How Men Crumbled: Arena’s "Kleptocracy" and Ford’s "Twelve Angry Men," reviewed.

Christopher Geary is Vladimir Putin in Kenneth Lin’s world-premiere at Arena Stage. (C. Stanley Photography)

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something... something. In this week's Washington City Paper, I review Kleptocracy, an imperfect but intriguing Vladimir Putin origin story by Kenneth Lin at Arena Stage, starring the guy in the cast who looks the second-most Putinlike as Putin. Plus a puzzling new production of Twelve Angry Men at Ford's.

No Jacket Required, Apparently: Talking Death of a Salesman, In the Heights, and The Wild Party on Around Town

You can see for yourself what a business-casual mood I was in the day Robert Aubry Davis, Jane Horwitz, and I convened at WETA to shoot a fresh batch of Around Town segments. Perhaps you are correct that I should have chosen a shirt that is not the same shade as our studio backdrop. Hey, I don't tell you how to do your part-time job.

I reviewed Ford's Death of a Salesman and Constellation's The Wild Party for the Washington City Paper. For In the Heights, the musical I herein refer to as "Lin-Manuel Miranda's THX-1138," I didn't write about it. I just bought four more tickets the morning after to take my folks.

There're Two Things About Mary: The Widow Lincoln and Mary Stuart, reviewed.

Mary Bacon & Caroline Clay as Mary Todd Lincoln and Elizabeth Keckley in The Widow Lincoln.

My reviews of The Widow Lincoln, a world premiere play from writer James Still at Ford's Theatre, and of the Folger Theatre's new production of Mary Stuart, are in tomorrow's Washington City Paper, and also right here.

FURTHER READING: My review of Still's prior Lincoln play for Ford's, The Heavens Are Hung in Black, from 2009. And my 2010 review of WSC Avant Bard's Mary Stuart.