Do your nightmares make you feel like you've entered The Twilight Zone? Do you feel trapped in a surrealistic cesspool? You are not alone.

Much of the evening's success is due to Wilma Bonet's performance as Vieja. Short, squat, and filled with foreboding, the emotional and dramatic power of Bonet's nurse make the self-satisfied machismo of Creon and Jason seem downright puny.

The San Francisco Bay area has such a vibrant arts community that prioritizing events can become a mind-numbing exercise. Here is a slideshow of the 11 most thrilling events I attended in 2011.

Two Bay-area theatre companies opened their seasons this month with plays about women who are either desperately trying to find themselves or looking back and acknowledging what they survived.

A gifted playwright and performer with a powerful voice in print and song, Taylor Mac's "rolling premiere" of The Lily's Revenge opened at the Magic Theatre last week and is, without doubt, cause for celebration.