THE HANGOVER REPORT – Sondheim’s singular SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE receives a starry, sparkling revival at City Center

I recently had the privilege of being in the audience of New York City Center’s sparkling revival of Stephen Sondheim’s singular Pulitzer Prize-winning Sunday in the Park with George, a … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – A quartet of fascinating new Off-Broadway plays prove that American playwriting is alive and well

The fall theater season is now in full gear, and I’m happy report that so far I’ve come across a fascinating sampling of new plays, proving to me that American playwriting … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Nancy Anderson stuns in “The Pen”, an entry in this year’s edition of INNER VOICES

As with any collection of new works, this year’s edition of Inner Voices (lovingly described in the program as “intimate and dramatic monologues of friendship, fear, and fantasy”) is almost … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – David Harrower’s lean, efficient PUBLIC ENEMY packs a punch in The Pearl’s revival

Last weekend, I had a chance to take in The Pearl Theatre Company’s timely revival of Henrik Ibsen’s Public Enemy (more commonly translated to English as “An Enemy of the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Horton Foote’s warm, bittersweet THE ROADS TO HOME is a rich love letter to Harrison, TX

I always cherish my trips to the fictitious Texas town of Harrison via the late, great Horton Foote’s plays. Although Mr. Foote almost always set his engrossing, gentle plays in … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Mike Bartlett’s LOVE, LOVE, LOVE is a brilliant love story for our times

Mike Bartlett’s surprising multi-generational love story Love, Love, Love opened last night at Off-Broadway’s Laura Pels Theatre, courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company. With this latest play, Mr. Bartlett takes a … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – The risks and rewards of high concept revivals: TACT’s SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER vs. Roundabout’s THE CHERRY ORCHARD

High concept revivals can be thrilling affairs. Take last season’s Tony-winning revival of Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge, in which Belgian avant-garde theater director Ivo van Hove stripped … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Puppetry and Madness: Jessica Scott’s SHIP OF FOOLS and Kevin Augustine’s THE GOD PROJEKT use phantasmagorical imagery to evoke internal discord

Puppetry, as with the visual arts in general, has the uncanny ability to draw visceral, many times unexplainable, reactions from its viewers. As such, the art form is an ideal … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – David Rabe’s VISITING EDNA at Chicago’s Steppenwolf is flawed but deeply unsettling

If there’s a poster child for Chicago theater, I would argue it’s the Steppenwolf Theatre Company. The company’s brand of theater is ensemble-based and embraces bold, in-your-face acting style and storytelling. … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The Goodman’s visually arresting WONDERFUL TOWN is tremendous fun

Leave it to Mary Zimmerman to come up with a visual equivalent to Leonard Bernstein’s infectious and irresistibly fast-and-loose score. Her production of the classic musical Wonderful Town is a … Continue Reading →