Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Hard-working cast excels in LPAC’s ‘9 to 5’ by Aaron Krause

By AARON KRAUSE Broadway at LPAC’s engaging and believable professional production of 9 to 5 is a fitting tribute to country music legend Dolly Parton, who recently turned 79.  Indeed, …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 08:50PM

Michael Paternostro scores high notes as Oscar Levant in ‘Good Night, Oscar’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Capturing the wit and destructive lifestyle of humorist Oscar Levant is a daunting task for any actor attempting to portray the …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 08:13PM
Monday, December 23, 2024

Cher and Cher alike: Trio of actresses star in ‘The Cher Show’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) The biggest problem Broadway has with so-called “jukebox musicals” is they always seem to get mired down by the exposition o…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 10:42AM
Saturday, December 21, 2024

Ricky Graham’s ‘It’s a Wonderful Life, Y’All’ flips into a N’Awlins Christmas setting by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON There are a lot of people capable of taking a beloved film soundtrack and adapting it faithfully into a theatre piece for presentation on the stage. There are also a lot of pe…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:07PM
Thursday, December 5, 2024

National tour of ‘Elf’ is a ‘sparklejollytwinklejingley’ gem by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON Of all the holiday-themed shows that make their way onto stages in December, Elf: The Broadway Musical may be the one most resistant to the Grinch, Scrooge and other humbugs. …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 12:50PM
Monday, December 2, 2024

Welcome to The Big Dipper: A crash & clash of cultures by Alan Smason

By SCOTTY BENNETT Consider, if you will, a blizzardlike night, a cozy inn on the brink of closing forever, suddenly brought back to life by the arrival of two very different groups of travel…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 03:37PM
Sunday, December 1, 2024

Costanzi harps on her life in ‘Woman on a Ledge’ by Alan Smason

By SCOTTY BENNETT Woman on a Ledge is an adaptation by Hershey Felder of harpist Rita Costanzi’s writings about her life. Ms. Costanzi is a world-renowned harpist whose life experiences ha…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:31PM

Dance form’s origins imagined in ‘Okuni: The Woman Who Created Kabuki’ by Alan Smason

By SCOTTY BENNETT Okuni: The Woman Who Created Kabuki by Ako Dachs is a limited, fictionalized account of the woman who is thought to have created kabuki. It is generally accepted that the d…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 04:50PM
Wednesday, November 20, 2024

‘Six: The Musical’ Brings Needed Escapism to the Nation’s Capital by Alan Smason

By ELIZABETH SCHABINGER Divorced. Beheaded. Died. Divorced. Beheaded. Survived! The six wives of British King Henry VIII are back in Washington, D.C. at the National Theatre, fresh from thei…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 07:23PM

Uneven ‘Tammy Faye’ can still lift spirits till Dec. 8 by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out”) Thirty-seven years after the scandal-ridden story of televangelists Tammy Faye and Jim Bakker and their popular PTL Club made he…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 12:31PM
Tuesday, November 19, 2024

Iglehart respectfully channels Satchmo in ‘A Wonderful World’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) The dark days of the COVID shutdown brought the theatre community to its knees. Unable to perform in front of live audiences or …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 08:52AM
Friday, November 15, 2024

Nicole Scherzinger’s performance in ‘Sunset Blvd.’ rebrands Norma Desmond in black and white by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Jamie Lloyd has made a reputation for himself as a visionary minimalist director, winning a remarkable collection of Olivier Awa…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 09:22AM
Thursday, November 7, 2024

Rivertown hires live band to accompany ‘Toxic Avenger’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) There are a few Off-Broadway shows that rise above the fray even though they are silly in concept or lack the kind of production…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 05:14AM
Friday, November 1, 2024

‘The Last Yiddish Speaker’ is truly frightening by Aaron Krause

By AARON KRAUSE Forget ghosts and goblins. Deborah Zoe Laufer’s frightening and moving drama, The Last Yiddish Speaker, centers on a real horrific scenario. Specifically, the playwright…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:02AM
Wednesday, October 30, 2024

Underwhelming ‘Mean Girls’ is a trip back to the worst experiences of high school by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO Bye Bye Birdie, Hair, Grease, Carrie, 13 (The Musical), Dear Evan Hansen and Mean Girls. What do all these Broadway musicals have in common? They placed the spotlight on teen a…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 05:51PM
Tuesday, October 29, 2024

