Cutting Ball Theater

George Saulnier and Virginia Blanco appear in Cutting Ball Theater’s cleverly staged “Uncle Vanya.” (Courtesy Ben Krantz/ Cutting Ball Theater)

An unhappy family comes to life in Cutting Ball’s ‘Uncle Vanya’

The plays of late-19th-century Russian writer Anton Chekhov are so rich with…

 

Brennan Pickman-Thoon, giving a toast at center, plays the title character in The Cutting Ball Theater’s effective “Timon of Athens.” (Courtesy Liz Olson)

Shakespeare’s ‘Timon of Athens’ remarkably timely

“Timon of Athens” is so seldom performed, theatergoers seeing it for the…

 

Britney Frazier plays the title character in The Cutting Ball Theater’s “Hedda Gabler.” (Courtesy Liz Olson)

Cutting Ball’s iconoclastic ‘Hedda’ confuses

Audiences of “Hedda Gabler” at Cutting Ball Theater might think that director…

 

COURTESY CHASE RAMSEYFrom left

Cutting Ball's ‘Mount Misery’ a timely, funny take on politics

Former U.S. defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld gets hoisted on his own petard…

COURTESY CHASE RAMSEYFrom left
COURTESY CHASE RAMSEYFrom left

Sophocles gets uneven update in Cutting Ball’s ‘Antigone’

“Remember, we’re women,” Ismene tells her sister, Antigone. Her warning, coming minutes…

COURTESY CHASE RAMSEYFrom left
COURTESY TATIANA KARPEKINAFrom left

Cutting Ball goes wild with ‘Ubu Roi’

Alfred Jarry’s 1896 satire “Ubu Roi” begins, famously, with Ubu shrieking “Merdre!”…

COURTESY TATIANA KARPEKINAFrom left
Courtesy PhotoWiley Naman Strasser

‘Krispy Kritters’ is chaotic, confounding

Why is “Krispy Kritters,” in the title of resident playwright Andrew Saito’s…

Courtesy PhotoWiley Naman Strasser
COURTESY PHOTOOdd couple: David Sinaiko and Tamar Cohn are superb in Cutting Ball Theater’s “The Chairs

Cutting Ball’s ‘Chairs’ a new absurdist classic

Cutting Ball Theater’s current staging of mid-20th-century French playwright Eugene Ionesco’s “The…

COURTESY PHOTOOdd couple: David Sinaiko and Tamar Cohn are superb in Cutting Ball Theater’s “The Chairs
Courtesy PhotoVivid portrayal: James Carpenter is mesmerizing in Cutting Ball Theater’s production of Strindberg’s “The Ghost Sonata.”

Cutting Ball starts Strindberg cycle with panache

“It’s all a little complicated,” says the Old Man (James Carpenter) to…

Courtesy PhotoVivid portrayal: James Carpenter is mesmerizing in Cutting Ball Theater’s production of Strindberg’s “The Ghost Sonata.”
courtesy photoPeople in the neighborhood: Rebecca Frank and David Sinaiko portray community activists in Cutting Ball Theater’s evocative “Tenderloin.”

Cutting Ball Theater’s ‘Tenderloin’ digs deep

For many San Franciscans, the Tenderloin is a place to pass through…

courtesy photoPeople in the neighborhood: Rebecca Frank and David Sinaiko portray community activists in Cutting Ball Theater’s evocative “Tenderloin.”
COURTESY PHOTOCompelling and confusing: From left

'Tontlawald' a freaky, fractured folktale

In the Estonian folktale upon which Cutting Ball Theater’s new experimental piece…

COURTESY PHOTOCompelling and confusing: From left
Forbidden love: Pelleas (Joshua Schell) and Melisande (Caitlyn Louchard) search for her missing ring in Cutting Ball Theater’s provocative production of “Pelleas & Melisande.” (Courtesy photo)Forbidden love: Pelleas (Joshua Schell) and Melisande (Caitlyn Louchard) search for her missing ring in Cutting Ball Theater’s provocative production of “Pelleas & Melisande.” (Courtesy photo)

Cutting Ball Theater’s mesmerizing ‘Pelleas & Melisande’

We’ve come to expect rare revivals of 20th-century plays, original translations from…

Forbidden love: Pelleas (Joshua Schell) and Melisande (Caitlyn Louchard) search for her missing ring in Cutting Ball Theater’s provocative production of “Pelleas & Melisande.” (Courtesy photo)Forbidden love: Pelleas (Joshua Schell) and Melisande (Caitlyn Louchard) search for her missing ring in Cutting Ball Theater’s provocative production of “Pelleas & Melisande.” (Courtesy photo)

Keeping the ball in the air

With more than 300 theater companies in the Bay Area, surviving, let…