Steven Suskin News

The 40th Anniversary production and first-ever Broadway revival of Stephen Schwartz's rock musical GODSPELL officially opened at the Circle in the Square Theater on November 7, 2011. Were the critics charmed? Let's find out!

It's here! Opening night of the highly anticipated FOLLIES on Broadway was last night and we've got all the reviews!What did the critics think about this sparkling new production of James Goldman and Stephen Sondheim's FOLLIES, directed by Eric Schaeffer, with choreography by Warren Carlyle and music direction by James Moore? Read on!

Roundabout Theatre Company's production of the new musical, Death Takes a Holiday began performances on Friday, June 10, 2011 and opened on July 21, 2011 at the Laura Pels Theatre at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre (111 West 46th Street). Death Takes a Holiday will play a limited engagement through September 4, 2011. This production marks the second time a new musical has been presented in this theatrical space, following the recent production of The Tin Pan Alley Rag.

The first ballot for Best Play was radically fractured, with no single candidate garnering more than five of the 24 total votes. On the third (weighted) ballot, the race remained competitive, with Good People and Jerusalem winning 23 points and Other Desert Cities running just behind them with 22 points. Since no play reached the necessary threshold of 37 points, the Circle moves to a fourth ballot-newly approved in a bylaw change in January-that reduced the field to the third ballot's top four vote-getters (including The Motherf**ker with the Hat, which had received 11 points, narrowly edging out such contenders as Bengal Tiger in the Baghdad Zoo, The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity, War Horse and The Intelligent Homosexual's Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures). On this ballot, in which previous proxy voters did not participate, Good People won with 34 points, with Other Desert Cities in second place with 30 points.

Good People, written by David Lindsay-Abaire, today won the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award (NYDCC) for Best Play of the 2010-2011 season. The award for Best Foreign Play play went to Jerusalem, written by Jez Butterworth. The Book of Mormon received the award for Best Musical. The selections were made at the 76th annual voting meeting of the organization today at the offices of Time Out New York in Manhattan.

Adam Feldman, president of the New York Drama Critics' Circle (NYDCC), has announced that the Circle will meet at the offices of Time Out New York magazine on Monday, May 9, to select the winners of the 76th annual New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards, which will be announced at approximately 7pm, immediately following the meeting.

Adam Feldman, president of the New York Drama Critics' Circle (NYDCC), has announced that the Circle will meet at the offices of Time Out New York magazine on Monday, May 9, to select the winners of the 76th annual New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards, which will be announced at approximately 7pm, immediately following the meeting.

The new Broadway musical Baby It's You! tells the inspiring story of Florence Greenberg, the woman who changed the recording world forever when she discovered The Shirelles and created Scepter Records, becoming the music industry's first female powerhouse. Starring Tony Award winner Beth Leavel as Greenberg, conceived by Floyd Mutrux, directed by Floyd Mutruxand Sheldon Epps, and written by Tony nominated book writers Mutrux and Colin Escott, the team behind Broadway's Million Dollar Quartet, Baby It's You! began performances at Broadway's Broadhurst Theatre (235 West 44th Street) Saturday, March 26, 2011, and opens TONIGHT, April 27, 2011, at 6:30pm. Baby It's You! features a cast of 19 that includes Allan Louis, Geno Henderson, Erica Ash, Kelli Barrett, Kyra DaCosta, Crystal Starr Knighton, Barry Pearl, Christina Sajous, Brandon Uranowitz,Alison Cimmet, Erica Dorfler, Berlando Drake, Adam Heller, Jahi A. Kearse, Annette Moore, Zachary Prince, Ken Robinson and Chelsea Morgan Stock.

SISTER ACT began preview performances March 24 and opens tonight Wednesday, April 20, 2011. SISTER ACT features an original score with music by multi-Academy, Grammy and Golden Globe Award-winning composer Alan Menken, lyrics by Tony Award-nominee Glenn Slater, a book by multi-Emmy Award winners Cheri and Bill Steinkellner, and additional book material by Douglas Carter Beane. Directed on Broadway by four-time Tony Award winner Jerry Zaks , the production features choreography by Tony and Olivier Award nominee Anthony Van Laast and is based on the Touchstone Pictures motion picture Sister Act written by Joseph Howard.

A new spin on the classic story of Alice and her Looking-Glass world, WONDERLAND is about a modern-day woman who goes on a life-changing adventure far below the streets of New York City, where a colorful cast of strange but familiar characters help her rediscover what's really important. So, what did the critics think? Let's find out...

CATCH ME IF YOU CAN opened on Broadway Sunday, April 10, 2011 at the Neil Simon Theatre. This new musical, created by a team of Tony winners, features a book by Terrence McNally, music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman, choreography by Jerry Mitchell and is directed by Jack O'Brien. CATCH ME IF YOU CAN is based on the book and hit 2002 DreamWorks film of the same name directed by Stephen Spielberg with screenplay by Jeff Nathanson and book by Frank Abagnale, Jr.

Roundabout Theatre Company's (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) new Broadway production of Anything Goes, starring Tony Award winner Sutton Foster as 'Reno Sweeney' and Tony and Academy Award winner Joel Grey as 'Moonface Martin,' opens on Broadway tonight, Thursday, April 7th at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre.

Following smash hit productions in Australia, London and Toronto, PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT THE MUSICAL began previews on Broadway on February 28 and opened on March 20th. PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT THE MUSICAL stars Tony Award® nominee Will Swenson, Olivier Award nominee Tony Sheldon and Nick Adams as the trio of friends on a heart-warming, uplifting road trip of a lifetime who hop aboard a battered old bus searching for love and friendship in the middle of the Australian outback and end up finding more than they could ever have dreamed.

The musical opened at the St. James Theater on October 11, 1948, and hit the right chord with theatre goers, eventually playing 792 performances. Does it still strike the same note with today's audiences? Find out!

In the Hollywood Reporter David Rooney writes that 'But mostly, Spider-Man is chaotic, dull and a little silly. And there's nothing here half as catchy as the 1967 ABC cartoon theme tune. The absence of the word 'musical' from Taymor's definition of the show seems key. The songs by Bono and The Edge display minimal grasp of music's function in goosing narrative or illuminating character. And despite all the wailing-guitar attitude, they only squeak by as atmospheric enhancement. Aside from one or two stirring anthems in familiar messianic U2 mode, this is strictly album filler, with echoes of everyone from T. Rex to Alice Cooper, plus an occasional nod to The Who's Tommy. The lyrics - when you can decipher them - are either too vague or too literal. But an underwhelming score is the least of the show's worries. What really sinks it is the borderline incoherence of its storytelling. ' Click Here for His Full Report.

BroadwayWorld.com was the first to report that multiple critics from major newspapers have indeed purchased tickets in recent days to SPIDER-MAN: Turn Off the Dark, and they have come out in force. All but a few papers have filed reviews timed to tonight's performance which was, until the most recent delay, scheduled to be the show's opening night. Here are all the reviews for SPIDER-MAN: Turn Off the Dark to date and we'll keep updating as new ones come in.

Lost in the Stars, the second Encores! production of the New York City Center season, running February 3 - 6 at City Center, will be directed by Gary Griffin and choreographed by Chase Brock, with music direction by Rob Berman.

The Tony and two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning Vineyard Theatre (108 E. 15 St.) will continue its popular VINEYARD VOICES - a series of panel discussions with leading figures from the theatre community - on Monday, November 22 at 7 p.m. with an evening entitled, "THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS: From Inception to Broadway," it has been announced by Douglas Aibel, Artistic Director of Vineyard Theatre.

ELF opened on Sunday, November 14th at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street). ELF is the hilarious tale of Buddy, a young orphan child who mistakenly crawls into Santa's bag of gifts and is transported back to the North Pole. Buddy is raised unaware that he is actually a human, until his enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to face the truth. With Santa's permission, Buddy embarks on a journey to New York City to find his birth father and discover his true identity. Faced with the harsh reality that his father is on the naughty list and his step-brother doesn't even believe in Santa, Buddy is determined to win over his new family and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas. This modern day Christmas classic is sure to make everyone embrace their inner ELF!

The Tony and two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning Vineyard Theatre (108 E. 15 St.) will continue its popular VINEYARD VOICES - a series of panel discussions with leading figures from the theatre community - on Monday, November 22 at 7 p.m. with an evening entitled, "THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS: From Inception to Broadway," it has been announced by Douglas Aibel, Artistic Director of Vineyard Theatre.