Desperate Measures at Source

Desperate Measures

Source
1835 14th Street, NW Washington

In the Wild West, a gun-slinging nun must team up with a shrewd sheriff and a salty saloon dancer to save her bad boy brother from certain death.

Thru - Mar 17, 2024

Price: $20-$55

Show Type: Musical

www.constellationtheatre.org/desperate-measures

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Desperate Measures Reviews

Average Rating based on 6 reviews

Highly Recommended
Recommended
Somewhat Recommended
Not Recommended

Washington Post - Recommended

"...It wouldn’t take much to give “Measure for Measure” a little more feminist heft, and “Desperate Measures” fleshes out the underlying motivations of its female leads (both ably embodied by understudies during Monday’s performance — the principles are expected to be back this weekend). The show explores the growing friendship between Bella and Susanna, and is at its most delightful during the pair’s identity swaps (a great visual gag has Bella acting as a full-length mirror at one point). Hypocrisy, a heavy theme in “Measure for Measure,” also isn’t limited to the villains onstage here, as Susanna accuses herself of it while wrestling aloud with her own motivations toward future sisterhood and her growing emotion toward the sheriff."

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- Missy Frederick

DC Theater Arts - Highly Recommended

"...Still, in the wrong hands, Desperate Measures could end up aiming too high or too low. Luckily, the production at Constellation Theatre Company, now in performances through March 17, strikes the right balance, bringing out the best in this rip-roaring, hilarious musical."

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- Jakob Cansler

MetroWeekly - Highly Recommended

"...Shakespearean romance and intrigue meet Mel Brooks-style slapstick in Constellation’s rip-roaring production of Peter Kellogg and David Friedman’s Desperate Measures. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, the show was an award-winning hit in its original 2017 Off-Broadway production."

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- Andre Hereford

Washington City Paper - Highly Recommended

"...Loosely inspired by William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure and with book and lyrics by Peter Kellogg and music by David Friedman, Constellation Theatre Company’s Desperate Measures brings this religious caper to merciless new territory. Directed with out-of-the-box intuition by Allison Arkell Stockman, Desperate Measures is an ace-high twist on the bard’s comedy, rewritten here as a raucous musical parable of the Wild West. The script avoids taking itself too seriously, but this irreverent, sexy, silly musical is seriously funny."

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- Melissa Lin Sturges

MD Theatre Guide - Recommended

"...The names and location are changed, but this is the plot of “Desperate Measures.” Though this sort of plot may not have been outrageous in the early 17th century, it’s baffling that two, male theatre artists decided to revive it in 2017, the year that #MeToo went viral. In short, I am not sure why this musical was created or why Constellation decided to do it now."

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- Peter Orvetti

BroadwayWorld - Somewhat Recommended

"...All in all, it’s not quite the empowering, feminist piece Constellation seemingly wants it to be. The women have great character traits, but they still function within ugly boundaries. After all, we’re told the piece took out half the play, but “kept all the sex” - with most of it being of the coercive, non-consensual variety. One can’t overlook the problematic tropes at play here in a contemporary piece of theatre that should probably know better."

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- Jake Bridges

Desperate Measures at Source