VIEWPOINTS – The stimulating, often trailblazing COIL, in its 13th iteration, closes shop

2018 marks the 13th and, sadly, final iteration of the Coil Festival. Over the years, Coil has provided stimulating, often trailblazing, performances across theater, dance, performance art, everything in between, and sometimes … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Ngozi Anyanwu’s uneven THE HOMECOMING QUEEN treats tough issues with inventiveness and understanding

This weekend, I caught Ngozi Anyanwu’s new play The Homecoming Queen courtesy of Atlantic Theater Company. The play tells the story of Kelechi, a best-selling novelist who goes back to Nigeria after living 15 years in America to … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Pepe Martinez’s CRUZAR LA CARA DE LA LUNA makes a case for mariachi in music theater

Last night, José “Pepe” Martinez’s self-professed mariachi opera Cruzar la Cara de la Luna opened under the auspices of New York City Opera at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Theater, in a co-production … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – BALLS at 59E59 bounces vigorously, but perhaps a little aimlessly

Tonight, I caught One Year Lease Theater Company and Stages Repertory Theatre’s production of Balls at Off-Broadway’s 59E59 Theater. The play, written by Kevin Armento and Bryony Lavery, is very much an … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter’s RED ROSES, GREEN GOLD is both exuberant and grating

Last night, I caught Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter’s Red Roses, Green Gold – or as I like telling people, the Grateful Dead jukebox musical – at Off-Broadway’s classic Minetta Lane Theatre. I find reviewing this … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – PROTOTYPE 2018, one of the festival’s finest outings, was an eclectic exploration of the possibilities of opera

This past weekend marked the closing of this year’s PROTOTYPE, an annual two-week festival curated to celebrate and showcase the cutting edge in opera and music theater. In just its … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Dael Orlandersmith’s affecting docudrama UNTIL THE FLOOD asks us to empathize, firstly

This past weekend, I caught Dael Orlandersmith’s one-woman Off-Broadway play Until the Flood at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater. Commissioned by St. Louis Repertory, Ms. Orlandersmith’s docudrama depicts a series of interviewed St. Louis residents – black … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The Met’s revival of David McVicar’s Goya-inspired IL TROVATORE is fiercely sung and acted

When performed by the right cast with sufficient theatrical intensity, Sir David McVicar’s 2009 production of Verdi’s Il Trovatore has the potential to be one of the more compelling of the Metropolitan Opera’s … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Lucy Kirkwood’s brilliant THE CHILDREN is quietly harrowing; don’t miss it

This weekend, I finally had a chance to catch Lucy Kirkwood’s The Children at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on Broadway, courtesy of Manhattan Theatre Club. The play, set in the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Robert O’Hara’s disappointing MANKIND is ambitious but poorly realized

This afternoon, I caught up with Robert O’Hara’s Mankind at Playwrights Horizons. I really wanted to like this new play. I had though Mr. O’Hara’s ferocious breakthrough play Bootycandy was bold, hilarious, and theatrically … Continue Reading →