David Cote
Can Reviews Wait? How Broadway Opening Nights May Be Changing (Feb 2, 2026)
Review Roundup: Carrie Coon, Namir Smallwood and More Star in BUG on Broadway (Jan 9, 2026)
Review Roundup: ANNA CHRISTIE Starring Michelle Williams and Tom Sturridge (Dec 15, 2025)
BIO
David Cote is a playwright, opera librettist, and theater critic based in New York City. His operas include Lucidity (On Site Opera & Seattle Opera); Blind Injustice (Cincinnati Opera); Three Way (Nashville Opera and BAM); The Scarlet Ibis (Prototype Festival and Chicago Opera Theater); and 600 Square Feet (Cleveland Opera Theater). His plays include The Müch, Saint Joe, and Otherland (O’Neill National Playwrights Conference finalist). David also wrote the text for Nkeiru Okoye’s Black Lives Matter monodrama for baritone and orchestra, Invitation to a Die-In. Recordings include Blind Injustice (NAXOS), Three Way (American Modern Recordings) and In Real Life (AMR). David’s TV and theater reviews appear in The A.V. Club, Observer, 4 Columns, and American Theatre. David is also the author of popular companion books about the Broadway hits Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Spring Awakening, Jersey Boys, and Wicked. He was the longest serving theater editor and chief drama critic of Time Out New York.
Photos
Videos
VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: Sneak Peek at THREE WAY Opera, Opening at BAM's Fishman Space, 6/15-18
by Christina Mancuso - 2017-04-12 15:57:04
TV: Brian d'Arcy James, John Cariani, Christian Borle and More Celebrate SOMETHING ROTTEN! Album Release
by BroadwayWorld TV - 2015-07-18 15:00:45
TV: Michelle Williams and FELA National Tour Cast Meets the Press- Plus a Performance Preview!
by Randy Rainbow - 2013-02-02 09:00:51
STAGE TUBE: LOMBARDI's Lauria Appears On Good Morning America
by Gabrielle Sierra - 2010-12-27 12:52:20
News
by Cara Joy David - Feb 2, 2026
Critics used to come to opening nights and rush back and write their reviews to try to get them in the early editions of next day’s newspaper. Eventually, preview periods became longer, but we still held onto the opening night critic tradition for a while.
by A.A. Cristi - Jan 9, 2026
Manhattan Theatre Club is presenting the first Broadway production of Tracy Letts' Bug, the sci-fi thriller written by Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Tracy Letts and directed by Tony Award winner David Cromer. Read reviews for the production!
by Gillian Blum - Dec 15, 2025
What did critics think of ANNA CHRISTIE, running at Brooklyn's St. Ann's Warehouse, directed by Thomas Kail, and starring Michelle Williams and Tom Sturridge?
by A.A. Cristi - Dec 9, 2025
Marjorie Prime, the existential drama from Jordan Harrison is now playing at the Helen Hayes Theater, directed by Anne Kauffman. The production stars Danny Burstein, Christopher Lowell, Cynthia Nixon, and June Squibb in the title role of Marjorie Prime.
by A.A. Cristi - Sep 30, 2025
Explore the immersive MASQUERADE experience of The Phantom of the Opera! Read the reviews and discover why it's captivating audiences!
by Nicole Rosky - Sep 29, 2025
Critics weigh in on Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter’s performances in Waiting for Godot, now running on Broadway until January 4, 2026.
by A.A. Cristi - Sep 17, 2025
The first-ever Broadway revival of ART by Yasmina Reza is now running on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre. The production stars Bobby Cannavale, James Corden, and Neil Patrick Harris. Read the reviews!
by A.A. Cristi - Sep 8, 2025
The Coffee House Club will present Theater is Hard LIVE, the candid and humorous reflections of playwright Sara Farrington, on October 8, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. at the historic Salmagundi Club.
by Nicole Rosky - Sep 8, 2025
Scenic designer John Lee Beatty will be honored with the Ming Cho Lee Award for Lifetime Achievement in Design bestowed by the Henry Hewes Design Awards .
by Josh Sharpe - Sep 4, 2025
The Henry Hewes Design Awards Committee has revealed the 2025 Henry Hewes Design Awards Honorees who will be recognized at the 61st annual ceremony on October 20 in New York.
by A.A. Cristi - Aug 22, 2025
The Delacorte Theater officially repoened with Free Shakespeare in the Park's TWELFTH NIGHT. Revel in the midsummer madness as twins Sebastian and Viola survive shipwreck, revenge plots, and the trick doors of love. Read reviews for this star-studded production!
by A.A. Cristi - Jul 11, 2025
The candy store is open! Heathers The Musical, the cult-hit musical returns Off-Broadway this season at New World Stages in a new production starring Lorna Courtney, Casey Likes and more! Read the Off-Broadway reviews!
by A.A. Cristi - Jul 1, 2025
Opera in the Heights has announced its 2025–2026 season. The lineup includes Stephen Sondheim's A Little Night Music in November, a joyful holiday concert in December, the Texas premiere of Lucidity by Laura Kaminsky and David Cote in March, and Donizetti's sparkling comedy Don Pasquale in April.
by A.A. Cristi - May 12, 2025
On Wednesday May 21st, 2025 at 6:00PM, NYC's Salmagundi Club (47 5th Avenue) will host a conversation with theatre critic David Cote and former Head of Scripted Fiction at Spotify, Mimi O'Donnell.
by A.A. Cristi - May 6, 2025
The New York Drama Critics' Circle has named Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s Purpose Best Play of the 2024-25 season. The award for Best Musical went to Maybe Happy Ending, book by Will Aronson and Hue Park, music by Will Aronson, lyrics by Hue Park.
by Nicole Rosky - May 5, 2025
Theatre World Awards Board of Directors has just announced the Honorees for Theatre World Award for an Outstanding Debut Performance in a Broadway or Off-Broadway Production. We have the full list of honorees!
by Stephi Wild - Apr 30, 2025
The winners of the 2025 New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards will be announced next week. The awards include a cash prize of $2,500 for Best Play, made possible by a grant from the Lucille Lortel Foundation.
by Nicole Rosky - Apr 27, 2025
Dead Outlaw is running on Broadway at the Longacre Theatre! The new musical features a book by Itamar Moses, music and lyrics from David Yazbek and Erik Della Penna, and is directed by David Cromer. Let's see what the critics are saying about the new musical...
by Stephi Wild - Apr 23, 2025
Last night, April 11, Atlantic Theater Company opened the world premiere of Grief Camp, written by Eliya Smith and directed by Tony Award nominee Les Waters. Read the reviews here!
by A.A. Cristi - Apr 15, 2025
The moral dilemma at the center of one of the greatest dramas of all-time comes to life on Broadway in John Proctor is the Villain, now on Broadway! The new play stars Stranger Things breakout, Sadie Sink. Read the reviews!
Videos