All stories by Alan Smason on BroadwayStars

Monday, January 4, 2021

‘Casablanca’: How and why it became an iconic Hollywood movie by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Special to Theatrecriticism.com (Desert Local News) – When the movie “Casablanca” merged the powerful elements of love, war, and destiny in 1942, the film and its produc…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 05:10PM
Thursday, December 31, 2020

New ‘Estella Scrooge’ is Dickensian love letter by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) It might be easy to dismiss Estella Scrooge: A Christmas Carol with a Twist as another in a continuing procession of holiday far…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 10:00PM
Tuesday, December 29, 2020

Williamstown Festival’s ‘Animals’ much more than Black-White affair by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) The third entry in the Williamstown Theatre Festival’s season using the Aubible platform was released in late December. This w…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:58PM
Saturday, December 26, 2020

Rebecca Luker, angelic soprano, departs for heavenly stage by Alan Smason

Rebecca Luker, a three-time Tony Award nominated actress, whose crystal-clear soprano voice and stunning presence established her as a star in some of Broadway’s more noted musicals of the…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 08:30AM
Wednesday, December 16, 2020

Audra McDonald is heard, but not seen in Williamstown’s ‘Streetcar’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON Ever since the words “novel coronavirus” began to make the news circuits and theaters began what was hoped to be a relatively short downtime, the ingenuity of resourceful …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:11PM
Friday, December 4, 2020

Jessica Sherr proves ‘Bette Davis Ain’t for Sissies’ by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN Of all the celebs channeled by drag queens and female impersonators, Bette Davis, like flies to honey, has always been at the top of every performers list. Her mannerisms, he…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:26AM
Thursday, November 12, 2020

Taurel reaches emotional peak in ‘The American Soldier’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Due to the ongoing COVID-19 restrictions limiting crowd sizes at public gatherings, local theatre companies have found themselve…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 02:50AM
Friday, October 2, 2020

UNO unpacks ‘Single Black Female’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON With the current COVID-19 pandemic creating new and interesting virtual meeting places, university campuses have been marked by responsiveness and ingenuity. Last spring’s v…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:46AM
Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Tony Awards Committee determines eligibility of shows by Alan Smason

The Tony Awards Administration Committee met on August 27, 2020 to confirm the eligibility status of three Broadway productions for the 2020 Tony Awards®. This was the final time the Tony A…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 03:10AM
Friday, July 10, 2020

‘Hamilton’ on Disney Plus is sure cure to lose pandemic blues by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON As the seconds ticked by to display a 2:00 a.m. CDT time on the computer, it was easy for me to imagine the sounds of a million click booms on TV remotes across the nation. Th…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 08:07AM
Thursday, June 18, 2020

2020 Drama Desk Awards announced by Alan Smason

The 65th annual Drama Desk Awards, which had been postponed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and then rescheduled for Sunday, May 31, only to be postponed again due to the emerging protests and…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 12:34AM
Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Why review theatre? by Alan Smason

By HARRY DUKE, originally published in NORTH BAY BOHEMIAN What is the point of reviewing theatre? If you had asked me that question 90 days ago, my answer would be to provide potential audie…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 03:58AM
Saturday, March 14, 2020

‘Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice’ adaptation closes by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN Surprise of all surprises, the 1969 movie “Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice,” thanks to The New Group and Pershing Square Signature Center, is back in the news again…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:46AM
Saturday, March 7, 2020

Busch gilds the ‘Confession of Lily Dare’ by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN In or out of drag, whether on stage or page, the 65-year-old actor playwright Charles Busch, with some 40 years of show business under his belt, is a force to be reckoned wit…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:54PM
Friday, February 21, 2020

Coyote Stageworks debut’s a terrific ‘A Doll’s House, Part 2’ at P/S Cultural Center by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Special from Desert Local News.com (PALM SPRINGS, CA.) – Coyote StageWorks, of Palm Springs, presents playwright Lucas Hnath’s A Doll’s House, Part 2 as the debut produc…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 05:58PM
Saturday, February 1, 2020

‘My Name Is Lucy Barton’ lost in translation by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN My Name Is Lucy Barton written by Elizabeth Stout and published to a chorus of Hosannas in 2016, is now a one-woman, two-character play – running through Saturday, February…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:07PM
Tuesday, January 28, 2020

