THE HANGOVER REPORT – David McVicar’s conservative staging of Bellini’s NORMA returns to the Met with a merely adequate cast

This past week, I made it back to the Metropolitan Opera to catch the revival of David McVicar’s 2017 staging of Bellini’s Norma. The primary reason to catch the production … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The great Sara Baras headlines Flamenco Festival New York 2023, dancing up a storm in ALMA at City Center

Last night at City Center, the great Sara Baras premiered her latest creation Alma to New York audiences. The work and its fiery legendary star arrive as the headliners of … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Funny woman Judy Gold chronicles her development in YES, I CAN SAY THAT!, in the process articulating the necessity for comedy

Last night, funny woman Judy Gold’s Yes, I Can Say That! opened Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters courtesy of the venue’s resident theater company Primary Stages. Based on Gold’s 2020 book of the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Riffing off of classics of Western drama: Thomas Bradshaw’s THE SEAGULL/WOODSTOCK, NY and Talene Monahon’s THE GOOD JOHN PROCTOR

Over the course of the past few days, I caught two new Off-Broadway plays that riff off of classics of Western drama. Read on for my thoughts. THE SEAGULL/WOODSTOCK, NYThe … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Red Bull’s giddy romp ARDEN OF FAVERSHAM leans in on the noirish and gratuitously violent aspects of the tale

Last night, I caught up with Red Bull Theater’s Off-Broadway staging of the rarely performed “domestic tragedy” Arden of Faversham. An anonymously-written play penned somewhere around 1588 — Shakespeare is … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – A pair of Off-Broadway plays pierce the soul with uncompromising artistry: Yasushi Inoue’s THE HUNTING GUN and Zora Howard’s HANG TIME

I’m still thinking about a pair of Off-Broadway plays I attended this past weekend, both of which pierced my soul with their uncompromising theatrical artistry and vision. Here are my … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The misjudged “revisal” of DANCIN’ muddles rather than enhances Bob Fosse’s distinct aesthetic

Last night, the revival of Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ opened on Broadway. I use the word “revival” loosely, as the production currently at the Music Box Theatre has been considerably revised … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Led by Ben Platt and the incandescent Micaela Diamond, the timely revival of PARADE triumphantly arrives on Broadway

Last night, the timely, urgently-staged revival of Jason Robert Brown and Alfred Uhry’s 1998 musical Parade triumphantly opened on Broadway at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Here was my review … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Donna Murphy is delectable in the first rate Encores! revival of Jerry Herman’s quirky DEAR WORLD

Last night, I found myself at New York City Center taking in the first entry of Encores! 2023 season, a rare revival of Jerry Herman’s bizarre 1969 musical Dear World. Based … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Keith Bunin’s THE COAST STARLIGHT barrages playgoers with what-ifs, stitching together an invigorating tapestry of possibilities

Earlier this week, Lincoln Center Theater’s production of The Coast Starlight by Keith Bunin opened Off-Broadway at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater. Set primarily in a single car of commuter … Continue Reading →