David Schultz

Writer

Roses are red; violets are blue. David loves theater, and hopes you do, too.

Reviews by David

  • Encores! High Button Shoes

     Michael Urie, Kevin Chamberlin                                   photos Joan Marcus Encores! High Button Shoes                          by David Schultz & Jeanne Lieberman This is the 75th anniversary of Encores!  the immensely successfuli concert series dedicated to performing rarely heard American musicals,  Presented by New York City Center since 1994, Its first production, Fiorello! (1959), was sold out in hours.  Their selections have reached back…

  • Eddie Izzard – Wunderbar

      Eddie Izzard:  Wunderbar                                             By David Schultz Hard to believe that this uber talented performer has been dazzling audiences for thirty years. His onstage performances are legendary. His film roles are few, but his live theater performances are delicious and invigorating. This new piece, potentially his last… he is toying with running for…

  • Beetlejuice

    Rob McClure (Adam), Kerry Butler (Barbara), Sophia Anne Caruso (Lydia), Alex Brightman (Beetlejuice) Photo by Matthew Murphy 2019   Beetlejuice                   By David Schultz Wildly inventive, overly caffeinated reboot is strictly for the fanbase. This whirling dervish musical starts at 90 miles an hour as it ratchets up the intensity and never rests for…

  • Benny & Joon

    Joon (Hannah Elless) & Benny (Claybourne Elder)   Benny & Joon                   By David Schultz This current season (Hell, the last few years actually) is seeing its share of film to live theater treatments once again. Tootsie, Pretty Woman, Magic Mike (upcoming fall season), Beetlejuice, are currently in previews or up and running in…

  • The Mother

    Isabelle Huppert   The Mother                                                                       By David Schultz French playwright Florian Zeller (The Father, The Mother, and forthcoming The Son) has attempted the same magic that made The Father such a heart wrenching theatrical experience a few seasons ago. Frank Langella perfectly captured the emotional disarray of a man on the precipice of…

  • Daddy – A Melodrama

     Ronald Peet      Photos Monique Carboni “Daddy”  A Melodrama                                 By David Schultz Well at least the gorgeous full-length pool looks inviting. Set designer Matt Saunders has created a whopper of an eye candy environment. Set in the outdoor environs of a swanky Bel Air, Los Angeles mansion the pool in question beckons invitingly. With…

  • Merrily We Roll Along

    Manu Narayan, Emily Young, Brittany Bradford, and Ben Steinfeld             photos by Joan Marcus   Merrily We Roll Along                     By David Schultz Both loved and reviled in equal measure, this problematic musical is once again attempting the impossible. The original production (as every theater aficionado knows) shuttered in 1981, after a mere 16 performances…

  • Holiday Inn

    Jeff Kready (Ted), Hayley Podschun (Linda), Nicholas Rodriguez    photos by Jerry Dalia                                         By David Schultz This perfect holiday classic, recently on Broadway in 2016 is brought back to delight yet again. This snazzy show is based on the well-known Bing Crosby/Fred Astaire film shown on cable year after year. It’s a warm as a…

  • Emma and Max

    Zonya Love, Matt Servitto and Ilana Becker in ‘Emma and Max’                  photos Joan Marcus Emma and Max                          By David Schultz The Flea Theater has the honor of producing underground filmmaker Todd Solondz’s first foray into playwriting. This subversive filmmaker has many fans that crave his dark, snarky vision of humankind. An acquired taste for…

  • Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies

                                                                                     Photos by Danny Knaub                                                        By David Schultz Winding down from a yearlong tour this tantalizing sequel to the 30-year and still running Phantom of The Opera is not to be missed. But alas, it is for all the wrong reasons. Love Never Dies opened to a critically mixed reception in 2009, and closed…