THE HANGOVER REPORT – C. Julian Jiménez’s scrappy but buoyant BRUISE & THORN empowers queer youths to envision a fabulously uninhibited world for themselves

Last night, I got the chance to catch up with Pipeline Theatre Company’s production of C. Julian Jiménez’s new play Bruise & Thorn, which is currently playing Off-Broadway at the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The hyped revival of PLAZA SUITE, starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, is a timid, moderately amusing throwback to a Broadway of yesteryear

This week, the much hyped revival of Neil Simon’s 1968 play Plaza Suite (one of the unqualified hot tickets of the current theater season) finally opened on Broadway at the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Heather Christian’s bizarre, profound, and altogether singular ORATORIO FOR LIVING THINGS asks big questions from a cosmic perspective

Last night, Heather Christian’s Oratorio for Living Things opened Off-Broadway at the Greenwich House Theater. The immersive production, which comes courtesy of the folks at Ars Nova, was one of … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – MJ is an ideally constructed jukebox bio-musical that shies away from the Shakespearean tragedy of its subject

Over the years, the jukebox bio-musical (Jersey Boys, Summer, Ain’t Too Proud, Beautiful, Motown, The Cher Show) has been taking an increasing amount of real estate on the Great White … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Exploring our humanity through speculative science: Michel van den Aa’s UPLOAD & Sam Chanse’s WHAT YOU ARE NOW

We live in rapidly changing times in which technological and scientific advances are threatening to outpace our ability to fully assess how they fundamentally alter the human experience. Recently, I … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Led by a sensational April Matthis, Claudia Rankine’s philosophical and confrontational HELP demands attention

Last night, Claudia Rankine’s Help opened Off-Broadway at The Shed in Hudson Yards. The production was actually in previews this time two years ago when the pandemic emphatically shut down … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Page 73 presents MAN CAVE, John J. Caswell, Jr.’s uneven but ultimately empowering psychological thriller

Last night at the Connelly Theater in the East Village, I attended Page 73’s Off-Broadway production of Man Cave by John J. Caswell, Jr. Set in the claustrophobic basement of … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In a ferociously committed performance, Laiona Michelle uncannily channels the great Nina Simone in LITTLE GIRL BLUE

This past weekend, I also caught a performance of Little Girl Blue, which is in the midst of an open run at Off-Broadway’s New World Stages (after having previously premiered … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – For THE LIFE’S Encores! mounting, Billy Porter drastically alters the fiber of the musical, mostly for the better

This weekend, I attended the Encores! revival of The Life at New York City Center. The 1997 musical features music by Cy Coleman and lyrics by Ira Gasman (the book … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Concluding where it began: SITI Company returns to the ever so relevant THE MEDIUM in its bittersweet farewell season

Last night at BAM Fisher, I caught a performance of SITI Company’s revival of The Medium. Originally staged in 1993, the show has the distinction of being the first – … Continue Reading →