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The Devils in the Digger Details: Cinema, Censorship, and Power

"The Devils is a harsh film but it's a harsh subject. I wish the people who were horrified and appalled by it would have read the book, because the bare facts are far more horrible than anything in the film." - Ken Russell from An Appalling Talent: Ken Russell by John...

Finding A Light at Maymont’s Garden Glow

Editor's Note: This essay includes a personal account of a mental health crisis. If you or someone you know is struggling with their mental health, support is available. Call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, available 24/7. Richmond-area...

Review | Grace and Glorie is So Good You Forget it’s Acting

Yes, this is a review of the play Grace and Glorie, currently at Hanover Tavern. It is the Hanover Tavern part of that sentence that I want to focus on first. I’m probably going to get some side-eye for this, but I completely forgot Hanover Tavern existed. What in the...

Review | BLKS is a Mixed Bag at Richmond Triangle Players

I often come off like a chihuahua on sugar pills when reviewing plays for this magazine. I am excitable, yes, but never in the service of idle flattery. I also take no joy in being critical of people’s hard work. I’ve said this whole thing before several times, but I...

Review | Dog Mom is Theatre at Its Best, Here or Anywhere Else

There are days of doing this when I just get to gush. Today is one of those days.  I have had the pleasure this past year of witnessing some of the best theatre of my life. VA Rep’s Primary Trust floored me. Richmond Shakespeare continued their epic run of hits...

Review | BLKS is a Mixed Bag at Richmond Triangle Players

I often come off like a chihuahua on sugar pills when reviewing plays for this magazine. I am excitable, yes, but never in the service of idle flattery. I also take no joy in being critical of people’s hard work. I’ve said this whole thing before several times, but I feel compelled to do so whenever I have mixed news to give. The news is mixed,...

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Review | ‘Confederates’ Doesn’t Let Anyone Off Easy

“Oh, I’m going to have a field day with this.” These were my exact words to friend and artist Kyle Epps as I got up from my seat at Firehouse Theatre Saturday night. As we shuffled out of the theatre into the lobby, I took inventory of the stack of insights Dominique Morrisseau’s Confederates made into desperate rhetorical knife fights on the...

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Confederates at Firehouse review by Christian Detres_photo by Aaron Sutten_RVA Magazine 2026-3

Review | Oscar Wilde Still Knows Exactly Who We Are

The Importance of Being Ernest has been on my radar since I was 13, when my beloved Morrissey mentioned Oscar Wilde in an interview. (Mind you, this was long before Morrissey’s far-right weirdo rants.) As a massive fan of the arch, wry, witty lyrics of the Smiths and being very influenced by British sitcoms— i.e., as a massive nerd — I had to see...

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The Importance of Being Earnest Richmond Shakespeare review by Christian Detres_photo by Aaron Sutten_RVA Magazine 2026

Review | Little Bear Ridge Road is an Artistic Gut Punch

Little Bear Ridge Road, does something you rarely see in popular media these days. It reminisces on the period during and just after Covid. Somehow, collectively, we’ve silently agreed to just not talk about it anymore. We don’t want to relive it on TV, in books, or on the stage. The last ten years in this country will surely result in some great...

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Little Bear Ridge Road review by Christian Detres_photo Aaron Sutten_RVA Magazine 2026-3

Can Firehouse Put Richmond on the National Theatre Map?

In the electric and perpetually sincere terrain of Richmond’s theatre culture, there are institutions that do more than merely reside, they lead. They serve as a measure of our city's potential beyond its natural aspirations. I've witnessed Firehouse Theatre inhabit that essential niche, becoming the forge where the art takes shape. It isn't just...

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