BroadwayWorld.com Rockland / Westchester Stories

Review: THE SPITFIRE GRILL IS A HEARTWARMING CHARMER at The Armonk Players

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 13:23:09 PST

Pia Haas has done it again. The artistic director of The Armonk Players, the resident company under the roof of North Castle Library in the southern Westchester enclave of the same name, has an unerring eye for theatrical properties – such as her current musical production, Spitfire Grill -- that are more gritty than glitzy, brimming with originality and rooted in crafty and relatable storytelling.

The Spitfire Grill is a charming, heartwarming ode to the call of nature and to finding our way in life alongside others struggling to do the same. It’s about communities communing with nature and with each other.

The Spitfire Grill began life as a 1996 feature film by Lee David Zlotoff. It poignantly conveys themes of hope, redemption, forgiveness and second chances. It is set in the backwater of economically distressed Gilead, Wisconsin, whose lifeline of a quarry is shuttered and which has been isolated by a new interstate that bypasses it.

Its protagonist is Percy Talbott, a young woman newly out of jail for murdering an abusive stepfather, and who finds work at a tired grill owned by a tired woman, Hannah Ferguson, who wants to unload it and retire. Percy, held in suspicion by the tight-knit folk of Gilead because of her suspect back story, calls herself a “wild bird.” She’s also scrappy, devising a clever plan to help Hannah unload the grill, and in the end Percy is richly rewarded for her ingenuity.

Dominique Karanfilian as Percy and Jennifer Wallace as her grill co-worker and new friend Shelby Thorpe bring winning performances and voices that harmonize beautifully, most notably in the signature tune “The Colors of Paradise,” which closes the show with a soaring reprise that left this audience member wanting more. They could have sung all night as far as I was concerned.

Anthony Malchar as kindly Sheriff Joe Sutter, Percy’s parole officer who takes a shining to her, is in his customary fine fettle, possessed both of strong Stage Presence and a pleasingly dulcet vocal style.

Ann Alford brings a drily amusing and touching weariness to Hannah, whose embattled life has tested her faith, but she too, as with others in Gilead, finds redemption in the end.

The musicalization capitalizes on the strong storyline with what might be called a Western omelet of flavorful numbers that don’t sacrifice storytelling (lyrics and book by Fred Alley) for pretty sounds (music and book by James Valcq), but effectively blend the two into a tuneful score that is full of personality, both flinty and reveling in the poetry of Americana (the titular “Something’s Cooking at the Spitfire Grill” opens the show as an informative backstory narrative).

There are evocative ballads, power ballads, and recitatives, moving the story forward by speaking of regret, hope, changes in fortune, and the roughness of life. The tangy novelty number “Out of the Frying Pan” resonates with a twang worthy of a Reba McIntire ditty. All of the strands of the story are treated with a kind of Disneyesque gentleness that both pays homage to and elevates the human condition. All we can ask of ourselves and each other is to do our best to move along and get along.

Rounding out the fine cast are Lori Skjeveland as flinty postmistress Effy Krayneck, Michael Moriarity as Shelby’s embittered husband Caleb Thorpe, one of the town’s unemployed quarry workers who resents Percy’s presence, and Steven Estrada as the mysterious but harmless nocturnal visitor whom we find out is named Eli.

That the play’s principals feature strong women is a notable part of what attracted Ms. Haas’s interest in mounting it The Spitfire Grill in Armonk. “We wanted to celebrate strong female voices and characters at a time when conservations around women’s rights and equity feel especially urgent,” she writes in the program’s Director’s Note.

Ms. Haas also has a knowing director’s eye for fully realized stage pictures, movement and musicality that sparkle with the discipline of professionalism. The caliber of Off-Broadway, where she saw this show when it opened a quarter-century ago, has nothing on The Armonk Players when the formidable Ms. Haas occupies the director’s chair.

Other Credits
The set, a joint effort built by Tom Ammirato and Luddy Malchar, is economically designed to serve its several purposes and locations without any busy set changes. It’s a credible visualization of a generic exurban diner, while an upstage scrim of a burnt orange and azure horizon connects the grill to the hope and beauty of the natural world beyond.

The excellent orchestra includes Will Rich (Conductor/Keyboard), Gillian Kroll (Guitar/Mandolin), Don Gerundo (Accordion), Karen Chalif (Cello), Jane Lee (Violin).

Dan Scherer is Technical Director. Anthony Santora is Lighting Director. Jesse Melito is Sound Designer. Colleen Ammirato is Costumer.

Photo by Sam Rudy

Around The BroadwayWorld: Top News, Reviews, Interviews & More from May 2026

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 12:03:21 PST

Around the BroadwayWorld is our monthly snapshot of the biggest stories making waves across the global theatre community. In this May 2026 edition, we're bringing you a fresh batch of standout reviews from regional stages across the country - from Brigadoon at Pasadena Playhouse in Los Angeles to The Phantom of the Opera at Seattle's Paramount Theatre and Pippin at Signature Theatre in DC.

Diane Paulus directs an immersive, David Bowie-inspired Life on Mars at American Repertory Theater, the producers of Japan's Gypsy revival walk back a planned title change, and we go behind the scenes with interviews spanning Adam Fields of the Beetlejuice national tour, The Muny's casting director Michael Baxter, Richard Kind on finally taking on Edna in Hairspray, and BWW's Kid Reporters chatting with the touring Von Trapp kids of The Sound of Music. Plus, get a first look at exciting new productions through performance videos and photos, including Anastasia at La Mirada Theatre, Dear Evan Hansen at Arden Theatre, Pippin at Signature Theatre, and the Manila cast of Jesus Christ Superstar - and so much more from across the BroadwayWorld.

Diane Paulus Will Direct Immersive David Bowie Inspired LIFE ON MARS at American Repertory Theater

Joshua Wright | Boston

Diane Paulus will direct Life on Mars, an immersive theatrical production set to David Bowie's music, as the inaugural production at the Goel Center for Creativity & Performance in May.

GYPSY in Japan: Producers Walk Back Title Change Ahead of 2026 Revival

Joshua Wright | Japan

The Japanese revival of GYPSY will retain its original title when it returns to the stage in 2026, reversing an earlier decision to present the production under the name 'Rose.'

Interviews

Interview: Adam Fields of BEETLEJUICE National Tour

Brock Mills | Jacksonville

For Adam Fields, returning to Jacksonville with the national tour of Beetlejuice the Musical isn’t just another stop, it’s a full-circle moment. The production will play in Jacksonville from May 12–17 at the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts.

Interview: BWW’s 'Kid Reporters' Chat With THE SOUND OF MUSIC’s Touring Von Trapp Kids

Melissa Heckscher | Los Angeles

BroadwayWorld Los Angeles' kid reporters talk with the young touring cast of THE SOUND OF MUSIC to find out what it's like to be part of one of Broadway’s most iconic shows and what actually happens behind the curtain.

Interview: Chatting with The Muny's Casting Director Michael Baxter

James Lindhorst | St. Louis

Michael Baxter’s work will shine on The Muny stage during all 50 performances this summer. He led the efforts and had a hand in hiring every one of the 194 actors who will fill the principal and ensemble roles.

Interview: Richard Kind Talks Finally Taking on Edna in The Muny's HAIRSPRAY

James Lindhorst | St. Louis

When The Muny opens their production of Hairspray on June 15, 2026, the legendary Richard Kind will don Edna Turnblad’s housecoat and step into her fuzzy house slippers. Kind, star of stage, screen and film, calls it bucket list moments to get to perform at The Muny and play Edna all at the same time.

Reviews

Review: BRIGADOON at Pasadena Playhouse

Andrew Child | Los Angeles

Brava to Alexandra Silber for capturing all the heart and humor of Lerner’s original book with her thoughtful new adaptation and brava to Katie Spelman for dreaming up a Brigadoon that is as ebullient and spirited as it is deeply human.

Review: THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA at Paramount Theatre

Shelley Dean | Seattle

It’s almost unbelievable for me to admit that this was my first time seeing The Phantom of the Opera. Of course, I knew the iconic songs and had seen countless clips over the years, but experiencing the production live on stage for the first time was entirely different, haunting, and spine-chilling in the best way possible. From the chandelier drop to the monumental set pieces, the show truly lives up to its legendary reputation. The 2026 tour, directed by Harold Prince, serves as a revitalized version of the original production, featuring Maria Björnson’s iconic designs, musical staging, and choreography by Gillian Lynne. It is absolutely ravishing, and Seattle audiences are lining up hours early to witness the spectacle for themselves.

Review: PIPPIN at Signature Theatre

Aidan O'Connor | Washington, DC

Certain facets of the human condition are foundational to our very existence – change, connection, desire. One such particularly toxic universal truth is a constant need to be something more than we currently are. To search for happiness in external achievement rather than within ourselves, in our simple joys. Pippin at Signature Theatre breathes within that precise virulence, relatively orchestrated by a troupe of impeccably costumed and choreographed players. A feast for the eyes in all senses, Matthew Gardiner’s production surpasses even the highest of expectations.

Videos

Video: Watch La Mirada Theatre's ANASTASIA Star Lena Ceja Perform 'Journey to the Past'

Michael Major | Los Angeles

La Mirada Theatre has released new video footage of Lena Ceja rehearsing 'Journey to the Past' from their upcoming production of Anastasia. The production features Dillon Klena as Dmitry, a role first played on Broadway by his brother Derek Klena.

Photos/Video: DEAR EVAN HANSEN At Arden Theatre

A.A. Cristi | Philadelphia

Arden Theatre Company is now presenting DEAR EVAN HANSEN as the final production of its 2025/26 season, with performances continuing through July 5. New production photos and video have been released from the Philadelphia production, including footage of Evan A. Kaushesh performing “Waving Through a Window.”

Video: Watch 'Corner of the Sky' From Signature Theatre's PIPPIN

Michael Major | Washington, DC

Watch a video of Brayden Bambino performing 'Corner of the Sky' in Signature Theatre's production of Pippin. The in-the-round production is now running through July 26 with tickets available now.

Photos

Photos: Get a First Look at JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR in Manila

Oliver Oliveros | Philippines

The 2017 Olivier Award winner for Best Musical Revival, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rock opera 'Jesus Christ Superstar,' has officially opened at The Theatre at Solaire.

EQUUS To Take The Stage At Reid Castle

Sat, 06 Jun 2026 10:33:54 PST

DayStar Creations will present the psychic thriller "Equus" by Peter Shaffer at the Reid Castle in Purchase, NY.

Winner of the Tony Award for Best Play, "Equus" concerns a psychiatrist in the thralls of self-doubt as he treats a teenager who blinded six horses. The psychological detective story, described by the New York Times as richly rewarding and enthralling, explores issues of identity, passion, worship, and who or what is "normal."

Terence Keyes of Greenwich, a seasoned Westchester/Fairfield actor, portrays Dr. Martin Dysart, striving to comprehend the psyche of his client, Alan Strang, played by Jude Segrest of NYC, who performed professionally as a child and recently graduated from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.

Directed by Vincent Mraz of NYC, the cast includes Kimberely Lowden of Greenwich as Alan's religious zealot mother and Rich Evans of Pelham as his atheist father. Candida Fink of New Rochelle plays the magistrate adjudicating Alan's case, Miguel Angel Acevedo of Yonkers is the owner of the stable where the stabbings took place and Gabriella Isabelle Castrobad of NYC plays the horse trainer who seduces Alan. Hexcel Robinson, a theatre major at Manhattanville University, portrays the horse Nugget and Jax Agee of New Rochelle is the acerbic hospital nurse. Beth Davison of Wilton, CT serves as Stage Manager and Keyes is producing.

"Equus" will perform July 30-Aug. 2, Thurs. through Sat. at 7:30 pm and Sun. at 3:00 pm in the Reid Castle on Manhattanville's campus in Purchase. $25 tickets can be reserved at DayStar's website. Groups of 10 or more can arrange a discount by emailing EquusDayStar26@gmail.com.

