All stories by Aaron Riccio on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Review: The Lightning Thief Struggles to Summon Epic-Scale Spectacle by Aaron Riccio

As the stakes grow increasingly life or death, the production’s campy structure becomes less capable of supporting it. The post Review: <em>The Lightning Thief</em> Struggles t…

SOURCE: Slant Magazine at 10:00PM
Friday, August 9, 2019

Review: Moulin Rouge! Is a Great American Musical for the TikTok Generation by Aaron Riccio

This production’s pacing is more deliberate than that of the film, leaving the characters with more room to breathe. The post Review: <em>Moulin Rouge!</em> Is a Great American…

SOURCE: Slant Magazine at 02:43PM
Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Review: In Mojada, Immigration Is an Ill-Fitting Costume for a Modern-Day Medea by Aaron Riccio

The play reduces Medea’s decisions to an act of madness, adding little to our understanding of the Medea mythos. The post Review: In <em>Mojada</em>, Immigration Is an Ill-Fitt…

SOURCE: Slant Magazine at 09:59PM
Monday, April 8, 2019

Review: Agree or Disagree, Mrs. Murray’s Menagerie Keeps Us at a Distance by Aaron Riccio

The play’s always-at-arm’s-length subtext makes it hard for us to appreciate or connect with the material on an emotional level. The post Review: Agree or Disagree, <em>Mrs. Murray…

SOURCE: Slant Magazine at 07:59PM
Sunday, March 31, 2019

Review: What the Constitution Means to Me Is a Perfect Union of Past and Present by Aaron Riccio

The play is positioned as a coping mechanism for Heidi Schreck and, by extension, the audience. The post Review: <em>What the Constitution Means to Me</em> Is a Perfect Union of …

SOURCE: Slant Magazine at 08:24PM
Tuesday, October 4, 2016

Review: Cirque du Soleil’s Kurios: Cabinet of Curiosities at Randall’s Island by Aaron Riccio

It provides a clear and winning way in which to wring magic from the old, and features several stunning illusions. The post Review: Cirque du Soleil’s <em>Kurios: Cabinet of Curiosit…

SOURCE: Slant Magazine at 12:15PM
Saturday, March 9, 2013

THEATER: rogerandtom + Trevor by Aaron Riccio

Oh yeah, we're still covering off-off-Broadway -- Trevor deserves a larger venue (and much larger audience) pronto . . . I'm looking at you, Second Stage! And rogerandtom breaks the fourth w…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 01:11AM
Sunday, March 3, 2013

THEATER: Belleville by Aaron Riccio

Come join me over at the new site, won't you, as I talk about the ticking trust bomb at the suspenseful heart of Amy Herzog's quite enjoyable Belleville.

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 10:22PM
Thursday, February 28, 2013

Here's Looking At You, Resident Evil 7 by Aaron Riccio

Enough has been said about how terrible Resident Evil 6 is, from the ridiculous story and the lack of horror to the spotty controls, awkwardly laid-out zones, poor scenarios (drivi…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 01:26AM
Sunday, February 24, 2013

So, Steven Soderbergh Is Quitting Cinema Because People Are Stupid (And the Oscars Prove It) by Aaron Riccio

Mary Kaye Schilling catches the always candid and often eloquent Steven Soderbergh on the eve of his retirement in an article for New York's February 4, 2013 issue, and for me, the most…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 02:58PM
Friday, February 22, 2013

Makes No Sense At All by Aaron Riccio

"Yes, but it is art?" is entirely the wrong question, if for no other reason than that it doesn't matter. We're talking about an entirely subjective thing here, and while we may get wrapped …

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 11:48PM

An Ode to King of the Nerds by Aaron Riccio

There's a mistaken belief out there that reality television is a cheap substitute for scripted programming: you don't have to write anything, the cast is generally replaceable after fifteen …

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 03:29AM
Thursday, February 21, 2013

A Note to Readers by Aaron Riccio

For the record, while I may be resuming regular posting here in the future (don't reset all your links), for the next few weeks, I'm going to be posting to http://thatsoundscool.wordpre…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 03:35PM

metaDRAMA: What Are You Writing For? by Aaron Riccio

In a recent issue of The New Republic, Adam Kirsch writes of the decline of the essay, describing even good writers such as John Jeremiah Sullivan (or, one would imagine, Michael Pollan…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:51PM
Saturday, January 26, 2013

THEATER: "Collision" is a Disaster in Slow, Slow Motion by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Russ RowlandOnce upon a time, to borrow the banal storytelling mechanic used by playwright Lyle Kessler's pretentious philosophers, there was a critic who thought he'd seen more than h…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 02:03PM
Sunday, January 20, 2013

