Arena Stage Archives - 1 Minute Critic

Regional theater production collage, December 2025

Hot Sec

5 regional theater productions worth the trip this December

Lauren Emily Whalen Dec 24, 2025 0

Skip the usual suspects. These five productions—from campy housewives to gravity-defying circus acts—reinvent holiday theater nationwide.

Read More

Regional theater round-up September 2025

Hot Sec

5 regional theater productions worth the trip this September

Lauren Emily Whalen Sep 2, 2025 0

Discover 5 must-see regional theater productions opening in September 2025, from Q Brothers' hip-hop "Julius Caesar" to solo shows across…

Read More

Have another minute? ⏰

An illustration inspired by A Year of Nothing

Books

Book Review: ‘A Year of Nothing’ understands burnout without trying to fix it

Lauren Emily Whalen Jan 22, 2026

A collage of costumes by Paul Tazewell: "West Side Story," "Hamilton," and "Wicked."

Culture

From ‘Wicked’ to ‘West Side Story’: Paul Tazewell proves costume design is fine art

Lauren Emily Whalen Jan 21, 2026

Book cover of "Eating Ashes" and author Brenda Navarro.

Books

Book Review: Can you grieve a brother and a country at the same time? Novelist Brenda Navarro says yes

Laura Zornosa Jan 20, 2026

(l-r) Golda Rosheuvel, Ian McKellen, Rosie Sheehy, and Arinzé Kene in "An Ark."

Reviews

Heaven can wait: Ian McKellen elevates ‘An Ark,’ but mixed reality can’t bridge the digital divide

Matthew Wexler Jan 20, 2026