Matt Windman — Theater Critic

It is often said that Holiday cannot be authentically imitated or covered. That's probably true. But as directed by Lonnie Price, McDonald undergoes a complete transformation vocally and physically, a la Meryl Streep, that is highly theatrical but believable and seemingly effortless. It's easy to forget that the play is pretty thin thanks to her transfixing performance. McDonald forsakes her rich singing abilities to capture Holiday's distinctively small and scratchy voice. But more than that, she credibly and powerfully inhabits a disoriented woman who is slurring her words and appears to be lost both emotionally and mentally.

It is often said that Holiday cannot be authentically imitated or covered. That's probably true. But as directed by Lonnie Price, McDonald undergoes a complete transformation vocally and physically, a la Meryl Streep, that is highly theatrical but believable and seemingly effortless. It's easy to forget that the play is pretty thin thanks to her transfixing performance. McDonald forsakes her rich singing abilities to capture Holiday's distinctively small and scratchy voice. But more than that, she credibly and powerfully inhabits a disoriented woman who is slurring her words and appears to be lost both emotionally and mentally.

In an ideal universe, the new musical 'Bullets Over Broadway,' based on the 1994 Woody Allen film, would shut down for a few months so that a talented songwriter - perhaps David Yazbek ('Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' or the young team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul ('A Christmas Story') - could pen an original score for it. To its credit, 'Bullets Over Broadway' is mildly entertaining...Although the show contains flashy design elements, amusing one-liners and generally decent performances, the decision to use jazz standards from the 1920s and 1930s instead of an original, well-integrated score proves to be absolutely fatal. By pigeonholing these familiar tunes into the existing plot, they arrive randomly and have almost nothing to do with the characters or plot...Zach Braff works too hard at portraying the stressed-out playwright. His singing voice is pretty thin as well. On the other hand, Marin Mazzie is ideally cast as the grandly theatrical Sinclair, and Vincent Pastore of 'The Sopranos' is effortlessly effective as Valenti.

In an ideal universe, the new musical 'Bullets Over Broadway,' based on the 1994 Woody Allen film, would shut down for a few months so that a talented songwriter - perhaps David Yazbek ('Dirty Rotten Scoundrels' or the young team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul ('A Christmas Story') - could pen an original score for it. To its credit, 'Bullets Over Broadway' is mildly entertaining...Although the show contains flashy design elements, amusing one-liners and generally decent performances, the decision to use jazz standards from the 1920s and 1930s instead of an original, well-integrated score proves to be absolutely fatal. By pigeonholing these familiar tunes into the existing plot, they arrive randomly and have almost nothing to do with the characters or plot...Zach Braff works too hard at portraying the stressed-out playwright. His singing voice is pretty thin as well. On the other hand, Marin Mazzie is ideally cast as the grandly theatrical Sinclair, and Vincent Pastore of 'The Sopranos' is effortlessly effective as Valenti.

It's too bad Denzel Washington didn't play Walter Lee, the dissatisfied 35-year-old protagonist of Lorraine Hansberry's monumental 1959 African-American family drama 'A Raisin in the Sun,' 25 years ago. Now at age 59, there is no escaping the reality that Washington is simply too old to convincingly play the role, resulting in a fundamental imbalance and lack of credibility to the new Broadway revival...In addition to the age issue, Washington overplays Walter Lee's moodiness and often adds an inappropriately jocular and hammy tone, encouraging the audience to laugh during some of the play's most heartbreaking moments. Rose, who sparkles in scene after scene, ends up stealing the show. As Walter Lee's wife Ruth, Sophie Okonedo comes off as one-dimensionally plain and stern. Jackson too is disappointing. David Cromer, best known as a director, is out of place as the community representative who tries to bribe the family to not move to a white suburb.

As one of the few new musicals not based on a familiar film or pop song catalog (or anything else for that matter), 'If/Then' certainly is a breath of fresh air. And despite nagging issues with its overall concept and divided story lines, it is a smart, romantic piece with a well-crafted soft rock score and great performances all around...Stylishly directed by Michael Greif on a sleek set containing a massive tilting mirror, 'If/Then' may not be a triumph but it is contemplative, heartfelt and fashionable in a sanitized sort of way. And in light of Menzel's growing fan base, it could be a hit.

