THE HANGOVER REPORT – Major Curda fearlessly delves into the heart of darkness in the mesmerizing stage adaptation of Yukio Mishima’s KINKAKUJI

This fall, Japan Society in Midtown East is hosting the Yukio Mishima Centennial Series in celebration of the controversial yet influential Japanese novelist’s 100th birthday. Presented under the thematic banner … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS — Big-voiced chanteuses take to the cabaret stage: WENDY MOTEN at Birdland and RIZO at Joe’s Pub

This past week, I had the great pleasure of basking in the considerable talent of a pair of big-voiced chanteuses, both of whom took to the cabaret stage with the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In the hard-to-categorize COLOR THEORIES, Julio Torres brings a dreamy disposition to his incisive musings

Also this week, Julio Torres’s Color Theories opened Off-Broadway at Performance Space New York in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan. Perhaps best known for his award-winning HBO series Fantasmas … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – A searing André Holland headlines a breathtaking revival of Tarell Alvin McCraney’s THE BROTHERS SIZE

Last night, the anticipated revival of Tarell Alvin McCraney’s The Brothers Size opened Off-Broadway In Hudson Yards at The Shed’s Griffin Theater. A co-presentation with Geffen Playhouse in Los Angeles … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Serving up fashion: Trajal Harrell’s MONKEY OFF MY BACK OR THE CAT’S MEOW and Luke Newton in HOUSE OF MCQUEEN

This week saw the opening of two shows — one avant-garde dance, the other an elaborately staged Off-Broadway play — with intrinsic connections to the world of fashion. As usual, … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT — ARIEL QUARTET gives a full-bodied account of Beethoven’s String Quartet Op. 131 in the Green-Wood catacombs

Last week at the atmospheric catacombs of Green-Wood Cemetery, I had the opportunity to catch the acclaimed Ariel Quartet’s account of Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Nights at 54 Below: Veterans CHESTER GREGORY and LIZ CALLAWAY claim their spots in the Broadway pantheon

No doubt about it, Broadway is a tough business — competitive and often times subject to the inexplicable whims of a finicky public. Last week, I had the great pleasure … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Jenn Kidwell’s deviously confrontational WE COME TO COLLECT questions the intrinsic merits of capitalism

Last week, Jenn Kidwell’s immersive and deviously confrontational fantasia we come to collect: a flirtation, with capitalism opened Off-Broadway at The Flea in downtown Manhattan. In short, the darkly vaudevillian … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – O Canada!: Assessing the unique wonders of the repertory model via the STRATFORD FESTIVAL and the SHAW FESTIVAL

Last week, I took a trip up north to Ontario, Canada to re-acquaint myself with two of North America’s remaining repertory theater companies, the Stratford Festival in Stratford and the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Public Works’ production of PERICLES is buoyed by Troy Anthony’s gloriously uplifting score and a starry cast

Last night, I had the great pleasure of attending Public Works’ presentation of Shakespeare’s Pericles, featuring a score by Troy Anthony. Given the ongoing performances of Free Shakespeare in the … Continue Reading →