A roundup look at three plays that opened recently Off-Broadway. I highly recommend the Vineyard Theatre's striking "The Amateurs" and Signature Theatre's superb "At Home at the Zoo", but suggest skipping MCC Theater's "Relevance".
REVIEW: Witness the "Black Light"
“Black Light”, an incandescent evening of song and story, stars performance artist Daniel Alexander Jones as his alter-ego, the enigmatic cabaret creation Jomama Jones; rich in meaning and message, its politics pointed but poetic, “Black Light” is a wickedly funny, painfully revelatory, and poignantly beautiful exploration of race, identity, gender, power, history, change, and community that is perfectly calibrated for these turbulent times. Catch this show if you can.
REVIEW: "Hello, Dolly!" with Bernadette Peters-still crowing, still growing, still going strong!
Nearly a year into its run, “Hello, Dolly!” is buoyantly better, brighter, and tighter than on opening night. Bernadette Peters gives a stellar, steadier, and more grounded performance as Dolly Levi, alongside replacements Victor Garber, Charlie Stemp, and Molly Griggs—and Gavin Creel and Kate Baldwin, and the ensemble, are better than ever. This is the best musical comedy on Broadway. If you haven't seen it, get tickets now; if you have seen it, it's worth checking back in.
"The Secret Garden" is headed to Broadway next season; starry "To Kill A Mockingbird" cast announced; "The Sting", "Unmasked", "Hundred Days", and "Chess" receive regional productions; Wayne Brady returns to "Kinky Boots"; Katharine McPhee will make Broadway debut in "Waitress"; Playwrights Horizons' 2018-2019 season announced; MCC Theater cuts ties with Neil LaBute; lights dim for Jan Maxwell
REVIEW: "America is Hard to See"
“America is Hard to See” by Life Jacket Theatre Company is a new documentary play with music that explores the lives of a community of child sex offenders in Florida, testing the limits of our capacity for empathy and forgiveness. Deeply unsettling, surprisingly humane, and ultimately uplifting, it is a powerful play that provokes more questions than answers, and is guaranteed to leave you changed.
NOTES: “Bar Mitzvah Boy”? Hadn’t heard of it.
"Bar Mitzvah Boy" was the second offering in the York Theatre Company's annual "Musicals in Mufti" series dedicated to composer Jule Styne; not performed in New York since 1987, this sweet and charming musical received an excellent production using a 2016 revised book, but could benefit from some musical trimming.
NOTES: Philip Glass Ensemble, “Music with Changing Parts”
The Philip Glass Ensemble returned to Carnegie Hall last night for the first time in a decade to present “Music with Changing Parts” (1970), an oft-overlooked and rarely performed early masterpiece from Mr. Glass’s prolific repertoire.
"Hangmen" and "The Ferryman" are headed to Broadway; Al Pacino may return as Tennessee Williams in "God Looked Away"; Whoopi's eyeing "Dolly!"; "Wicked" is the 7th longest running show; Jan Maxwell dead at 61, John Mahoney dead at 77
REVIEW: Encores! “Hey, Look Me Over!”
Two songs from "Mack & Mabel" steal the show at Encores! 25th anniversary concert “Hey, Look Me Over!”—an original concert pulling overtures, songs, and scenes from nine different, lesser-known musicals—overshadowing middling material from the other eight musicals celebrated. A fun experiment after 25 years, hopefully Encores! sticks to full concerts of single shows at a time in the future.
REVIEW: Eve Ensler’s “In the Body of the World”
Eve Ensler’s “In the Body of the World” is an exquisite poem of a solo performance that connects one woman’s journey with uterine cancer to the plight of women worldwide and the very devastation of our earth. Crisp, funny, devastating, and transcendent, this play is a must see.
REVIEW: Martin McDonagh’s menacingly funny “Hangmen”
“Hangmen”, a hilarious dark comedy about vengeance, packs the top-notch twists, violence, and laughs we’ve come to expect from Irish playwright Martin McDonagh. Superbly acted and directed, this sold out limited run will likely end up on Broadway, and for good reason. See it if you can.
Hal Prince turns 90 and Carol Channing turns 97; Taylor Trensch steps into "Dear Evan Hansen" early; "The Greatest Showman" may get stage adaptation; "Head Over Heels" announces theatre and cast; Hayes Theatre reopens; piece from Howard Sherman on impact of long-running shows