OFF-OFF-BROADWAY THEATER REVIEWS

An audience of eight checks in outside The Duplex in Greenwich Village.  On a gorgeous Friday evening, there were people all around drinking outside bars at tables and dancing to disco tunes in Christopher Park.  Waiting for the show to begin, turn in any direction and there are visuals and sounds...

After an impressive inaugural production of HAMLET in the atmospheric surroundings of Jersey City's Grace Church Van Vorst, Artistic Director Sean Hagerty's Shakespeare@, like so many theatre companies around the country, was suddenly placed in the position rethinking its immediate future....

Back in pre-COVID New York, barely a midsummer weekend would go by without a theatre company somewhere presenting an outdoor production of Shakespeare's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM in whatever garden, meadow or parking lot would offer a permit. When you add the countless indoor productions, the Bard's...

'I guess I knew that you could miss the things you love; I didn't know you could miss the things you hate,' ponders a New York apartment-dweller who sees little reason to get out of bed as she lives in isolation in this era of COVID-19....

For over two years, the Chicago-based Candle House Collective has been creating non-tradition, immersive theatre for both site-specific locations and virtual enjoyment. But with the current health crisis putting live theatre on hold, their virtual plays can be especially inviting for audience member...

Avid theatergoers who are sequestered at home may find themselves bored. Along comes an uncannily well-timed new show that bears the name Monotony: The Musical. Unlike some of the other theatrical streaming events popping up every day, this one will be released as a podcast on April 15th....

Are you a fan of politics and the constant tension of these dueling sides - tension that is comparable to that of the Coronavirus? Are you tired of keeping a straight face while watching said politicians duke it out? Do you happen to revel in seeing these people brought to shame by an instigative ra...

With his wide grin, open arms and humble humor, actor-activist-comedian Donald E. Lacy, Jr. takes the stage and builds a rapport with the audience almost immediately. At its core, Color Struck is an 80-minute genre-transcending show that effectively blends comedy, drama, improvisation, dancing, tone...

Theater 2020, Brooklyn Heights' only professional and award-winning theater company, presents the first NYC revival of the Sondheim/ Lapine musical Sondheim on Sondheim, a revue that brings many of this musical genius' works together to create quite a show in itself. With a magnificent cast and crew...

Raquel has a rough life.  In Birthday in the Bronx, her character name is Rocky.  She's a bruiser of a field hockey player having collected broken bones and bloody scars.  Two noxious sportscasters comment about the atrocious playing conditions.  'I understand funding is tight' but the field is ...

'Welcome to our meeting,' greet the actors to those entering the intimate Paradise Factory for The Seeing Place Theater's very engaging production of Brandon Walker's adaptation of George Orwell's allegorical classic, ANIMAL FARM....

Created and directed by Jonathan Rockefeller, written by Doug Smiotek and presented by Rockefeller Productions, Paddington Gets into a Jam began its twelve-week run at the DR2 Theatre on December 13th. For over sixty years, Michael's Bond's loveable bear has been delighting audience both in print an...

A Peregrine Falls at The Wild Project doesn't need to travel at breakneck speed to make an impact. Clocking in at two hours/two acts/four scenes, it moseys between three locales over three years: a Texas hospital, a hospital court, and a car dealership. Along the way, it makes an unexpected avian/au...

Who knew that demise could border on delightful? Although any one of the mortality-mindful tales portrayed in The Shadow Box would serve as a viable brink from which one could face death, three stories converge to create a powerful and entertaining metanarrative nexus where life meets loss, love cha...

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So you've found your family a nice plot in the middle of a cemetery, right where dear Grandpa Isaac was recently laid to rest. With nerve-wracking moments brought to you by the family TV set, a son who has little discretion when it comes to public acts of sexual affection and townsfolk who stop by a...

Lisa (Anna Stefanic) opens the door to her home and switches on the light.  A naked man is sprawled out on the floor with food.  He 'bellows a pained roar.'  She shrieks, fumbles her groceries and quickly douses the offending brightness.  When she turns the light back on, a paper shopping bag ha...

Cezary Tomaszewski has created a 'musically-driven queer fantasia' exposing the dangers of masculinity, nationalism and the culture of war.  La Mama is presenting the U.S. premiere of Cezary Goes to War in conjunction with the Polish Cultural Institute and Komuna//Warszawa, an independent avant-gar...

Or is a conjunction used to link alternatives.  Life is a conundrum which offers no definitive paths or guarantees of fulfillment.  That is the territory explored in Johnny G. Lloyd's cleverly shaded Or, An Astronaut Play.  An individual can choose to be a teacher or a doctor.  A policeman or a ...

Gun violence is the focus in the wildly experimental digital puppetry show, Fear in the Western World.  A couple and their daughter are looking for a new home.  They find one in Nesthaven, a gated community.  There are lots of problems outside.  A community website posts about the dangers.  At ...

Free theatre for all. That's one of the main accomplishes of Molière in the Park's latest reading of 'The School For Wives.'...

Die-hard musical theater enthusiasts and fans of opera will love the Mikado, one of Gilbert and Sullivan's strongest scores. With quick-witted and clever lyrics that satirize society, you can easily see the influence G&S's works like The Mikado had on the works of American musical theater composers ...

Directed by John DeSotelle, Nuance Theatre Co. brings John Patrick Shanley's DANNY AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA to the Nubox - an intimate blackbox theater in the heart of Hell's Kitchen where (in my experience) theatrical magic always happens. Presented as an Equity stage production, DeSotelle brings two ...

If you've seen Drunk History on television you will understand the vibe of this show.  Imagine you have an elderly uncle who is of Czech descent.  He has a marvelous collection of marionettes.  After a few shots of Becherovka he invites the family down into the basement for an impromptu retelling...

Inspired by true events, A City of Refuge from Primitive Grace Theatre Ensemble brings the audience squarely to church, a haven-as-melting-pot that reaches its boiling point and beyond. As a motley crew of community members collectively tries to absorb the shockwaves of what's happening outside (the...