BroadwayWorld Launches Producer Fantasy Game

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 11:00:05 PST

Ever watched the weekly Broadway grosses roll in and thought you could pick the winners? Now you can put it to the test. BroadwayWorld has launched the Producer Fantasy Game, a free, season-long competition that lets theatre fans build a roster of Broadway shows and earn points based on how those productions actually perform at the box office. The draft window is open now.

How It Works

The setup is simple. During the draft window, you pick any six Broadway productions that opened this season. Drafting is non-exclusive, so there is no need to race a rival for a hot title. Any number of players can roster the same show.

From there, your shows go to work for you. Every week, each production on your roster earns fantasy points based on its reported box office grosses and capacity percentages. When Tony, Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle nominations and wins are announced, your shows bank bonus points on top of that. And each week you can answer our Fantasy Forecast prediction questions for up to five bonus points per correct call.

Weekly Scoring

Each week, a show earns one base point for every $50,000 it grosses, so a $1 million week is worth 20 base points. On top of that, shows can earn bonuses: up to five points for filling seats (based on how close to full capacity the house ran), six points for grossing $2 million or more (or three points for grossing between $1 million and $2 million), and eight points if its gross jumped at least 15 percent from the week before. A show loses four points if its gross dropped at least 15 percent. If a show goes dark and reports no gross for a week, it scores zero for that week with no penalty.

The Fantasy Forecast

The Producer Fantasy Game is really two games in one. The first is the box office game: drafting shows and earning points from their weekly grosses and awards. The second is the Fantasy Forecast, a weekly set of prediction questions about what's happening on Broadway, where each correct answer is worth up to five points. You can play one or both.

We track them separately so you can shine at either. Your Producer score covers the box office game, your Forecast score covers your prediction results, and your Combined score adds the two together for the overall championship ranking. The leaderboard lets you toggle between Overall, Producers, and Forecasters, so a sharp predictor can top the Forecasters board even during a rough season for their roster, and a roster powerhouse can lead the Producers board without answering a single question.

Managing Your Roster

Your lineup stays at six shows all season, and you have plenty of room to maneuver. You get one free drop every week, three additional season drops to use anytime before the trade deadline, and free replacements whenever a show on your roster closes. New productions open throughout the season and become available the moment they start reporting grosses, so it pays to keep a transaction in your pocket for that buzzy new opening.

Join the Game

The Producer Fantasy Game is free for all BroadwayWorld users, and you can join any time the draft window is open. Draft within the first two weeks of the season and your roster is scored from opening week, so the earlier you get in, the more weeks you bank. Build your roster, make your predictions, and start climbing the leaderboard today.

A DRAG QUEEN CHRISTMAS to Return for 12th Year With 39-City National Tour

Tue, 02 Jun 2026 19:57:07 PST

“A Drag Queen Christmas” will return for its 12th year, launching a 39-city national tour this November - December. The 2026 edition is hosted by returning fan favorite and theatre star Nina West, and features an all-new merry lineup of drag superstars from the Emmy-winning RuPaul's Drag Race franchise.

Artist pre-sale begins Wednesday, June 3 at 10 a.m. (local time) with the code “TWELVE,” and general on sale begins Friday, June 5 at 10 a.m. (local time) at dragfans.com.

This year's cast includes:

Myki Meeks, Winner of RuPaul's Drag Race Season 18 (2026)
Nini Coco, Runner-up, Drag Race Season 18 (2026)
Darlene Mitchell, Drag Race Season 18 (2026)
Juicy Love Dion, Drag Race Season 18 (2026)
Discord Addams, Drag Race Season 18 (2026)
Crystal Methyd, Drag Race All Stars Season 11 (2026) & Drag Race Season 12 (2020)
Silky Ganache, Drag Race All Stars Season 11 (2026), Drag Race All Stars Season 6 (2021), Drag Race Season 11 (2019)

“A Drag Queen Christmas” is the world's premiere holiday drag showcase and a sensational theatrical experience that delivers high camp, over-the-top lip-sync performances, side-splitting comedy, elaborate costumes, Broadway-style staging, and a whole lot of heart—something we all seek during the chaos of the holiday season. With plenty of spectacular surprises in store, the show offers audiences a chance to see drag queens at the top of their game perform showstopping numbers of epic holiday proportions on revered theater stages across America. Each year, “A Drag Queen Christmas” provides an annual tradition for folks from all walks of life to come together and connect, find community, and celebrate the season with joy and laughter.

This dazzling, 18+ holiday extravaganza runs two hours and offers fans the chance to add-on a VIP Meet & Greet Experience—including early access to the venue, photos with the queens on stage, autographs, and exclusive tour merchandise.

A Drag Queen Christmas 2026 Tour Dates:

November 11 - Detroit, MI (Fisher Theatre)

November 12 - Rochester, NY (Kodak Center)

November 13 - Rutland, VT (Paramount Theatre)

November 14 - Portland, ME (Merrill Auditorium)

November 15 - Boston, MA (Emerson Colonial Theatre)

November 17 - Red Bank, NJ (Count Basie Center for the Arts)

November 18 - Morristown, NJ (Mayo Performing Arts Center)

November 19 - Washington, DC (Warner Theatre)

November 20 - Durham, NC (Durham Performing Arts Center)

November 21 - Wilmington, NC (Wilson Center - Cape Fear Community College)

November 22 - Philadelphia, PA (Fillmore)

November 24 - Pittsburgh, PA (Byham Theater)

November 25 - Columbus, OH (Palace Theatre)

November 27 - Chicago, IL (Riviera Theatre)

November 28 - Appleton, WI (Fox Cities Performing Arts Center)

November 29 - Omaha, NE (Orpheum Theater)

November 30 - Oklahoma City, OK (The Criterion)

December 1 - Des Moines, IA (Hoyt Sherman Place)

December 2 - Kansas City, MO (Uptown Theater)

December 4 - Denver, CO (Paramount Theatre)

December 5 - Salt Lake City, UT (Kingsbury Hall)

December 7 - Seattle, WA (Moore Theatre)

December 9 - Sacramento, CA (Channel 24)

December 10 - San Francisco, CA (Golden Gate Theatre)

December 11 - Stockton, CA (Bob Hope Theatre)

December 12 - Los Angeles, CA (The Wiltern)

December 13 - Santa Rosa, CA (Luther Burbank Center)

December 15 - Mesa, AZ (Mesa Arts Center)

December 16 - Tucson, AZ (Fox Tucson Theatre)

December 17 - El Paso, TX (Plaza Theatre)

December 19 - Austin, TX (ACL Live at The Moody Theater)

December 20 - Dallas, TX (Winspear Opera House)

December 21 - Wichita, KS (Orpheum Theatre)

December 22 - St.Louis, MO (The Factory)

December 23 - Knoxville, TN (Tennessee Theatre)

December 26 - Tampa Bay, FL (Straz Center for the Performing Arts)

December 27 - Fort Myers, FL (Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall)

December 28 - West Palm Beach, FL (Kravis Center for the Performing Arts)

December 29 - Jacksonville, FL (Florida Theatre)

FLYING TOWARD THE SUN to Receive 29-Hour Reading at Penguin Rep Theatre

Tue, 02 Jun 2026 05:05:44 PST

Penguin Rep Theatre (Joe Brancato, founding Artistic Director, and Andrew M. Horn, Executive Director) will present a 29-hour reading of FLYING TOWARD THE SUN, a new musical about asylum seekers, with book by Bill Nabel, music by Neil Berg, and lyrics by Berg and Nabel, directed by Mr. Brancato, Friday, June 12 in New York City.

The reading will feature George Abud (Broadway: Lempicka, The Band’s Visit, The Visit), Lee H. Alexander (1st National Tour: Jagged Little Pill; Off Broadway: Masquerade), Dan Hoy (Broadway: Harmony), Jonny Lee Jr. (Signature: Pacific Overtures; Utah Shakespeare Festival: Gold Mountain), Gabrielle Mariella, Sharon Wheatley (Broadway: Come From Away, The Phantom of the Opera, Cats), and Paulina Yeung (U.S. National Tour U.K./International Tour: The King and I).

Bill Nabel is an American Academy of Arts and Letters Richard Rodgers Prize finalist for his musical Take Me America. As an actor, he appeared on Broadway for the entire run of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast and performed in the original casts of A Chorus Line, Sweeney Todd and 42nd Street.

Neil Berg is the composer/co-lyricist, along with Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan, of The 12, which was directed by John Doyle at Goodspeed Opera House. He also composed the music and co-wrote the lyrics (with Cary Gitter) for The Sabbath Girl: The Musical, which was presented by Penguin at 59E59 Theaters in 2024, and How My Grandparents Fell in Love, which was presented by New Jersey Rep at 59E59 Theaters earlier this year. His credits also include Grumpy Old Men: The Musical, The Prince and the Pauper, and the upcoming musical version of My Cousin Vinny, based on the iconic movie, with book and lyrics by Dale Launer.

Director Brancato’s credits include Cary Gitter’s Gene & Gilda (Penguin/George Street Playhouse/59E59); the Neil Berg-Gitter musical The Sabbath Girl (Penguin/59E59); Michael McKeever’s Daniel’s Husband, which transferred from Penguin to Primary Stages at the Cherry Lane Theatre and then onto its commercial production at The Westside Theatre/Upstairs; Erasmus Fenn’s Drop Dead Perfect at Theatre at St. Clements (NY Times Critic’s Pick); The Devil’s Music: The Life & Blues of Bessie Smith (Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, Off B’way Alliance, and Audelco Award nominee); Freed (Audelco Award nominee); Tryst (Outer Critics nomination for Best Play) at the Promenade and at Irish Rep; and Cobb (Drama Desk winner).

Wendy Bobbitt Cavett (Broadway: Come From Away, Hamilton, Mamma Mia!) is musical supervisor and arranger; Matthew Stephens is musical director; and William Bastiason is musical transcriber. Michael Palmer is stage manager and Isaac Goldbaum is assistant stage manager.

Attendance is by invitation only. For further information, contact Penguin Rep Theatre @ info@penguinrep.org.

FLYING TOWARD THE SUN to Receive 29-Hour Reading at Penguin Rep Theatre

Tue, 02 Jun 2026 05:05:44 PST

Attendance is by invitation only. For further information, contact Penguin Rep Theatre @ info@penguinrep.org.

Review: MY LORD, WHAT A NIGHT is a timely historical drama at Penguin Rep

Fri, 29 May 2026 04:33:23 PST

I’m a sucker for the history of it all. On the page, on the stage, on the screen, if it’s historical, they had me at “once upon a time,” so to speak.

And so it is with the fact-based stage play “My Lord, What a Night,” by Deborah Brevoort, directed by Joe Brancato, on the boards through June 7 at Penguin Rep in Stony Point, New York.

It might seem a classical singer who happens to be Black and a mathematician make an odd couple as principals in a play, but when the vocalist is the statuesque talent Marian Anderson (Shirine Babb) and the scientist is one Albert Einstein (John Leonard Pielmeier), well, then, the pairing might seem odder still.

Ms. Brevoort transports us first to 1937, then, in Act II, 1939, inside the Princeton, New Jersey, home of Mr. Einstein, where he is the marquee attraction at the university’s think tank named the Institute of Advanced Study.

For the writer’s provocative and well-crafted material, she delves into a famous incident where Ms. Anderson, a marquee attraction in the world of music, has been unceremoniously refused lodging at the Princeton hotel where she just had performed earlier that same evening.

To the rescue comes the utterly unself-conscious, gnomic presence whose brand is Genius and whose cause is Human Rights, wherever they may be endangered. He offers the singer lodging for the night at his Princeton home.