‘Is This A Room’: A Whistleblower’s Nightmare by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN I cannot remember any play that unnerved me to such a degree as the Vineyard Theatre’s production of Tina Satter’s brilliantly conceived Is This A Room. Not only did this…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:15PM
Monday, January 20, 2020

Le Petit has a smash hit with ‘Something Rotten’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) With its current production of Something Rotten!, Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré has set the bar so incredibly high that even …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:16PM
Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Money, matrimony & madness in ‘London Assurance’ by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN First things first. Before I delve into the Irish Repertory Theater’s marvelous production of London Assurance by Dublin-born playwright Dion Boucicault (1820-1890) – ext…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:50AM
Tuesday, November 26, 2019

The talented, talkative critic: Herbert Simpson (1934-2019) by Alan Smason

By BILL HIRSCHMAN For even those who only knew Herbert Simpson in passing, likely what they remember was his voice – usually deep and sonorous, a bit scratchy, but brimming with passion. T…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:31AM
Thursday, November 7, 2019

‘Heroes of the Fourth Turning’: A conservative fugue by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN Will Arbery’s latest play, Heroes of the Fourth Turning, having been extended two times by popular demand, is now running Off-Broadway through Sunday, November 17, 2019 at …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:05AM
Thursday, October 31, 2019

Milwaukee’s Marcus Center serves as the room where ‘Hamilton’ happens by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL It has been a long wait, but the people of southeast Wisconsin finally get to be in the room where it happens. Hamilton has arrived. And what a reception it’s getting. The m…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 04:00PM
Friday, October 11, 2019

Pinter’s ‘Betrayal’ on Broadway: from the end to the beginning by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN I have often been asked how my plays come about. I cannot say. Nor can I ever sum up my plays, except to say that this is what happened. That is what they said. That is what …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 07:32AM
Saturday, October 5, 2019

Karamu Theatre stages Morisseau’s ‘Blue Paradise’ by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO Suzan-Lori Parks, Lynn Nottage and Tonya Barfield are noted as emerging African-American playwrights. Another member of that sorority is the award-winning Dominique Morisseau, t…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:24AM
Saturday, September 14, 2019

Bard bared: ‘Shakespeare’s R&J’ at convergence-continuum by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO In its off-Broadway production, Shakespeare R&J (which is now on stage at convergence continuum) ran for a year, making it the longest running version of “Romeo and Juliet…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 10:28AM
Sunday, September 1, 2019

San Diego’s Old Globe delivers winning comic romp by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Desert Local News “Silly is as silly does,” could easily be the subtitle following the name of the current comedy/farce romp The Underpants, now on stage at the Old Globe�…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 08:39AM

World’s greatest love story: ‘Romeo and Juliet’ at Old Globe in San Diego by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Desert Local News There have been many love stories written about the redemptive power of love in all its art forms: poems, songs, odes, sonnets, essays, novels, movies, and …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 07:06AM
Saturday, August 24, 2019

‘Lobby Hero’ at Blank Canvas asks: What is the moral thing to do? by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO Kenneth Lonergan is noted for writing about decent people who are unexpectedly challenged by issues of ethics. In his Lobby Hero, now on stage at Blank Canvas, the 2016 Oscar wi…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:37PM
Sunday, August 18, 2019

The Elegance of Yesteryear: ‘Love, Noël’ by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN There are probably greater painters than Noël. Greater novelists than Noël, greater librettists, greater composers of music, greater singers, greater dancers, greater comed…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:19AM
Saturday, August 10, 2019

Deadly plight of gays in Uganda seen in ‘The Rolling Stone’ by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN While New York City recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising with much hoopla and an enormous traffic-stopping Gay Pride parade that went on well in…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 10:00AM
Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Cleavant Derricks stars in Geva world premiere of ‘Revival: The Resurrection of Son House’ by Alan Smason

By HERBERT W. SIMPSON It seems that Geva Theater Center’s long devotion to creating a worthy theater piece devoted to the history of Son House has reached a temporarily completed form in t…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 02:01AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Nov 17, 2024: Elf - Marquis Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre