All stories by Charles McNulty on BroadwayStars

Tuesday, February 5, 2019

At Actors' Gang, a timely return of the political madness of Dario Fo's 'Anarchist' by Charles McNulty

Opportunities to see high-caliber productions of the work of Dario Fo — the Italian clown, political radical and Nobel laureate who died in 2016 — don’t come around all that often. My …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:10AM
Friday, February 1, 2019

Review: Wooster Group turns Texas inmates’ songs into the stirring theater of ‘The B-Side’ by Charles McNulty

The celebrated company turns "Negro Folklore From Texas State Prisons" into a stereophonic seance linking generations of African American experience.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:22AM

Review: Wooster Group turns Texas inmates’ songs into the stirring theater of ‘The B-Side’ by Charles McNulty

The Wooster Group has developed such a signature multimedia aesthetic over the decades that it’s refreshing to see this veteran avant-garde troupe willing to take a break from its playfull…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:45AM
Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Struck by the power of a story well told by Charles McNulty

Two South Africans, desperate to escape the impoverished futility of their lives, break into the home of an aging academic who walks in on them as they're ransacking the place for money. A p…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:39AM

'All's Well' at last by Charles McNulty

Consider this a friendly public service announcement from a concerned theater critic: Please, unless there's a truly compelling reason, let's agree to a moratorium on revivals of "Hamlet," "…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:39AM

There is a good point, sir by Charles McNulty

As I was leaving the theater the other night, an older gentleman with a lapel-grabbing voice and a friendly jack-in-the-box manner stopped me dead in my tracks. "What was the point of that?…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:39AM

More misadventure in the screen trade by Charles McNulty

It might be heresy for a theater critic to admit, but Hollywood has done a better job of skewering the theater than the theater has done skewering Hollywood. Give me "All About Eve" over "On…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 11:33AM

Review: Sweeney Todd, Sondheim's throat-cutting barber, sets up shop in South Coast Rep's entertaining revival by Charles McNulty

An emphasis on storytelling rather than star performances or staging pyrotechnics drives a crisp production of the macabre musical "Sweeney Todd" at South Coast Repertory.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00AM
Friday, January 25, 2019

Review: How well does Stephen Daldry’s landmark ‘An Inspector Calls’ hold up? by Charles McNulty

Director Stephen Daldry made his name with the National Theatre whodunit "An Inspector Calls." Now the London revival comes to Beverly Hills, seeping with commentary about class divisions.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00AM

Review: How well does Stephen Daldry’s landmark ‘An Inspector Calls’ hold up? by Charles McNulty

Sometimes a production can wrest a seemingly outdated play from certain retirement. Director Stephen Daldry did just that when he was a young gun storming the London theater scene in the ear…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00AM
Thursday, January 24, 2019

Hello, Betty Buckley! A new Dolly hits town, and she’s ready to add to her legend by Charles McNulty

Time catches everyone by surprise. For Betty Buckley, the rude awakening happened when director Michael Wilson called to say he was planning a revival of the musical “Grey Gardens.”

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:52AM
Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Hello, Betty Buckley! A new Dolly hits town, and she's ready to add to her legend by Charles McNulty

Time catches everyone by surprise. For Betty Buckley, the rude awakening happened when director Michael Wilson called to say he was planning a revival of the musical “Grey Gardens.” She …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00AM
Thursday, January 17, 2019

Review: In Tracy Letts' 'Linda Vista,' a loser in love and the collateral damage he leaves behind by Charles McNulty

The sensationally acted Steppenwolf Theatre production at the Mark Taper Forum delivers compelling characters and funny dialogue, but at times the pacing sluggishly shifts into cable TV terr…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 06:07PM

Review: In Tracy Letts' 'Linda Vista,' a loser in love and the collateral damage he leaves behind by Charles McNulty

The plays of Tracy Letts can be broadly divided into two types: Those with men behaving appallingly and those with women behaving abominably. In “August: Osage County,” his Pulitzer Priz…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 06:05PM
Tuesday, January 15, 2019

Why Carol Channing was a Dolly for all seasons: Our critic's take by Charles McNulty

Bette Midler, Barbra Streisand, Ethel Merman, Mary Martin: They all starred in "Hello, Dolly!" but no one had the same kind of giddy, goofy charm as the beloved Carol Channing.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 03:48PM
Thursday, December 20, 2018

How Bryan Cranston’s towering performance in ‘Network’ packs new potency into Paddy Chayefsky’s 1976 tale of media mind control by Charles McNulty

The stage adaptation of the '70s film, directed with bold flourishes by European auteur Ivo van Hove at Broadway's Belasco Theatre and co-starring Tony Goldwyn and Tatiana Maslany, has somet…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00AM

