THE HANGOVER REPORT – Sandy Rustin’s amusingly nostalgic, tightly-staged THE COTTAGE makes for breezy, diverting summer fluff

Last night, I attended Sandy Rustin’s The Cottage at the Helen Hayes Theatre (note that the limited run is independent of Second Stage’s 2023/2024 season offerings). The 10-year-old comedy has the distinction … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Tawni O’Dell’s new drama PAY THE WRITER goes through the motions and misses the mark

Last night, Tawni O’Dell’s new drama Pay the Writer opened Off-Broadway. The play tells the fictitious story of a successful Black writer and his parallel relationships with his gay literary agent and … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Basketball Off-Broadway: Inua Ellams’ mythically-scaled THE HALF-GOD OF RAINFALL and Candrice Jones’s exceptional FLEX

This summer, a pair of plays with intrinsic ties to the sport of basketball graced the boards of two of New York’s premiere Off-Broadway stages. Luckily, I was able to … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – True to his stage name, EL MAGO POP’s exuberant, narrative-light trickery pops wonderfully on the Broadway stage

Last night, the European sensation El Mago Pop opened his show on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. For the uninitiated, “El Mago Pop” is the stage name of one … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – CAT KID COMIC CLUB proves to be another inspired musical adaptation for kids by TheatreWorks USA

This past weekend at Off-Broadway’s classic Lucille Lortel Theatre in the West Village, I had the opportunity to catch up with Cat Kid Comic Club: The Musical, TheatreWorks USA’s musical … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The immersive stage adaptation of THE GREAT GASTBY is handsome and accessible, but could use a bit more poetry

Anyone familiar with my taste when it comes to the performing arts knows that l’m a sucker for immersive theatrical experiences. Indeed, I have fond memories of attending endeavors like … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Rich in specificity, Danny Tejera’s Madrid-set TOROS unpacks post-collegiate toxic masculinity and existential crises

Also this past weekend, I attended the penultimate performance of Danny Tejera’s Toros, which was presented Off-Broadway at the intimate McGinn/Cazale Theater in the Upper West Side (the production concluded … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Boasting a luminous bluegrass score, PREJUDICE & PRIDE cleverly updates Jane Austen’s beloved romantic comedy

Last night at Off-Broadway’s 59E59 Theaters, I attended the new bluegrass musical Prejudice and Pride. Adapted from Jane Austen’s classic romantic comedy, the production updates the beloved novel to present-day America, … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Women of a certain age undergoing existential crises: Rhea Perlman in LET’S CALL HER PATTY and Marie Mullen in THE SAVIOUR

Earlier this week, I attended a pair of tautly-scripted but uneven Off-Broadway plays that explore the late life existential crises of two women women of a certain age. As always, … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – A summer roundup of theater in Chicago: PASSING STRANGE, ANOTHER MARRIAGE, TOMMY, and PERSONALITY

Over the past couple of days, I had a chance to catch up with some of Chicago’s summer theater offerings before they closed up shop for August. Here are my … Continue Reading →