by Deirdre Donovan The American loser gets his day in Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins. Sondheim’s 1990 vaudeville musical features two centuries of villains who have tried to kill the U. S. President. Some succeeded, others didn’t. But one thing was believed by all these historical reprobates, and dramatized by the Proprietor in the show’s opening…
Ashley D. Kelley (as Bella) photos by Joan Marcus by Julia Polinsky It’s so tempting to like Bella: an American Tall Tale a lot. There’s so much to like! The cast for one thing; the talented and charming Ashley D. Kelley, as Bella, leads a group of ridiculously good actors. Special kudos…
Lindsay Mendez (Helen) and Barton Cowperthwaite (Paris) phtos by Joan Marcus by Deirdre Donovan The only conclusion to come to after seeing The Golden Apple at New York City Center is that the dedicated folks at Encores! leave no stone unturned when they search for obscure musical treasures that once graced a New…
Jennifer Swiderski, (as Rosie) Michelle Dawson as Donna Sheridan) and Elise Kinnon (as Tanya) By Ed Lieberman After a string of smaller productions (The Bikinis; Christmas Inn; Million Dollar Quartet; Always, Patsy Cline), WBT restarts its 2017 season with its 200th production: Mamma Mia!, a musical based on the songs of ABBA, who have…
Tam Mutu and Scarlett Strallen Photos credit Joan Marcus by Deirdre Donovan Since 1991, City Center Encores! has been one of the darlings of the New York Theater establishment. With its latest offering, Cole Porter’s The New Yorkers under the sound direction of John Rando, it can only endear itself more to musical…
l to r: Joanna Young, Karyn Quakenbush, Katy Blake, Anne Fraser Thomas The Bikinis By Ed Lieberman With almost perfect timing, the Westchester Broadway Theatre has mounted a production tailor made to counteract our (finally) winter weather. The Bikinis is a jukebox musical about a fictional 1960’s girls group, consisting of two sisters, a…
Melody Grove (Photos by Jenny Anderson) By Ron Cohen Is Hell really next door to a Costco parking lot? Whether true or not, that intriguing factoid is put forth with a completely straight face in The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart. It’s one of the many elements, both large and small, that make…
Top to Bottom) Matthew Wages, Sarah Caldwell Smith, Stephen Quint , Cáitlín Burke and David Macaluso by Deirdre Donovan Well, chalk one up for the New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players! The company has pulled off a Herculean feat by retooling The Mikado and turning it into a work that embraces all ethnic…
Simon Green and David Shrubsole on piano Photos by Heidi Bohnenkamp, 2016 by Eugene Paul With almost a Cowardian flair and an almost Cowardian performer as his star, pianist, composer, lyricist David Shrubsole has created an intimate pastiche for star Simon Green, its full title, Life is for Living: Conversations with Coward, giving…
Colonel Tewfiq Zakaria, forefront (Tony Shalhoub) (photo credit Ahron Foster) by Deirdre Donovan Weary of the razzle-dazzle and special effects that go along with most Broadway musicals? Well, The Band’s Visit, which opened Off Broadway on December 8th at the Atlantic Theater Company’s Linda Gross Theater, might be the best antidote to that…