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Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele and Nicholas Christopher will star in Chess. |
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
B'way Update: Chess Revival; Ragtime Casting
Monday, May 26, 2025
Off-B'way Review: Goddess; Lights Out: Nat "King" Cole
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Austin Scott and Amber Iman in Goddess. Credit: Joan Marcus |
The plot revolves around the divine singer Nadira (a stunning Iman) who is in reality Marimba, goddess of music. Like the Rita Hayworth character in the Hollywood movie musical, Down to Earth, Marimba has descended from the heavens and experiences internal conflict when she falls in love with a mortal (a virile Austin Scott as Omari, the son of politician in modern-day Mombasa, the capital of Kenya).
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Austin Scott and Amber Iman in Goddess. Credit: Joan Marcus |
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Nick Rashad Burroughs and cast in Goddess. Credit: Joan Marcus |
Saturday, May 24, 2025
NYDCC, OCC and Other Events
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With Betsy Aidem of Liberation (Best Ensemble) at the NYDCC. |
Feldman told the story of the original plaque from the Circle's early years being found and a new version of it was made. The plaque, depicting a scene from The Contrast, the first American comedy staged by a professional troupe, was awarded to Branden Jacobs-Jenkins for Purpose. The playwright deliverd his remarks by video since he had a conflicting speaking engagement at Hofstra University.
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Cole Escola at the NYDCC Awards at 54 Below. |
Andre De Shields presented the special citation to Cats: The Jellicle Ball. He explained the creative process of directors Bill Rauch and Zhailon Levingston: "It was a vivisection. They took the body of the cat and without anesthesia, cut the bitch from head to toe, resuscitated the organs and let the real deal live."
De Shields also provided one of the highlights of the Outer Critics Circle Awards where we won for Outstanding Featured Performer in an Off-Broadway Musical (May 22 at the Bruno Walter Auditorium at the Lincoln Center Public Library.) Pianist Michael Lavine played him on with his number from The Wiz, "So You Wanna See The Wizard." When he got to the podium, De Shields asked if it was in his key and then he launched into a full rendition of the song.
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Andre De Shields at the OCC Awards Brian Stokes Mitchell presented. |
Friday, May 23, 2025
Book Review: Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
B'way Update: All-Star Art Revival
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Bobby Cannavale, James Corden, and Neil Patrick Harris will star in a revival of Yasmina Reza's Art. |
Art premiered in Paris in 1994, then London in 1996 with Christopher Hampton's translation and finally Broadway in 1998 with Alan Alda, Victor Garber, and Alfred Molina. It won the Tony Award for Best Play and ran for 600 performances. The plot centers on a trio of friends whose relationship is disrupted over an abstract painting. During the course of the Broadway run, the roles were played by Brian Cox, Henry Goodman, David Haig, Buck Henry, Judd Hirsch, John DeLancie, Joe Morton, Wayne Knight, George Segal, and George Wendt.
Thursday, May 22, 2025
Off-B'way Update: Tom Hanks Will Star at the Shed
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Tom Hanks will star in This World of Tomorrow, which he co-wrote, at the Shed this fall. |
“To explore the themes of love and yearning, and the struggles of today as we carry with us the eternal memories of the past, in such a place as The Shed, strikes me as a one-of-a-kind experience not unlike the World’s Fair of 1939,” Hanks said.
“I’m excited to collaborate with the remarkable Tom Hanks on his and James Glossman’s new play at The Shed this fall. It will be a joy to experience Tom leading the cast on stage in this time-traveling adventure of the limitless power of love and the distance one is willing to go for it. This story explores a fascinating tale of the echoes of past generations, the often-surprising collisions between them, and what is carried forward with an authentic humor I can’t wait to bring to life in the Griffin Theater,” Leon said.
