VIEWPOINTS – Paying homage to dance icons: Channeling Nijinsky in ANIMA ANIMAL and Cunningham in BEGIN ANYWHERE

Over the past few days, I had the chance to take in a pair of new works of dance that paid homage to icons of the form. As always, read … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Opera as downtown theater: Heartbeat Opera’s intimately scaled SALOME is an in-your-face thriller

This past holiday weekend, I also had the opportunity to catch the final performance of Heartbeat Opera’s compact version of Salome. Based on Oscar Wilde’s 1891 play of the same … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Divas of distinction: JOAQUINA KALUKANGO, MELISSA ERRICO, and KLEA BLACKHURST strut their stuff in song

This holiday weekend at various venues across the city, I had the opportunity to catch some wonderful nightclub acts from a trio of truly distinctive divas. Collectively, they proved that … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In these tenuous times, JINKX MONSOON shined like a beacon in her captivating Carnegie Hall debut

On Valentine’s Day, I had the great opportunity to catch Jinkx Monsoon make her highly anticipated Carnegie Hall debut in front of an adoring sold out audience. For those of … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Idina Menzel dares to scale emotional and physical heights in the unsettled new musical REDWOOD

One of the more anticipated events of the current Broadway season is the return to the Great White Way of Idina Menzel in the new musical Redwood, which opened last … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Akram Khan returns to his roots and to the stage in the exquisite GIGENIS: THE GENERATION OF THE EARTH

Although I thought I had seen the last of Akram Khan as a performer, it’s nonetheless a welcome the opportunity to see the legendary British-Bangladeshi choreographer/dancer return to the stage in … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – NAATCO’s modern verse version of CYMBELINE puts a feminist spin on the Bard’s rarely performed romance

Over at the Lynn F. Angelson Theater (many will recognize the venue as Classic Stage Company’s home base), you’ll find the National Asian American Theatre Company (known simply as “NAATCO” … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Black rage courses through Ian Andrew Askew’s multidisciplinary SLAMDANCE GARAGE

Then there’s SLAMDANCE garage at The Bushwick Starr, Ian Andrew Askew’s unclassifiable solo show that’s been produced in association with ¡Oye! Group. In their multidisciplinary piece, Askew plays with disparate … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Over at Birdland, JULIE BENKO & EUPHONIC GUMBO celebrate Mardi Gras with style and charm

Last night, I caught the wonderful Julie Benko, who returned to Birdland Jazz Club with her jazz-pianist husband Jason Yeager and his band Euphonic Gumbo for their annual Mardi Gras-themed cabaret … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Jordan Harrison’s THE ANTIQUITIES episodically chronicles humanity’s dire future vis-à-vis the rise of A.I.

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to catch up with Jordan Harrison’s latest speculative play The Antiquities, which is currently running Off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons (the company is presenting … Continue Reading →