Articles Tagged With: Mark Jaster

Adrift: A Medieval Wayward Folly by Happenstance Theater 📷 L Hewitt Photography

Adrift at Happenstance Theater

Reviews February 24, 2024 Amanda N. Gunther

As above— so below. From the profoundly deep to the oddly absurd, Adrift: A Medieval Wayward Folly, the latest live stage performance from Happenstance Theater, has it all. And also a strawberry. Appearing for a limited two-weekend engagement at Baltimore Theatre Project, this newly devised work comes the masterminds of Mark Jaster, Sabrina Mandell, Gwen Grastorf, Sarah Olmsted Thomas, and Alex Vernon, with their inspirations set ‘adrift’ on stage from the works of Hieronymus Bosch (amongst others) and will fill you with an oddly enlightened sense of wonderment,

(L to R) Sarah Olmsted Thomas, Alex Vernon, Sabrina Mandell, Mark Jaster, and Gwen Grastorf in Pocket Moxie!

Pocket Moxie at Happenstance Theatre

Reviews March 25, 2022 Amanda N. Gunther

Many may have moved away from Vaudeville but not Happenstance Theatre! Fresh off their whirlwind-tour of New York City’s off-Broadway, they have returned to Charm City in true Happenstance fashion bringing with them a jubilant and bubbly new show— Pocket Moxie. As ever, the performance is collaboratively devised by the ensemble— Gwen Grastorf, Mark Jaster, Sabrina Mandell, Sarah Olmsted Thomas, Alex Vernon— and it brings the delights of a bygone era to vivacious and zany life for everyone at Baltimore Theatre Project to enjoy.

(L to R) Alex Vernon, Gwen Grastorf, Mark Jaster, Sabrina Mandell, and Sarah Olmsted Thomas in BrouHaHa.

BrouHaHa at Happenstance Theater

Reviews November 1, 2021 Amanda N. Gunther

Is this the end? A deep and troublesome question that a great many found themselves asking for many, many unending months as a global pandemic forced all signs of life as we know it to cease. In a thrilling and curiously strange, wondrously curious, and uniquely— well, Happenstance— piece of theatre, which pre-dates the global Covid-19 pandemic, BrouHaHa comes to the stage foreshadowing an existential apocalypse of sorts. A Happenstance Theater collaborative production,

Happenstance Theatre's Cabaret Macabre 2019. Photo: WAGS Media

Cabaret Macabre at Happenstance Theatre

Reviews October 31, 2019 Amanda N. Gunther

Did the devil make the world while God was sleeping? Do you
have a little drop of poison coursing through your veins? Then come, dark
denizens of Baltimore and areas surrounding, and delight in this autumnal treat
that appears every so often on the stage of Baltimore Theatre Project. What Gorey
work am I speaking of, you ask? Why, Happenstance Theatre’s Cabaret
Macabre, now in its most current rendition. Like a cherished memory,

Pantheon at Happenstance Theatre

Reviews April 12, 2019 Amanda N. Gunther

Oh workers, builders, and destroyers of the world! Heed the
call— it is your destiny— in seats at Theatre Project for your bodies to be— feel the sweetness of Eurydice— and rest
assured the show’s lyricist (Craig Jaster) is far better at this rhyming stuff
than me— and to prove it you must take yourself forth and see— Pantheon. The latest in the Happenstance
Theatre realm of fantastical fabrications, this iteration of theatricality
revolves around Greek Mythology.

Homebodies at Baltimore Theatre Project

Reviews April 28, 2018 Amanda N. Gunther

What’s inside the box? More like what isn’t inside the box when it comes to Alex & Olmsted’s latest production: Homebodies. An original devised work that is gloriously magnificent in its own right, Homebodies explores the life of two individuals and their ordinary, everyday life. Inside their box. Devised and performed by Alex Vernon and Sarah Olmsted Thomas this quaintly quirky, highly expressive, physical exploration of movement and life has a little bit of something for everyone.

Manifesto! at Happenstance Theatre

Reviews October 30, 2017 Mark Briner

Dada: (noun) an avant-garde art movement of the early 20th century centered in Zurich, New York, and Paris developed in reaction to Word War I, consisting of artists who rejected logic, reason, and aestheticism of modern capitalist society, promoting instead anti-bourgeois ideals through irrationality and nonsense.