The supporting characters are the Institute’s founder, Abraham Flexner (Sam Guncler), and a civil rights activist, Mary Church Terrell (Nora Cole), from the emergent National Association of Colored Women. The play’s title refers both to the eventful evening where the animated foursome debate how best to prosecute prejudice, and to the name of a Black spiritual that is briefly sung by Ms. Anderson.

Using these true-to-life circumstances, the playwright economically and compellingly weaves together inter-connected themes of racial intolerance, anti-semitism, the connective tissue tying music to math and advocacy, and even a nascent nuclear arms race on the eve of World War II. How more topical can a play be?

The four-person cast (all Actors Equity members), guided by veteran director Joe Brancato, find the central truths of their characters’ motivations and their conflicted priorities, with the idealism of righteousness warring with the pragmatism of survival.

The most conflicted are Marian Anderson and Abraham Flexner. She wants to do right by her race, by using her stature to push back against the widespread prejudice that marginalizes Blacks at every turn.

But it’s not so simple. As her manager, legendary impresario Sol Hurok, advises her (unseen, by phone), she risks jeopardizing her successful career by having her concerts canceled if her words and deeds become too politically charged.

Yet, this is the late 1930s, and in benighted precincts of the country – including Washington, D.C. – all a Black person need do to be censured is be Black. That’s what happens when the singer is prohibited by the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) prohibit her from performing inside Constitution Hall in the nation’s capital.

Ms. Babb doesn’t hit a single false note as legendary singer and civil rights icon Marian Anderson. She is a commanding presence on stage, effusing class and an iron will. The only cavil I have with her singing voice is we don’t get to hear nearly enough of it, but what we do hear is heavenly.

Parallel to Ms. Anderson’s plight is that of Abraham Flexner’s. He, like Mr. Einstein, is a Jew who must suffer the slings and arrows of two constituencies: gentile colleagues who stand vigil over how many Jews are allowed in the faculty at Princeton, and Jewish colleagues who browbeat him for not pushing back against the university’s miniscule quota on Jewish enrollment (reportedly capped at about 3% of the student body).

As with Ms. Anderson, Mr. Flexner is covetous of his livelihood remaining intact, ever mindful that his causing controversy could cost the college, literally, in lost funding from philanthropic anti-semites. (Mr. Einstein calls such people “money devils.”)

Mr. Flexner also is not sanguine about Marian Anderson staying at Albert Einstein’s Princeton house, fearful of what today we would call “optics.” Imagine that: a Black entertainer “mingling” with a Jewish genius. Call out the National Guard.

As Mr. Flexner, Sam Guncler strongly conveys the perplexity of his situation: managing a stiff dose of Jewish guilt for his complicity in the university’s restrictive Jewish policy, which is imperative to protect the critical funding that supports his Institute. Amidst all this, he also must not alienate Mr. Einstein.

The least conflicted and most resolute of the foursome are Mr. Einstein and Ms. Terrell. Where Marian Anderson and Mr. Flexner embody the wages of pragmatism in clinging to their compromised positions, the mathematician and the singer embody the rages of idealism as they stand their ground with steely resolve.

As Ms. Terrell, Nora Cole makes an impressive foil for Ms. Anderson, as she implores the recalcitrant singer to use her formidable influence to fight back against the ignorance of hate. “This is bigger than you,” she tells Ms. Anderson. Ms. Cole projects the confidence and certainty of a battle-hardened ideologue who bounces back up no matter how many times she is knocked down.

“My job is to be Albert Einstein,” says the near-mythical avatar of what we think of as genius. The playwright makes effective use of him as a plain-spoken vessel of wit and wisdom.

His head may be above it all, a pate where lofty insights alight on his grey matter, but his empathy could not be more earthy and earnest. Mr. Einstein states, simply, “Where there is an injustice, I get involved.”

Mr. Pielmeyer is as believable an Einstein as you’re likely to see on stage or screen. It would be too facile to call his interpretation a lovable curmudgeon. Anyone essaying the role could be tempted to play the caricature. Suffice it to say, this Einstein is not a product of artificial intelligence but, in the hands of Mr. Pielmeyer, a very genuine, organic intelligence. He is tremendous fun to watch.

The wonderfully rendered simulation of Einstein’s study is by scenic designer Christian Fleming. Jason A. Goodwin has outfitted the cast in perfectly evocative period wardrobe.

Ms. Brevoort threads the strands of the analogous themes of human rights violations – also invoking what is festering in Nazi Germany -- in a clean, lean style that is as engaging as it is enlightening. Mr. Brancato’s forthright, clear-headed directorial style is a fine match for her straightforward approach. In the end, there is serendipity in all of the characters finding fulfillment. The emotional power of the play’s final vignette, of Marian Anderson singing in front of the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday 1939, is heightened by the lighting design of Cameron Filepas, as it is in a poignant interlude where Mr. Einstein is despairing over the newfound discovery of splitting the atom to create a uranium-charged nuclear warhead capable of total annihilation.

The writer’s storytelling reminds us that, ninety years after these circumstances occurred, we have not lost the innocent capacity to be aghast at how corrosive and inhumane members of the human race can be when we surrender to lazy, willful ignorance. It’s easy to hate. It’s hard to understand.

Joe Brancato is artistic director and Andrew Horn is executive director of Penguin Rep Theatre.

Photo > Dorice Arden Madronero

SONIC LIVE IN CONCERT to Launch Global Tour With US and UK Premieres

Wed, 27 May 2026 20:59:39 PST

As Sonic the Hedgehog celebrates 35 years as one of the most iconic video game franchises of all time, Senbla and SEGA today announced Sonic Live In Concert (www.sonicliveinconcert.com). This new concert experience brings the music and moments of the beloved video games to the stage.

Featuring iconic moments and music from the very first game in 1991 through today, the production will debut in the U.S. at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on September 26, 2026, before making its European premiere at London's Eventim Apollo on September 30. The U.S. tour will visit more than 30 cities nationwide, and a UK tour will follow in February 2027. More European dates will be announced at a later time. Tickets will go on sale May 29, 2026, with pre-sale tickets going on sale on May 28, 2026.

As part of a global rollout celebrating the franchise's milestone anniversary, Sonic Live In Concert features the most recognizable music from the Sonic universe, performed by a live ensemble alongside rock musicians, vocalists, and electronic elements. The setlist includes fan-favorite tracks and an incredible array of music from the very first game through to today accompanied by synchronized HD footage of iconic levels, moments and boss battles from the franchise. Audiences can expect musical Easter eggs woven into the arrangements, adding an extra layer of discovery that brings Sonic's world vividly to life on stage.

The concert also highlights the creative legacy behind Sonic's music from legendary composers Jun Senoue and Tomoya Ohtani, whose work has helped define Sonic's sound across generations.

"Sonic has some of the most distinct and celebrated music in gaming," says Ollie Rosenblatt, CEO of Senbla. "We wanted to create a live show that stays true to what the fans love about Sonic's music, from the electronic and melodic themes to high-energy rock."

“Music has always been a core part of Sonic's identity, shaping how fans experience this world across generations," said Ivo Gerscovich, Chief Business & Brand Officer at SEGA of America, Inc. "With this concert, we're looking forward to celebrating that legacy in a live setting; bringing together the energy, emotion, and creativity of Sonic's music in a way that both longtime fans and new audiences can enjoy together.”

Since his debut in 1991, Sonic the Hedgehog has become a global entertainment icon spanning video games, film, television, and consumer products. With renewed momentum driven by recent film releases, new game titles, and a global brand campaign tied to the 35th anniversary, the franchise continues to reach new generations of fans worldwide.

The performance schedule includes:

September 20, 2026 – Spokane, Washington – First Interstate Center for the Arts
September 22, 2026 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre (preview)
September 23, 2026 – Portland, OR – Keller Auditorium (preview)
September 25, 2026 – San Diego, CA – San Diego Civic Theatre (preview)
September 26, 2026 – Hollywood, CA – Dolby Theatre
September 27, 2026 – Riverside, CA – Fox Performing Arts Center
September 29, 2026 – Mesa, AZ – Mesa Arts Center - Ikeda Theater
September 30, 2026 – London, U.K. – London Eventim Apollo
October 1, 2026 – Las Vegas, NV – Resorts World Theatre
October 2, 2026 – Fresno, CA – Saroyan Theatre
October 3, 2026 – San Jose, CA – San Jose Civic
October 4, 2026 – Reno, NV – Grand Theatre at The Grand Sierra Resort & Casino
October 6, 2026 – Denver, CO – Temple Hoyne Buell Theatre
October 8, 2026 – Irving, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
October 9, 2026 – Houston, TX – Bayou Music Center
October 10, 2026 – San Antonio, TX – Boeing Center at Tech Port
October 11, 2026 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion
October 13, 2026 – Wichita, KS – Orpheum Theatre
October 15, 2026 – Omaha, NE – Orpheum Theater
October 16, 2026 – Peoria, IL – Prairie Home Alliance Theater
October 17, 2026 – Louisville, KY – The Louisville Palace Theatre
October 18, 2026 – St. Louis, MO – The Factory
October 19, 2026 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium
October 20, 2026 – Mobile, AL – Saenger Theatre
October 22, 2026 – Brandon, MS – City Hall Live
October 23, 2026 – Huntsville, AL – VBC Mark C. Smith Concert Hall
October 24, 2026 – Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre
October 25, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – Steven Tanger Center for Performing Arts
October 27, 2026 – Charlotte, NC – Ovens Auditorium
October 28, 2026 – North Charleston, SC – North Charleston Performing Arts Center
October 29, 2026 – Jacksonville, FL – Florida Theatre
October 30, 2026 – St. Petersburg, FL – Duke Energy Center for the Arts - Mahaffey Theater
October 31, 2026 – Fort Lauderdale, FL – Broward Center for the Performing Arts - Au Rene Theater
November 1, 2026 – Orlando, FL – Walt Disney Theater at Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts
February 17, 2027 – Glasgow, UK – Royal Concert Hall
February 18, 2027 – Edinburgh, UK – Usher Hall
February 19, 2027 – Manchester, UK – Bridgewater Hall
February 20, 2027 – Birmingham, UK – Symphony Hall

For more information, tour dates, and tickets, visit www.sonicliveinconcert.com.

Metro Awards Mark 25 Ceremonies Honoring High School Musical Theater in Hudson Valley

Wed, 27 May 2026 19:25:16 PST

Founded in 1999 with just 15 participating schools, the Metropolitan High School Theater Awards - better known as The Metros - are celebrating 25 years of honoring high school musical theater excellence. While the program itself began more than a quarter century ago, organizers mark 25 Metro Awards ceremonies due to the pause in live events during the COVID years.

What started as an ambitious idea at Helen Hayes Theatre Company in Nyack has grown into one of the region's most significant arts education traditions, now bringing together 74 schools from Westchester, Rockland, Bergen, and Putnam counties and recognizing excellence across 34 performance and technical theater categories. The Metros are a division of the Helen Hayes Youth Theatre, an educational theater also based in Nyack, NY.

For generations of young performers, designers, musicians, technicians, directors, and theater educators, The Metros have represented one of the most anticipated nights of the year.

The Metros return Monday, June 15 at 7:30 p.m. to the Purchase College Performing Arts Center Concert Hall, where hundreds of young performers, musicians, technicians, designers, directors, educators, and families will gather for what has become, for generations of theater students, the biggest night of the year.

The Metros honor not only performers, but also student designers, technical crews, musicians, choreographers, child performers, and creative teams whose work brings productions to life.

"For a generation of theater kids, the Metro Awards have been the biggest night of the year," said Danielle Rudess, Founder and Producer of The Metro Awards.

Rudess launched the awards while serving on staff at Helen Hayes Theatre Company in Nyack.

"My executive producer, Tony Stimac, told me about the Paper Mill Rising Star Awards," Rudess said. "We decided to give it a try. The first year we had 15 participating schools. It was a herculean effort - but what a night."

