The celebrated performer shares her favorite food picks shares her fave food spots ahead of her highly-anticipated season of shows at Chelsea Table + Stage. Though we understand their circumstances may have been a bit different, like Oliver and his c …Read more

“The Who’s Tommy” The music from “The Who’s Tommy” is part of the fabric of my life. I grew up singing it, hearing it and loving it. Snatches of songs immediately evoke images and remind me of my college years. Although I’ve seen the show and the mov …Read more

I was 14 years old when i went to the circus for the first time. I don’t recollect any of the acts, but I can remember the sideshow and even bought a souvenir ‘giant’ size ring. Overall, I recall an air of sadness that pervaded the entire day. The ne …Read more

It’s good to know that classical theater continues to be relevant. Although “An Enemy of the People” by Henrik Ibsen was written in 1882, it feels pertinent today, and as I sat in the Circle in the Square watching the latest revival, I considered how …Read more

Creating a musical from a successful book and movie is a mixed bag. The upside is that the material already has thousands of loyal fans. At the same time, it attracts audiences with expectations. That was one issue when the Harry Potter franchise was …Read more

If you ever watched “The Office” (and is there anyone who hasn’t?) you know Holly Flax, the HR person who becomes Michael’s girlfriend. Played by Amy Ryan, she is always smiling, optimistic and a bit goofy. It was hard to envision the same actress as …Read more

On April 1st, 2024, 7pm – for one night only – singer/actress Linda Purl and Music Director Tedd Firth will join forces at Birdland with internationally acclaimed DIVA Jazz Orchestra (A 15 piece orchestra), for a celebration of some of the extraordin …Read more

“I believe I’m ultimately telling a story of hope…That’s what the Beat Generation was about.” Such is the way playwright Justin Elizabeth Sayre describes their solo show, My Beatnik Youth, now running at La Mama Experimental Theatre Club through Ma …Read more

The latest musical by Jason Robert Brown about working and fact-checking is set at a famous New York magazine in the late 1990’s before the term “fake news” became so popular. Those of us who have worked in newspapers and magazines will feel an immed …Read more

The cabaret regular picks his fave food spots in the city ahead of his anticipated return to Chelsea Table + Stage. Though we understand their circumstances may have been a bit different, like Oliver and his clan of orphan boys, we’ve all fallen into …Read more

There’s a scene in a dark version of Cinderella where the stepsisters, anxious to make the glass slipper fit, cut off their own toes. They will do anything they can to cram their feet in – whether the shoe fits or not. That’s a problem with many juke …Read more

“Who am I anyway? Am I my résumé?” Such is the question posed by Mauricio Martínez at the top of his solo show 5’11’’, Based in NYC, recently performed at Midtown hotspot 54 Below. While, in this context, sung slightly tongue-in-cheek, embodying Paul …Read more

Who is Jonah? Is he the awkward, bumbling sweet young man infatuated with Ana (Gabby Beans) or is he symbolic of something more? During the first part of the Roundabout Theatre Company’s production of “Jonah,” I was charmed by him (newcomer Hagan Oli …Read more

Though we understand their circumstances may have been a bit different, like Oliver and his clan of orphan boys, we’ve all fallen into a daze dreaming of “food, glorious food” at one point or another. After all, it’s been said that food is the great …Read more

Towards the end of “A Prayer for The French Republic,” the latest play by Josh Harmon, Grandpa Pierre (played by Richard Masur) asks his family “Why do they hate us?” Then follows a lengthy series of one-liners as each of the family enumerates reason …Read more

Every family has its baggage but the Layayette family seems to have more than most. Secrets, resentment, and anger all surface with the death of the patriarch of the family as the three siblings, Toni, Beau and Frank, converge over a long weekend in …Read more

It’s the 1950’s, and the Cuban revolution is heating up outside, but the music inside the Buena Vista Social Club is even hotter. While the social club is defunct, the Cuban music remains. The performance of Buena Vista Social Club at the Linda Gross …Read more

I saw three shows during my busman’s holiday in London over Martin Luther King weekend. Of the three, the most ‘English’ was Operation Mincemeat, an uproarious musical satire based upon an actual event from World War II. In an attempt to divert a Naz …Read more

How does a musical that is quintessentially New York distinguish itself in London? Especially when it is a classic show that premiered in 1950. How can it be mounted to make it unique and appealing? The answer is simple: Immersion theater. Allow hund …Read more

On the recent three day MLK weekend, I took a busman’s holiday, flew to London and attended several shows. The first one I saw was The Motive and the Cue, presented by the National Theatre. The plot is based upon an actual event, the production of Ha …Read more

Ernie’s Secret Life, playing downtown at the wonderful Dixon Place Theater, features actor Carlo Adinolfi as Ernie, a man fraught with the fear that his son might be missing.  He is a character very reminiscent of Don Quixote, seeing the world throug …Read more

The rising composer/lyricist picks his fave food spots in the Theatre District ahead of his showcase of self-penned work at Chelsea Table + Stage. Though we understand their circumstances may have been a bit different, like Oliver and his clan of orp …Read more

It’s the holiday season, as the classic song goes, and acclaimed recording artist Liam Forde is marking the festive occasion with a snazzy jazzy arrangement of that very number, now available off the Ballyhoo Music label. An accomplished artist of ma …Read more

Should you talk to your plants? Science shows that the sound of a human voice helps them grow. It’s also therapeutic for the gardener. In “The Gardens of Anuncia” at Lincoln Center Theater, the gardener is the Older Anuncia (award-winning performer P …Read more

Who was Johannes Gutenberg? We all know him as the inventor of the printing press which enabled more people to learn how to read.In the musical “Gutenberg,” playwrights Doug (Andrew Rannells) and Bud (Josh Gad) have collaborated to write a musical ab …Read more

The spirited Birdland host and performer shares his fave food spot in the Theatre District ahead of his holly jolly holiday concert at the jazz venue.  Though we understand their circumstances may have been a bit different, like Oliver and his clan o …Read more

When we become part of an audience, we bring more than our physical selves to the theater. We bring our experiences, our attitudes and even our prejudices. When I attended the matinee of “How to Dance in Ohio ” at the Belasco Theatre, I went as a cr …Read more

On the surface, Ali, the main character in the new show “Hell’s Kitchen” at The Public Theater directed by Michael Greif, is a typical 17 year old girl with an easily relatable problem. She’s interested in an attractive young man but her overly-prote …Read more

The theatrical jack-of-all-trades picks his fave food spots in the Theatre District ahead of a fun and festive evening of entertainment at Chelsea Table + Stage. Though we understand their circumstances may have been a bit different, like Oliver and …Read more

At the “Mind Mangler: A Night of Tragic Illusion,” I hoped to be amused as well as amazed. After all, the show at New World Stages is a Mischief Production, the group that produced “The Play That Goes Wrong,” “Magic Goes Wrong,” and “Peter Pan Goes W …Read more