VIEWPOINTS – Enriching legitimate theater with classical music: FARINELLI AND THE KING and MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN

As a fan of live performance across genres (theater, dance, opera/classical music, cabaret, etc.), I’ve often wondered whey there hasn’t been more meaningful cross-pollination between these types of performances, apart … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – A recap of this season’s top holiday entertainments

Happy New Year, everybody! As we embark on 2018, I’d like to recap the roster of five worthwhile holiday-themed shows in New York I attended across the worlds of theater, dance, … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – SPRINGSTEEN ON BROADWAY is muscular, intimate, and altogether exultant

I recently got my hands on a much sought-after ticket to see Bruce Springsteen on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre in the appropriately-titled Springsteen on Broadway. True to his Jersey blue … Continue Reading →

2017 Year in Review – Theater

2017 was another all-encompassing year in the world of New York theater. If you’re like myself and have more than just dabbled in exploring the city’s various samplings of the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Good musicals come in all sizes: The winning SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS and HUNDRED DAYS open

Last night, New Yorkers unwrapped a pair of early theatrical Christmas presents – one an unabashedly lavish Broadway spectacle, the other an affecting small-scale autobiographical musical. The good news is that … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT — Ahrens and Flaherty’s ONCE ON THIS ISLAND is gloriously revived on Broadway in Michael Arden’s revelatory production

Last night, Ahrens and Flaherty’s Once on this Island was gloriously revived on Broadway at the Circle in the Square Theatre, thanks largely to Michael Arden’s bold, deeply-felt direction. Although … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Amy Schumer and Uma Thurman make solid Broadway debuts in two mediocre new plays, METEOR SHOWER and THE PARISIAN WOMAN

This week, two Hollywood A-listers made their Broadway debuts in two medeocre new plays. This past Wednesday marked the opening of Steve Martin’s underwhelming new comedy Meteor Shower (SOMEWHAT RECOMMENDED) at the Booth … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS opens on Broadway and is mildly entertaining, at best

Last night, the hastily assembled concert Home for the Holidays limped opened on Broadway. Although the show is an altogether harmless affair, I feel the need to warn more savvy theatergoers to … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Two more solo shows continue to demonstrate the astonishing versatility of the form: Transport Group’s STRANGE INTERLUDE and John Leguizamo’s LATIN HISTORY FOR MORONS

This past week, I visited two solo shows, continuing to demonstrate the astonishing versatility of the form … David Greenspan is giving perhaps the performance of the season, on- or off-Broadway, in … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – THE BAND’S VISIT quietly opens on Broadway, triumphantly

Tonight, a significant new musical triumphantly opened at Broadway’s Ethel Barrymore Theatre – David Yazbek and Itamar Moses’ gorgeous, unconventional The Band’s Visit. I had seen this spare, deeply-felt musical … Continue Reading →