My Variety Review: Jean Smart in Broadway's 'Call Me Izzy' by Frank Rizzo

Sometimes the only refuge from the brutalities of a life pre-destined for loneliness, poverty and violence is a poetic voice. In playwright Jamie Wax’s one-hander “Call Me Izzy,” Jean …

Part 2: My Other Tony Award Predictions... by Frank Rizzo

Now for the second half of my predictions for Sunday’s Tony Awards honoring the best of the 2024-25 Broadway season — which ended at the end of April . It was indeed one of the richest…

My Tony Award Predictions: A Very Competitive Season with a Maybe Happy Ending by Frank Rizzo

The 2024-25 Broadway season — which ended April 30 — was one of the richest and most competitive seasons in years. While there hasn't been been a megahit of the likes of “Hamilton” o…

Jean Carlos Salazar: Call Him 'Mister Connecticut' by Frank Rizzo

Jean Carlo Salazar believes that self-belief is essential, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. At 26, Salazar, a resident of East Haven, emphasizes the importance of faith in …

Some Pix from Last Night's Drama Desk Awards by Frank Rizzo

Searching for Deeper Connections ‘Sex, Love and Venice’ Looks at One Man’s Journey by Frank Rizzo

By FRANK RIZZO How can a gay man find true intimacy in an easy-access world of online sex? The answer may be an honest reckoning with oneself — and perhaps even a trip to Venice. At least …

Welcome Back, Mink Stole: John Waters’ Star Returns In New Gaycentric Film by Frank Rizzo

You know this is not the first time I’ve played the mother of an unhappy gay person,” said Mink Stole on a recent Zoom call from her home in Los Angeles. A regular in the idiosyncratic f…

Remembering Legendary Broadway Composer Charles Strouse by Frank Rizzo

Photo by Joan Marcus Charles Strouse — the great composer of such hits as “Annie” (which began at Goodspeed Opera House …

Review: New Adam Guettel Musical "Millions" Premieres in Atlanta by Frank Rizzo

Carla R. Stewart and Keenan Barrett. All production photos are by Greg Mooney The show: “Millions,” a new musical receiv…

In 'Lunar Eclipse' Donald Margulies Looks Inward -- and Skyward by Frank Rizzo

Photo by Frank Rizzo An old farmer is alone in the middle of an open field late at night and he is weeping. New Haven playwrig…

My Own Take: Goodspeed's 'Ragtime' -- Big and Loud by Frank Rizzo

The show: The musical “Ragtime” at Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam. …

Not Exactly an Art Gallery, But Still...'The Art of Trader Joe's' by Frank Rizzo

Julie Averbach remembers looking at a box of Caesar Salad at Trader Joe’s and on the label was a picture of Augustus of Prima Porta, a famous sculpture carved of the Roman emperor, which s…

Goodspeed's Michael Price To Receive Special Tony by Frank Rizzo

Congratulation to Michael Price, 86, longtime executive director of Goodspeed Musicals who will be receiving a special Tony Award ion June. The Tony Awards Administration Committee announce…

Some of My Tony Thoughts on Upcoming Announcement by Frank Rizzo

Jeremy Jordan in “Floyd Collins” First, a big thanks to Adam Feldman for setting me straight (so to speak) on a few eligib…

My Variety Review: 'Real Women Have Curves' Musical by Frank Rizzo

The Latina seamstresses at a dressmaking workshop in East L.A. express their credo at the top of the new musical “Real Women Have Curves.” With the pulsating song “Make It Work” thes…

My Variety Review: Broadway's 'Dead Outlaw' Musical by Frank Rizzo

All photos by Matthew Murphy Unlike the mobile British corpse in “Operation Mincemeat,” the traveling American cadaver in …

My Own Take: Off Broadway's 'I'm Assuming You Know David Greenspan' by Frank Rizzo

The show: “I’m Assuming You Know David Greenspan” by Mona Pirnot at the Atlantic Theater Company. What makes it special?: David Greenspan. Who is he and why is he in a title of a play…

My Variety Review of Broadway's 'Stranger Things: The First Shadow' by Frank Rizzo

With the Broadway arrival of “Stranger Things: The First Shadow,” the origin story from the popular Netflix series, comes the question: Will this stand-alone tale appeal — and then sat…

'The Friend' Is a Great (Dane) Of A Film Thanks To Bill Berloni by Frank Rizzo

When filmmakers reached out to Bill Berloni about finding and training a dog to co-star with Naomi Watts and Bill Murray in the film “The Friend,” his answer was direct. “I basically …

My Own Take: Off Broadway's "We Had a World" with Joanna Gleason by Frank Rizzo

Photos by Jeremy Daniels. The show: The Manhattan Theatre Club production of “We Had a World” by Joshua Harmon and starri…

My Variety Review: "Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends" on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

After three Broadway revues of Stephen Sondheim’s music you would think a fourth wouldn’t offer anything fresh, have any surprises, or be anything special. Think again. “Old Friends”…

Remembering William Finn by Frank Rizzo

This is a tough one and news of infinite sadness. I just learned that composer William Finn has died at the age of 73. “March of the Falsettos” in 1981 was a revelation to me and his fol…

My Variety Review: "Boop!: The Musical" on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Following on the high heels of the 2023 hit film “Barbie,” “Boop! The Musical” likewise aims to remake and rebrand another dated pop character for contemporary times and audiences. U…

My Variety Review: George Clooney in 'Good Night and Good Luck' on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

Like television journalist Edward R. Murrow’s historic broadcasts, the stage adaptation of the 2005 film “Good Night, and Good Luck” has a seriousness of purpose that is again dram…

My Own Take: Off-Broadway's "Curse of the Starving Class" by Frank Rizzo

Photos by Monique Carboni The show: “Curse of the Starving Class” by Sam Shepard, revived by off-Broadway’s The New Gro…

$1.4 million Given Out in Windham-Campbell Annual Prize To 8 Writers by Frank Rizzo

Today, the Windham-Campbell Prizes have awarded eight extraordinary writers $175,000 each to support their work and allow them to focus on their creative practice independent of financial co…

My Variety Review: "Operation Mincemeat" on Broadway by Frank Rizzo

An astonishing, loopy and very true World War II story about Great Britain tricking Germany into believing false invasion plans has been the source material for non-fiction books and movies …

My Variety Review: "Buena Vista Social Club" by Frank Rizzo

Entering “Buena Vista Social Club” is like stepping into a heady world of the senses, of heightened emotions, and of passionate music and dance. The Social Club was a real place for loca…

Take a Tour of Gay New Haven; John Allen leads a revealing walk into LGBTQ+ history by Frank Rizzo

Sometimes gay history is all around you and you don’t even know it. John D. Allen, Ed.D, is seeking to change that by bringing decades — even centuries — of the joys and fears, triumph…

Matt Doyle: In Familiar Company by Frank Rizzo

Yes, it’s a stereotype, but do mothers and their gay sons really do have a special relationship like no other? Matt Doyle believes so. The Tony Award-winning actor from the gender-switchin…

Playwright Athol Fugard Dead at 92. Ties to New Haven Theaters by Frank Rizzo

Athol Fugard, the great South African playwright died on Saturday night at his home in Stellenbosch, a town near Cape Town. He was 92. His wife, Paula Fourie, confirmed his death after a car…