B'way/Off-B'way Reviews: The Lost Boys, Beaches, Fallen Angels, The Adding Machine

Two musicals based on films from the late 1980s are among the plethora of openings as the 2025-26 New York theater season comes to a close—one is a surprise hit (The Lost Boys), the other a disappointment (Beaches). In addition, there are two plays from the 1920s (Fallen Angels and The Adding Machine) representing very different dramatic sensibilities, but both with their merits.

LJ Benet and Ali Louis Bourzgui in
The Lost Boys.
Credit: Matthew Murphy

The Lost Boys had a lot going against before it premiered at the Palace. Broadway has had three previous vampire-themed tuners in recent memory—Dance of the Vampires, Lestat and Dracula. Each one deserved a stake through the heart and vanished into their graves after brief runs. But this latest venture into the horror genre is a genuinely scary, popcorn-crunching, Broadway equivalent of a hit summer movie. I was prepared to despise the show based on past bad bloodsucker experiences (I saw all three of the aforementioned bombs) and an overload of alienated-teen movies and TV shows, but I wound up loving The Lost Boys.

David Hornsby and Chris Hoch’s solid book adheres closely to Joel Schumacher’s cult 1987 film which spawned two direct-to-DVD sequels. One supporting character has been changed from a boy to a girl, a kindly grandpa is now deceased and resides in an urn of ashes, and another character’s possibly being gay is more explicitly addressed. But the main thrust of horror remains. Divorced mom Lucy Emerson (beautifully belting Shoshana Bean) and her two teen sons (properly sullen LJ Benet and spunky and funny Benjamin Pajak) relocate to her California beachside hometown to escape an abusive husband. Searching for community and attention, rebellious older offspring Michael falls in with with a punk rock band who just happen to be card-carrying members of the undead (led by charismatic, sexy Ali Louis Bourgui). 

LJ Benet, Ali Louis Bourzgui and cast in
The Lost Boys.
Credit: Matthew Murphy

The librettists find room for character development and nuance while maintaining a humorous edge. The family and the vampires are not just sources for jokes or screams, but credible people—within the fantasy context. Even the vampires have motivations for their bloodcurdling actions. The powerful rock score by The Rescues (Kyler England, Adrianne “AG” Gonzalez and Gabriel Mann) delineates and expresses emotions without descending to cliche. The group is also responsible for the gorgeous harmonies in their vocal arrangements and effective orchestrations along with Ethan Popp. Kudos to Adam Fisher whose sound design allows this to be one of the rare rock scores where the lyrics are intelligible throughout. 

Michael Arden’s impressive direction makes full use of Dane Laffrey’s massive set, incorporating the full depth and height of the Palace stage. Two-story houses, creepy lairs, beachside boardwalks, treacherous train trestles fly in, out, up and down as do the demonic rockers thanks to the aerial design by Gwyneth Larsen and Billy Mulholland and aerial choreography by Lauren Yatango-Grant and Christopher Cree-Grant. Arden also stages several ingenious fantasy sequences with chorus members dressed as movie stereotypes of vampires and superheroes (the amusing costumes are by Ryan Park) zooming in and out of the background. There’s also an exciting, realistic motorcycle race. Arden is a magician, pulling impressive rabbit after rabbit out of his directorial hat, along with special effects designer Markus Maurette.

B'way Update: Cat and Yankees, etc.

Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor in
Cat of a Hot Tin Roof.

A new production of Tennessee Williams' Cat of a Hot Tin Roof is headed for Broadway, scheduled to open sometime in the spring of 2027. Tony winner Sam Gold (Fun Home, A Doll's House, Part 2) will direct and Seaview will produce. Cat first opened on Broadway in 1955, winning the Pulitzer Prize. Barbara Bel Geddes, Ben Gazzara and Burl Ives starred as Maggie the Cat, her closeted husband Brick and Big Daddy. Ives repeated his performance in the 1958 movie version with Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman. Subsequent Broadway productions have starred Elizabeth Ashley and Keir Dullea (1974), Kathleen Turner and Daniel Hugh Kelly (1990), Ashley Judd and Jason Patric (2003), Anika Noni Rose and Terrence Howard (2008), and Scarlett Johanssen and Benjamin Walker (2013). TV versions have been headlined by Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner, and Jessica Lange and Tommy Lee Jones. I saw Sandy Dennis and David Selby play the leads in summer stock. Cast and creative staff will be announced at a later date.

"Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is the pinnacle of what the theatre can do," says Gold in a statement. "Two of the greatest roles for actors in the cannon, delivered to us by the world’s most original playwright, at the very height of his poetic powers, exploring themes that feel as shockingly honest and blood boiling today as they did 70 years ago. I couldn't be more excited to bring this masterpiece back to New York next season."

"It's been such a gift to be making work with Sam Gold over the last four years,” adds Seaview co-founder and CEO Greg Nobile. "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof will mark our fifth production together, and I am certain Sam's vision to bring Tennessee's extraordinary and timeless characters to life next season will once again thrill and delight audiences."

 

B'way Review: The Balusters

Richard Thomas and Anika Noni Rose in
The Balusters.
Credit: Jeremy Daniel

In The Balusters, David Lindsay-Abaire’s scorching and stinging new comedy from Manhattan Theater Club at the Samuel J. Friedman, the titular “vertical molded shafts or posts used to support a handrail on staircases, balconies or railings” are the seemingly inconsequential catalyst in an outrageous war of cultures, values, and identity. The central focus is on a homeowners association’s meetings where nine diverse individuals clash over traffic signs, renovations, and aforementioned balusters. (The tenth character is the housekeeper of one of the board members and she’s vitally important to the story.) But their subtextual squabbles are over defending what each character regards as their way of life and what community means. Kenny Leon stages the action with a precise sense of timing and pace, letting the barely-buried resentments simmer just long enough and then boil over at the right moment.

Lindsay-Abaire, whose previous insightful and moving works include Kimberly Akimbo (both play and musical), Good People and the Pulitzer Prize-winning Rabbit Hole, builds a solid template with small details planted like time bombs ready to go off for maximum impact. The observations on cultural norms and political correctness are sharp and painfully true. They elicit riotous laughter and leave a painful ache as you realize their Swiftian conclusions on the pettiness of humans attempting to live together.

(Back row) Ricardo Chavira, Carl Clemons-Hopkins
Richard Thomas, (seated) Anika Noni Rose,
Kayli Carter, Jeena Yi and Marylouise Burke
in The Balusters.
Credit: Jeremy Daniel

The meetings are held in the well-appointed home of Kyra Marshall (assured Anika Noni Rose), an African-American professional (Derek McLane designed the handsome set).  She has just moved in and wants to make a good impression, having allowed her passions to get the better of her in her previous neighborhood. Her principal antagonist is older white real estate agent Elliot Emerson (Richard Thomas using smiles and joviality to hide the character’s deviousness.) Elliot who serves as the association’s long-time president and appears to be open to new ideas and people (“I’m a lifelong Democrat,” he protests), reacts with stony inflexibility at any change to his beloved historically-designated block. Thomas’ casting is resonant since he is most famous for playing John-Boy on The Waltons, which featured a sentimental view of the past shared by Elliot.

Lost Boys Finds the Most OCC Noms

OCC president David Gordon with Isa Briones
and Sepideh Moafi announcing the
Outer Critic Circle nominees.

The Lost Boys, the musical based on the 1987 vampire film, now in previews and set to open on April 26, received the most nominations for the 2026 Outer Critics Circle Awards with 11. Mexodus, the Off-Broadway two-character historical musical, was next with 10 and Schmigadoon!, based on the Apple TV + series garnered 8.  The revival of Death of a Salesman was the most-nominated play with 6. The nominations were announced on April 20 at the Museum of Broadway by The Pitt stars Isa Briones (currently in Just in Time) and Sepideh Moafi (soon to appear in New Born at the Minetta Lane).

