Frank Rich Comments on HAMILTON, THE KING AND I Revival

By: Apr. 06, 2015
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Today, former New York Times theatre critic Frank Rich took part in a Q&A with New York Magazine on "today's media, political, and cultural landscape." He touched on Lin-Manuel Miranda's HAMILTON, Lincoln Center's THE KING AND I revival starring Kelli O'Hara and Ken Watanabe, the Tony Awards and more.

Scroll down for highlights, and click here to read the full conversation!

Nels P. Highberg: What's going to win Best Musical at the Tonys this year?

Frank Rich: I have to say I mainly watch the Tonys for laughs and always have. In any case, I think those who are invested in who might win the Tonys (or any showbiz award) should wait for all the contenders to open before placing any bets.

Michael D. Reid: Loved your acerbic theatre reviews back in the day. How do you feel about the state of Broadway musicals and theatre criticism today?

Frank Rich: Hard to generalize about the state of Broadway musicals, and I don't see all of them besides. What I like is that there are young writers trying to play with the form and reinvent it -- witness the headed-to-Broadway "Hamilton." As long as there are new generations who are enticed by the genre and eager to remake it in their own voice, the musical will survive.

John Fedele: Dear Mr Rich, Have you seen, "The King & I " ? I have not as of yet...So very excited the see this classic, & would love to hear your words on this production. P.S. Love "Hot Seat!" & your word as a whole.

Frank Rich: I saw it yesterday. Thanks for your kind words about "Hot Seat." I am officially out of the drama critic business -- it's been 20+ years since I reviewed plays. That said, I think the role Lincoln Center has played in restoring (in my view) the three greatest Rodgers & Hammerstein classics over roughly the past two decades -- "Carousel," "South Pacific" and now "King and I" -- is extraordinary. One revelation in "King and I" by the way is how well Hammerstein's book holds up (we know the songs are great): what it has to say about colonialism and the "opening up" of Asia to the West in the 19th century still has great import to the geopolitical world we inhabit today.

Frank Rich joined New York magazine in June 2011 as Writer-at-Large, writing monthly on politics and culture, and editing a special monthly section anchored by his essay. He is also a commentator on nymag.com, engaging in regular dialogues on the news of the week.

Rich joined the magazine following a distinguished career at the New York Times, where he had been an op-ed columnist since 1994. He was previously the paper's chief drama critic, from 1980 to 1993. His weekly 1,500-word essay helped inaugurate the expanded opinion pages that the Times introduced in the Sunday "Week in Review" section in 2005. From 2003 to 2005, Rich had been the front-page columnist for the Sunday "Arts & Leisure" section as part of that section's redesign and expansion. He also served as senior adviser to the Times' culture editor on the paper's overall cultural-news report. From 1999 to 2003, he was also senior writer for The New York Times Magazine. The dual title was a first for the Times.

He has written about culture and politics for many national publications. His books include Ghost Light: A Memoir and, most recently, The Greatest Story Ever Sold: The Decline and Fall of Truth From 9/11 to Katrina. Rich is also a creative consultant to HBO, where he is an executive producer of two projects,Veep, a comedy series written and directed by Armando Iannucci and starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and a documentary on Stephen Sondheim.

A native of Washington, D.C., and graduate of Harvard, he lives in New York City with his wife, the novelist and journalist Alex Witchel. (Bio courtesy New York Magazine)



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