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…
Newsies By Ed Lieberman At a time when the youth of the world are taking leadership roles in calling attention to issues such as climate change and gun control, Westchester Broadway Theatre is presenting Newsies, an exuberant musical adaptation of the 1992 Disney movie of the same name that starred Christian Bale. Although…
The Bodyguard, The Musical By Edward Lieberman The White Plains Performing Arts Center (WPPAC) is hosting the regional premiere of The Bodyguard, the Musical, based upon the hit movie, “The Bodyguard,” which starred Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner. The…
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…
Captions: Ted Chapin, Co-host of Sondheim: Wordplay Photo Credit: Richard Termine Sondheim: Wordplay A Review by Deirdre Donovan Teaser: The 92nd Street Y’s Lyrics & Lyricists series takes a closer look at Sondheim’s preternatural gift for wordplay. Sondheim, anyone? The latest offering of the 92nd Street Y’s “Lyrics & Lyricists” series was entitled Sondheim: Wordplay, presented…
Sara Means, Mark Evans photos Joan Marcus I Married an Angel Encores! At New York City Center by Julia Polinsky What theater aficionado doesn’t love a Rodgers and Hart score? Just knowing that Encores! was doing their dance musical, I Married an Angel, was enough to tip off anticipation. The cream on…
Steve Rosen and David Rossmer The Other Josh Cohen by Julia Polinsky That NYC rite of passage — the break-in — sets up just how pathetic, geeky, and miserable is Josh Cohen’s life. (“Only the Beginning”) Before the house lights go down, even before everyone’s seated, a thief breaks into Josh’s apartment (terrific…
Clockwise from center: Megan Cavanagh, Roberta B. Wall, Donna J. Huntley and Debby Rosenthal (Photos by John Vecchiolla) Menopause The Musical By Edward Lieberman Not much mystery here: the title says it all! The show revolves around four characters, purportedly portraying four different female personality types: a “Professional Woman,” played by Donna J….
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…
By Arney Rosenblat Call Me Madam holds the unique status during City Center’s diamond jubilee year of being a revival of a beloved revival which highlighted the second season of Encores1 and “put the series on the map.” The 1950’s musical itself, Call Me Madam, also brings with it a unique history,…