VIEWPOINTS – Gays in prison and on the farm: Survival of the fittest writ large in Ned Van Zandt’s LOST IN DEL VALLE and Rodrigo Portella’s TOM AT THE FARM

We all have our ideas of what constitutes gay stereotypes. As an openly gay man, mine were somewhat dislodged when I recently attended Rodrigo Portella’s visiting Brazilian production of Tom … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Compelling portraits of young women in the process of forming themselves: Layla Khoshnoudi’s I’M NOT EVEN HALF and Melis Aker’s FISH

Officially opening over the past few days were a pair of Off-Broadway co-productions that both feature young women in the process of forming themselves. Here are my thoughts on these … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Classical music roundup: A vocally splendid MACBETH opens The Met season, The BERLIN PHILHARMONIC lives up to its reputation at Carnegie Hall

This fall, two of the most anticipated happenings in the realm of classical music included the season-opening new production of Verdi’s Macbeth at The Metropolitan Opera, as well as the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Modern masculinity under candid scrutiny in Else Went’s DEGENERATES and Max Wolf Friedrich’s THE HOLES

This past week, I came across a pair of new Off-Broadway plays that took it upon themselves to candidly scrutinize modern masculinity in, for the most part, shades of compellingly … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – In GOOD TIME CHARLIE, Ryan J. Haddad expands the thematic scope of his well-honed autobiographical storytelling

Earlier this week, Ryan J. Haddad’s latest creation Good Time Charlie opened Off-Broadway at The Public Theater. In short, the piece is Haddad’s most ambitious work to date. Up until … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Mfoniso Udofia’s surreal CREATION STORIES collapses time, mythologies, and realities to refocus an unfulfilled life

Over at the Claire Tow Theater at Lincoln Center, you’ll find LCT3’s production of creation stories and all the important importants by Nigerian American playwright Mfoniso Udofia. In short, the … Continue Reading →

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Jon Beavers is tremendous in the title role of Irish Rep’s visceral, stylish revival of Eugene O’Neill’s THE HAIRY APE

Over at Irish Repertory Theatre, you’ll find a stylish, timely Off-Broadway revival of Eugene O’Neill’s bleak 1922 play The Hairy Ape. In short, the work chronicles the downward spiral of … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – From SINATRA to SARDINES: Affectionately curated evenings reveling in the Great American Songbook

This fall, in between my attendance of intense and highly dramatic theatrical offerings, I’ve been able to cleanse my palette by sitting back and reveling in the riches of the … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – Three immersive Off-Broadway musicals with unique reasons to sing: SLAM FRANK at the Orpheum, SOON at St. Luke’s, and BEYOND THE STARDUST at The Flea

Thus far this fall, you’ll be able be able to experience three new Off-Broadway musicals that have compelling — albeit very different — reasons to burst into song. Together, they … Continue Reading →

VIEWPOINTS – New Off-Broadway plays with distressed points of view: Joshua Owen’s HUMAN THINGS and Katie Cappiello’s THE BODY OF MARY

Over the past week, I encountered a pair of new Off-Broadway plays with distressed points of view, together indicating the fraught state of our collective psyche during these uncertain times. … Continue Reading →