For those who the parameters of the art form seem slightly vague (or for those who just plain slept through that particular art history class),

Review: Cabaret Macabre: The Return Visit at Happenstance Theater

Reviews November 3, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

Like an old friend autumn greats Baltimore with its crisp chilly nights, its darkened spirits and shades of Halloween, and its spine-tingling tales of doom and gloom. So too does Happenstance Theater great its faithful followers on its annual return to Baltimore Theatre Project. Cabaret Macabre: The Return Visit materializes from the theatrical ether to haunt, mesmerize, and enchant its audience, both newcomers and fond friends. A living theatrical collage of macabre inspiration in fluid,

Review: Moxie at Happenstance Theater

Reviews July 5, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

A quick glance to a dictionary— or in our technologically adept modern day world, Merriam-Webster’s website— reveals the simple definition of the word Moxie to be: the ability to be active; courage or determination. And by golly, if Happenstance Theater doesn’t have the ability to be active and have plenty of courage and determination, I’ll eat my hat! Presenting, as only Happenstance Theater can, a theatrical collage of movement, mystery, marvel, and magic: Moxie: A Happenstance Vaudeville comes to the main stage of Round House Theatre this summer to delight,

They’ve Got MOXIE! An Interview with Happenstance Theatre

Interviews June 22, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

Those folks have Moxie! And we ain’t talking nerve tonic, kid, though boy oh boy do them Happenstance Theater folks got plenty of nerve! And gumption. And chutzpah! And, well— Moxie! A brand new theatrical collage arrives this summer for the ensemble-based performance company, and if you haven’t already guessed, it’s going by the title of Moxie: A Happenstance Vaudeville. The company has taken their much cherished vintage aesthetic and much celebrated performance nature and steered it in the Vaudevillian direction.

The 32nd Annual Helen Hayes Awards 2016

News May 25, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

“The theatre community here <Washington DC> is something other cities can only dream of.” An earnest and rewarding quote pulled directly from the lips of David Ives, this year’s recipient of “Outstanding Original Play or Musical Adaptation” at the 32nd Annual Helen Hayes Awards Ceremony. Just one of 236 nominees being celebrated over the course of the evening, Ives’ statement captured the tone of the evening early on with the aforementioned quote given during his award acceptance speech.

Review: BrouHaHa at Happenstance Theater

Reviews May 8, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

Is this the place?

Let me check. The map says Baltimore Theatre Project and the ticket says Happenstance Theater— this is the place! The place where imaginative engagement meets clowning around, there place where BrouHaHa happens! A fluid convergence of bodily poetry and auditory movement, this episodic clownesque escapade devised by the ensemble is making its Baltimore debut. Inspired by Samuel Beckett, and a treasury of footage from inspiring films like La Strada and The Seventh Seal as well as Edwardian works and the imagery of refugees escaping on foot,

Review: Falling Out of Time at Theater J

Reviews March 25, 2016 Amanda N. Gunther

Passing time is painful. So what could be more titillating than other people’s hell when it comes to distracting the mind from its own personal grief? In a powerfully evocative stage adaptation of David Grossman’s novel, Theater J brings Falling Out of Time to the stage as the penultimate production of their 2015/2016 calendar season. Directed and Adapted by Derek Goldman, this strikingly emotional drama hones in on the potent power of grief and its ability to transform the lives of an entire village.

Review: The Christmas Revels at Washington Revels

Reviews December 6, 2015 Amanda N. Gunther 1 Comment

Christmas comes but once a year, but when it comes it brings good cheer! Celebrating its 33rd year in marvelous merriment the Washington Revels are proud to present The Christmas Revels of 2015, a medieval celebration of the winter solstice in music, dance, and drama. Directed by Roberta Gasbarre with Musical Direction by Elizabeth Anne Fulford, this wondrous seasonal tradition is filled with fun for the whole family. Featuring performers that span generations upon the stage,

(L to R) Happenstance Theater Company's Cabaret Noir featuring Karen Hansen, Sabrina Mandell, Mark Jaster, Alex Vernon, Sarah Olmsted Thomas, and Gwen Grastorf

Review: Cabaret Noir at Happenstance Theater

Reviews October 31, 2015 Amanda N. Gunther

Meaning is often found by happenstance. If you should be seeking a meaningful theatrical experience for the spooky autumnal season, look no further than Happenstance Theater as they take to the stage of the Baltimore Theatre Project with their newest work, Cabaret Noir. Described by the company as ‘A Film Noir Inspired Theatrical Montage,’ Cabaret Noir rides in on the successful coattails of the last several years work, Cabaret Macabre.

Review: Impossible! A Happenstance Circus at Happenstance Theatre

Reviews July 1, 2015 Amanda N. Gunther

Impossible is only in the mind. That is, of course, until it takes to the stage with Happenstance Theatre. Remounting their very successful Impossible! A Happenstance Circus, the movement-based ensemble company’s show is received to great acclaim at Round House Theatre Bethesda this summer. Truly investing the imagination of the audience into their work, the company— consisting of the two co-founders and four additional core performers— scales new heights with their mime work,

Review: The Cabaret Macabre at Happenstance Theatre

Reviews October 26, 2014 Amanda N. Gunther

It’s creepy and it’s kooky! Mysterious and spooky! And it isn’t The Addams Family! When so many other theatres are mounting musicals or late night zombie shows, Happenstance Theatre is presenting their 4th Annual Cabaret Macabre to delight audiences all over Baltimore. The deliciously ‘Gorey’ show is a series of darkly comic vignettes created by the Happenstance Theatre company ensemble, featuring inspiration from all sorts of fantastically dark and dreary places including the tales of Edward Gorey.