Writer
Fern Siegel is a journalist who has written for MediaPost, Huffington Post, The New York Times and BBC Radio. She believes Sondheim and Gershwin make America great.
The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand in 1914 had cataclysmic results — Austro-Hungary declared war on Serbia — and unleashed the carnage known as WWI. The assassination was carried out by 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip, aided by fellow nationalists and members of the Black Hand. In Archduke, a dark absurdist comedy by Rajiv Joseph, now Off-Broadway at…
Sometimes, less is more. Theater aficionados know George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion as the inspiration for the Lerner and Loewe musical “My Fair Lady.” What’s less known is that Shaw based his work on a Greek myth. An artist prays for his marble sculpture to turn into a real woman — and Aphrodite grants his wish….
For 30 years, Northern Ireland was plagued by “The Troubles,” a civil war between Protestant loyalists, who wanted Northern Ireland to remain in the U.K., and Catholic republicans (IRA) fighting for a united Ireland. The third combatant was the British Army. The civilian toll was terrible and when the Good Friday Agreement was struck in…
Feminism in the 1970s fought for recognition. And the issues — pay parity, better child care, economic equality and career advancement — remain. It’s thanks to those pioneering efforts, that many younger women take certain rights for granted today. But the women’s lib struggle, in Bess Wohl’s funny, smart, eye-opening play, is a potent reminder…
At the turn of the 20th century, America grappled with its identity. Immigration, race, class and cries for social justice were challenging its promise as a refuge where all could succeed. That epic story is beautifully told in the musical Ragtime, based on E.L. Doctorow’s extraordinary novel about three families pursuing the American Dream. Now…
“Once you see, you can’t feign blind.” The line is courtesy of Stalin’s daughter Svetlana, commenting on perception and reality. Played to perfection by Dani Stoller, she is one of several compelling characters in Jonathan Spector’s This Much I Know, now off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters. Spector, who won a Tony for “Eureka Day,” a satiric…
Jamie Allan discovered his destiny at seven — when he went with his mother to an antique store. There, he found remnants of a magician’s craft — and that unexpected inheritance sealed his fate. Lucky for his audience. The esteemed British magician/illusionist is now in Amaze, off-Broadway at New World Stages, and delivers an astounding…
Sarah Stiles, Mark Linn-Baker (Photo: Carol Rosegg The Imaginary Invalid By Fern Siegel Molière’s 17th-century comedy The Imaginary Invalid is a satirical send-up of doctors, hypochondriacs, lovers and con men. In its latest production off-Broadway at New World Stages, an excellent cast, a 21st-century adaptation by Jeffrey Hatcher, and director Jesse Berger keep the pace…
Floyd Collins, the revived musical now at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater, is based on a true story. In 1925, a Kentucky cave explorer (Jeremy Jordan) searches Sand Cave, hoping to capitalize on tourist interest. Squeezing through tight spaces that would terrify others, Floyd Collins’ luck runs out. His spelunking causes him to lose his…
First, this Smash is a departure from the NBC series. The theatrical focus is on the making of Bombshell: The Marilyn Monroe Musical, not the who-will-play-Marilyn frenzy that accompanied the maligned TV show or what New York termed “appointment hate-watch.” That’s a plus — as this Smash is a musical comedy, a tart valentine to…