The old art form known as commedia dell’arte appears infrequently in modern U.S. theatres. With masked, clown-like actors engaging in loud, brazen and eccentric sketches, commedia dell’arte relies heavily on lowbrow humor and audience participation to entertain, uninhibited by carefully scripted and staged material. When done well, commedia dell’arte can bring a smile to even […]
Despite the vast number of diverse theatre productions in New York City, there is a noticeable lack of plays that depict the lives of Americans living in the middle of the country. Susan Merson’s new musical play Between Pretty Places does just that in a surprisingly genuine way while also exploring themes of grief and […]
As I sat at Ted x Broadway last winter. I was baffled as Leslie Koch spoke animatedly about an apparent art oasis stationed in the middle of New York harbor, about five minutes by boat from my apartment. Having lived in the city for three years now, it was unfathomable to me that there was […]
Possum Creek Beth Ann, a naïve farmer’s daughter with a heart of gold (and, ostensibly, unlimited ink and paper) left behind over 3000 letters written to her husband Joseph after he left home to fight in the Civil War just one day after their marriage – letters that would later serve as the basis for […]
Popular culture has resoundingly strong opinions and plenty of advice on love. Love is all you need. Love is a battlefield. Love changes everything. Live, laugh, love. Eat, Pray, Love. The list goes on. But, what is this Crazy Little Thing Called Love? For those people who Want To Know What Love Is,* Benjamin Folstein’s […]
Due to a busy summer schedule, I was unable to attend much of the Midtown International Theatre Festival; however, I caught a few productions at the festival to kick off August. Puzzle the Will Hamlet has been reinterpreted in so many different ways that it is rare to come across a unique staging of this […]
Who tells your story? For generations to come, Alexander Hamilton can be thankful that Lin-Manuel Miranda chose to tell his in the new musical Hamilton, inspired by Ron Chernow’s biography on the former Treasury Secretary, which Miranda picked up to read on vacation back in 2008.1 Miranda’s hip-hop charged show integrates modern sound and style […]
What is gained by reviving this play? That is the first question that crosses my mind each time that I attend a revival. In some cases, a show is simply beloved and that alone warrants a revival, but, for lesser known works, a director or producer’s motivation for presenting an aging play to a modern […]