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 →

VIEWPOINTS – A pair of experimental Off-off-Broadway plays open: Agnes Borinsky’s A SONG OF SONGS and Talking Band’s LEMON GIRLS OR ART FOR THE ARTLESS

In recent days, a pair of new experimental plays opened Off-off-Broadway courtesy of some of the city’s most pioneering theater presenters. As per usual, here are my thoughts. A SONG … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Peter Gil-Sheridan’s THIS SPACE BETWEEN US explores the consequences of making life-changing decisions

Last night, I attended a performance of Peter Gil-Sheridan’s This Space Between Us Off-Broadway at Theatre Row. The piece is presented by Keen Company, which returns to in-person performances with … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – MasterVoices hits the bullseye with its joyful, starry concert rendition of Sondheim and Laurents’s ANYONE CAN WHISTLE

Last Thursday, MasterVoices hits the bullseye with its one-night-only concert rendition of Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents’s 1964 musical Anyone Can Whistle at Carnegie Hall (the venue’s iconic Stern Auditorium … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Prospect Theater Company’s hopeful new musical revue NOTES FROM NOW is already starting to feel like a time capsule

Last night, Prospect Theater Company’s Notes from Now: Songs of Resilience & Renewal opened Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters. The new musical revue features seventeen new songs from an army of … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The affecting COAL COUNTRY returns to New York after its run was cut short by the pandemic

Coal Country has returned to New York at Off-Broadway’s Cherry Lane Theatre after its run was cut short by the pandemic in March 2020. The affecting play-with-music recounts the events … Continue Reading →