THEATER: It Could Happen to Anyone in "Bethany" by Aaron Riccio

Crystal (America Ferrara) would like you to buy a new car, preferably within the next week. Because that's when her Saturn dealership is shutting down. And she works on a straight commission…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 09:00PM
Friday, December 21, 2012

THEATER: The Surprisingly Heartwarming "P.S. Jones and the Frozen City" by Aaron Riccio

Is there anything more important in the theater than confidence? Without it, Robert Askins could never have written his Obie-award winning Hand to God (in which a boy's Satanic sock puppet t…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 04:27PM
Friday, December 14, 2012

THEATER: Fine Animal Instincts Shown in "Volpone, or the Fox" by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Carol RoseggGreed, despite what you may have heard, isn't good. Comedies about greedy men, on the other hand are. And while Red Bull (every bit as energetic as the drink) is best known…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:30AM
Friday, December 7, 2012

THEATER: I Heart Theater at "Hearts Like Fists" by Aaron Riccio

Flux Theatre Ensemble @ The Secret Theatre44-02 23rd StreetLong Island City, NYthrough December 15, 2012Running Time: 100 minutes (no intermission)Photo/Isaiah TanenbaumIs there such a …

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:25AM
Tuesday, December 4, 2012

THEATER: I'll Be Home For "A Civil War Christmas" by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Carol RoseggIt's Christmas Eve, 1864, and Paula Vogel is shining a spotlight on three wise American men as they momentarily step back from the brink of their war and enjoy a moment of …

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 10:00PM
Saturday, November 17, 2012

THEATER: Performance Anxieties: Reviews of "The Performers" and "Barking Girl" by Aaron Riccio

The Performers is about adult industry stars and their large endowments, but the Broadway stage must be cold or something, because these outsize-stars are shriveling up under the lights…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:08AM
Wednesday, October 24, 2012

THEATER: If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It: A Review of "How to Break" by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Benjamin Heller If How to Break were an actual hip-hop track, it would be defined by the solid chorus and rhythmic structure that bridges the dramatic beat(boxing) surrounding the…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 04:45PM
Friday, October 19, 2012

THEATER: Time Enough At Last: A Review of the New York Neo-Futurists' "On the Future" by Aaron Riccio

Thirty plays an hour. Two to twelve new plays a week. All year long. Even with a revolving ensemble, that's a daunting task for any theater company, especially a non-illusory one like the Ne…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:36AM
Monday, October 1, 2012

THEATER: Violence Is Hard to Understand, So Let's Be Vague and Comedic About It by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Sandra CoudertWriter/director Adam Rapp's latest play, Through the Yellow Hour, has once again transformed the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater: one enters through a narrow graffitied c…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 11:47PM
Tuesday, September 25, 2012

THEATER: Red Dog Howls by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Joan MarcusThe thing you need to know about Red Dog Howls, before you get frustrated or restless, is that Alexander Dinelaris is deliberately pacing his play in a fashion that wil…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:01AM
Monday, September 24, 2012

THEATER: Job by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Hunter CanningIt doesn't feel particularly ambitious or adventurous of Thomas Bradshaw to adapt the biblical story of Job to the stage -- even the title, Job, is straightforward, and t…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 03:53PM
Tuesday, September 11, 2012

THEATER: Mary Broome by Aaron Riccio

For my first review back after an unusually long "vacation," and for a show being produced by the normally wonderful Mint Theater Company, I wish I had more positive things to write. But thi…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 01:33PM
Thursday, June 21, 2012

THEATER: 3C by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Joan MarcusWhy are sitcoms so popular in America? Perhaps it's because nothing bad ever really seems to happen, at least nothing that can't be shrugged off and reset by the end of the …

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 10:57PM
Wednesday, June 20, 2012

THEATER: The Bad and the Better by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Monica Simoes"I'll have like this different level thing going for me where like the revolutionaries are all sentimental lovers and they all die because of it. It'll really just be a st…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 12:53PM
Monday, June 18, 2012

THEATER: Sovereign by Aaron Riccio

Photo/Deborah AlexanderRest assured, there are no Ewok-equivalents in Sovereign, the third and final part of Mac Rogers's epic work of science-fiction theater, The Honeycomb Trilogy. In fact…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 01:19AM
Sunday, June 17, 2012

THEATER: Uncle Vanya by Aaron Riccio

I don't think Chekhov ever used the term "creep" to describe his characters, and yet that perfect word choice is one of the little joys that makes Annie Baker's adaptation of Uncle Vanya&nbs…

SOURCE: That Sounds Cool at 08:19PM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards