THE HANGOVER REPORT – Dael Orlandersmith’s affecting docudrama UNTIL THE FLOOD asks us to empathize, firstly

This past weekend, I caught Dael Orlandersmith’s one-woman Off-Broadway play Until the Flood at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. Commissioned by St. Louis Repertory, Ms. Orlandersmith’s docudrama depicts a series of interviewed St. Louis residents – black … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Robert O’Hara’s disappointing MANKIND is ambitious but poorly realized

This afternoon, I caught up with Robert O’Hara’s Mankind at Playwrights Horizons. I really wanted to like this new play. I had though Mr. O’Hara’s ferocious breakthrough play Bootycandy was bold, hilarious, and theatrically … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – 2018 AMERICAN REALNESS wraps up, and it was as defiant as ever

Today marks the final day of American Realness, the annual festival that celebrates and challenges performative norms, particularly in the sphere of contemporary dance and performance at large. This year’s … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – UNDER THE RADAR 2018: A Festival Recap, Part 1

So far during the consistently fascinating, wonderfully-curated Under the Radar Festival – the Public Theater’s annual January festival for experimental theater – I’ve caught six “mainstage” offerings, not including shows that make up the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Putting the “play” into the play: Fiasco’s TWELFTH NIGHT and Kate Hamill’s PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

These days in New York, you’ll find a number of smart, young theater artists taking on the classics with one thing on their minds: play. That is to say, having fun, … Continue Reading →

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 →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The scrappy, smart CRUEL INTENTIONS: THE MUSICAL strikes the right balance

Last night at Le Poisson Rouge, a beloved Greenwich Village music venue, I caught the jukebox musical version of the 1999 film Cruel Intentions, itself a loose adaptation Les Liaisons dangereuses. Cruel Intentions updates … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The Off-Broadway revival of William Nicholson’s sturdy SHADOWLANDS is solidly acted

Last night, I caught the Off-Broadway revival of William Nicholson’s 1989 play Shadowlands (the piece played the West End and subsequently Broadway in 1990), a somewhat pat though nonetheless touching drama … 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 →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Billy Crudup’s expert performance lifts the clichéd HARRY CLARKE

Last night, I caught David Cale’s new one-man play Harry Clarke at the Vineyard Theatre. The play, a sexy, psychological thriller, tells the story of an introverted man and the … Continue Reading →