This year's nominees will be honored with a cocktail reception at West Bank Café April 27, with winners to be revealed May 11. An awards ceremony will be held May 21 at MMAC Theater.

The Outer Critics Circle was found in Founded during the 1949-50 Broadway season by theater journalist John Gassner. The group recognizes on and Off-Broadway excellence, with both separate and combined categories. The Outer Critics Circle is an association with members affiliated with more than ninety newspapers, magazines, broadcast stations, and online news organizations, in America and abroad. Led by its current President David Gordon, the OCC Board of Directors also includes Vice President Richard Ridge, Recording Secretary Joseph Cervelli, Corresponding Secretary Patrick Hoffman, Treasurer David Roberts, Cynthia Allen, Harry Haun (1940-2026), Dan Rubins, Janice Simpson and Doug Strassler. Simon Saltzman is President Emeritus & Board Member (Non-nominating) and Stanley L. Cohen serves as Financial Consultant & Board Member (Non-nominating). 

LJ Bennet and Ali Louis Bourzgui in
The Lost Boys.
Credit: Matthew Murphy

2026 OUTER CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD NOMINATIONS

Outstanding New Broadway Musical
The Lost Boys
Schmigadoon!
Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)
 
Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical
Beau the Musical
Goddess
Mexodus
Oratorio for Living Things
Saturday Church
 
Outstanding New Broadway Play
The Balusters
Giant
Little Bear Ridge Road
Oedipus
Punch

Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play
Angry Alan
Meet the Cartozians
The Monsters
Prince Faggot
The Reservoir
 
John Gassner Award (for a new American play preferably by a new playwright)
Call Me Izzy by Jamie Wax
Caroline by Preston Max Allen
Cold War Choir Practice by Ro Reddick
Data by Matthew Libby
Well, I'll Let You Go by Bubba Weiler

B'way Review: Schmigadoon!

Sara Chase, Alex Brightman, and cast in
Schmigadoon!
Credit: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman 
for MurphyMade

You don’t have to have seen Schmigadoon!, the Apple TV + series, or even any musicals at all in order to enjoy—or be totally enraptured by, as I was—Schmigadoon!, the Broadway show. In fact, it helps if you haven’t seen the series because you’ll be surprised by songwriter-librettist Cinco Paul’s magnificent wit and deep affection for the genre he’s parodying. Paul has pared down the six episodes of the first season, keeping the majority of songs and plot elements while adding a few new ones. All of his changes and reserves work. So does the expert, integrated direction and choreography of Christopher Gattelli. The team has created a smart, hilariously funny masterpiece which simultaneously satirizes and pays tribute to the conventions and values of the major midcentury musicals we’ve seen on stages from the Main Stem to our high schools. You don’t even have to like musicals to love this show, because that viewpoint—musicals are artificial, nobody sings and dances out of the blue—is also represented.

Sara Chase and Max Clayton in
Schmigadoon!
Credit: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman
for MurphyMade 

The ingenious premise from the series remains basically the same. Dating doctors Josh and Melissa have relationship issues—not just that she loves tuners and he hates them. She’s ready to take their live-in, unmarried status to the next level and he’s happy with things as they are. On a couples retreat, they get lost in the woods and happen upon the titular, secluded burg (first musical reference: Brigadoon) where the rustic citizens launch into a production number at the drop of a hat. The wrinkle is Josh and Melissa are prevented from leaving by magical forces until they discover “true love.” It seems they don’t have it together—yet. 

