"The theater has a varied relationship with God, but never closer than 'God Shows Up.' Here he is a direct character, appearing on the television show of a popular televangelist. God makes an appearance on the non-denominational, but quite capitalistic, Dr. Thomas Issac Rehan show to participate in some give and take. God has returned to correct some mistakes and characterizations in the holy books and set the record straight with regards to many things said in his name." Full Review
"Hadestown takes the audience on a journey from New Orleans to Hell and back, weaving an entrancing spell all the way. We are swept along as Eurydice and Orpheus fall in love with spring, each other and life. They meet as Persephone who rises from Hell to herald Spring back into the world. The celebratory mood is infectious and joy leaps from the talented cast. When Hades summons Persephone back to the underworld, darkness descends once more...Cast is amazing." Full Review
"A famous Cole Porter musical gets the misogyny pulled out and finds what's left to be fun and a little bit magical. Do not miss Kelli O'Hara and a fantastic ensemble of singers and dancers in 'Kiss Me Kate.' It's an old fashioned show with broad laughs, big dance numbers and obvious endings, yet somehow it seems fresh." Full Review
"'The Price of Thomas Scott' is a disappointment. The show is well-acted, beautifully staged and terribly predictable...'The Price of Thomas Scott' is a quick turn, and again the acting is great. Director Jonathan Bank does a great job with the material. But the show doesn’t connect and there is a complete lack of tension. I wish it were different." Full Review
“'Trainspotting Live' is crazy fun entertainment. I love the immersiveness of a show like 'Sleep No More,' but 'Trainspotting Live' takes it up a few notches as the actors acknowledge and revel in the audience, blithely taking us on a youthful, embarrassing and exhilarating trip most of us have long since outgrown." Full Review
“‘Dutch Masters’ is an intriguing, tense and thoughtful two-hander that rifts on race and class while exploring a relationship between two young men who meet, apparently by happenstance, on the subway. It tries to understand why these two young adults see life, often even the same incidents, through completely different eyes. Sometimes the views are aligned, but more often disparate vantage points preclude a common understanding. It is wonderful.” Full Review
“‘Outside Paducah’ explores the effects of America's recent wars on the men at home. It is searing and thoughtful without being political or toxic. Writer / performer J. A. Moad II creates 3 excellent stories told in first person: by a young son, a father and a veteran. Although superficially unrelated, they illustrate the complexity of veteran's experiences and their reentry into life at home. The show is bolstered by effective projections and music.” Full Review
“Dee Pelletier is pulling off a brilliant turn as Karen Blixen in ‘The Baroness, Isak Dinesen's Final Affair’ at the Clurman Theater. The story sets out to detail the final mentor relationship / love affair of Blixen's life with a young poet played by Conrad Ardelius. It tells their true story as it delivers a symposium on art, love, dedication and desire. It is an inspiring show for the creator or lover of art in all forms.” Full Review
“A fascinating and occasionally humorous play about self-motivation. Specifically, what would you do if your older self came back in time and told you what your future holds? And nothing you do changes very much. Beautifully acted and directed, the show tackles a big question with intelligence. Taking place over a year of one young woman's life, it all works beautifully until the last 60 seconds, when too much is revealed. The end frustrated me, but I loved it for two hours.” Full Review
“‘Afterglow’ is the bittersweet story of a polyamorous relationship that ultimately brings emotional problems to the couple at the core. Beautifully acted by Brandon Haagenson, Robbie Simpson and Patrick Reilly, the play may be too slow or have too much nudity for some audiences—but it is well worth it. The cast brings honesty to the proceedings. You can fully feel the growing bonds between all three of these men, which gives audiences a real stake in the outcome.” Full Review
“‘In a Word’ is an emotionally raw, true, painful and often funny new play. It accomplishes a great deal in 80 swift minutes. It tells the story of Fiona and Guy, a couple that lost their son two years ago, and they haven't been able to really talk to each other about it. Anger, guilt, frustration and self-preservation have thrown up a wall of silence between them. Lauren Yee has written a wonderful play where the words are important and critical and yet still not always enough.” Full Review
"'Invincible' is a story that explores our views and expectations of others in the current political dynamic, utilizing a British culture clash. Amazingly, 'Invincible' does this with a large dose of humor, running from oddly quaint and British to dark humor that is jet black. And the four excellent actors deliver the show with honesty and surprising clarity." Full Review
“The New York Neo-Futurists' gem of a small piece, ‘A Simple Art,’ explores the death of a small-town priest to tell the world how stories affect us all. The excellent three-person ensemble uses recordings, music, documentary styles, maps and emotions to lay out the story of Father Eric's murder. Then they use that story to reach the humanity and shared emotions of us all in a touching, humorous and charming way.” Full Review
