Brad Heberlee as Sganarelle and Chris Mixon as the Statue (Photo credit: Russ Rowland) by Deirdre Donovan Don Juan–that legendary lover who faked many a marriage-can now be glimpsed on the Pearl Theatre’s boards. And with Justin Adams slipping into the skin of Moliere’s most hypocritical lover, one should seize the day and go to this new…
Ruthie Ann Miles, Jose Llana Photo by Joan Marcus by Stewart Schulman There’s a new trend in musical theater, and it seems to be taking the industry by storm. It involves attempting to tell a story with as little traditional ‘book’ as possible. For example: String a libretto of pop-rock-style songs together. Hire an…
James Godwin photos by Jim Moore By Glenn Giron We find ourselves in a futuristic Manhattan or what eventually comes to be known as NYORG. Wylie Walker, the hero of our story, narrates the piece in a film noir themed voice over that is not for a moment unappreciated – he is the maintenance man of the…
The company in “The Gondoliers” photo credit William Reynolds by Deirdre Donovan Gilbert & Sullivan’s 1889 opera The Gondoliers returns with delicious verve to NYU’s Skirball Center for the Performing Arts with the redoubtable New York Gilbert and Sullivan Players (NYGASP). This comic opera might not reach the exotic heights of The Mikado or…
Lawrence Jansen In Cool Hand Luke. Photo by Jason Woodruff By Russell Bouthiller Godlight Theatre’s adaptation of the novel, Cool Hand Luke, offers a gritty atmosphere, sound performances and a hard story to tell. Based on the Don Pearce novel and adapted for the stage by Emma Reeves, The Godlight Theatre Company presents Cool Hand…
John Turturro as Zorba & the cast of Zorba photos by Joan Marcus by Julia Polinsky Handsomely staged but with no center, this dark revival tries hard to charm Encores! at City Center started life as concert performances of neglected musical theater. Things change; the series has morphed into cobbled-together almost-revivals, casting an eye on…
Lt. Brannigan, played by David Sitler, questions gambler Benny Southstreet, played by Noah Plomgren. by Ed Lieberman Move over, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, there’s a new club in town: the Goodspeed Opera House, which is currently hosting the Oldest Established Permanent Floating Crap Game in CT! Rumor has it that the Goodspeed accepted a…
by Deirdre Donovan Dael Orlandersmith returns to New York Theatre Workshop with her new semi-autobiographical show Forever. If you have never seen this gifted author-actress on stage, now is your chance to catch her in a tour de force performance. Forget about gilding the lily! Orlandersmith goes for the truth here. She boldly explores…
Richard Zavaglia, Ray Abruzzo and Dan Luria by Nicholas Linnehan What happens when The Sopranos meet The Odd Couple? It’s anyone’s guess. And there you have the premise with Dan Lauria’s dark comedy Dinner With the Boys. Two exiled hit men play house as they “cook up” plans for their futures. Charlie and Dom…
Photos By John Vecchiolla By Ed Lieberman The story of “Romeo and Juliet” has entertained theatergoers since Shakespeare first published it in the late 1590’s. In recent times, playwrights and filmmakers have adapted the story and/or placed it into contemporary contexts (i.e. “Romanoff & Juliet,” by Peter Ustinov [1968]; Baz Luhrmann’s “Romeo + Juliet [1996])….