Among that first class of winners was Ali Ewoldt, who later became Broadway's first Asian American Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera and also starred as Cosette in LES MISERABLES. Ewoldt won a Metro Award for Supporting Actress during the inaugural season. Broadway star Norm Lewis, then appearing at Helen Hayes Theatre Company in Company, presented her award.

Years later, Ewoldt and Lewis would perform together on Broadway in LES MISERABLES.

Metro Award alumni and nominees have gone on to remarkable professional careers, including Rachel Zegler, Rob McClure, Ali Ewoldt, and Adam Chanler-Berat among many others.

Over three decades, The Metros stage has welcomed an extraordinary roster of Broadway hosts and special guests including Kerry Butler, Grey Henson, Kate Rockwell, Christy Altomare, Ashley Park, Ethan Slater, Adam Chanler-Berat, Jason Gotay, Adam Kaplan, Kyle Beltran, Danny Skinner, Pat Birch, Steve Blanchard, Jason Robert Brown, John Treacy Egan, Gerard Canonico, Didi Conn, Robert Cuccioli, André De Shields, Felicia Finley, Allison Fraser, Kim Grigsby, Rupert Holmes, Tom Jones, Liz Larsen, Beth Leavel, Norm Lewis, William Ivey Long, Priscilla Lopez, Terrence Mann, Donna McKechnie, Donna Murphy, David Shire, Charles Strouse, Gwen Verdon, and Tony Walton.

"Tony Walton told the audience not to be sad if they didn't win that night. After all, he received 16 Tony nominations but only won 3. Seven Oscar nominations but only 3 wins. Priscilla Lopez talked about losing the Tony Award for A Chorus Line to her castmate Donna McKechnie. Gwen Verdon, in one of her final public appearances, shared stories about life with her husband Bob and their mutual love of life in the theater. That "Bob" was none other than Bob Fosse.

Just a few years before becoming the star of Steven Spielberg's West Side Story and an Olivier Award winner for Evita in London's West End, Rachel Zegler was a multiple-year Metro Awards nominee representing her high school musical program. As a Leading Actress nominee for her portrayal of Ariel in her school's production of The Little Mermaid, she even performed on roller skates. "That gorgeous voice and her powerful Stage Presence were apparent to everyone from the start," recalls Metro Awards Founder and Producer Danielle Rudess.

In an unexpected twist that now feels almost theatrical itself, Rudess' daughter later worked as a casting assistant in the office searching for the actress to play Maria in Spielberg's West Side Story. Her role involved reviewing thousands of audition submissions, and Rachel Zegler's audition stood out. She flagged Rachel's video and brought it to the attention of the creative team. Around that same time, Rudess herself was reaching out to coordinate Rachel's Metro Awards rehearsal schedule.

"Rachel told me she was heading into final auditions for West Side Story," Rudess said. "Somehow, while Rachel was still in 11th grade, both my daughter and I ended up playing small roles in the extraordinary journey that launched her remarkable career."

This year's ceremony will be hosted by Broadway performers Emma Pittman, currently starring in The Outsiders, and Kevin Csolak, who also appeared in The Outsiders and received the Chita Rivera Award for Outstanding Dancer for his performance as Tulsa in Gypsy.

Yet despite the impressive names attached to the event, organizers say the heart of The Metros has never changed.

"This is about students," Rudess said. "It's about recognizing years of hard work. It's about the young performer who stayed after school every day. The student stage manager holding everything together backstage. The costume crews, musicians, lighting designers, choreographers, directors, teachers, and families who make these productions happen. The friendships formed and life lessons learned through being part of a high school musical."

Every participating school receives recognition, with ticket allocations tied to nominations to ensure schools throughout the region can celebrate together.

"It's a pep rally in black tie," said Blake Spence, Co-Producer. "The singing and screaming begins as soon as the lights go down. We sell ear plugs because the sound inside the sold-out concert hall is intense."

The ceremony includes leading and supporting actor and actress medleys, technical theater recognition, a child performer category, scholarships, and an opening number featuring one performer from every participating school.

The program continues to evolve with expanded student leadership opportunities including student-run livestream operations, red carpet interviews, production internships, student critics, and behind-the-scenes production roles that allow students to experience professional event production firsthand.

Thousands of students have stepped onto the Metro Awards stage over the last 25 years. Some have gone on to careers in theater and entertainment. Others have carried lessons of collaboration, creativity, discipline, and leadership into entirely different professions.

"It keeps growing because the talent is there," Rudess said. "The passion is there. Every year these students remind us why arts education matters."

The 2026 Metropolitan High School Theater Awards take place Monday, June 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Purchase College Performing Arts Center Concert Hall. For nominations, event information, and updates, visit www.hstheaterawards.com.

Jim Dale Will Perform in AN ACTOR'S NIGHTMARE To Benefit Penguin

Tue, 26 May 2026 05:40:50 PST

Penguin Rep Theatre, under the leadership of Joe Brancato, founding Artistic Director, and Andrew M. Horn, Executive Director, announced that legendary performer Jim Dale will perform his one-man show An Actor’s Nightmare as a benefit for the Stony Point-based professional theatre Saturday, June 13 at 7:00 p.m. A reception will follow.

“We are thrilled to welcome Jim Dale -- veteran actor, narrator, composer, and author with a distinguished career in theatre and film – to the Penguin stage,” says Mr. Brancato. “This unforgettable performance combines humor, storytelling, personal anecdotes, and theatrical insight, while offering the audience a behind-the-scenes look at the challenges of live theatre.”

Dale ring-mastered and tightrope-walked his way to a Tony Award in the Broadway musical Barnum and won five Drama Desk Awards for his performances in New York in such shows as Scapino, Candide, Me and My Girl, Privates on Parade, and The Threepenny Opera.

He gave voice to all seven of the Harry Potter books for which he won a record ten Audie Awards, the Oscars of the narrating world, two Grammy Awards, and two Guinness World Records.

Dale serenaded Lynn Redgrave to stardom with Oscar-nominated lyrics for Georgy Girl ("Hey there, Georgy girl/Swingin' down the street so fancy-free...").

He was the first client of George Martin, who'd soon produce The Beatles, and a charter-member of the British Carry On films that scampered across movie screens in the '60s and ‘70s. In his spare time, he was a teen pop star and a stand-up comedian.

At the invitation of Laurence Olivier, who called him “God’s gift to Shakespeare’s comedies,” Dale joined London's National Theatre.

An Actor’s Nightmare recounts with wit and humor what happened when Olivier chose Dale and Anthony Hopkins to star in a two-man play, The Architect and the Emperor of Assyria, in what would become the most catastrophic disaster ever witnessed on The National Theatre stage.

The June 13 performance is scheduled at Penguin Rep Theatre, a repurposed hay barn, located at 7 Crickettown Road. “The converted barn, circa 1880, has never been more inviting” (The New York Times). Says Mr. Horn, “It’s theatre so close you can feel it, with comfortable upholstered seats and no seat more than 30 feet from the stage.” The theatre is air conditioned, handicapped accessible, and has plenty of free parking.

Charles Dennis, Co-Founder of P.S. 122 and Avant-Garde-Arama, Dies

Fri, 22 May 2026 16:35:39 PST

Charles Dennis, one of the shining lights of the Hudson Valley arts community, passed away in his home in Hurley, NY, after a brief illness. This gifted artist and indelible spirit departed our dimension with his wife of 40+ years, Mona Banzer, by his side in the early evening hours of May 8th.

Dennis was an internationally known interdisciplinary artist whose singular work fused dance, film, and performance art, as well as an arts producer with a long-standing presence in New York's downtown avant-garde community. With his move to the Hudson Valley in 2019, Dennis became a tireless champion for dozens of local artists with an experimental spirit by launching Avant-Garde Arama here, the long-running festival he co-created and produced in New York City in the early 1980s.

Dennis began his career in the arts when he joined theater director Robert Wilson's company, the Byrd Hoffman School of Byrds, in 1971. He went on to perform in many of Wilson's legendary early works, including the original production of "Einstein on the Beach," which premiered in July 1976 at the Avignon Festival and later toured the world. In 1979, Dennis co-founded P.S. 122 (now Performance Space New York) in the Lower East Side, one of the world's most active presenters of new dance, theater, and performance art. At P.S. 122 and other venues, Dennis refined his personal art form, a unique combination of movement, video, sound, and storytelling labeled "physical theater" by Dancemagazine. His many works, as a soloist and for large groups, earned him fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York Foundation for the Arts, and the Franklin Furnace Fund, among others.

Avant-Garde-Arama was originally created in 1980 by Dennis and musician/visual artist Jeffrey Issac at P.S. 122. For over 40 years, these periodic festivals featured some of the boldest expressions of art's leading edge - performance art, dance, short theater pieces, video, puppetry, spoken word, music, and much more. Early iterations of the festival in New York City featured notables including Eric Bogosian, David Cale, Phillip Glass, Tim Miller, and Ethyl Eichelberger, among others.

In 2019, when Dennis and Banzer moved from Brooklyn to Hurley, he began searching for opportunities to present avant-garde and experimental works in the Hudson Valley. The area's first edition of Avant-Garde Arama was a two-day spectacular at Woodstock's Mountain View Studios in July 2021. Here he performed one of his signature works, 2x2x4, a movement piece with an electronic solo guitar score by Spaghetti Eastern Music. This initial Hudson Valley festival also featured puppetry and performance video from Shana Strype and modern dancer Edisa Weeks and many more.

Beginning in 2022, Dennis presented four editions of this two-day festival at its new home, the Lace Mill in Kingston. These events featured artists including musicians Doug O'Brien and Peter Wetzler; dance works by Alex Romania, Stacey Smith, and Hanna Bass; live painting to jazz by Nancy Ostrovsky; film works by Ian McLauglin; and movement/spoken-word pieces by Mona Banzer and Claire Porter. The last piece Dennis performed at the March 2024 edition of Avant-Garde-Arama was the autobiographical, Dreaming Out Loud.

Dennis was also a noted filmmaker who produced both his own creative shorts and videos for musicians and other multidisciplinary performers through his company, Charles Dennis Productions. These included Feet with the Beat (1985), a film featuring the feet of NYC's hectic urban walkers set to a catchy Latin-flavored score by Bob Telson, and NY 1985, a vision of a post-apocalyptic Manhattan with a dancing, gas-masking-wearing traveling salesman, originally screened at The Kitchen. His recent work included Onteora Ice Dance (2021), featuring drone footage of Dennis skating patterns on a frozen lake in Kingston with a score by Peter Wetzler and Drone Girl - Destination Zena, a quirky tale of a young woman's escape from the oppressive summer heat of Brooklyn to a bucolic field in Woodstock, where she dances a duet with a drone. He also produced two feature films: Homecoming, a documentary about P.S. 122, and Echo, a three-screen compilation showcasing the work of more than 100 artists. Fourteen of Dennis' short films were showcased in a sold-out retrospective at Upstate Films in Saugerties in October 2024.

Since 1978, Dennis has shared his knowledge by teaching dance, drama, and video workshops at a variety of universities and arts centers, including the Lincoln Center Institute. Dennis also produced Alive and Kicking, a dance show featured on Manhattan Cable, which aired more than 100 episodes, and is now in the libraries of notable universities.

Charles and his wife Mona met in September 1984 when he was teaching a workshop at Tanzfabrik, an arts center in Berlin. After traveling in Europe, Mona relocated to New York City, and they married in September 1987. Mona, who is also a dancer, performance artist, and Costume Designer, has collaborated with Dennis on many projects over the years. She is intent on continuing the work Charles forged with Avant-Garde Arama in the Hudson Valley. Charles Dennis will be celebrated at the next Avant-Garde Arama to be produced by his wife at Lace Mill in Kingston in October. For further details, visit https://thelacemillarts.com/

Review: THE 39 STEPS IS A DELIGHTFUL ROMP AT ELMWOOD PLAYHOUSE

Fri, 22 May 2026 14:55:54 PST

It seems improbable that a 1915 adventure novel set in Great Britain about wartime espionage, adapted into a classic 1935 suspense movie, would find renewed life as a loopy stage farce that faithfully tells the fast-moving, far-flung tale through a mere four actors.

