An exiled Congresswoman tours her memoir at the Arsht, Dramaworks mounts its first-ever revival, and HARID Conservatory presents a “Gorey” premiere. Plus, Tal Cohen Trio and more in your week ahead.
WEDNESDAY
What: An Evening With Liz Cheney
Where: Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami
When: 7 p.m.
Cost: $55
Contact: 305/949-6722, arshtcenter.org
The most high-profile House Republican to publicly and professionally oppose Donald Trump, Liz Cheney helped lead the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol. As a result of her outspoken stance against the former president, the Wyoming congresswoman lost her seat in the 2022 primary, but she remains an eloquent and impassioned voice against the autocratic tendencies of her party’s current figurehead. She lays out this voice, in the clear language of a prosecutor, in her new book “Oath and Honor,” which she supports at this interview moderated by CNN political commentator Ana Navarro. The $55 ticket includes a copy of “Oath and Honor;” a ticket for two people, with one book, collectively costs $70.
THURSDAY
What: Opening night of “Daniel’s Husband”
Where: The Foundry, 2306 N. Dixie Highway, Wilton Manors
When: 8 p.m.
Cost: $37.50-$53.50
Contact: 954/826-8790, ronnielarsen.com
When South Florida playwright Michael McKeever’s comedy-drama “Daniel’s Husband” premiered, in 2015, the Supreme Court had just legalized same-sex marriage in its landmark Obergefell v. Hodges case, and this decision became a pivot point for the play. Longtime couple Daniel, an architect, and Mitchell, a writer of pulp novels, have differing views on matrimony. Mitchell rejects the heteronormative traditions of marriage, but Daniel vehemently wants to wed, “because we can now.” When a tragedy bisects the play, Mitchell’s perspective begins to shift. Nearly 10 years after its premiere, “Daniel’s Husband” has collected many awards and played around the country and internationally, and remains one of its prolific playwright’s high-water marks. Experience it anew in this production from the Foundry, directed by McKeever himself and starring Ryan Didato, Robert Koutras, Barbara Sloan, Jordon Armstrong and Kevin Veloz. It runs through June 16.
FRIDAY
What: Opening night of “Trying”
Where: Palm Beach Dramaworks, 201 Clematis St., West Palm Beach
When: 8 p.m.
Cost: $104, includes preshow reception ($89 for remainder of run)
Contact: 561/514-4042, palmbeachdramaworks.org
There is often no better fodder for fiction than lived experience. In 1967, aspiring writer Joanna McClelland Glass was living in Washington, D.C., when she took a job under retired U.S. attorney general Francis Biddle, who served in the FDR Administration. It has been more than two decades since Biddle’s government work, and at 81, he had become infirm and irascible and very much a handful for Glass, who was then half his age. She pooled her experience into this tender and moving play about forging a connection despite the many differences—age, class, culture, temperament—that separated them. “Trying” marks Dramaworks’ first-ever revival; it previously produced the play in its 2006-2007 season, with director William Hayes noting in a press release, “I believe I was drawn to ‘Trying’ because it’s about something that seems to be a lost skill these days: the art of communication.” Catch the play, starring Dennis Creaghan and Kelly McCready, through June 9.
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY
What: HARID Spring Performances
Where: Countess de Hoernle Theater, 5100 Jog Road
When: 3 p.m.
Cost: $30-$35
Contact: 561/998-8038, harid.edu
HARID, Boca Raton’s distinguished conservatory for dance, will mount its annual spring program with another eclectic selection of classic and contemporary ballets. Representing the “classic” side of things will be excerpts from “Le Corsaire,” Jules Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges’ 19th century masterpiece set among dashing swashbucklers on the high seas. On the contemporary side of things, HARID’s resident choreographer Mark Godden will premiere a 20-minute ballet inspired by the Gothic Edwardian illustrations of artist Edward Gorey. As always, the production will showcase the work of HARID’s graduating class of 2024 dancers, who will be joined by an array of talented professionals from Orlando Ballet, Texas Ballet Theater, Colorado Ballet and Joffrey Ballet.
SUNDAY
What: Tal Cohen Trio
Where: Arts Garage, 94 N.E. Second Ave., Delray Beach
When: 7 p.m.
Cost: $30-$35
Contact: 561/450-6357, artsgarage.org
Grammy-winning Miami-based jazz pianist Cohen is a phenom on his instrument—a joy both to listen to and to watch, and a player rooted in the hard bop jazz tradition of modal improvisation and exploration within a form. Experiencing Cohen live is to watch a man in a trance, enraptured by the notes spilling and gliding and lilting from his instrument. But perhaps unique among his peers, Cohen hasn’t forgotten the klezmer melodies and Israeli folk music he grew up with; indeed, he integrates these traditions in his current groove-based sound, for a production he calls “Songs From an Israeli Childhood.” Experience Cohen’s latest iteration of his hybrid sound this weekend, with his longtime bassist Dion Kerr and drummer David Chiverton laying down the foundation.
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