As one of the few new musicals not based on a familiar film or pop song catalog (or anything else for that matter), 'If/Then' certainly is a breath of fresh air. And despite nagging issues with its overall concept and divided story lines, it is a smart, romantic piece with a well-crafted soft rock score and great performances all around...Stylishly directed by Michael Greif on a sleek set containing a massive tilting mirror, 'If/Then' may not be a triumph but it is contemplative, heartfelt and fashionable in a sanitized sort of way. And in light of Menzel's growing fan base, it could be a hit.

Devised as a single scene without pause, 'Mothers and Sons' makes for a well-constructed, often funny dialogue that is both provocative and heartfelt. But after 90 minutes, very little has changed and no climax has been reached. As she did in McNally's 'Master Class,' Daly offers a masterful performance, delivering her lines with a dry acidity and firm poise while her reactions to both men reveal her conflicted emotions. Steggert, who was previously seen this season in 'Big Fish,' once again excels at playing a good-natured, clean-cut and sensitive youth.

The revival is disheartening for those who were raised on the original show, which had an elegant and extremely effective simplicity. What 'Les Miz' really needs is a rest. Too much of even a great musical can be nauseating. This 'Les Miz' feels less like a revival than a ritual.

The flow is also disrupted by all the new ballads, which attempt to psychologically probe Rocky and his girlfriend Adrian but end up being poorly integrated, musically weak and unintentionally ridiculous. Rocky, being an inarticulate individual, was not meant to burst into song. Hokey one-liners are also loaded into the script...While Andy Karl deserves credit for enduring so much physically as Rocky, he comes off as too clean cut to be credible in the role. As Adrian, Margo Seibert is stymied by her character being so undeveloped and makes little impression. In effect, 'Rocky' is the new 'Spider-Man,' a similarly flashy and misconceived spectacle-musical that exists mainly to showcase an elaborate fight sequence as its finale.

As devised by its creators, this slow, static and quiet adaptation of Robert James Waller's bestselling romance novel, which was previously adapted into a hit film with no less than Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood, is a snooze and a misfire. It revolves around an unexpected tryst between Francesca, the Italian war bride, and Robert, a magazine photographer visiting her small town in 1960s Iowa for just a few days.

The tender-hearted, super- sappy New York Yankees tribute 'Bronx Bombers,' which just transferred to Broadway's Circle in the Square after a short Off-Broadway run, really ought to be playing in Cooperstown as a sort of side show for tourists visiting the Baseball Hall of Fame. It could be done with animatronics instead of actors, a la 'The Hall of Presidents' at Disney World...Watching actors portray legendary Yankees with distinctive personalities will no doubt be a guilty pleasure for many fans. But all things considered, they deserve something better than this unchallenging and uninteresting history pageant.

While the play itself is meandering and uneventful, it opens up considerably in the heartwarming final scene where Anthony and Rosemary finally connect in spite of their hesitations and quirks. It serves as a hearty payoff after over an hour of straight boredom. Messing, who is making her Broadway debut, has noticeable difficulty handling an Irish accent but still manages to make her character sympathetic and endearing. Byrne, who originated the role of Father Flynn in 'Doubt,' foregoes his charismatic intensity and makes for an unexpectedly cute and quirky counterpart to Messing.

Lyndsey Turner's extraordinary production makes for an absolutely stirring 90 minutes of theater. It powerfully captures the play's heightened theatricality and terrifying aura, utilizing a sleek, box-shaped set that swiftly rotates back and forth to reveal new scenes. The cast is unusually large, allowing the depiction of a stifling, uncaring crowd of strangers inducing claustrophobia. English actress Rebecca Hall, who was stunning in 'The Winter's Tale' at BAM back in 2009 and has also appeared in many films, delivers the intense, vulnerable and haunting performance that her demanding role requires.

'Beautiful,' a sentimental and sympathetic biography led by a poignant, extremely winning performance from breakout star Jessie Mueller, is slickly staged, genuinely touching and very enjoyable...It lacks the sin and sex appeal in 'Jersey Boys,' or the restless momentum of 'Motown,' and relies on feel-good nostalgia. Nevertheless, 'Beautiful' is unusually coherent, character-driven and sincere for a jukebox musical. And who can resist those songs? So how can this not be a hit?