Improbable, that is, unless the source material’s author, John Buchan, spins a bloody good yarn …and the farce’s English playwright, Patrick Barlow, achieves an ingenious economy of scale amplified with broad humor… and the director, Margaret Young (of Elmwood Playhouse), sharply orchestrates wise and witty stagecraft… and the quartet of actors act like quick-change artists who transform themselves seamlessly right before our eyes.

The production of “The 39 Steps” on stage now through June 6 at Elmwood Playhouse in Nyack, New York, has a blue-blood pedigree, hewing closely to the narrative arc of the acclaimed movie by Alfred Hitchcock. It was the 36-year-old Mr. Hitchcock’s second major feature in England and caught the attention of American audiences.

Mr. Barlow’s masterly parody premiered two decades ago on the West End (England’s Broadway) and won the Olivier (England’s Tony) for Best Comedy, and picked up a couple of technical Tony Awards when it was exported to our shores in 2007.

So pronounced is the raucous, madcap flavor of the show – consciously channeling the vaudevillian humor of early 20th Century English music halls, a setting that bookends the play – that the plot itself virtually plays second fiddle to the non-stop shenanigans, which are enough to make you plotz with guffaws throughout. And the significance of the title itself, when revealed --is a lot less mysterious than one might anticipate.

For the record, that plot has principal character Richard Hannay (Rob Eigenbrod) becoming ensnarled in a wartime plot by England’s enemies to steal its military secrets. Due to circumstances beyond his control, Hannay becomes a murder suspect who goes on the run in Scotland, accompanied by the dark and mysterious Pamela (Traci Redmond).

In this parody of suspense movie conventions, though, it’s not so much what’s going on as how it’s going on. In one memorable scene, Pamela is removing a stocking. Easy enough, except for the fact she and Hannay are handcuffed to each other, so he can’t help but help her take it off.

We follow the odd couple to assorted locations interior and exterior (across the Scottish moors, in a train, a London flat, a hotel, an assembly hall, and so on). Indicative of the resourcefulness and imagination conjured by author Mr. Barlow and by Ms. Young as director, each setting plays its role through still projection, abetted by a shrewdly employed stage turntable that keeps the rotating sets and actors and action moving apace with cinematic fluidity.

Along the way, we meet, according to various estimates, more than 100 characters. Other than the singular role of Hannay played throughout by Mr. Eigenbrod, the other three cast members take on every other character, and what a bunch of characters they be. Think Monty Python. That goes for Mr. Barlow’s spitfire dialogue as well, with bursts of exchanges that repeat the same phrase, creating a stylized effect that is almost musical.

Traci Redmond slinkily essays a couple of femmes fatale (Annabella and Pamela), as well as a Scottish farmer, or crofter (Margaret).

The weight of the remaining several dozen roles rests firmly on the highly capable shoulders of Christine Gnieksi (Clown 1) and Rob Webber (Clown 2), who execute their transformations so smoothly if you blink you might have missed one of their multiplicity of personas.

The piece de resistance of the Clowns’ ceaseless shape-shifting is a train scene where Mr. Webber, in effect, will be talking to himself, with his split personalities signaled by switching a hat and altering his vocal timbre. Ms. Gnieksi’s prodigious versatility delivers her own cast of characters compelling enough to convince you they are not the same person.

The train scene, oddly reminiscent of the opening scene of Broadway musical The Music Man, is beautifully choreographed by Ms. Young to hilarious effect. Suffice it to say after much fitful maneuvering among the passengers, Hannay ends up outside the moving train.

Mr. Eigenbrod’s spot-on suitability for the lead role as Hannay casts him as a bespoke bloke from central casting. He fits the script’s character breakdown precisely – elegant, attractive, pencil mustache. The actor brings to the part a delightful athleticism that has him fly feet first outside a window and another time cartwheel across the stage.

As with the visual metaphors provided by the projected backgrounds, also put to effective and efficient use are props such as a straight back wood chair held aloft to impersonate a bagpipe or chairs and a board and steering wheel quickly maneuvered to serve as a vehicle. There’s also a stubborn window shade that repeatedly snaps back up when drawn but then, like an obedient dog, somehow stays down finally.

Leave it to Elmwood’s property master par excellence Rich Ciero to figure out such stage sleight of hand, so he deserves lots of props. Another Elmwood behind-the-scenes stalwart, Mike Gnazzo, creates atmospheric lighting effects worthy of a 1930s monochrome movie, including angular shafts of light that bring to mind the pioneering work of German film auteur Fritz Lang, whom Mr. Gnazzo told me is a muse for his work.

Much credit too goes to Bill Mentz for the revolving set design, Maddelyn Curbelo for the wonderfully stylish period costumes, Larry Siege for sound design, stage manager Allison Schneider, producer Kathy Gnazzo, and assistant to the director Mitchell Schneider.

A nice touch is that for the pre-curtain housekeeping speech to the audience, a recording is played emulating Alfred Hitchcock’s memorable voice while the iconic line-drawing profile of him that opened his TV series is displayed. In the show, there are several easter eggs placed as homage to his movies – Hannay being chased by a plane as he runs “north by northwest,” a flock of “birds” harassing the characters, and reference to a “rear window.”

In her director’s note, Margaret Young point out the present-day relevance of remarks from a speech by Hannay in the play: “A world where no nation plots against nation! Where… there’s no persecution… where people try to help and not hinder!” That was written a century ago. The more things change…

Photo by Omar Kozarsky

Review: 'MY LORD, WHAT A NIGHT' at Penguin Rep

Wed, 20 May 2026 14:21:24 PST

At a moment in American life when conversations about race, exclusion, immigration, and human dignity once again dominate the national discourse, Penguin Rep Theatre could scarcely have chosen a more resonant production than "My Lord, What an Evening." Yet what makes Deborah Brevoort’s warmly crafted play so effective is not merely its relevance, but its refusal to lecture. Instead, it invites audiences into an intimate gathering of brilliant minds and complicated souls, allowing history to breathe not as abstraction, but as deeply human experience.

Set against the backdrop of segregation-era America, the play imagines — and dramatizes — the friendship between legendary contralto Marian Anderson and physicist Albert Einstein, who famously offered Anderson hospitality at his home after she was denied lodging because of her race at the Nassau Inn in Princeton, New Jersey in 1937. What begins as an act of kindness evolves into a meditation on activism, artistry, morality, and the many different ways people attempt to change the world. Under Joe Brancato’s deft direction, the material lands with considerable emotional force.

As Marian Anderson, Shirine Babb gives a performance of remarkable poise and quiet authority. Babb wisely avoids turning Anderson into a saintly symbol. Instead, she presents a woman constantly negotiating the burdens placed upon her — expected to represent an entire people while remaining gracious enough not to threaten white sensibilities. Her restraint becomes the performance’s greatest strength. When flashes of anger or exhaustion finally emerge, they feel earned and deeply moving.

Opposite her, John Leonard Pielmeier’s Einstein is delightfully rumpled, funny, absent-minded, and unexpectedly touching. Pielmeier resists the temptation to play Einstein merely as an icon of genius. His Einstein is warm, impulsive, and emotionally accessible — a man whose moral clarity appears inseparable from his outsider status as both immigrant and Jew. The chemistry between Babb and Pielmeier forms the heart of the evening, and their scenes together possess an easy, lived-in charm.

Nora Cole delivers particularly fine work as civil rights pioneer Mary Church Terrell, embodying both intellectual rigor and simmering frustration. Terrell represents a more confrontational approach to justice than Anderson’s quieter diplomacy, and Cole brings a welcome steeliness to the role without sacrificing warmth. Sam Guncler’s Abraham Flexner, meanwhile, provides much of the production’s nervous energy and ideological tension. His portrayal captures the contradictions of progressive intellectuals who champion reform while remaining tethered to the limitations of their own privilege.

Brevoort’s script occasionally leans into familiar historical-drama conventions. Certain exchanges telegraph their emotional destination well before arriving there, and some debates feel shaped a bit too neatly. But a tinge of predictability proves a minor complaint when the journey itself is this pleasurable.

The production succeeds because it never loses sight of entertainment. The dialogue sparkles with intelligence and humor, and the pacing remains brisk throughout. More importantly, the play understands that history becomes most powerful when filtered through personal relationships rather than textbook rhetoric. These towering figures emerge not as monuments, but as vulnerable, funny, stubborn, frightened, and hopeful human beings.

The intimacy of Penguin Rep’s space only heightens the effect. Audiences feel less like passive observers than invited guests eavesdropping on extraordinary conversations around a dinner table. In an age increasingly dominated by division and noise, there is something profoundly moving about a play centered on listening — truly listening — to one another.

That timeliness hangs over the production from beginning to end. Questions about who belongs, who is heard, and what moral responsibility individuals bear toward injustice resonate now more urgently than ever. Yet “My Lord, What an Evening” avoids cynicism. It argues, gently but firmly, that human connection itself can be transformative.

And in today’s climate, that message may be exactly what audiences need to hear.

-Peter Danish

Photos by: Dorice Arden Madronero

THE NOTEBOOK North American Tour Adds 26 Cities to 2026-27 Route

Tue, 19 May 2026 08:13:15 PST

The North American Tour of THE NOTEBOOK hasannounced engagements for the 2026-27 season, adding 26 cites to the previously announced route, including stops in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, and Houston. The tour began performances on September 6, 2025, at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio, and has welcomed over 500,000 patrons to date.

Read the reviews for the touring production of The Notebook.

Allie and Noah, two people from different worlds, share a lifetime of love despite the forces that threaten to pull them apart in a deeply moving portrait of the enduring power of love. Based on the book that has sold millions of copies worldwide and a film that is one of the highest-grossing romantic dramas of all-time, the musical adaptation of THE NOTEBOOK played Broadway at the Schoenfeld Theatre from March 2024 to December 2024 following a critically acclaimed world premiere engagement at Chicago Shakespeare Theater in the fall of 2022.

THE NOTEBOOK features music and lyrics by multi-platinum singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson and a book by playwright Bekah Brunstetter (writer and producer on NBC's “This Is Us,” The Cake). The production is directed by Michael Greif (Dear Evan Hansen, Next to Normal, RENT) and Schele Williams (Aida, The Wiz), with choreography by Katie Spelman (Associate Choreographer on Moulin Rouge! The Musical).

The creative team for the tour includes scenic design by David Zinn and Brett J. Banakis, costume design by Paloma Young, lighting design by Ben Stanton, sound design by Nevin Steinberg, hair and wig design by Mia Neal, and projection design by Lucy Mackinnon. The production's music supervisor is Carmel Dean, who also collaborated on arrangements with Ingrid Michaelson and on orchestrations with John Clancy, and the music director is Tina Faye. Casting by The Telsey Office, Patrick Goodwin, CSA.

The production was recognized with three 2024 Tony Award nominations (Best Book of a Musical, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical), Drama League Award nominations for Outstanding Production of a Musical, two Distinguished Performance Awards and the Founders Award for Excellence in Directing, Drama Desk Award nominations for Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical, and an Outer Critics Circle Award nomination for Outstanding Lead Performer in a Broadway Musical.