Drama League Nominations

Natalie Venetia Belcon and Corbin Bleu
announced the 2026 Drama League nominees

The nominations for the 2026 Drama League Awards were announced on April 20 by Tony winner Natalie Venetia Belcon (Buena Vista Social Club) and Corbin Bleu (The Great Gatsby) at Lincoln Center's NY Public Library for the Performing Arts. The awards will be presented on May 15 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in a ceremony hosted by NY-1's Frank DiLella. Tickets and tables to the star-studded luncheon are available for purchase at dramaleague.org/2026awards or by calling The Drama League event office at 212.625.1025.First awarded in 1922 and formalized in 1935, The Drama League Awards are the oldest theatrical honors in America. They are the only major theater awards chosen by a cross-section of the theater community — the industry professionals, producers, artists, audiences, and critics who are Drama League members nationwide.

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

THE BALUSTERS
CAROLINE
COLD WAR CHOIR PRACTICE
DOG DAY AFTERNOON
GIANT

KYOTO

LIBERATION

MARCEL ON THE TRAIN
THE MONSTERS

PRINCE FAGGOT

RHEOLOGY

SPREAD

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL

BEACHES, A NEW MUSICAL

BEAU THE MUSICAL

BIGFOOT

THE LOST BOYS
MEXODUS

MY JOY IS HEAVY

NIGHT SIDE SONGS

SATURDAY CHURCH

SCHMIDGADOON!

THE SEAT OF OUR PANTS

TITANIQUE

TWO STRANGERS (CARRY A CAKE ACROSS NEW YORK)

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY
ANNA CHRISTIE

BECKY SHAW

THE BROTHERS SIZE
BUG

DEATH OF A SALESMAN

EVERY BRILLIANT THING

FALLEN ANGELS

GRUESOME PLAYGROUND INJURIES
JOE TURNER'S COME AND GONE

PROOF

TWELFTH NIGHT

YOU GOT OLDER

OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL

THE 25th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLNG BEE
BAT BOY THE MUSICAL

CATS: THE JELLICLE BALL

CHESS
THE GOSPEL AT COLONUS

HEATHERS THE MUSICAL:

MASQUERADE

ORATORIO FOR LIVING THINGS

RAGTIME

THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW

THE WILD PARTY

B'way/Off-Bway Update: Roundabout 2026-27 Season

Bill Irwin will star
in The Imaginary Invalid for
Roundabout.

Under the new leadership of incoming artistic director Christopher Ashley, Roundabout Theater Company has announced its schedule for the 2026-27 season. The productions will include revivals of classics and musicals as well as new plays.

“As we welcome Christopher Ashley into artistic leadership, this season is a bridge, grounded in what [the late] Todd [Haimes, previous artistic director] built, and intentionally making space for Chris to shape what’s next,” said Scott Ellis, Interim Artistic Director.   
 
“The season Scott and I have shaped builds on what Roundabout has always believed: that theatre can hold the classic and the urgent side by side. We’re proud to have new work anchoring our season, even as we revisit a landmark comedy with fresh eyes and make room for a big, unabashedly entertaining musical,” added Christopher Ashley, Incoming Artistic Director. 

The line-up begins with Tony winner Bill Irwin (Largely New York, Fool Moon) returning to Broadway starring in his own adaptation of Moliere's The Imaginary Invalid, directed by Brandon J. Dirden (Waiting for Godot). Irwin plays Argon, a wealthy hypochondriac who schemes to marry off his daughter to a doctor to save on medical bills. Performance begin in the fall at the Todd Haimes Theater. 

Also in the fall, The Heart, a new musical, will premiere at the Off-Broadway Laura Pels. A young surfer’s life is cut short. A stranger suddenly has a second chance. And the life-force of one beating heart drives two families and a medical team through 24 hours that couldn’t matter more. Playwright Kait Kerrigan (The Great Gatsby) and Anne Eisendrath and Ian Eisendrath (of KPop Demon Hunters) join forces with Tony Award-winning director Christopher Ashley (Roundabout’s incoming artistic director) and choreographer Mandy Moore (Taylor Swift’s Eras tour) to adapt Maylis de Kerangal's 2014 novel Réparer les vivants, in the company's first new Off Broadway musical in years.