VIEWPOINTS – The recent crop of new musicals proves the elusiveness of the art form

When developing a new musical, some sort of alchemy and luck are invariably involved. That’s because there really is no set formula when it comes to creating an artistically and/or … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Pacino crashes and burns in Mamet’s disappointing CHINA DOLL

I recently had a chance to catch David Mamet’s hollow new two-hander China Doll starring the legendary Al Pacino – who plays a successful, scrappy businessman who finds himself in … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Musical revivals that have something new to say

Over the last few months, I had a chance to catch a quartet of revisionist musical revivals that made me sit up and pay attention to material I thought I … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Children and Art, or Theater during the Holidays

There is something completely disarming about how children respond to the spell cast by live performance. This is particularly evident during the holiday season – the time of year families … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Women at Work: A tale of ten playwrights

Earlier in the fall I had raved about Washington, D.C.’s unprecedented and altogether triumphant Women’s Voices Theater Festival. All the while, I was also keeping close tabs on new works … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – At Odds: Theater & Magic

Already this season, three shows, both large and small, have prompted me to contemplate the relationship between magic and theater. These two genres of performance strike me as diametrically and … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Two timely revivals celebrate Arthur Miller’s centennial

Arthur Miller, one of our great and most-produced playwrights, was born on October 17, 1915 birth, and this year marks the centennial of his birth.  To commemorate this landmark, two … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The stage adaptation of MISERY works on its own pulpy terms (or all hail Laurie Metcalf)

Bruce Willis fans, take heed. The main reason to see William Goldman’s stage adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery, which opened last night on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre, is the deliciously … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Twyla Tharp celebrates 50 years of dance-making with two invigorating new dances

Last night, I attended the sold out final Washington, DC performance of Twyla Tharp’s 50th Anniversary Tour at the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater. Ms. Tharp has long been one of … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – ALLEGIANCE crumbles under the weight of its good intentions

I really wanted to like Allegiance, the generic new musical that opened last night at the Longacre Theatre. Unfortunately, like the dismal musical adaptation of Doctor Zhivago last season, Allegiance … Continue Reading →