2026-2027 Tour Dates:

Detroit, MI — Fisher Theatre
September 22 – October 4, 2026

Dayton, OH — Schuster Center
October 6 – 11, 2026

Grand Rapids, MI — DeVos Performance Hall
October 13 – 18, 2026

East Lansing, MI — Wharton Center
October 27 – November 1, 2026

Richmond, VA — Altria Theater
November 3 – 8, 2026

Pittsburgh, PA — Benedum Center
November 10 – 15, 2026

Schenectady, NY — Proctors
December 1 – 6, 2026

Boston, MA — Emerson Colonial Theatre
December 8 – 20, 2026

Oklahoma City, OK — Civic Center Music Hall
December 29, 2026 – January 3, 2027

Houston, TX — Hobby Center
January 5 – 10, 2027

Dallas, TX — Winspear Opera House
January 12 – 24, 2027

New Orleans, LA — Saenger Theatre
January 26 – 31, 2027

Hershey, PA — Hershey Theatre
February 3 – 7, 2027

Providence, RI — PPAC
February 9 – 14, 2027

Rochester, NY — Auditorium Theatre
February 16 – 21, 2027

Fayetteville, AR — Walton Arts Center
February 24 – 28, 2027

Huntsville, AL — Von Braun Center
March 2 – 7, 2027

Ft. Lauderdale, FL — Broward Center
March 9 – 14, 2027

Ft. Myers, FL — Barbara B. Mann Hall
March 16 – 21, 2027

Naples, FL — Artis—Naples
March 23 – 28, 2027

North Charleston, SC — North Charleston PAC
March 30 – April 4, 2027

Birmingham, AL — BJCC Concert Hall
April 6 – 11, 2027

Atlanta, GA — Fox Theatre
April 13 – 18, 2027

Tucson, AZ — Centennial Hall
April 27 – May 2, 2027

San Jose, CA — Center for the Performing Arts
May 4 – 9, 2027

Sacramento, CA — SAFE Credit Union PAC
May 11 – 16, 2027

StageMag Launches Programmable PDF Editor for Digital Theater Programs

Thu, 21 May 2026 10:04:02 PST

StageMag, the digital show program platform from BroadwayWorld, today launched its new PDF Editor to all producers and stage managers using the service. The tool gives editors granular, real-time control over how their digital program renders as a downloadable or printable PDF - the format most often used in lobby printouts, accessibility packets, and press kits.

Until now, the StageMag-to-PDF path was a one-shot export: whatever fit, fit. The new editor turns the export into a configurable surface. Each section of a program including the cast list, song list, director's note, bios, advertisements, sponsor pages, articles, listings and more — can be individually told how to paginate. Editors choose between three strategies per section:

Flow: natural pagination, sections may split across pages.
Own page: start the section on a fresh page.
Fit one page: start fresh and scale the section to occupy the whole page.

A live preview pane re-renders the PDF on every change, so editors see the final printed result as they work rather than guessing and re-exporting.Beyond the strategy picker, the editor exposes a set of advanced controls familiar to anyone who has hand-tuned a long-form print document: hide-element selectors (drop sponsor strips or vestigial nav from the print version), forced page breaks before or after named elements, a draggable section-order list, custom header/footer/watermark text, and a custom-CSS escape hatch for theaters whose programs follow a house style.

The release also includes paper-level controls including US Letter or A4, portrait or landscape, three margin presets, three type scales, and a "booklet" mode that adds a binding gutter for stapled lobby printouts.

The PDF Editor is available now to all StageMag-enabled productions at no additional cost, under the Share PDF tab in the program editor. Existing programs render with sensible defaults; the new controls are opt-in and per-production.

About StageMag

StageMag is BroadwayWorld's digital playbill platform, used by Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional, university, and community theater productions to publish interactive programs that audiences open on their phones from a QR code in the lobby. StageMag is offered as a free service to participating productions.

About BroadwayWorld

Founded in 2003, BroadwayWorld is the largest theater website in the world, covering Broadway, the West End, and theater news, reviews, interviews, and resources across all 50 US states and 45 countries.

Composers Concordance to Present COMPCORD AT HOWLAND Concert

Tue, 12 May 2026 15:53:32 PST

On Friday, June 7th at 5pm, Composers Concordance and the Howland Cultural Center present CompCord at Howland in Beacon, NY.

Bringing together musicians from NYC and the Hudson Valley, the concert blends jazz, contemporary classical, improvisation, poetry, and groove-driven experimentation.

Featuring works by Cooper, Hubbard, Kaye, Laster, Pritsker, Silvano, and Ware, the evening celebrates collaboration, community, and fearless musical exploration.

Carrie Coon to Receive Vision Award at The Jacob Burns Film Center Gala

Tue, 12 May 2026 13:27:09 PST

2026 Tony nominee Carrie Coon will be honored with a special tribute by the Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC) during its 25th Anniversary Gala on Friday, June 12. A member of the Jacob Burns Film Center, Coon will receive the Vision Award for her body of work across stage and screen.

Alongside Coon, the Gala will honor JBFC Founder Stephen Apkon with a Legacy Award, recognizing his vision and creative leadership, and JBFC Director of Development Judy Exton, who will receive the David Swope Leadership Award after 25 years of service to the organization.

“This Gala celebrates what has always been at the heart of the Burns, bringing people together through film and the conversations that follow,” said Mary Jo Ziesel, Executive Director of the JBFC. “We are especially proud to honor Carrie Coon, an extraordinary actress whose work has resonated with audiences across film, television, and stage."

The Gala will take place on the JBFC campus (364 Manville Road, Pleasantville, NY) and will feature a program celebrating the honorees, with special guests and conversations, followed by a party. Packages are available at $25,000, $15,000, and $10,000, with individual tickets priced at $2,500 and $1,000.

The leadership for the event includes Honorary Chair and JBFC Board member, Ron Howard, along with the Gala Committee, led by JBFC Board member Heidi Rieger.

Carrie Coon’s work spans stage, television, and film. Her portrayal of Honey in the Broadway revival of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? earned her a Tony Award nomination. Since then, she’s appeared Off-Broadway in Placebo (Playwrights Horizons) and Mary Jane (New York Theatre Workshop), and has been a company member with Steppenwolf Theatre (2019). She was most recently on Broadway in Tracy Letts's Bug, for which she has received a Tony nomination.

Photo credit: Heather Hazzan

OUTSIDE MULLINGAR Will Come to The Schoolhouse Theater

Thu, 07 May 2026 05:18:10 PST

The Schoolhouse Theater kicks off its 2026 season with Outside Mullingar, the irresistible romantic comedy by Pulitzer Prize and Academy Award winner John Patrick Shanley—best known as the screenwriter of the classic Moonstruck. Directed by Producing Director Bram Lewis, this production promises an evening of laughter, heart, and the kind of hard-earned romance that leaves audiences smiling all the way home.

Set in the lush Irish countryside, Outside Mullingar follows Anthony and Rosemary—two stubborn, lonely neighbors whose lives have unfolded side by side for years, though neither quite has the courage to say what’s in their hearts. What follows is a charming, offbeat courtship filled with sharp humor, surprising turns, and Shanley’s unmistakable gift for finding comedy in human awkwardness and longing.

The production features a standout professional Equity cast. Michael Daly—returning to Schoolhouse after his acclaimed performance in Faith Healer—brings his trademark whimsy and grounded intensity to the role of Tony, capturing both the character’s comedic bluster and emotional depth. He is joined by Thea McCartan, whose vibrant presence and impeccable comic timing make Rosemary a force of nature—funny, fierce, and impossible to ignore. Carole Monferdini—seen previously in Schoolhouse’s The Color of Light—infuses Aoife with wit and authority, while Dana Watkins lends warmth and charm to Anthony.

Under Lewis’s direction, Outside Mullingar leans fully into its identity as a modern Irish romantic comedy—playful, tender, and just a little bit eccentric. This is a story filled with laughter—big, unexpected laughs as well as quieter, knowing ones—but it never loses sight of the genuine longing at its core. Audiences can expect a warm, funny, and thoroughly satisfying night at the theater.

Funny, moving, and full of Irish charm, Outside Mullingar is the perfect way to begin a
season dedicated to bold storytelling and unforgettable performances.

For Tickets visit:
www.theschoolhousetheater.org
or call: 914-473-7111

About The Schoolhouse Theater
The Schoolhouse Theater, located in Croton Falls, New York, is the oldest professional
Equity theater in Westchester County. Under the artistic direction of Owen Thompson, the
theater is dedicated to producing classic and contemporary plays driven by language, moral conflict, and ensemble rigor.

HERCULES JR. To Be Piloted By Beacon Performing Arts Center

Sat, 02 May 2026 10:46:54 PST

Beacon Performing Arts Center (BPAC) has been selected to pilot a production of Disney's Hercules Jr. Having this opportunity means BPAC is one of only a few theatre companies in the country chosen to premiere a brand-new "Junior" version of a Disney musical. Specially adapted for student performers, this production will help shape the show before its official release. Representatives from Disney will be in attendance to evaluate elements such as pacing, music, and storytelling, making adjustments based on what they observe.

Disney's Hercules JR. is a high-energy stage adaptation of the 1997 animated film. The story follows Hercules as he discovers his demigod heritage, battles the villainous Hades, and finds love with Megara. This lively production features witty, updated dialogue, vibrant sets, stunning costumes, and a dynamic score by Alan Menken, including fan-favorite songs such as "Go the Distance," "A Star Is Born," "The Gospel Truth," and "Zero to Hero."

The cast features students from across the Hudson Valley in grades 6 through 10. Ben Fury stars as Hercules, alongside Isabella Felidi as Megara and Emory Rowe as Hades. The Muses are portrayed by Milana Rivera, McKenna Griffin, Gianna Joachim, Mira Sen, and Giana Rodriguez.

The production is led by BPAC's co-founders: Jake Vander Linden (Director), Tim Grady (Choreographer), and Kate Vander Linden (Music Director), with costumes designed by Elizabeth Hamboussi.

"Piloting a brand-new Junior musical has been a goal of ours since we founded BPAC nearly 10 years ago," said Kate Vander Linden. "Being able to collaborate with Disney is truly a dream come true, and Hercules JR. is such a perfect adaptation of the film. We were honored to be invited to pilot the show after a Disney representative saw our students perform at the Junior Theater Festival in Sacramento in February 2025 and was so impressed by their talent that they said they wanted to collaborate in the future!"

Performances will take place on May 29 and 30 at the Seegler Theatre at Beacon High School. Tickets can be purchased on the Beacon Performing Arts Center website.

OPERATION MINCEMEAT Reveals 2026-27 Tour Dates and Cities

Thu, 30 Apr 2026 09:12:44 PST

OPERATION MINCEMEAT has announced the full 2026/27 season dates for the North American leg of its world tour. The news comes as OPERATION MINCEMEAT celebrates its 500th performance on Broadway this Saturday, May 2, after hitting 2,000 performances worldwide - now playing simultaneously in the West End, on Broadway, and on tour across the UK. Following the North American leg, further stops on its international journey will include Australia, China, Mexico, and New Zealand.

Read the reviews for the Broadway run here.

Producer Jon Thoday for Avalon said, “Launching our third OPERATION MINCEMEAT production, the North American leg of the world tour, as the show reaches 500 performances on Broadway and passes 2,000 worldwide is incredibly exciting. With its continued international growth and an expanding fanbase, we look forward to welcoming new audiences across the continent.”

The North American leg of the Mincemeat World Tour will launch at the Providence Performance Arts Center (Providence, RI), on September 20, 2026, before crisscrossing North America this upcoming season, with stops including Chicago, Boston, Toronto, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC.

