The Year of Magical Thinking at Arena Stage

The Year of Magical Thinking

Arena Stage
1101 Sixth Street, SW Washington

There is no way to avoid tragedy, loss or their aftermath. Yet we still hope that when faced with inescapable grief, something miraculous can emerge to ease our pain and guide us back to the joy of life. Few writers have experienced loss so suddenly and profoundly — or chronicled it as beautifully — as Joan Didion. Based on her award-winning memoir, The Year of Magical Thinking follows the iconic American author, portrayed by Kathleen Turner (Mother Courage and Her Children), as she learns to reconcile the natural instincts that drive us to bargain with the universal forces that giveth and taketh away.

Thru - Nov 20, 2016

Tuesdays: 7:30pm

Wednesdays: 7:30pm

Thursdays: 8:00pm

Fridays: 8:00pm

Saturdays: 2:00pm

Sundays: 2:00pm & 7:30pm

Price: $50

Box Office: 202-488-3300

www.arenastage.com

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The Year of Magical Thinking Reviews

Average Rating based on 5 reviews

Highly Recommended
Recommended
Somewhat Recommended
Not Recommended

Washington Post - Recommended

"...The tragic stack of colossally awful luck in "Magical Thinking" - the enormity of it - does line up in some fundamental way with Turner's inescapable strength. With her unfathomably deep and raspy voice, she sounds like she's getting through a lifetime of long nights. Reliving the anguish is understandable, but Turner is most effective when she takes Didion's analytical stance and just lets flow the innate worldliness she's flaunted since she first hit the scene in "Body Heat." Tell it, sister."

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- Nelson Pressley

MetroWeekly - Highly Recommended

"...If Turner does not seem quite the woman who made cozy fires against the cold California nights, she does bring Didion’s fight. With her commanding presence and gravelly poet’s voice, Turner finds the rhythms and cycles in this exploration, drawing out with clarity Didion’s home truths, her anger, her struggle with unanswerable questions. Whether as theatrical feat or in doing spiritual justice to Didion’s book, it is wholly, engagingly real."

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- Kate Wingfield

MD Theatre Guide - Recommended

"...Ms. Turner's performance brings out moments of genuine humor and strength. Her voice has always been powerful. Didion writes that her husband's doctor called her a "cool customer;" Ms. Turner is certainly that. Her performance is honest and unforced. But her strong voice cracks and the pain pushing up against her intellectual exterior is palpable throughout, and at times pushes through."

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- Mike Crowley

DCTheatreScene - Not Recommended

"...If Didion were not such a masterful author, this show may fare better. But the fact is, every single flaw has an easy solution: Read the book instead."

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- Marshall Bradshaw

BroadwayWorld - Recommended

"...The one-person play continues to be a wonder to witness - how does one keep all of this in mind with the lack of cues and give and take that's provided by other cast members? For Turner, the nightly telling must be something of a ritual incantation as well - telling oneself a truth over and over as a reminder and a guidepost (the actress lost her own mother last year)."

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- Roger Catlin

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The Year of Magical Thinking at Arena Stage