"The Mint Theater Company brings an excellent production to life with 'The Lucky One.' Written by A. A. Milne before 'Winnie-the-Pooh,' it is the story of two brothers and the effect of jealousy. It is a beautifully staged play with outstanding acting. And it is a very nice show, but it isn't a revelation. 'The Lucky One' tells the tale of sibling rivalry well, but one that seems ordinary. It moves from point A to B to C, but nothing really surprises here." Full Review
"The first half is hilarious. It is a musical and political Keystone Cops caper that is presented with the perfect amount of crazy. And then 9/11 hits the narrative and intermission hits the show. The second half is tonally completely different and yet just as perfect...'Baghdaddy' is a marvel. It is the story of a stupid war told with humor and fun, but the correct amount of compassion...Pailet puts his energetic cast through a non-stop emotional ride, and the audience follows with gusto." Full Review
"Just when the show gets to be too much, too pat and too expository, the action moves towards a more traditional setting, a dinner party. With this change, 'Don’t You F**king Say A Word' shines anew. It is a very enjoyable evening of theater. Writer Andy Bragen and Director Lee Sunday Evans have done a great job wringing out the most from their characters and situations before moving on and changing up the pace of the piece." Full Review
"Beautifully brought to life by three outstanding women – the men are very good, but given much less to do – the play speaks of a longing of the memory of home, regardless of the reality....'The Roads To Home' is a short piece, and played out leisurely, given full time to take root. I enjoyed it, even though I was a bit annoyed at the end while I watched it. In retrospect, I appreciate it much more...Michael Wilson did an excellent job with the direction and pace of the piece." Full Review
"'About Clarence & Me' is a hopeful and light show about reaching across barriers that divide us in order to make connections...Full of original as well as familiar music, 'About Clarence & Me' is a feast for piano music lovers...The spoken dialog flows less easily than the music...But that is a minor complaint in the scale of the show...'About Clarence & Me' is as breezy and lovely a jazz piece." Full Review
"'The Crucible' is one of those plays that is both 'important' and excellent...Ivo van Hove’s direction here is excellent, but not the staggering success of the recent 'A View from the Bridge.' 'The Crucible' is longer, bigger and more complex, so it cannot be stripped and deconstructed the same way...Van Hove seems to have streamlined the sets and costumes to bring the immediacy to it, but it does take a long time to get to an ending that we know will happen at the end of act III." Full Review
"'Ideation' takes an unsettling project, how to discretely handle mass deaths from a virus, and disassembles it into manageable parts. It begins with finding the gallows humor in the management processes, which ignores the human effects of their work all the time...'Ideation' is crisply directed by Josh Costello and well written by Aaron Loeb. It is altogether a tight show, right up until the end. And then 'Ideation' loses its nerve." Full Review
"A surprisingly honest play that refuses to offer simple answers to complex questions…‘Straight’ is a remarkably well acted piece of theater…’Straight’ covers this seemingly familiar ground wonderfully. It is a combination of smart writing, great sound, and fantastic acting by the ensemble. It races by in 90 minutes without feeling rushed or hurried. 'Straight' simply feels honest, and that is tough to pull off." Full Review
"'City of Glass' uses on-the-fly created media, movement and a cascade of words to upend the viewer’s expectations. If you read the book and loved it, do not miss this show. If this description sounds intriguing, see the show. If it all sounds like a bunch of hooey, then avoid this show...It feels as if it were direct by Michael Curtiz on acid...The show is wonderful and frustrating and intriguing. And then, suddenly, too long...It isn’t an easy watch, but for the right people very worthwhile." Full Review
"'Promising' is an unfortunate title, because it is so accurate. Playwright Michelle Elliot has delivered a play which starts wonderfully before transitioning to a didactic moral tale. Director Terry Berliner has infused the piece with movement, gallows humor and humanity, but 'Promising' ends up being a tragedy and the audience feels a bit cheated." Full Review
"'Songbird' stands fully on its own, without any knowledge of 'The Seagull' required to understand or enjoy the show. J.V. Mercanti, the Director, has done an admirable job working with a great set of actors, who happen to be talented musicians. 'Songbird' is a great piece." Full Review
"I was unprepared for warmth, humor and pathos that spilled out from this show...It is heartfelt and honest; often reserved, but never stiff...'Cloud Nine' is directed with a lovely touch by James Macdonald. Written 35 years ago by Caryl Churchill, it feels as fresh as if it was written yesterday. Much has changed since 'Cloud Nine' was first performed but honesty, in desires and relationships, has never been more important." Full Review
