All stories by Jacob Malizio on BroadwayStars

Thursday, October 30, 2025

Little Bear Ridge Road by Jacob Malizio

Set on the remote edge of a small Idaho town, LITTLE BEAR RIDGE ROAD centers on a razor-tongued aunt and her long-estranged nephew who find themselves suddenly back in each other’s lives �…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:48PM

Laurie Metcalf Is Riveting in ‘Little Bear Ridge Road’ by Jacob Malizio

As played by a glorious Laurie Metcalf in Samuel D. Hunter’s keen-eyed, compassionate play “Little Bear Ridge Road,” which opened on Thursday night at the Booth Theater, she is also on…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Little Bear Ridge Road, Samuel D. Hunter’s Must-See Broadway Debut by Jacob Malizio

Little Bear Ridge Road is a quietly triumphant debut for Hunter, an American playwright who sees the country we truly inhabit, rather than the one we like to imagine we do. The post Little B…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Laurie Metcalf Shines in a Flawed but Fascinating COVID Story by Jacob Malizio

Moments of big emotion in “Little Bear Ridge Road” don’t fall flat, exactly, but they don’t play to Hunter’s strengths as a writer; he’s better in small, askew gestures. The post…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

A Towering Laurie Metcalf Unsettles—and Dazzles—in ‘Little Bear Ridge’ by Jacob Malizio

Little Bear Ridge Road, which runs about 95 minutes (with no intermission), serves as a showcase and masterclass of Metcalf’s acting abilities and command of the stage. Over and over again…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

You Won’t Take Your Eyes Off Laurie Metcalf in Little Bear Ridge Road by Jacob Malizio

In Little Bear Ridge Road, Metcalf racks up the hits with ease, though the production feels more like watching home run derby than a full game. I couldn’t escape the nagging sensation, as …

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Laurie Metcalf Is Our Greatest Curmudgeon Who Delights by Jacob Malizio

The Orion’s Belt comments prefigure all sorts of big discussions to come about cancer and meth addiction and child abuse. They are the same tropes that other, lesser playwrights stick in t…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Laurie Metcalf and Micah Stock star in Samuel D. Hunter’s gorgeous new play. by Jacob Malizio

This production, directed with superb acerbity by Joe Mantello, marks the playwright’s overdue Broadway debut, and it doesn’t disappoint. The play is a multifaceted gem, exquisitely shap…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Small Lives, Writ Large by Jacob Malizio

Hunter is a master at creating these types of indelibly flawed characters, and his sensitive writing is beautifully complemented by Joe Mantello’s typically precise direction and the super…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Destination Uncertain by Jacob Malizio

Now that I am done telling friends to grab tickets to Little Bear Ridge Road, let’s tell you about Samuel D. Hunter’s latest drama, which opened on Thursday at the Booth Theatre. Little …

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM
Tuesday, October 28, 2025

Liberation by Jacob Malizio

1970s, Ohio. Lizzie gathers a group of women to talk about changing their lives, and the world. What follows is a necessary, messy, and bitingly funny exploration of what it means to be free…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:48PM

A Tony-Worthy Ensemble Plotting Revolution by Jacob Malizio

If there is a show that can make the case for a Tony Award for best ensemble, it’s this one. White directs the actors like a conductor leading an orchestra: Each one gets to shine in at le…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:48PM

The Time Is Right for Bess Wohl’s Liberation on Broadway by Jacob Malizio

Since seeing it earlier this year, I’ve found myself mentally comparing everything else onstage to Liberation, and frankly, not many other shows compare. Liberation is a must see. The post…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:48PM

Re-Encountering Liberation on Broadway by Jacob Malizio

Both times I’ve seen the play—Off Broadway this spring, now returning in a larger space on Broadway—I’ve felt unprepared for the emotional wallop it lands, the way that Wohl’s work…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:48PM

An Impressive Memory Play That Delivers a Fresh and Frank Take on the Women’s Rights Movement by Jacob Malizio

“Liberation” is a brilliant, well-acted, and sobering account of the women’s rights movement, complicity, and the lens through which we view our caretakers — namely, our mothers. The…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Women in Search of Answers Gather for the Year’s Best Play by Jacob Malizio