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
Hurder, Csolak, BV Cast Win Chita Rivera Awards
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Robyn Hurder (center) of Smash won Outstanding Dancer in a Broadway Show along with Kevin Csolak of Gypsy. Credit: Matthew Murphy Dancer in a |
Presenters included Tituss Burgess, Donna Murphy, Savion Glover, Nathan Lee Graham, Shoshana Bean, Nicole Fosse, Noah Fosse, Liz Cho, Khori Petinaud, Lorna Luft, Stephanie Pope, Stephen Schwartz, and Vy Higginsen. The evening also featured performances from Broadway's BOOP! The Musical and the revival of Gypsy as well as The Verdon Fosse Legacy and The Sing Harlem Choir.
The complete list of winners for the 2025 Chita Rivera Awards follows:
Book Review: Monica
Sunday, May 18, 2025
Off-B'way Review: Bowl EP
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Essence Lotus and Oghenero Gbaje in Bowl EP. Credit: Carol Rosegg |
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Essence Lotus and Oghenero Gbaje in Bowl EP. Credit: Carol Rosegg |
But about half-way through the play’s 85 minutes, the proceedings take a bizarre turn and what started off as a moving love story of two alienated outsiders reaching out to each other through their love of rap and skateboarding turns into a confusing jumble. A third character pops out of an opening in the pool and
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Essence Lotus and Oghenero Gbaje in Bowl EP. Credit: Carol Rosegg |
takes over. She is dressed like a cosplay version of a Japanese anime character (DeShon Elem created the flashy costumes) and identifies herself as Lemon Pepper Wings. Presumably she represents Quentavius’ inner demons and dominates the action until the end of the play. She forces Quent and Kelly to live out their dreams by performing a rap concert. (Free Fool is credited with the intense infectious music.) Then Lemon Pepper performs an act of symbolic violence on the two (literally ripping their guts out) and explains their tragic fates in a powerhouse monologue. Felicia Curry delivers a stunning performance as this force of nature. She manages to convey the essence of longing, passion and self-hatred and still portray a credible character rather than a symbol.
Unfortunately, for the latter half of the play, Hassan tells us about the two rappers’ unhappy story instead of showing us. Lemon Pepper Wings’ long speech which is half abstract concepts and half storytelling, goes on too long and interest in Quentavus and Kelly is lost. The set and the skateboarding are fun, but they are not enough to maintain a fully-fleshed work.
May 18—June 15. Vineyard Theater and National Black Theater in association with The New Group at Vineyard Theater, 108 E. 15th St., NYC. Running time: 85 mins. with no intermission. vineyardtheater.org
Saturday, May 17, 2025
CNN To Broadcast Good Night and Good Luck
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Glenn Fleshler and George Clooney in Good Night, and Good Luck. Credit: Emilio Madrid |
The telecast will include a pre-show coverage outside the theater and a post-show special discussing the perilous state of world journalism.
Friday, May 16, 2025
Nicole Scherzinger, Happy Ending, Oh Mary! Win Drama League Awards
The Drama League Awards were presented on Fri. May 16 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in a ceremony hosted by NY-1 News theater reporter Frank DiLella.
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Nicole Scherzinger of Sunset Blvd. won the Distinguished Performance Drama League Award for 2025. |
Tony Award winner and star of this season’s Old Friends, Bernadette Peters, presented both the Award for Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theater to her co-star, Tony and Olivier Award winner Lea Salonga, and The Gratitude Award to acclaimed theater, television and film producers Robert Greenblatt and Neil Meron, represented on Broadway this season with Smash; Tony Award winner Sam Gold (Romeo + Juliet) presented the Founders Award for Excellence in Directing to Tony and Drama League nominee Whitney White (The Last Five Years, Liberation); and Michael Cruz Kayne (Sorry For Your Loss) presented the Contribution to the Theater Award to Kate Navin and Audible Theater.
Book Review: Norwegian Wood
Thursday, May 15, 2025
Book Review: Patience
(Borrowed from NYPL on 40th St., 3rd floor graphic novel section): Amazing read. Daniel Clowes' dazzling sci-fi thriller reads like a movie. I have loved all of his work including Wilson, Ghost World, Ice Haven, and Caricature. An economically oppressed couple is expecting a baby. Suddenly the husband comes home to find his wife killed in an apparent botched break-in. He spends the rest of his life trying to bring her back as we travel into a bizarre future. The panels spring right off the page, sometimes blurring over the edges to suggest the weird psychedelic trip the husband takes through time and his own consciousness. The portraits of working-class despair and random cruelty are heartbreaking. The title is ironic as Patience tries to piece together the jumbled mess her obsessed hubbie creates in his misguided efforts to save her.