Last weekend for JPA’s truly memorable ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Talk about hitting it out of the ballpark. With the Fall Classic being played out in arenas in Los Angeles and in New York, it�…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:24AM
Saturday, October 26, 2024

‘Pass Over’: An expletive-riddled dialog of exasperation, hopelessness by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Playwright Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu has said the concept of Pass Over is similar to that of Beckett’s Waiting for Godot and tha…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:41AM
Monday, October 21, 2024

Musicalized “Prelude to a Kiss” transcends the body switching genre by Alan Smason

By LOU HARRY Craig Lucas’ play Prelude to a Kiss reached Broadway in 1988, the same year that “Big,” “Vice Versa,” and “18 Again” were hitting movie theaters. Yes, all were bod…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 03:14PM
Thursday, October 17, 2024

Depression-era set ‘Girl from the North Country’ employs Dylan music for texture by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out”) When Girl from the North Country premiered on Broadway, there were a number of ebullient reviews trumpeting the musical for its …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 12:17PM
Sunday, October 13, 2024

Farcical message play ‘Purlie Victorious’ currently playing at Karamu House by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO “Neither Ruby Dee or Ossie Davis ever appeared in a Karamu House stage production but both had significant presence and impact in the organization and in the lives of Karamu a…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:37PM

‘Clue’ finishing its murderous run in Westwego by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critc (“Steppin’ Out“) Whether you loved the board game “Clue” when growing up or, perhaps, enjoyed the Paramount Pictures movie of the same title, …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:21PM
Thursday, October 10, 2024

‘Beetlejuice’ makes a spirited debut at Marcus Center by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL Just in time for Halloween, Beetlejuice, the Musical arrives as the first offering in the Marcus Center’s 2024-25 Broadway season. The musical plays though October 6 in th…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 07:38AM

Frenetic ‘Murder for Two’ is both a piano duet and a murder mystery by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out”) Several noted plays assign multiple roles to single actors in order to emphasize how clever and talented the actors are. Not onl…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:04AM
Friday, September 20, 2024

Crescent City Stage mounts Herzog’s impressive ‘A Doll’s House’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House was first mounted in the fall of 1879, so there is little debate that the work could use a bit…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 01:42PM
Thursday, September 19, 2024

Rivertown Theaters crafts a ‘Hairspray’ to die for by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out”) It’s been said that the third time’s the charm. Previously, two earlier iterations of Hairspray have graced local theaters. …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 04:11PM
Sunday, September 8, 2024

My two nights with Betsy Wolfe at Le Petit Theatre by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON For the past several weeks, I’ve been promoting this weekend as a way for the local theatre community to give back to Le Petit Theatre du Vieux Carré, the historic theater …

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 02:29PM
Sunday, September 1, 2024

There are laughs aplenty in Island City Stage’s ‘Die, Mommie, Die!’ by Aaron Krause

By AARON KRAUSE While summer camp is over for kids, a different kind of camp is in session for adults at Island City Stage (ICS). There, the side-splitting camp comic classic Die, Mommie, D…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 03:25PM
Saturday, August 10, 2024

‘A Shonda’ uplifts, celebrates love by Aaron Krause

By AARON KRAUSE The term “collision” usually carries a negative connotation. After all, serious injuries or worse can result when people or vehicles collide. But a potentially healing co…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 06:59PM
Thursday, July 25, 2024

TWTC’s first-time ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ is a very satisfying ride by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out”) It has taken nine years for the Tennessee Williams Theatre Company of New Orleans (TWTC) to tackle one of the biggest and most i…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 12:40PM
Tuesday, July 23, 2024

New City Players in South Florida presents a sizzling ‘Streetcar’ by Aaron Krause

By AARON KRAUSE “Bigger isn’t better.” So go the lyrics to a Cy Coleman and Michael Stewart song from the musical “Barnum.” At least, bigger isn’t always better. A fine example…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 11:51PM
Friday, July 19, 2024

Sensational ‘MJ’ explodes with amazing dancing, rockin’ music and powerful visuals at Key Bank State Theatre by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO Confession:  I am not a big fan of juke box musicals, the now popular Broadway vehicle which is a genre of American musical theatre in which pre-written songs are woven, mostly…

SOURCE: Theatre Criticsm at 04:44AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace 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
TBA: Titanic
TBA: Ragtime