VIEWPOINTS – A trio of jazz divas light up Birdland: JANE MONHEIT, GABRIELLE STRAVELLI, and The Hot Sardine’s ELIZABETH BOUGEROL

This past fall at Birdland, it was my pleasure to be enchanted by a trio of jazz divas, each of whom effortlessly regaled audiences with their distinct vocal prowess and … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – An overview of ALTERNATIVE HOLIDAY FARE: From mildly off the beaten path, to the thoughtfully tangental, to the wacky remixes

For those of you looking for some alternative fare for your holiday entertainment, there are certainly options beyond the big guns (e.g., New York City Ballet’s production of Balanchine’s The … Continue Reading →

Mark Strong and Lesley Manville in Robert Icke's "Oedipus" at Studio 54 (photo by Julieta Cervantes).

VIEWPOINTS – Reorienting classics to speak directly to the present: TARTUFFE at NYTW and the Broadway revisal of OEDIPUS

This fall, a pair of new, high profile productions of classics of Western drama have opened in fascinating new translations that shed new light on classics we thought we knew, … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Holding on to fast fading cultural identities: Conjuring the past in MEET THE CARTOZIANS, LAOWANG, and A BODEGA PRINCESS REMEMBERS

This fall, a fascinating common concern of several Off-Broadway plays has been the gradual erasure of cultural identities within the melting pot that is, for better or worse, America. In … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – American womanhood through the lens of absurdity: Peggy Stafford’s EVERYTHING IS HERE and Rice & Roland’s WHAT IF THEY ATE THE BABY?

Currently Off-Broadway, you’ll find a pair of new plays that use theatrical absurdity as the lens through which American womanhood is refracted. In the resulting disorienting environments, everyday realities are … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Jordan Harrison’s sleek and speculative play MARJORIE PRIME arrives on Broadway more relevant than ever

This past weekend, I was able to catch up with Jordan Harrison’s play Marjorie Prime, which has arrived on Broadway this fall season at the Hayes Theater courtesy of Second … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Trinity Church’s briskly conducted, newly truncated MESSIAH continues to be the gold standard

Just like performative versions of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, the New York holiday season also typically has a handful of different versions of Handel’s Messiah on offer for music … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Slightly dwarved at the Armory, the freewheeling stage adaptation of THE FAGGOTS AND THEIR FRIENDS casts its sensuous spell

The Park Avenue Armory’s massive drill hall is a space that begs to be utilized to its extravagant physical potential. With such an expanse, the possibilities are almost limitless — … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Dancing in and out of the closet: TERE O’CONNOR and CALEB TEICHER reflect their queer identities in their dance aesthetic

This week, I attended a pair of dance performances that expressed queerness in fascinatingly distinct ways. Seen side by side, they chronicle the evolution of dance from being a reaction … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Well meaning Americans pushed to the edge of sanity in Chris Gabo’s THE SURGEON AND HER DAUGHTERS and Scott Organ’s DIVERSION

Currently playing Off-Broadway are two new plays — Chris Gabo’s The Surgeon and Her Daughter and Scott Organ’s Diversion — that depict well meaning Americans pushed to the edge of … Continue Reading →