 Stories by Ronald Mangravite

• Kinda Blue

  published December 19, 2002

  This season has seen its share of family dramas that playwrights keep reinventing to good theatrical effect. One recent incarnation is Charles... More >>

• Wild Kingdom

  published December 12, 2002

  Theater has always had a rabble-rousing role at the margins of society. Plato mistrusted poets and art in general. Aeschylus got himself exiled... More >>

• 'Tis the Tradition Season

  published December 5, 2002

  The two faces of theater, as most everyone knows, are the masks of tragedy and comedy. But perhaps a better bifurcation would be between the... More >>

• Out of the Chute

  published November 28, 2002

  Broadway musicals and rodeo bull riding are more similar than you might think. Trying to ride a rodeo bull basically means two things. First, you... More >>

• In the Company of Bad

  published November 21, 2002

  When a play by Neil LaBute hits town, any town, the specifics of the production usually take a back seat to the force of the writer's personality.... More >>

• Lost in Space

  published November 14, 2002

  Picture this: You have been invited to a party on a dark night in a strange neighborhood, and you have no idea how to get there. The host offers... More >>

• Family: The Drama

  published November 7, 2002

  Ah, the dysfunctional family. We all have one or know one, and playwrights seem to know a lot of them. Feuding families have been with us at least... More >>

• Tumbling Dice

  published October 31, 2002

  When you go to a Mad Cat show, ya rolls yer dice and ya takes yer chances. The risk-taking theater ensemble in downtown Miami makes sure that the... More >>

• Magical Lyricism

  published October 24, 2002

  As any wine lover can tell you, an excellent vintage is really two wines in one. When first opened, it may have a lovely, fresh bouquet and a... More >>

• Ironic Potential

  published October 17, 2002

  There has been a lot of talk lately about the so-called Law of Unintended Consequences: that any course of action will produce an array of... More >>

• Lightly Seasoned

  published October 10, 2002

  One of the fascinating oddities of theater in South Florida is the offbeat locations where it turns up. Local theater companies are found in some... More >>

• Sorry, Guys

  published October 3, 2002

  Theater in South Florida was once the realm of musicals and light comedies, with dramas mighty scarce. Now the scene features theater of all kinds... More >>

• No Great Shakes

  published September 26, 2002

  The last time I dropped by the Mosaic Theatre in Plantation last season, the company was presenting Someone Who'll Watch Over Me, a... More >>

• We All Scream for Gay Theme

  published September 12, 2002

  I know. Life is a struggle sometimes: You're faced with traffic gridlock, work overload, relationship limbo. But cheer up: At least you're not... More >>

• Souled to Hell

  published August 29, 2002

  In Tom Walker, a new play at the New Theatre, a very old story is given a modern twist. The devil appears to the title character, dupes... More >>

• Next Onstage ...

  published August 22, 2002

  For most South Floridians, late summer means numbing heat, hurricanes, and back-to-school specials. But for those astute and lucky New... More >>

• Critic's Notebook

  published August 15, 2002

  After two months in chilly London, I must say that sultry Florida feels good. And propelled by a notebook full of observations from UK theater, it... More >>

• Letter from London

  published July 25, 2002

  Anyone looking for the theatrical capital of the world will unquestionably end that search here in London, where a strong theatrical tradition has... More >>

• Whose Sinatra?

  published June 13, 2002

  Beware of backhanded compliments. If you heed the critics and the advance press, you might have heard that the Stage Door Theatre's Our... More >>

• Table Talk

  published June 6, 2002

  In the end is a beginning, as the saying goes. And so it is with Apartment 3A, a romantic comedy with a Hollywood ending that marks a... More >>

• Ramblin' Women

  published May 23, 2002

  What a difference a week makes. In the last issue of New Times, Florida Stage in Manalapan was lauded as the Best Theater in South Florida.... More >>

• Crime Always Plays

  published May 16, 2002

  Murder mystery alert: Some devilish scheming and startling plot twists are lying in wait for unsuspecting audiences in Murderer, which... More >>

• Girl Gangs Rule

  published May 9, 2002

  At first glance, you wouldn't think there's much in common between the ragtag Mad Cat Theatre Company in dirty downtown Miami and the stylish... More >>

• Shticks and Psalms

  published May 2, 2002

  Most everyone knows the two masks of the theater: the sorrowful mask of tragedy and the gleeful one of comedy. Tragedy (or at least drama) is... More >>

• From Klezmer to Classics

  published April 18, 2002

  What's your pleasure, the sizzle or the steak? The Coconut Grove Playhouse offers both in its latest production, a musical revue called The... More >>