B'way/Off-B'way Update: MTC and Public Theater Seasons
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David Lindsay-Abaire Credit: Tricia Baron |
Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Off-B'way Reviews: The Last Bimbo of the Apocalypse; All Nighter
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Patrick Nathan Falk, Milly Shapiro, and Luke Islam in The Last Bimbo of the Apocalypse. Credit: Monique Carboni |
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Milly Shapiro and Keri Rene Fuller in The Last Bimbo of the Apocalypse. Credit: Monique Carboni |
Their search leads to Coco (dynamic Keri Rene Fuller), the wrist in the photo and a wannabe singer who vanished after her one attempt at topping the charts failed. Along the way, the trio encounters Coco’s religious-fanatic mother (fiery Sara Gettelfinger) and an unidentified friend (quirky Natalie Walker) who holds the key to the mystery.
Director Rory Pelsue cleverly stages this journey through cyberspace as if the characters were all in physical proximity though they are mostly communicating through their screens. Amit Chandrashaker’s spectral lighting, some of which is through cell-phone illumination, aides in the illusion. Cole McCarty designed the kicky costumes spanning the last two decades of hipster fashion. Pelsue also balances the comic, satiric elements with compassion for the disillusioned Internet addicts. The cast, especially Shapiro, portrays them as broken loners rather than as eccentric goofballs obsessed with trivia. These are more than comic Bimbos, they’re human beings.
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The cast of All Nighter. Credit: Evan Zimmerman |
Margolin is a promising playwright, creating believable characters and skillfully building a riveting story arc employing interesting details and building suspense through careful clues. Jaki Bradley’s well-paced direction includes hilariously fast-motion action to denote the passage of time and Isa Briones, Kathryn Gallagher, Alyah Chanelle Scott and understudy Tessa Albertson deliver complex portraits of young women in conflict with themselves and each other. As Wilma, the outspoken outsider of the group, Julia Lester crashes into the action like a hurricane. Wilma longs to be noticed, and more importantly, accepted. Lester fullfils this objective with spectacular character choices, endowing each gesture and action with subtext. Even munching on a bag of potato chips or aggressively opening a collapsible stool so she can join the study table reveals tons about Wilma and her needs. It’s a fascinating performance in an excellent ensemble.
The Last Bimbo of the Apocalypse: May 13—June 1. The New Group at the Alice Griffin Jewel Box Theater/Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 W. 42nd St., NYC. Running time: 95 mins. with no intermission. thenewgroup.org.
All Nighter: March 9—May 18. Newman Mills Theater/Robert W. Wilson MCC Theater Space, 511 W. 52nd St., NYC (this is not a production of MCC Theater). Running time: 90 mins. with no intermission. allnighterplay.com.
Monday, May 12, 2025
Happy Ending and Proctor Win OCC Awards
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John Proctor Is the Villain was named Outstanding Broadway Play by the Outer Critics Circle. Credit: Julieta Cervantes |
Saturday, May 10, 2025
Equity Foundation Awards
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Nicholas Barasch, Ramin Karimloo, and Jinkx Monsoon in Pirates! The Penzance Musical. Credit: Joan Marcus |
The winners will be presented with their accolades at an upcoming Equity regional meeting.
The Judges Panel for the seasonal performance awards included: Joe Dziemianowicz, New York Theatre Guide; Adam Feldman, Time Out New York; Elysa Gardner, New York Sun, New York Stage Review; Harry Haun, The Observer; Kobi Kassal, Theatrely; and Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter, New York Stage Review.
