THE HANGOVER REPORT – KING KONG is an awkward spectacle, but the puppet is a total triumph

Last night, the musical version of King Kong opened on the Great White Way at the Broadway Theatre. What did I think? It’s certainly a spectacle, but an awkward one at that. There’s just … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Michael Urie and Mercedes Ruehl ignite Harvey Fierstein’s trailblazing TORCH SONG for a new generation of Broadway theatergoers

In terms of dramatizing the fringes of human sexuality, it’s fascinating to see how far the dialogue has come since Harvey Fierstein’s Tony-winning Torch Song (formerly known as Torch Song Trilogy), the triumphantly … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Lonergan’s compassionate yet clear-eyed THE WAVERLY GALLERY breaks the heart, slowly but surely

Last night, the Main Stem revival of Kenneth Lonergan’s 1999 play The Waverly Gallery opened at the John Golden Theatre. Mr. Lonergan’s play about one woman’s descent into senility – and its very immediate … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Radcliffe, Cannavale, and Jones crackle in the topical THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT

Last night, Jeremy Kareken, David Murrell, and Gordon Farrell’s starry new comedy The Lifespan of a Fact opened on Broadway at Studio 54. In essence, the play, which is based on … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – BERNHARDT/HAMLET & THE NAP: The value proposition of the non-for-profit model on Broadway

I say thank God for the presence of non-for-profit theater companies on Broadway. Without the commercial glare typically associated with Broadway, these institutions are able to take risks, particularly as it relates to … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The pedestrian musical adaptation of PRETTY WOMAN squanders its shot at Broadway glory

Earlier this week, the anticipated musical adaptation of Pretty Woman opened on Broadway at the Nederlander Theatre. Long story short, the pedestrian musical adaptation is unmemorable in almost every way … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Unfortunately, GETTIN’ THE BAND BACK TOGETHER is a totally new musical that isn’t

This week, the second of three new musicals – and certainly one of the dark horses – of the lead-in summer of the 2018-2019 Broadway season opened, Mark Allen and Ken … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – HEAD OVER HEELS is a really smart, mostly irresistible jukebox musical featuring songs by The Go-Go’s

One of the dark horses of the brand new 2018-2019 Broadway season is Head Over Heels, a jukebox musical set to the songs of the 1980s all girl band The Go-Go’s, … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Young Jean Lee’s STRAIGHT WHITE MEN is a precise, deeply sympathetic portrait of a certain demographic

Second Stage Theatre has another winner on its hands with its Broadway mounting of Young Jean Lee’s Straight White Men, which opened last night at the Hayes Theatre (its other excellent … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – David vs. Goliath: Revisiting WICKED and AVENUE Q 15 years on

I recently had a chance to relive one of the most exciting Broadway musical face-offs of the last two decades. That is, the unlikely but memorable race for the Tony … Continue Reading →