OFF-BROADWAY THEATER REVIEWS

If upon entering a theatre, the stage is populated by a young black man sleeping under a street lamp as another young black man quietly scrutinizes all in attendance, while the pre-show music plays Doris Day singing 'Que Sera, Sera,' it's a good sign that there are going to be some strong opinions e...

David Friedman and Peter Kellogg may be billed, respectively, as composer and bookwriter/lyricists of the rollickingly fun new musical comedy DESPERATE MEASURES, which has just moved from the intimate York Theatre to more spacious digs at New World Stages, but they can also add 'problem-solver' to t...

Everybody needs a good laugh. That's just what you'll get when you see 'Police Cops' at 59E59 Theaters. The show wraps up the theater's annual Brits Off Broadway Festival of shows. Presented by New Diorama Theatre, this imaginative, zany show is written, directed and performed by the three member aw...

Is there anything more charming than watching two older people falling in love? Well, perhaps. Like when the romance occurs, as instructed by playwright Charles Mee in his 2001 one-act, FIRST LOVE, in 'the world of Magritte.'...

From the very beginning, one of the most important tenants of Joseph Papp's vision of free Shakespeare in Central Park has been the insistence the company of actors audiences see on stage will always reflect the extraordinary and powerful cultural diversity of New York City....

'Blackbird,' is currently being presented at the Sargent Theatre at the American Theatre of Actors. In the play written by David Harrower, Una, a 27 year old woman, shows up at the workplace of an acquaintance, 'Peter', with an axe to grind. Fifteen years earlier, they had a relationship which had ...

Presented by Theater Breaking Through Barriers and under the direction of Christopher Burris, The Fourth Wall is anything but inhibiting, especially in terms of its creation. This Off-Broadway company brings actors with and without disabilities together to break stereotypes and portray how little th...

'Vassar. See yourself there,' a successful adult advises a high school student who has impressed him with her talent for writing poetry, but not with her low expectations for securing a spot in a good college....

Commencing in 1958, Chairman Mao Zedong's Great Leap Forward was a 5-year plan to convert Communist China's largely agricultural economy into government-run farming collectives, freeing up resources for manufacturing and building infrastructure. It didn't end well....

Secret Life of Humans, written by David Byrne, directed by David Byrne & Kate Stanley is now being performed at 59E59 Theaters through July 1. There's no other show quite like this. It has an intriguing plot, a talented cast, and clever staging that makes the production totally unique....

From the mid-1960s through to the early years of this century, the musicals scored by the team of John Kander and Fred Ebb have exemplified Broadway pizzazz while exploring darker issues under the glitzy polish....

Now playing at the Lion Theatre in Times Square, Stage Life is truly an ode not only to the actor, but anyone who has ever been inspired by the theater to make it their life's work. From actor to playwright, to producer and teacher alike, this is theater in its truest, diverse and most appreciated f...

The fact that Broadway hasn't seen fit to provide a role for Lois Smith in over twenty years can be regarded as one of the top arguments denouncing the popular assumption that Times Square is where you go to take in the best of New York theatre....

The setup would make a hell of a piece of theatrically-minded erotica. Call it Cat (On A Hot Tin Roof) and Mouse, as sexual sparks ignite when elegant playwright on the verge of stardom, Tennessee Williams, visits the home of shy aspiring playwright William Inge for a newspaper interview to promote ...

There's an empty casket on display and a pants-less mourner screaming. 'What kinda fuckin' world is this?!' when the lights suddenly go up on Stephen Adly Guirgis' wild New York escapade, Our Lady of 121st Street....

Depending on how snobby you are about the belief that no American play can truly be said to have premiered until it has opened in New York, Paradise Blue, the ravishing new jazz noir drama by Dominique Morisseau is either the second or third installment in the playwright's trilogy set in her hometow...

Brits Off-Broadway 2018 continues at 59E59 Theaters with the highly acclaimed production of 'Operation Crucible.' Make time to see it. The show will be on the Upper East Side stage through June 3....

Ranking up there with MEDEA and OEDIPUS REX, Eugene O'Neill's family tragedy LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT would most likely make any playgoer's list of inappropriate classics to revive on Mother's Day weekend....

Playgoers in the know will arrive at any production of the 1937 West End smash ME AND MY GIRL already humming a bit of its legendary Act I closer 'The Lambeth Walk,' looking forward to a rousing showstopper where composer Noel Gay's peppy earworm is matched with co-bookwriter/lyricists L. Arthur Ros...

'How're you gonna cap off your prepubescent years?', a stony-faced teacher asks his competitive dance team members, shortly after winning a competition that saw one of their own suffer a season-ending injury....

Though the characters in bookwriter/lyricist Bill Russell and composer Janet Hood's sweet, funny and very entertaining new musical UNEXPECTED JOY are all women, there's a guy in the mix who still has a lot to say....

The stage is set and the time is now to get tickets for A Brief History of Women. It is being performed as part of the Brits Off-Broadway 2018 at 59E59 Theaters. This production is brilliantly written and directed by Alan Ayckbourn and features a superb cast....

Despite only three Broadway credits, Marin Ireland must be regarded as one of the absolute best actors to regularly grace New York stages during this century. Through her steady work Off-Broadway (15 productions since 2001 and playing leading roles for several of the city's major non-profits) local ...

The Brits off Broadway Festival at 59E59 Theaters continues with the United States premiere of 'Replay,' a one-woman play that will be on stage through May 13. Written and performed by Nicola Wren, it is directed by George Chilcott. With Wren's talent for storytelling and Chilcott's superb direction...

'Raise your hand if you've ever been underestimated,' instructs Program Director Stephanie Ybarra before every performance of Shakespeare's HENRY V, as performed by The Public Theater's Mobile Unit....