Operation Mincemeat Tour Dates:

Providence, RI – Providence Performing Arts Center
September 20–26, 2026

Chicago, IL – CIBC Theatre
September 29–October 11, 2026

Boston, MA – Colonial Theatre
October 13–25, 2026

Toronto, ON – Theatre TBD
October–December 2026

Philadelphia, PA – Forrest Theatre
December 15–20, 2026

Columbus, OH – Ohio Theatre
January 5–10, 2027

Detroit, MI – Fisher Theatre
January 12–24, 2027

Minneapolis, MN – Orpheum Theatre
January 26–31, 2027

Eugene, OR – Hult Center
February 3–7, 2027

Seattle, WA – 5th Avenue Theatre
February 10–21, 2027

Tempe, AZ – ASU Gammage
February 23–28, 2027

Salt Lake City, UT – Eccles Theatre
March 2–7, 2027

San Francisco, CA – Orpheum Theatre
March 9–28, 2027

Los Angeles, CA – Pantages Theatre
March 30–April 18, 2027

San Diego, CA – Civic Center
April 20–25, 2027

Hartford, CT – Bushnell Center
May 4–9, 2027

Durham, NC – Durham Performing Arts Center
May 11–16, 2027

Greenville, SC – Peace Center
May 18–23, 2027

Fayetteville, AR – Walton Arts Center
May 25–30, 2027

Tampa, FL – Straz Center
June 1–6, 2027

Washington, DC – The National Theatre
June 8–20, 2027

Buffalo, NY – Shea’s Performing Arts Center
June 22–27, 2027

Atlanta, GA – Fox Theatre
July 6–11, 2027

Memphis, TN – Orpheum Theatre
July 13–18, 2027

Fort Worth, TX – Bass Performance Hall
July 20–25, 2027

About Operation Mincemeat

In OPERATION MINCEMEAT: A NEW MUSICAL, it's 1943, and the Allied Forces are on the ropes. Luckily, they've got a trick up their sleeve. Well, not up their sleeve, per se, but rather inside the pocket of a stolen corpse. Equal parts farce, thriller, and Ian Fleming-style spy caper (with an assist from Mr. Fleming himself), OPERATION MINCEMEAT tells the wildly improbable and hilarious true story of the covert operation that turned the tide of WWII.

Written by triple Tony Award nominees SpitLip (comprised of David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts), OPERATION MINCEMEAT began performances on Broadway on February 15, 2025, and continues to play at the historic Golden Theatre (252 West 45th Street), where it has been extended eight times and will soon celebrate its 500th performance. The West End production, which has been playing at the Fortune Theatre since March 29, 2023, is widely recognized as one of the best-reviewed shows in West End history, holding the record for the most five-star reviews for a new musical, with a tally of 131. OPERATION MINCEMEAT has just launched its world tour, beginning with a UK leg before heading across the pond.

Olivier Award nominated Robert Hastie (Standing at the Sky's Edge, National Theatre – Best New Musical Olivier Award winner) will reprise his work for the tour, while Olivier Award nominated Jenny Arnold (Jerry Springer: The Opera, National Theatre) continues as Choreographer. The creative team will include Olivier nominated Set and Costume Designer Ben Stones (Standing at the Sky's Edge), Tony and Olivier winning Lighting Designer Mark Henderson (The History Boys), Tony nominated Sound Designer Mike Walker (Charlie & The Chocolate Factory), Tony nominated Orchestrator Steve Sidwell (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical), and Olivier nominated Music Supervisor Joe Bunker (Spring Awakening). Georgie Staight is Associate Director and Paul Isaiah Isles is Associate Choreographer. Production Stage Management is by Geoff Maus, Casting is by Carrie Gardner, CSA, and General Management is by TT Partners.

OPERATION MINCEMEAT has been nominated for 64 awards since opening at the 77-seat New Diorama Theatre in 2019, winning 13, including Best Musical 3 times, from the Olivier Awards, WhatsOnStage Awards, and Off-West End Awards. On Broadway, the show was nominated for 4 Tony Awards in 2025, including Best Musical. The production won Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Jak Malone's portrayal of Hester Leggatt, who previously won the Olivier Award in the same category. The production has also received nominations for Outstanding Production of a Musical at the Drama League Awards, Outstanding New Broadway Musical at the Outer Critics Circle Awards, Best Musical at the BroadwayWorld Theater Fans' Choice Awards, and Favourite New Musical at the Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards.

RAGTIME Will Launch National Tour in Fall 2027

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 16:00:22 PST

Lincoln Center Theater’s Broadway revival of Ragtime, directed by Kewsong Lee Artistic Director Lear deBessonet, announced today that it will launch a North American Tour in the fall of 2027. The tour will premiere at Shea’s Buffalo Theatre in Buffalo, New York, before continuing onto cities across the U.S. and Canada. Additional tour stops and casting will be announced at a later date.

Lincoln Center Theater’s limited engagement of Ragtime has been extended twice by popular demand with performances now through August 2, 2026. The production set a new box office record at the Vivian Beaumont Theater and was recently nominated foreight Drama Desk Awards, six Outer Critics Circle Awards including Best Revival of a Musical and Outstanding Direction of a Musical (Lear deBessonet), as well as five Drama League Awards including Outstanding Revival of a Musical and Outstanding Direction of a Musical (Lear deBessonet).

“Ragtime is one of the most ambitious musicals ever written, and it feels timelier than ever,” said producers Tom Kirdahy, Kevin Ryan, Robert Greenblatt, and Lamar Richardson in a statement. “What Lear deBessonet and this extraordinary company have created at Lincoln Center Theater is both epic in scale and deeply human. We couldn’t be more excited to share it with communities across North America.”

“It’s a real honor to kick off the North American Tour of Ragtime at Shea’s Buffalo Theatre,” said Buffalo presenter Al Nocciolino. “This is the kind of production people talk about long after the curtain comes down—remarkable in scale and deeply moving. We’re thrilled to welcome it to our stage and proud to share it with our community first.”

Lincoln Center Theater" width="356">

Featuring a Tony Award-winning score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, Tony Award-winning book by Terrence McNally, and Tony Award-winning orchestrations by William David Brohn, Ragtime weaves fictional narratives with real historical figures and events, creating a rich tapestry that blurs the line between personal struggle and national identity, making history feel both intimate and epic.

The creative team for Ragtime includes Ellenore Scott (choreography), David Korins (scenic design), Linda Cho (costume design), Adam Honoré & Donald Holder (lighting design), Kai Harada (sound design), 59 Studio (projection design), Tom Watson (hair & wig design), Ann James (sensitivity specialist), and The Telsey Office, Craig Burns, CSA (casting).

OH, MARY! Reveals Tour Dates and Cities For 2026-27

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 11:23:47 PST

The North American Tour of Oh, Mary! has announced the dates and cities for its 2026-27 season. The tour of the Tony Award and Olivier Award-winning comedy will tech and launch at The Bushnell in Hartford, Connecticut, with performances beginning September 19, 2026. Casting will be announced at a later date. Check out the full list of tour dates below~

Written by Tony Award and Olivier Award winner Cole Escola and directed by Tony Award winner Sam Pinkleton, Oh, Mary! opened on Broadway on July 11, 2024, and continues to play at the Lyceum Theatre, where it became the first show in the theatre’s 121-year history to gross more than $1,000,000 in a single week. Oh, Mary! has since broken its own box office record twelve times and became the first show of the 2024-25 Broadway season to recoup its investment. Oh, Mary! opened to rave reviews in London’s West End on December 18, 2025.

Oh, Mary! is a dark comedy about a miserable, suffocated Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Unrequited yearning, alcoholism, and suppressed desires abound in this one-act play that finally examines the forgotten life and dreams of Mrs. Lincoln through the lens of an idiot (playwright Cole Escola).

The full creative team for the Broadway production includes dots (Scenic Designer), Holly Pierson (Costume Designer), Cha See (Lighting Designer), Daniel Kluger (Sound Design and Original Music), Drew Levy (Sound Designer), Leah J. Loukas (Wig Designer), Addison Heeren (Props Supervision), and David Dabbon (Musical Arrangements). Casting by Henry Russell Bergstein, CSA.

Oh, Mary! is produced on Broadway by Kevin McCollum & Lucas McMahon and Mike Lavoie & Carlee Briglia with Bob Boyett, The Council, Jean Doumanian Productions, Nicole Eisenberg, Jay Marcus & George Strus, Irony Point, Richard Batchelder/Bradley Reynolds, Tyler Mount/Tommy Doyle, Nelson & Tao, Palomares & Rosenberg, and Showtown Productions.

Tour Dates

September 19–23, 2026
Hartford, CT — The Bushnell

September 29–October 4, 2026
San Diego, CA — San Diego Civic Theatre

October 6–11, 2026
Las Vegas, NV — The Smith Center

October 13–November 1, 2026
San Francisco, CA — Curran Theatre

November 3–8, 2026
Seattle, WA — The Paramount Theatre

November 10–December 6, 2026
Los Angeles, CA — Ahmanson Theatre

December 21, 2026–January 3, 2027
Boston, MA — Emerson Colonial Theatre

January 6–17, 2027
Saint Paul, MN — Ordway Center for the Performing Arts

January 19–February 7, 2027
Chicago, IL — CIBC Theatre

February 9–21, 2027
Washington, DC — The National Theatre

February 23–28, 2027
Detroit, MI — Fisher Theatre

March 9–14, 2027
Philadelphia, PA — Miller Theater

March 16–28, 2027
Charlotte, NC — Blumenthal Arts

March 30–April 4, 2027
Cleveland, OH — Connor Palace

April 6–11, 2027
Tampa, FL — Straz Center

April 27–May 9, 2027
Houston, TX — Hobby Center

May 11–16, 2027
West Palm Beach, FL — Kravis Center

BARD SUMMERSCAPE To Present THE EGYPTIAN HELEN And Mozart Programming In 2026 Festival

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 21:34:47 PST

As a highlight of the 2026 Bard Summerscape festival, the Fisher Center at Bard will present a new production of Richard Strauss’s The Egyptian Helen (Die ägyptische Helena). The opera will run for five performances at the Fisher Center, July 24, 26, 29, and 31, and August 2.

The production will feature Hailey Clark, John Matthew Myers, and Jana McIntyre, alongside the American Symphony Orchestra, Bard Festival Chorale, and festival founder and co-artistic director Leon Botstein, in a new staging by director Christian Räth.

Originally premiered in 1928, The Egyptian Helen remains one of Strauss’s lesser-performed operas. The work follows Helen and Menelaus after the Trojan War, exploring themes of memory, illusion, and reconciliation through a narrative shaped by dreamlike and psychological elements.

Additional programming will include semi-staged concert performances as part of the 2026 Bard Music Festival, themed “Mozart and His World.” Program Five will feature selections from Antonio Salieri’s Prima la musica, poi le parole and Wolfgang Amadé Mozart’s Der Schauspieldirektor on August 9, followed by Mozart’s The Abduction from the Seraglio (Die Entführung aus dem Serail) on August 16.

Chartered coach transportation from New York City will be available for select matinee performances on July 26, August 2, and August 16. Several performances will also be streamed online.

Tickets for SummerScape events start at $25 and are available through the Fisher Center box office.

Play Broadway Games Every Day in May and Win a Merch Prize Pack

Wed, 29 Apr 2026 08:30:20 PST

Broadway fans, your daily warm-up just got a whole lot more rewarding. BroadwayWorld is launching the May 2026 Games Challenge - a month-long streak competition open to fans across the U.S., with a $250 merch prize pack featuring merchandise from popular Broadway shows up for grabs.

The challenge runs all 31 days of May 2026 (Eastern Time), and all you need to enter is a free BroadwayWorld account.

How It Works

The rules are simple: play at least one BroadwayWorld game every day in May. That's it. Complete all 31 days and you'll earn one entry to win the prize pack. Tracking is automatic once you're logged in - your progress populates on the challenge page as you play, no manual check-ins required.

Any of these six games count toward your daily credit:

Make-Up Days: Because Life Happens

Miss a day? You're not out of the running. Play all six games in a single day and you'll earn a make-up credit, which automatically forgives your earliest missed day. You can bank up to three make-up credits over the course of the month - so a skipped Tuesday or a busy weekend doesn't have to end your streak. Credits are applied to your missed days in order, oldest first.

Ready to Start Your Streak?

The May 2026 BroadwayWorld Games Challenge runs May 1-31 (Eastern Time) and is open to U.S. residents only.