How Bryan Cranston’s towering performance in ‘Network’ packs new potency into Paddy Chayefsky’s 1976 tale of media mind control by Charles McNulty

Two thoughts occurred to me at the end of Ivo van Hove’s stage production of “Network”: Bryan Cranston is one of the most fearless actors working today, and Paddy Chayefsky attained a …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 10:00AM
Sunday, December 16, 2018

Review: Taylor Mac's 'Holiday Sauce,' a madcap brew of Christmas spirit, extra spicy by Charles McNulty

The cabaret drag star who staged his 24-hour music and social history marathon earlier this year, returns with an L.A. holiday show that takes on this, the most materialistic time of the yea…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:25PM

Review: Taylor Mac's 'Holiday Sauce,' a madcap brew of Christmas spirit, extra spicy by Charles McNulty

Imagine a Christmas tree ornament made by Picasso on an absinthe bender and you’ll have some idea of Taylor Mac’s initial costume for “Taylor Mac’s Holiday Sauce,” the festive fand…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:20PM
Friday, December 14, 2018

Review: 'The Cher Show,' a Broadway musical that hardcore fans can 'Believe' in by Charles McNulty

How much Cher is too much Cher? I mean how much pasteurized celebrity information do you really, really want? A related question posed by the new Broadway musical “The Cher Show,” now at…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 09:09PM

Review: 'The Cher Show,' a Broadway musical that hardcore fans can 'Believe' in by Charles McNulty

Does anyone really expect genuine drama from this kind of commercial jukebox musical? Get past the lackluster writing, and this production directed by Jason Moore and choreographed by Christ…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 08:30PM

In 'To Kill a Mockingbird' on Broadway, the words of Harper Lee but the voice of Aaron Sorkin by Charles McNulty

Aaron Sorkin's production of 'To Kill A Mockingbird,' which opened Thursday on Broadway, is a top-flight interpretation of the Harper Lee novel under the rustically elegant direction of Bart…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:40PM

Review: At this 'Prom,' the campy comedy comes with an LGBTQ beat by Charles McNulty

How much campiness can a theater audience take? This new musical tests the limits with its tale of Broadway actors who set out to champion an Indiana high school student banned from bringing…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:19PM

Review: At this 'Prom,' the campy comedy comes with an LGBTQ beat by Charles McNulty

During the deliriously zany setup for “The Prom,” a new musical comedy now at the Longacre Theatre, I thought I might have died and gone to campy heaven. The feeling doesn’t last, but …

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:15PM
Thursday, December 13, 2018

Review: In 'To Kill a Mockingbird' on Broadway, the words of Harper Lee but the voice of Aaron Sorkin by Charles McNulty

The marquee at the Sam S. Shubert Theatre blasts in big block letters “Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird.” But all it takes is some slingshot dialogue to reveal that the new blockbust…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 09:50PM

Review: In 'To Kill a Mockingbird' on Broadway, the words of Harper Lee but the voice of Aaron Sorkin by Charles McNulty

All it takes is a few minutes of slingshot dialogue to reveal that this blockbuster Broadway adaptation belongs to Sorkin, who with director Bartlett Sher and star Jeff Daniels has created a…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 09:00PM
Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Best theater 2018: A brave ‘Cost of Living,’ a radical ‘Fairview’ and a new star in ‘Evan Hansen’ by Charles McNulty

The Times' theater critic names his top productions of 2018, including Jefferson Mays' take on "A Christmas Carol," a daring "Streetcar," Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' ingenious "Gloria" and the s…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 08:00AM

Best theater in 2018: A brave 'Cost of Living,' a radical 'Fairview' and a new star in 'Evan Hansen' by Charles McNulty

The year started strong with two revivals that invited us to listen anew to modern classics we thought we knew inside out. Richard Nelson’s production of Anton Chekhov’s “Uncle Vanya�…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 08:00AM
Thursday, November 29, 2018

Review: 'Come From Away' national tour keeps singing its ode to the better side of human nature by Charles McNulty

The surprise Broadway hit about a tiny Canadian town's embrace of air passengers diverted on 9/11 arrives at L.A.'s Ahmanson Theatre a little less polished but ultimately still satisfying.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 05:12PM

Review: 'Come From Away' national tour keeps singing its ode to the better side of human nature by Charles McNulty

The surprise Broadway hit about a tiny Canadian town's embrace of air passengers diverted on 9/11 arrives at L.A.'s Ahmanson Theatre a little less polished but ultimately still satisfying.

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 04:20PM
Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Critic's Notebook: Star turns that serve the Broadway play — Elaine May, Daniel Radcliffe and Janet McTeer show how it's done by Charles McNulty

When it comes to playwriting, Broadway has a supply problem. Although the new generation of American dramatists is blazingly talented, the great majority of these writers prefer the creative…

SOURCE: Los Angeles Times at 07:39AM

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