Brief Encounter presented by The Shakespeare Theatre Company at Michael R. Klein Theatre

Brief Encounter

Michael R. Klein Theatre
450 7th Street NW Washington

The lives and loves of three couples are played out in a train station using the words (some newly set to original music) and familiar songs of Coward's to create a breathtaking, funny and tear-inducing show with live musicians on stage and characters jumping in and out of film screens. Brief Encounter is an exquisite celebration of that cinema classic, staged in an immersive fashion that's unlike anything an audience has experienced before.

Presented by The Shakespeare Theatre Company

Thru - Apr 13, 2014

Show Times TBA

Price: $30 - $75

Show Type: Comedy/Drama

Box Office: 202-547-1122

Running Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes, no intermission

www.ShakespeareTheatre.org

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Brief Encounter Reviews

Average Rating based on 5 reviews

Highly Recommended
Recommended
Somewhat Recommended
Not Recommended

Washington Post - Recommended

"...You can’t believe how full of surprises it is. The show, which has toured the world since emerging in 2008 at Cornwall’s highly regarded Kneehigh company, acts a little slapdash from the moment you enter the lobby. There, actors in 1938 railway staff outfits sing vintage songs and play instruments that include a ukulele and spoons."

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- Nelson Pressley

DC Theater Arts - Highly Recommended

"...This escapist, eclectic comedy from the Cornish troupe Kneehigh meshes film clips, live theater and patron complicity as never before. The actors greet you in the lobby beforehand — minstrel musicians dressed as cheeky ushers playing the banjo, ukulele, stand-up bass and, yay, SPOONS — and they carry their jazzy street jive into the theater. Melodramatic matinee idols leap from the house seats onto the stage and literally through the silver screen, breaking down not only the fourth wall but any precepts that we aren’t also the guilty party. And that’s only the start of some hanging-from-the-chandeliers fun."

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- Terry Byrne

Washingtonian - Highly Recommended

"...Brief Encounter is a satisfying 90 minutes, thanks both to the skilled performances from the cast (Mrs. Baggott’s fake bottom deserves a credit of its own) and the sheer inventiveness with which Rice and Kneehigh approach theater. This is the kind of show that tests the boundaries of what can be done on a stage, and makes you wonder why more productions aren’t as imaginative."

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- Sophie Gilbert

MD Theatre Guide - Highly Recommended

"...Animated by a company of extraordinarily talented performers, Brief Encounter delights with the depth and resonance of its ensemble work. Indeed, at the recent Summit on Theatre at Arena Stage, DC actors lamented the demise of resident companies in Washington theatre and watching the Kneehigh theatre company reminds us why. With a style as crisp as Noel Coward’s lyrics, the artistry and precision of this world-class company dazzles its audience with every hip swivel, eye twitch, lip pucker, and swoon."

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- Elizabeth Bruce

DCTheatreScene - Highly Recommended

I found I was enjoying the style and the sense of humor of Brief Encounter the way I had enjoyed, say, Moonrise Kingdom. Fans of Anderson (and that sort of indie movie in general) who don’t generally go to the theatre might join more traditional audiences (and Noël Coward aficionados) in appreciating Brief Encounter. As will film buffs who recall the movie Brief Encounter, or even just the era when, as one of the characters says before going to the movies, we always loved getting lost in the dark.

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- Christopher Henley

Brief Encounter presented by The Shakespeare Theatre Company at Michael R. Klein Theatre

Brief Encounter

Brief Encounter Reviews

Washington Post - Recommended

DC Theater Arts - Highly Recommended

Washingtonian - Highly Recommended

MD Theatre Guide - Highly Recommended

DCTheatreScene - Highly Recommended

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