Click here to get started. Sign in with your free BroadwayWorld account and your tracking begins automatically - no registration beyond that required.

See full rules and regulations here.

Review: THE FATHER AT TOWN PLAYERS OF NEW CANAAN

Mon, 27 Apr 2026 11:13:30 PST

The Father is a critically acclaimed play by French writer Florian Zeller, translated by Christopher Hampton. It has been staged internationally, and adapted into a successful film. The play premiered in London’s West End in October 2015 and opened on Broadway at Manhattan Theatre Club in March 2016. Along the way, it picked up major honors, including the Molière Award for Best Play, as well as Olivier and Tony Awards for Best Actor.

The Father is anything but a typical drama. It doesn’t just tell a story about dementia, it puts you inside it.
In Deborah Burke’s masterfully directed production, the audience experiences the world through André’s eyes, and that world is constantly shifting.
At first, André seems perfectly in control, sharp, witty, even a bit mischievous. His daughter Anne is trying to care for him while holding together her own life. But things quickly start to slip. Scenes repeat with strange differences. People appear who may or may not be who they claim. Before long, you’re as unsure as André about what’s real and what isn’t.

That’s what makes the play so effective, it doesn’t explain dementia, it recreates it. You’re left questioning everything. Is this André’s apartment or Anne’s? Is Pierre a concerned partner to Anne or something more threatening? The play never settles those questions, and that uncertainty becomes the whole point.

Burke beautifully guides the actors with grace and intelligence, drawing out every emotion and each wry bit of humor.
Will Jeffries delivers a powerful performance, capturing André as a full, complicated person; charming, irritable, funny, and increasingly fragile. He never plays him as simply “lost,” which makes the decline all the more painful to watch. When he says, “I feel as if I’m losing all my leaves,” the line lands with devastating simplicity.

Kitty Robertson brings a quiet strength to Anne, showing both her deep love and her growing exhaustion. She avoids making the character overly sympathetic, which makes her struggle feel more honest.

Eric Schuster’s Pierre adds another layer of tension. There’s a hint of menace there, though you’re never quite sure if it’s real or just part of André’s distorted view. He gives a wonderfully nuanced performance.

Jaimie Wallace also makes a strong impression as Laura, the new caretaker for André, bringing a gentle warmth to the role while quietly navigating his unpredictability and confusion.

Phil Lorenzo and Cathy Cordaro appearing in shifting roles, deepen the sense of instability, as familiar faces seem to change without warning. They are compelling in every appearance.

The technical elements are just as strong.
Joel Reynolds has designed an extraordinary set which gradually empties out, like André’s mind is being stripped piece by piece.
Dylan Conuel’s outstanding original piano score weaves through the play like a haunting echo, perfectly capturing the ominous mood inside André’s mind as it slowly unravels.
Jessie Lizotte’s lighting subtly shifts, moving from warm and recognizable to stark and unsettling. Jacquie Carlson’s costumes feel real and fit the world of the play perfectly, grounding all the shifting reality in something familiar and believable.
Stage manager Elaine Rodriguez and her crew keep everything moving seamlessly, which is crucial in a production where timing and transitions are key.

There are moments of humor, some surprisingly sharp, but the overall impact is deeply moving. The play captures not only the fear and confusion of losing one’s memory, but also the emotional toll on those left trying to hold things together.

The father is unsettling, honest, and incredibly well crafted—and it lingers long after the final scene. Don’t miss this extraordinary production.

Performing trough: 5/10/26
At Town Players of New Canaan
677 South Avenue, Waveny Park, New Canaan, CT 06840
Phone: (203) 594-3636
Tickets: Adult $40, Senior $35, Student $25
TPNC.ORG

Shirine Babb Will Lead MY LORD, WHAT A NIGHT at Penguin Rep Theatre

Sat, 25 Apr 2026 09:01:49 PST

Penguin Rep Theatre, under the leadership of Joe Brancato, founding Artistic Director, and Andrew M. Horn, Executive Director, announced that casting is complete for the New York premiere of Deborah Brevoort’s My Lord, What a Night, which officially kicks off the company’s 49th season in Stony Point, New York on Friday, May 15 and runs through Sunday, June 7.

My Lord, What a Night is set in Princeton in 1937 when world-famous singer Marian Anderson is turned away from a hotel because of her race. But Anderson finds an unexpected host in Albert Einstein and what begins as a simple act of hospitality grows into a friendship based on their mutual love of music and commitment to human rights. Featuring a cast of four playing real-life historical figures -- each with a unique perspective on how to effect change -- this moving play is about courage, justice and our shared humanity.

Heading the cast under Brancato’s direction is Shirine Babb (as Anderson) whose Broadway credits include The Piano Lesson, A Beautiful Noise, Harry Potter: The Cursed Child and Lincoln Center's production of Macbeth with Ethan Hawke. A winner of the Helen Hayes Award, she has worked opposite such revered classical actors as Sir Derek Jacobi, Patrick Page, and John Douglas Thompson.

Nora Cole (starring as Mary Church Terrell) has appeared on Broadway in On the Town and Jelly’s Last Jam (opposite Gregory Hines), in George C. Wolfe’s Caroline or Change at London’s Royal National Theatre, and regionally in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Fences, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Doubt. She was nominated for an Audelco Award for her performance in Rinde Eckert’s chamber opera, And God Created Great Whales.

Sam Guncler (starring as Abraham Flexner) performed on Broadway with Hal Linden in The Gathering and Off-Broadway in My Name is Asher Lev, Bug, and The Goldman Project. He returns to the Penguin stage where he starred in The Steel Man, Talley’s Folly, The Goldman Project, A Strange and Separate People, Half and Half, and Around the World in 80 Days.

Portraying Albert Einstein, John Leonard Pielmeier has worked at such theatres as Actors’ Theatre of Louisville, The Guthrie Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, and the Eugene O’Neill Playwrights’ Conference. He is also an award-winning writer whose work includes four plays on Broadway, including Agnes of God, over 25 movies and miniseries, and most recently a stage adaptation of The Exorcist and a novel, Hook’s Tale.

Director Brancato’s credits include Cary Gitter’s Gene & Gilda and the Neil Berg- Gitter musical The Sabbath Girl (Penguin/59E59); Michael McKeever’s Daniel’s Husband, which transferred from Penguin to Primary Stages at the Cherry Lane Theatre and then onto its commercial production at The Westside Theatre/Upstairs; Erasmus Fenn’s Drop Dead Perfect at Theatre at St. Clements (NY Times Critic’s Pick); Angelo Parra’s The Devil’s Music: The Life & Blues of Bessie Smith (Drama Desk, Lucille Lortel, Off B’way Alliance, and Audelco Award nominee); Charles Smith’s Freed (Audelco Award nominee); Karoline Leach’s Tryst (Outer Critics nomination for Best Play) at the Promenade and at Irish Rep; and Lee Blessing’s Cobb (Drama Desk winner).

Deborah Brevoort (Playwright) is best known for The Women of Lockerbie, produced internationally, and Blue Moon Over Memphis, her Noh Drama about Elvis Presley, which toured Japan in 2024 and 2025 and will open the Tokyo Autumn Arts Festival in the fall. She has written numerous dramas and comedies produced at leading theatres in the U.S. as well as twelve operas commissioned and produced at Glimmerglass, Cincinnati Opera and Chicago Opera Theatre.

The production is designed by Christian Fleming (set), Jason A. Goodwin (costumes), Cameron Filepas (lighting), Max Silverman (original music and sound), and Dana R. Weintraub (props). Alexandrea Hess is the production stage manager.

Performances of My Lord, What a Night are scheduled at Penguin Rep Theatre, a repurposed hay barn, located at 7 Crickettown Road. “The converted barn, circa 1880, has never been more inviting” (The New York Times). Says Mr. Horn, “It’s theatre so close you can feel it, with comfortable upholstered seats and no seat more than 30 feet from the stage.” The theatre is air conditioned, handicapped accessible, and has plenty of free parking.

Shows will take place: Thursday evenings at 7:00 p.m., Friday matinees at 2:00 p.m. (May 15 only), Friday evenings at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 3:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m.

Tickets are priced at $56 ($49 if ordered by May 8). Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more and young people (30 and under).

There will be cake and coffee with the cast following the official opening on Sunday, May 17. Following the show on Friday, May 29 will be a discussion among the artists and audience.

Cheap Thrills Night is Saturday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m. when tickets are $28, half the regular price.

New this season is the introduction of Sweet Treats Friday – May 22 – when audience members are invited to arrive early and enjoy desserts before the show.

NEWSIES Unseats LES MISÉRABLES to Win BroadwayWorld's 2026 Ultimate Movie Musical Bracket

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 13:26:32 PST

After six weeks of voting, BroadwayWorld readers have crowned Newsies the Ultimate Best Movie Musical in the 2026 edition of BroadwayWorld's Annual Bracket. The 1992 Disney film, directed by Kenny Ortega and featuring music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Jack Feldman, defeated Les Misérables in the final round, ending the Tom Hooper-directed film's two-year winning streak.

In both 2024 and 2025, Les Misérables was voted as the Ultimate Best Musical of all time, making it the title to beat heading into this year's competition. Newsies, a perennial fan favorite that developed a devoted following after its theatrical release and has since been adapted for the Broadway stage, advanced through six rounds of head-to-head matchups before claiming the title.

Now in its third year, BroadwayWorld's Bracket invites readers to debate, defend, and ultimately crown the greatest movie musical of all time from a field selected by BroadwayWorld editors. Voting in the 2026 edition opened on Tuesday, February 24 and concluded on Sunday, April 12, with new matchups released each week.

AMERICAN, ITALIAN to Make World Premiere at The Chain Theatre

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 20:19:46 PST

SOOP Theatre Company will present the world premiere of AMERICAN, ITALIAN - by Anthony P. Pennino at The Chain Theatre in New York City. Directed by Mike Keller, the production will explore identity, family, and generational experience within an Italian American community. The play is part of the theatre’s 2026 Factory Series.

The production will run from April 29 through May 16, 2026, at The Chain Theatre, located at 312 West 36th Street. Opening night is scheduled for Monday, May 4 at 7:30 p.m., with performances held Mondays through Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 4:00 p.m.

Set in the summer of 1984, the play follows Gio and Vin, best friends and cousins navigating life as third-generation Italian immigrants. While Gio adapts to his surroundings, Vin struggles with identity and belonging, leading to personal challenges that test their relationship.

The cast will include Isabella Bertoni as Gina, Donovan Counts as Gio, Dante Palminteri as Vin, Paul Romanello as Vincenzo, Sara Romanello as Lisa, and Marc Romeo as Frank.

The creative team features scenic design by Reilly Rabitaille, costume design by Michele Romanello, lighting design by Elijah Schreiner, and sound design by Sebastian Gutierrez. Max Evans serves as stage manager.

Ticketing Information

Tickets are priced at $49 and are available online at sooptheatre.Booktix.com, by phone at 732-743-5849, or in person at The Chain Theatre box office prior to performances.

AMERICAN, ITALIAN to Make World Premiere at The Chain Theatre

Fri, 10 Apr 2026 20:19:46 PST

The cast will include Isabella Bertoni as Gina, Donovan Counts as Gio, Dante Palminteri as Vin, Paul Romanello as Vincenzo, Sara Romanello as Lisa, and Marc Romeo as Frank.

Ticketing Information

Tickets are priced at $49 and are available online at sooptheatre.Booktix.com, by phone at 732-743-5849, or in person at The Chain Theatre box office prior to performances.

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NEWSIES Unseats LES MISÉRABLES to Win BroadwayWorld's 2026 Ultimate Movie Musical Bracket

AMERICAN, ITALIAN to Make World Premiere at The Chain Theatre

Ticketing Information

AMERICAN, ITALIAN to Make World Premiere at The Chain Theatre

Ticketing Information