'Beautiful,' a sentimental and sympathetic biography led by a poignant, extremely winning performance from breakout star Jessie Mueller, is slickly staged, genuinely touching and very enjoyable...It lacks the sin and sex appeal in 'Jersey Boys,' or the restless momentum of 'Motown,' and relies on feel-good nostalgia. Nevertheless, 'Beautiful' is unusually coherent, character-driven and sincere for a jukebox musical. And who can resist those songs? So how can this not be a hit?

'Beautiful,' a sentimental and sympathetic biography led by a poignant, extremely winning performance from breakout star Jessie Mueller, is slickly staged, genuinely touching and very enjoyable...It lacks the sin and sex appeal in 'Jersey Boys,' or the restless momentum of 'Motown,' and relies on feel-good nostalgia. Nevertheless, 'Beautiful' is unusually coherent, character-driven and sincere for a jukebox musical. And who can resist those songs? So how can this not be a hit?

'Beautiful,' a sentimental and sympathetic biography led by a poignant, extremely winning performance from breakout star Jessie Mueller, is slickly staged, genuinely touching and very enjoyable...It lacks the sin and sex appeal in 'Jersey Boys,' or the restless momentum of 'Motown,' and relies on feel-good nostalgia. Nevertheless, 'Beautiful' is unusually coherent, character-driven and sincere for a jukebox musical. And who can resist those songs? So how can this not be a hit?

In 'No Man's Land,' an established poet (Stewart) who inexplicably invites to his home a barfly (McKellen) who may or may not be his old school chum, leaving the literary figure's secretary and bodyguard (Crudup and Hensley) puzzled. Although it is a minor title in the Pinter canon, it is the more successful of the shows.

McKellen makes a strong impression visually as a bearded, homeless-looking, hopelessly sleepy Estragon, and Stewart is full of spark as the rationalizing Vladimir. However, their recitation of the text is off-balance, with Mc-Kellen offering little expressivity and too many lines played up for laughs.

Dozens of autobiographical one-person shows have come and gone since Billy Crystal stormed Broadway in 2004 with '700 Sundays,' his Tony-winning tribute to his father, who died of a heart attack when Crystal was just 15 years old, and growing up in Eisenhower-era Long Island with an unshakable desire to become an entertainer. Seeing as few of these shows, if any, have surpassed Crystal's heartwarming and hilarious tour de force, it's a pleasure to have it return for a run before the 'Les Miz' revival takes over the Imperial Theatre.

Functioning mainly as a comedic showcase for Jefferson Mays, who shot to acclaim exactly a decade ago for his tour-de-force performance in 'I Am My Own Wife,' Mays portrays eight different members of the aristocratic Highhurst family, often switching from one to the other in a matter of seconds...With a thin premise, a sluggish book and unmemorable songs that vaguely resemble work by Gilbert & Sullivan and Noel Coward, the show makes for a tiresome 21/2 hours that depend mainly upon Mays' frequent costume changes, death scenes and all-around versatility to lend an air of slapstick. Pinkham, on the other hand, comes off as too affected to garner audience sympathy.

Functioning mainly as a comedic showcase for Jefferson Mays, who shot to acclaim exactly a decade ago for his tour-de-force performance in 'I Am My Own Wife,' Mays portrays eight different members of the aristocratic Highhurst family, often switching from one to the other in a matter of seconds...With a thin premise, a sluggish book and unmemorable songs that vaguely resemble work by Gilbert & Sullivan and Noel Coward, the show makes for a tiresome 21/2 hours that depend mainly upon Mays' frequent costume changes, death scenes and all-around versatility to lend an air of slapstick. Pinkham, on the other hand, comes off as too affected to garner audience sympathy.

While there is no plot, many of the production numbers have characters and clever concepts and lead-ins. Dulé Hill ('The West Wing') also delivers some poetic lines by Langston Hughes about Harlem's atmosphere during the period. As staged by Warren Carlyle, 'After Midnight' brings lively and snazzy period entertainment to Broadway with phenomenal sound, effervescent movement and a joyous spirit.

Nichols' gloomy production features huge scenic pieces that fly up and down in between scenes, uncomfortably dwarfing this intimate drama. But the real problem lies in the fact that Nichols never really captures the elusive spark of mystery found in the best Pinter revivals, such as the 2007 Broadway staging of 'The Homecoming' and 'The Caretaker' with Jonathan Pryce, which played BAM last year. Weisz and Spall offer fine, subtle performances, while Craig occasionally gets to show off a considerably more relaxed air and ends up being the liveliest of the trio.