When Bess Wohl’s “Liberation” opened Off Broadway all the way back in February, it would have been ridiculous to grace it with best-of superlatives. Now that “Liberation” has opene…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Bess Wohl’s feminist drama keeps the conversation going. by Jacob Malizio

Whitney White’s direction elicits a triumph of ensemble acting whose equipoise is a perfect realization of the play’s own themes. The actors work so well together, and so unselfishly, th…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Bess Wohl’s new Broadway play highlights how the times, they aren’t a-changin’ by Jacob Malizio

While Wohl’s script is packed to the brim with thoughtful moments of beauty, comedy, and heartbreak, Liberation wouldn’t be nearly as affecting and, sadly, relatable without its stellar …

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

An essential, tour-de-force memory play by Jacob Malizio

There is something different about Liberation’s Broadway production. Bess Wohl’s play still features the same tight ensemble as in its Off-Broadway premiere earlier this year, and it is …

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM

Fiery and funny show brings 70s feminism to Broadway by Jacob Malizio

Liberation, which premiered off-Broadway earlier this year, is a welcome original play on Broadway that relies not on marquee Hollywood names for buzz but a slate of strong performances, whi…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:47PM
Thursday, October 16, 2025

Ragtime by Jacob Malizio

RAGTIME is a sweeping musical adaptation of E.L. Doctorow’s novel that follows three fictional families in pursuit of the American Dream at the dawn of the 20th Century: Black pianist Coal…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:55PM

Checking the Status of Our American Dream by Jacob Malizio

As the plot follows the intersecting fortunes of those three characters’ families, each seeking to redeem the country’s promise at a time of tumultuous change, old-fashioned musical-thea…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

Ragtime Revival is Broadway at Its Best by Jacob Malizio

From the moment the chorus rises from the stage of the Vivian Beaumont Theater during the opening number of Ragtime, you know you’re in for something special—a big Broadway musical with …

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

Broadway Revival Is a Timely, Glorious Panorama of Changing Times in America by Jacob Malizio

It’s a thrilling experience, though on the Vivian Beaumont Theater’s vast stage this pageant of a musical feels a bit skimpy. Not that the musical needs opulent sets, but it does call fo…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

The wheels of a dream turn down an all too familiar path in stirring Broadway revival by Jacob Malizio

Ragtime culminates with two huge 11 o’clock numbers, from Henry and Levy, a Tony-winner and Olivier-nominee whose names are rightfully big draws to the show. Yet the showstopping vocal mom…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

America in Major and Minor Keys: Ragtime Returns by Jacob Malizio

Ragtime settles into a richer and more internal mode quickly, in a large part due to the textured performances of its leads and the thought they’ve applied to Ahrens and Flaherty’s score…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

Broadway revival still misses — but has sensational singing by Jacob Malizio

The original Broadway production in 1998 featured career-changing performances from Brian Stokes Mitchell, Audra McDonald and Marin Mazzie. Now, in 2025, you feel every bit as fortunate to b…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

Lincoln Center Reclaims A Gem by Jacob Malizio

While deBessonet could have better provided a certain focus or point of view – Ragtime‘s telling of America’s immigrant tale is, at this point in history, ripe for the picking – she …

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

Ragtime and Ragtime again. by Jacob Malizio

Henry has been at the forefront of Broadway leading men for 15 years, but this show is his triumph. He takes one of the most demanding roles in the Broadway canon and he does it full justice…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:52PM

A Glorious RAGTIME Is Finally Back On Broadway by Jacob Malizio

One year ago, seated at City Center, I cried at both numbers and left the theater deeply shaken. If that same power hasn’t quite held, it is perhaps no fault of a broadly first-rate produc…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 11:51PM
Monday, September 29, 2025

Punch by Jacob Malizio

As Jacob tears through Nottingham in a whirlwind of drugs, girls, and bar fights, he makes a fatal mistake that lands him in prison. But as he struggles to accept the consequences of his act…

SOURCE: Did They Like It? at 10:26PM

All that Chat

2025-2026 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 12, 2025: Call Me Izzy - Studio 54
Sep 16, 2025: Art - Music Box Theatre
Oct 08, 2025: Beetlejuice - Palace Theatre
Nov 13, 2025: Oedipus - Studio 54
Nov 16, 2025: Chess - Imperial Theatre
Mar 23, 2026: Giant - Music Box Theatre
Apr 06, 2026: Becky Shaw - Hayes Theater