THE HANGOVER REPORT – Christine Goerke unveils a very human Isolde via the NSO’s dramatically and musically alert performance of Wagner’s intoxicating score

Yesterday at David Geffen Hall, Gianandrea Noseda led the National Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Act II of Richard Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde. The raison d’être for the concert, an offering at this … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – THE GREAT TAMER, Dimitris Papaioannou’s surreal, slow-burning visual symphony, mesmerizes at BAM

Last night at the Howard Gilman Opera House, the highly regarded Greek auteur Dimitris Papaioannou made his BAM debut with The Great Tamer, another smashing offering at this year’s Next Wave Festival. … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – SLAVA’S SNOWSHOW returns to New York, essentially the same but still radiating its quirky, much-loved charms

Slava’s Snowshow has returned to Broadway after more than a decade at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre, where it opened this week. The show was created by Slava Polunin – who amazingly continues … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – A recap of this fall’s immersive theatrical experiences, which memorably include USER NOT FOUND, FOUND, and BLACKOUT

After last night’s unique User Not Found in Brooklyn, I thought it would be a good time to take stock of the notable immersive theatrical experiences I’ve come across this … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Paul Taylor’s legacy is in good hands under Michael Novak’s leadership (and the musicianship of the Orchestra of St. Luke’s)

Last night, I caught a performance by Paul Taylor American Modern Dance Company (“PTAMDC” for short) at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. Of the company’ substantial three … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Experimental dance theater that’s possessed by past works of art: Marlene Monteiro Freitas’s BACCHAE and an evening of Annie-B Parson

I recently encountered two programs of experimental hybrid dance theater that seem to have been possessed by ghosts of past works of art. The Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Next Wave Festival … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Despite some staging mis-steps, Ross Golan’s stirring score for THE WRONG MAN beguiles, as does leading man Joshua Henry

This past weekend, I caught up with The Wrong Man, Ross Golan’s highly anticipated new Off-Broadway musical at MCC Theater. The list of pop artists with whom Mr. Golan has … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – DruidShakespeare’s RICHARD III is lucid, diabolical, and one of the most thrillingly entertaining stagings of the play I’ve seen

Corey Stoll’s superb Macbeth for minimalist director John Doyle at Classic Stage Company isn’t the only Shakespearean villain baring his fangs this fall in New York. He faces stiff competition from … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Lincoln Center’s White Light Festival in full swing with the welcome return of THE MANGANIYAR SEDUCTION and James MacMillan’s searing new STABAT MATER

This past week found Lincoln Center’s White Light Festival in full swing with two offerings that exemplified, at its purest, the festival’s core tenet – the belief that transcendence and illumination of the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The sensational Adrienne Warren dazzles in the otherwise merely mediocre TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL

Last night at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, the latest in the seemingly endless parade of jukebox bio-musicals opened on Broadway. That would be Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, the British import that’s … Continue Reading →