for a previous production "Alice Ripley is a standout in this expository show about a conservative Texan single mother's journey to acceptance of her genderqueer child. She confronts her past as her family weighs in on the changes happening. And she confronts her second family, as the controversy roils her church, where friends and acquaintances stake out different positions. The subtly of Ripley's performance is perfect. She brings the audience along on this roller coaster, prompting laughs, tears, and introspection." Full Review
"'After' is a gut punch that sneaks up on you. Set in an upscale house, typical of something you would see in Westchester, it is all smoothing blues and tasteful furniture. Populated by the nice mid-upper class semi-repressed white inhabitants you expect. The very normality is what lulls you into the expectation of a simple story with simple answers. Director Joe Brancato gives us a straightforward, albeit not simple, story and a cast that delivers the raw emotions that go with it." Full Review
"'55 Shades of Gay' is a fun and frenetic play from Kosovo dealing with the problems when well-meaning outsiders clash with locals over morals, aid money and sexuality. It uses a variety show of ideas, songs and vignettes related to an Italian factory owner who wants to marry a local man. The mayor and Prime Minister realize that the EU approve Constitution allows same gender marriage, despite the locals' objections. A humorous look at imposed values." Full Review
“When given its due, ‘The Waiting Game’ is a rewarding and excellent piece of theater...Gershman has crafted a unique vision at the crossroads of drug use, sex, marriage and HIV status. Wright has staged it interestingly and pulled out wonderful performances from the actors. It could have used a bit more dialog and a little less distracting stage business...But those are minor nits which are lost in the unique voice ‘The Waiting Game’ brings.” Full Review
"'Conflict' feels deceptively lightweight until it doesn't. It is less than a love triangle, but more than a simple love story. Lady Dare (Jessie Shelton) takes a journey of emotional and intellectual discovery, frustrated by mansplaining some 90 years before the word was invented. Here conflicting political ideas do not lead to hate but to understanding, and so on some level, it is a fairy tale. But these partial pieces add up to an incredible whole -a play that is thoroughly entertaining." Full Review
“A musical of both youthful exuberance and heartbreak...The cast has the pipes to carry the show beautifully...Most of the songs are very good: catchy and fun or serious and soulful. There is an over reliance on the metaphor of a car as freedom, which grinds after a while...The sparse direction of Brackett is perfect for the space...It is a spare story in a spare space and he allows the actors to fill it with pathos and song." Full Review
"Christine Lahti and Brandon Victor Dixon stand out in an excellent cast in 'F**king A', a searing play based on the themes found in 'The Scarlet Letter.' 'F**king A' takes place in a dystopian mash-up where women are not valued, petty infractions turn into life sentences and only a lucky few live well. Hester (Lahti) is forced to work in a shameful job to buy the time to visit her son in jail. It is a bitter tale of a society's descent and a mother's loss." Full Review
"'Charolais' is a rare thing, a whip-smart play masquerading as a simple story. Sweetly written and performed by Noni Stapleton, 'Charolais' is the tale of a love triangle of an Irish lass, a Charolais cow and the sweet farm boy that loves them both. What is a woman to do when faced with a bovine competitor and an overbearing almost-mother-in-law? Writer Noni Stapleton has some ideas that are funny, touching and a little scary." Full Review
"'Dear Jane' is the non-linear, semi-autobiographical story of performance artist Joan Beber. Although the images, art and music of Ms. Beber are fascinating, the story is not captivating. It is too vignette driven to engage the audience fully." Full Review
“A wonderful show for literalists and torture porn aficionados. This ‘1984’ manages to lose some great ideas in a projection-heavy play that hews too closely to the book for its own good. Great performances by Reed Birney and Tom Sturridge cannot save the show, and Olivia Wilde doesn't get a chance to.” Full Review
“I was blown away by this amazing cast, witty script, good songs and one of the most fun evenings I have had in the theater in a long time. It is the story of Tom Jones - a bastard raised in the home of a country squire. Written as a response to the hypocritical puritans of King George the III's time, it can be considered quite bawdy or extremely raunchy, depending on your puritanical moral compass. Staged in a tiny theater, with minimal props, it is an unexpected surprise (if a bit long).” Full Review
"'The Artificial Jungle' plays as 'The Postman Always Rings Twice' done via a Carol Burnett skit, set in a Lower East Side pet store. It is goofy, farcical and very funny. The play, by the prolific Charles Ludlam, is loud and preposterous but doesn't fall to slapstick. It all works because the terrific actors might be playing everything over-the-top, but they take it seriously. They pull out all the stops without ever breaking character. It is this group of professionals that sell this jungle." Full Review
"'Whirligig' pitches the audience forwards and backwards in time and emotion, without ever losing its own footing. A beautifully efficient story of love in its many forms, the players in 'Whirligig' have taken the play's honesty to heart with touching and perfect performances. It is the story of a young woman's return home as she is dying, and the people who loved her. The tragedy is how long it takes us all to cut through the bullshit to truth and forgiveness." Full Review
