York Theatre Company presents “The Day Before Spring” (1945) as the second of three forgotten musicals in this winter’s “Musicals in Mufti” series marking the centennial of librettist and lyricist Alan Jay Lerner.
All in Off-Broadway
NOTES: Lerner, Lane, and Stein’s “Carmelina”
The York Theatre Company presents “Carmelina”, a forgotten Broadway flop from 1979, as the first installment of their annual “Musicals in Mufti” series of staged concerts, this year in tribute to writer/lyricist Alan Jay Lerner.
REVIEW: A kaleidoscopic look at life in “Joan”
In “Joan”, playwright Stephen Belber ambitiously sets out to tell one, non-linear story of a woman’s life that slowly creates an absorbing and dramatically effective portrait, at once banal and spellbinding. Johanna Day is exquisite as the titular character, supported by two chameleons who play all the supporting roles. The drama is straightforward, and the production taut.
REVIEW: “SKIN”—A Whimsical Collection of Mime Shorts
Broken Box Mime Theater is determined to make mime cool again; with “SKIN”, a whimsical collection of 15 miming shorts, they more than deliver. Imbued with wit and pathos, and performed with an exuberant energy and a big heart, these silent stories are simple, beautiful, and funny—some tackling serious contemporary themes, others just pure kitsch.
REVIEW: “The Convent”
In Jessica Dickey’s new play “The Convent” a group of women participate in a retreat at a medieval convent in the South of France; the play boasts a promising and intriguing setup that is, unfortunately, bungled in execution due to underdeveloped characters and an imbalanced tone.
REVIEW: Breaking down barriers with “Nassim”
Iranian playwright and performer Nassim Soleimanpour’s latest play features a different guest actor at each performance, reading cold from a script fed by the author. This mysterious but sweet, slowly enveloping experience speaks to our shared humanity and breaks down the perceived barriers we erect between people, groups, and nations. Check it out.
REVIEW: “Slave Play”
Jeremy O. Harris’s scintillating debut play, “Slave Play” at New York Theatre Workshop, is not what you think it is, packing twists, some heavy satire, graphic sexuality, and an important discourse on race, gender, and sexuality in contemporary America. To write about it is to spoil its surprises, but this sold out run will no doubt inspire future productions.
REVIEW: “All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914”
“All Is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914” is a beautifully moving epistolary oratorio about the remarkable true story of British, French, and German soldiers emerging from their trenches and ceasing conflict on Christmas Eve 1914 to celebrate together. Gorgeously sung by an ensemble of ten men, and keenly structured and staged with gripping immediacy and emotion, this tribute to an unheralded moment in an increasingly forgotten war provides a glimpse of our common humanity at its greatest.
REVIEWS: “The Hard Problem”, “Natural Shocks”, and “The Thanksgiving Play”
A roundup look at three new Off-Broadway plays: Tom Stoppard’s “The Hard Problem at Lincoln Center Theater; Lauren Gunderson’s “Natural Shocks” at WP Theater; and Larissa FastHorse’s “The Thanksgiving Play” at Playwrights Horizons.
REVIEW: City Center celebrates 75 years with “A Chorus Line”
To mark its 75th anniversary, New York City Center presents a gala production of “A Chorus Line” that is yet another facsimile of Michael Bennett’s groundbreaking 1975 original. Now the amber fossil of musicals, “A Chorus Line” remains genius and powerful, but is long past due for some re-imagination. Maybe next time.
REVIEW: “Usual Girls”
Ming Peiffer’s shattering new play, “Usual Girls”, presented in a world premiere through Roundabout’s Underground series, offers a blistering dramatization of rape culture through the lens of one Korean-American woman’s journey from girlhood to adulthood. Raw, explicit, and joltingly explosive, this is a bold and important new play.
REVIEWS: “Days of Rage” and “Good Grief”
Two world premiere productions of new plays opened Off-Broadway last night, each offering their characters a reflection on their younger selves and their emotional development, conceptions of love, and visions for the future. This is a roundup look at Second Stage’s “Days of Rage” and the Vineyard Theatre’s “Good Grief” (Critic’s Pick!).