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Kathryn Gallagher, Julia Lester, and Havana Rose Liu in All Nighter. Credit: Evan Zimmerman |
Thursday, May 8, 2025
Les Miz Cast Plans to Boycott Trump at Kennedy Center
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The cast of Les Miz. Credit: Matthew Murphy |
"Any performer who isn’t professional enough to perform for patrons of all backgrounds, regardless of political affiliation, won’t be welcomed," Grenell fumed in a statement. "In fact, we think it would be important to out those vapid and intolerant artists to ensure producers know who they shouldn’t hire — and that the public knows which shows have political litmus tests to sit in the audience....The Kennedy Center wants to be a place where people of all political stripes sit next to each other and never ask who someone voted for but instead enjoys a performance together"
If they haven't already, the actors in question should issue of a statement of their own explaining their reasons. What Grenell is missing is that these actors are not intolerant of those with differing views. They are protesting Trump's anti-art and anti-diversity policies. The Center has cancelled all LGBTQ programming the week of Gay Pride in DC. Trump is cutting NEA grants for theaters across the country. He's threatening to defund Public TV and National Public Radio. All of those points should be put out and plainly stated. I'm guessing they would be happy to do the show if Trump weren't there and would not ask every audience member who they voted for. At least, I assume that's why they are boycotting. That's why they should put out their own statement. They should also point out that Les Miz is about the struggle of the poor for social justice and the overthrowing a corrupt government. Ironic, huh?
It might have been more effective for everybody to call in sick just before the performance and issue a statement afterwards.
Tuesday, May 6, 2025
NYDCC Awards Purpose, Maybe Happy Ending, Scott, Liberation Cast
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Helen J. Shen and Darren Criss in Maybe Happy Ending, Best Musical winner from the NYDCC. Credit: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman |
The New York Drama Critics’ Circle comprises 23 drama critics from daily newspapers, magazines, wire services and websites based in the New York metropolitan area. The New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, which has been awarded every year since 1936 to the best new play of the season is the nation's second-oldest playwriting award, after the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Adam Feldman of Time Out New York serves as President, Zach Stewart of Theatermania is Vice-President, and Helen Shaw of The New Yorker is treasurer.
In addition to Feldman, Stewart and Shaw, the members of the New York Drama Critics' Circle are David Barbour, David Cote, Joe Dziemianowicz, Greg Evans, Rhoda Feng, David Finkle, Elysa Gardner, Robert Hofler, Sara Holdren, Charles Isherwood, Chris Jones, Soraya Nadia McDonald, Jackson McHenry, Johnny Oleksinski, Brittani Samuel, Frank Scheck, David Sheward, Tim Teeman, Elisabeth Vincentelli and Matt Windman. Emeritus members include Melissa Rose Bernardo, Brian Scott Lipton, Michael Sommers, Steven Suskin and Linda Winer. Four members (Cote, Evans, Holdren, and McDonald) voted by proxy and one member (Windman) attended via Zoom. All other voting members were present.
Monday, May 5, 2025
Purpose Wins Pulitzer
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LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Jon Michael Hill, Glenn Davis and Alana Arenas in Purpose. Credit: Marc J. Franklin |
Sara Horden, theater critic for New York Magazine, was a runner-up for the Pulitzer for Criticism. James by Percival Everett, a reinterpretation of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, won for Fiction. Several of Donald Trump's favorite publications including the New York Times, Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal also won (sarcastic).
B'way/Off-B'way Reviews: Just in Time; Floyd Collins; All the World's a Stage
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Jonathan Groff in Just in Time. Credit: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman |
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Christine Cornish, Jonathan Groff, and Julia Grondin in Just in Time. Credit: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman |
In order for this gimmick to work, you need a supremely gifted star and Groff is it. He grabs the audience from his first breathtaking entrance, emerging from beneath McLane’s gorgeous bandstand on an elevator. He is introduced not as Darin, but in his own person. Then he jokes about the setting (“I love playing the basement of Wicked”), explains the premise, and then seamlessly launches into the first exuberant number, establishing this will be a fun evening, not a dark dirge. Groff is amazing, soulfully and energetically putting across song after song, executing Lewis’ razzle-dazzle dance steps and delivering a fully-realized portrait of the charming, brash, arrogant, yet lovable Darin.