VIEWPOINTS – Disarming autobiographical solo shows to catch: ADAM GOPNIK’S NEW YORK and Abby Wambaugh’s THE FIRST 3 MINUTES OF 17 SHOWS

Solo shows seem to be a dime a dozen these days, but when done right, the experience can be an illuminating and exposing glimpse into the workings of a mind … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Dramas rooted in persisting pain: Leo McGann’s THE HONEY TRAP and Jordan E. Cooper’s OH HAPPY DAY!

This past week, I came across two new Off-Broadway dramas with a capital “D”, both of which are rooted in persisting pain, conjuring big emotions in relatively small spaces. Read … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Above par musical parodies at Asylum NYC: The unhinged EXORCISTIC and the relentlessly probing SLAM FRANK

This week, I ventured twice down to the comedy venue Asylum NYC to catch a pair of above par musical parodies, a sub-genre that has become somewhat subordinated to other … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The magnetic Stephen Rea is quietly devastating in a meticulous staging of Beckett’s KRAPP’S LAST TAPE

This fall, New York seems to be awash in the theatrical works of Samuel Beckett. A few weeks ago, Jamie Lloyd’s starry revival of Waiting for Godot opened on Broadway … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – An exploration of love and sex forms the crux of Ehan Coen’s juvenile LET’S LOVE! and Ali Keller’s thought-provoking (UN)CONDITIONAL

Currently on the boards of the city’s busy fall theater season, you’ll find a pair of new Off-Broadway plays whose crux is to delve into the quirkiness and irrational workings … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Carmen Cusack shines in an otherwise pleasantly serviceable BULL DURHAM at Paper Mill Playhouse

Continuing in the long line of screen-to-stage adaptations is Paper Mill Playhouse’s production of Bull Durham, which is based on the 1988 baseball themed movie of the same name starring … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Halloween treats: Live performances that are bound to tickle the ghoul within

With Halloween fast approaching, what better way to immerse yourself in the ghostly holiday than by attending a live performance to tickle ghoul within? Luckily, New Yorkers have a slew … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In ARE THE BENNET GIRLS OK?, Emily Breeze alters a Jane Austen classic just enough to register with a punch

The folks over at Bedlam are no strangers to the literary works of Jane Austen, having scored a hit with their freewheeling stage adaptation of Sense and Sensibility. Now they’ve turned … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Rage against the machine: Humanity buckling under pressure in AND THEN WE WERE NO MORE and SLAUGHTER CITY

This past week, I came across a pair of dark and urgently acted Off-Broadway plays that ambitiously attempted to depict humanity exploited, buckling under the pressure of the machinations of … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Bromance is in the air: Taking a look at the much hyped Broadway revivals of WAITING FOR GODOT and ART

This fall, bromance is in the air, as evidenced by the much hyped Broadway revivals of a pair of well-trodden plays that explore male friendships in depth. These would be … Continue Reading →