VIEWPOINTS – Finding musical escapism Off-Broadway: MAMA I’M A BIG GIRL NOW and KAFKAESQUE!

To further get my mind off of recent events, I’ve turned to musical theater (among other things) to find escape. In this pursuit, I came across two Off-Broadway offerings that … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Next Wave 2024 continues with Tiago Rodrigues’s provocative CATARINA AND THE BEAUTY OF KILLING FASCISTS

Last night at BAM Harvey Theater, I attended the opening performance of Catarina and the Beauty of Killing Fascists, the latest offering of Brooklyn Academy of Music’s 2024 edition of its … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The beguiling, refreshing new musical MAYBE HAPPY ENDING examines love through the eyes of robots

Once in a while, a musical comes along that breaks the mold of the tried and true and thoroughly captures the imagination. This week, an unlikely new Broadway musical has … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Heléne Yorke and Michael Zegen navigate the spiky terrain of modern dating in STRATEGIC LOVE PLAY

Also last night, Strategic Love Play by Miriam Battye (perhaps best known for lending her writing talents to hit television shows like Succession) opened Off-Broadway at the Minetta Lane Theater, … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – James Monroe Iglehart shines as Satchmo in the by-the-books jukebox bio-musical A WONDERFUL WORLD

Last night, the new musical A Wonderful World: The Louis Armstrong Musical opened on Broadway at Studio 54, a fitting venue for a show centered largely around music and the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Strong women at the helm: Amy Berryman’s WALDEN and Jenny Lyn Bader’s MRS. STERN WANDERS THE PRUSSIAN STATE LIBRARY

This week, I encountered a pair of Off-Broadway plays by women playwrights that feature strong women characters at the helm. Read on for my thoughts. WALDENSecond Stage TheaterThrough November 24 … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Assessing two deep cuts: Mint’s rare revival of SUMP’N LIKE WINGS and Gingold Theatrical Group’s revamp of THE DEVIL’S DISCIPLE

Over the years, two Off-Broadway theater companies — Mint Theater Company and Gingold Theatrical Group — have made it their mission to dust off plays on the brink of falling … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – A triumphant return: City Center’s gala revival of RAGTIME lives up to its reputation as one of the great musicals of the modern era

Based on E.L. Doctorow’s 1975 novel Ragtime, the seminal and beloved 1996 musical adaptation of the same name — featuring music by Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and a … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The immersive new gay-themed musical LITTLE HOUSE ON THE FERRY delivers breezy entertainment

Last night, Robert Gould’s new gay-themed musical Little House on the Ferry officially re-opened The Duplex’s upstairs cabaret space — now rebranded as “Ferry’s Landing” — which has been shuttered … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – The future looks grim in Sarah Mantell’s poetically wrought new play IN THE AMAZON WAREHOUSE PARKING LOT

Opening earlier this week was Sarah Mantell’s disarming if enigmatic new play In the Amazon Warehouse Parking Lot, Playwrights Horizons’ main stage offering this fall. The winner of last year’s … Continue Reading →