"Sophie Melville is amazing as Effie in 'Iphigenia in Splott.' Her rage is transfixing and often humorous, albeit exhausting, as she berates anything or anyone that wanders into her attention. Effie tells the story of when her life changed, and she realized that more was possible in life. Her story revolves around a man she met at a bar that might or might be her soulmate and what happens to her after that meeting. It isn't a harrowing tale, but it is a rare and heartbreaking story." Full Review
"How were all those stars in 'The Front Page?' The answer is they were great...So then, why does 'The Front Page' never feel like a great show? First, it is entirely too long...Second, 'The Front Page' is dated, very dated...The show finally comes to life when Nathan Lane and John Slattery are on stage together...Jack O’Brien does a fine job of directing 'The Front Page.' He gets excellent performances out of all the players, but at nearly 3 hours, it is a bit of a slog." Full Review
"A fascinating exercise and a wonderful show...Jamie Horton brings a cantankerous, funny and stubborn Orwell to life...What makes this show wonderful is the dynamic between the much older George Orwell and the much younger and beautiful Carlotta. It is in this personal dynamic that Ms. de Waal and Mr. Horton make the characters sing. Their banter is heartfelt and their growing friendship blooms organically...The show never feels forced or leaden. I loved it." Full Review
for a previous production "It took a while for the cynical part of me to warm to this show. It is a little too earnest in places and tries too hard to be edgy. But halfway through the fast-paced show I was hooked...Kidwell and Sheppard are excellent in the roles, but even more than that, they are fearless. They walk right up to the edge of what people are comfortable with and then jump across, believing we have the guts to follow...By the end, I wasn’t positive what I saw, but I knew I would remember it for a long time." Full Review
“This would be a rather dry piece if it were not for the parallels between London’s time and ours. The struggles are a bit different, but the Jack London predicted the rise of the 1%...A fascinating story–not always captivating, but always interesting. And I was impressed by how moved much of the audience was–old lefties and younger millennials finding a common bond in a story and songs over 100 years old. It is a fun night.” Full Review
"'Wolf in the River' teeters between fantastic and overwrought...For those who like their theater to challenge them with ideas and images as much as story...'Wolf in the River' has a few problems inherent in the play. The portrayal of these people may be meant as impressionistic, but it borders on vicious stereotyping of them as dumb-ass Southern hicks...The staging has the audience in the mist of the actors, which is mesmerizing." Full Review
"A wonderful and traditional revival. It is sparkling with Technicolor sets, lovely dancing and familiar songs delivered beautifully. It is also very old fashioned...Mr. Levi and Ms. Benanti are both fine, except by comparison. Their bland pleasantness and lack of sexual chemistry wouldn’t be a problem except that the secondary characters are marvelously handled...It delivers exactly what it promises in an excellent manner, you just have to want what it delivers." Full Review
"If the prose poem format, the wandering thought lines, enchants you, then 'Nice Fish' is quietly wonderful. If you enjoy laughing at humor both sly and obvious, then 'Nice Fish' is loudly wonderful...The two men are amazing...'Nice Fish' is funny and silly and touching. It slyly delivers laughs along with insights, so you never feel like you're being lectured or on the lookout for the 'big answers'...The director is quite comfortable letting the prose set the pace of the piece." Full Review
"'Collaborators' is great. It is well worth the trek down to the Lower East Side. It is a surprise of a show...Playwright John Hodge uses short hand tricks to take us quickly into this world; but once he has sold us this scenario, he quietly upends our expectations...Experience 'Collaborators' and you’ll find a wonderful show." Full Review
"Mark Thomas’ performance is wildly imaginative and energetic, and the show has surprising depth…Mr. Thomas traffics in a fierce honesty…'Cuckooed' ends up being touching, because of the singular act of betraying a trust...Mr. Thomas’ accent was hard for some people to understand, but the effort is well worth it." Full Review
for a previous production "For some viewers, the stakes may be too low and the awkwardness too normal to drag us into the story. After all, the story is about the little indignities we all might face that we never expected to. It reminds us all that our friends or families are only one or two emergencies away from the same plight. 'The Humans' is very well directed by Joe Mantello and well acted by the fine cast." Full Review
"Simply a mess. Produced with stilted language and divorced from actual emotions, it seems designed to force very good actors into producing terrible output. 'Fondly, Collette Richland' revels in off kilter pacing, unexplainable changes in tone and extra wacky characters. These things need not render a show unwatchable, but the added artificial pronunciation, surrealism and studied emotional non-reaction to events combine in a terrible mix." Full Review