Michael Sommers

Opening on Thursday in the 99-seat Shiva space at the Public Theater, Deep History initially registers more like an absorbing illustrated lecture than a dramatic performance, as Finnigan reflects upon the ways humanity has somehow survived ice ages, volcanoes, plagues and other natural catastrophes. Finnigan vows to be “optimistic and constructive and forward looking” about how to successfully face up to dangerous climate change. “Survival is possible,” he asserts, scrawling that phrase in magic marker on a sheet of brown paper pinned to a board. Finnigan later adds another note, “Not everyone will make it.”

Inventively directed and choreographed by Connor Gallagher, the show benefits considerably from sharp performances and fine production values. Lit in rainbow shades by Brian Tovar, some adorable animated projections by Aaron Rhyne and a turntable are employed by the dots design collective for the cute, fluent scenery. Crisply costumed by Sarah Cubbage, a confident 10-member ensemble of quick-changing performers capably support the excellent featured players.

Vintage recordings of Black opera divas singing glorious arias are played before the show, during intermission and afterward. They are lovely to hear, of course, but is the music meant to be satirical of the grandiloquent white theater that the playwright denounces? That’s just one more mystery lurking amid many murky intents and motives in the ambitious and ultimately frustrating Six Characters.

A ribald cartoon more hysterical than historical, Oh, Mary! sheds unexpected light upon the assassination of Abraham Lincoln and represents the latest generation of gender bent comical entertainment known as camp. Elder viewers reared on the comparatively subtle writing and performance style of Charles Busch are likely to find Escola’s slapdash artistry crude, but there’s no denying he snags laughs.

Several artists rose above last week’s bumpy performance. Sandra Oh is urgent in spirit, dry in manner as Elizabeth, the midwife whose acrid presence sparks conflict. Haley Wong creates a feral Sally who resolutely defies pity. Mary McCann coolly depicts a gentlewoman revealed to be not so genteel. Nadine Malouf smolders as the mean girl among a crowd that includes Ann Harada as a sufferer of hot flashes, Hannah Cabell as a soul twenty years mute who miraculously speaks, and ever-earthy Dale Soules as an octogenarian of staunch disposition.

Although What Became of Us represents smart, even elegant playwriting, a certain emotional coolness arises from the formal nature of the drama’s structure and its repetitive language. This abstract quality is instilled further by the strategically minimal environs and staging of director Jennifer Chang’s apt production. Moving around a virtually empty space designed by Tanya Orellana and delicately lighted by designer Reza Behjat, the performers never look directly at each other until nearly the story’s final moments.

The single flaw to Roundabout’s nice revival is some questionable pacing by Kenny Leon, the director, whose recent Broadway staging of Purlie Victorious was marred by its headlong speed. Here, the lyrical opening passages of Home intended to evoke the long ago rural South are nearly lost in the breakneck speed they are spoken. Other poetic sections tend to rush by, too, suggesting that Leon doesn’t trust the audience to appreciate their beauty. Leon otherwise gives his well-acted production sufficient atmosphere. A longtime collaborator with Leon, the great Allen Lee Hughes expertly designs sunlight and moonlight and passages of time. Simple, painterly settings designed by Arnulfo Maldonado always keep a patch of those homeland fields in view even when Cephus strays far away. Perhaps just as crucial to the production’s impact is how the designer uses simple fabric borders to reduce the expansive size of the proscenium frame of the Todd Haimes Theatre so the actors can commune more closely with the audience.

The relentless misery of the director's gloomy interpretation of the musical scarcely allows for any contrasting moments of joy or sweetness as Tony and Maria discover each other and fall in love. The show's most striking moments are those involving conflict, as when an embracing Tony and Maria literally are torn away from each other by the opposing gangs. Something should be said about the performances, but there's little to mention except that everybody, lead players and ensemble members, render their character's music, motions, and emotions capably enough. The shows that van Hove directs usually are cool in temperature, and this one is no exception. No hot young stars blaze forth in the production's damp firmament here.

One gets the impression that Thorne invents such dreary business simply so his version of A Christmas Carol is somewhat different than the countless other stage adaptations before it. A high moral tone that infuses the play as several characters chide Scrooge for his behavior stiffens the drama considerably.

If some of The Inheritance is surprisingly glib, it nevertheless remains a mostly well-written and observant work that successfully studies contrasts in generational attitudes-and socio-political awareness-even as it features several deeply poignant sequences. The concluding scene of the first play, which cannot be described here but is the finest episode in the entire production, is genuinely moving through the breathtaking simplicity of its evocation of a lost generation.

A choice gallery of thoughtful songs given a classy staging and headlined by a charismatic star, the exhilarating American Utopia will please David Byrne fans and probably win him plenty of new ones.

Although the musical is mostly a yawn for adults (and probably smarter kids), sub-par visuals make it even a less attractive event. The production looks so cheap visually that let's be kind and not name the designers. Industrial scaffolding can only go so far to create places effectively, while the cheesy effects for the story's monsters and miracles are heralded by blasts of white lights meant to bedazzle viewers into not seeing the stagecraft. There is not an inch of magic anywhere on the stage, unfortunately.

Like its Broadway predecessor of 2014, which detailed Johnson's first year in office and subsequent election as President in his own right, The Great Society is again directed by Bill Rauch, employs a relatively large ensemble of 19 actors to portray more than 50 statesmen and personalities of the era, and covers a vast amount of American history within a nearly three hour-long production. Probably much too much history, as it turns out. Opening on Tuesday at the Vivian Beaumont Theater, The Great Society eventually congeals into a ponderous drama in spite of the efforts of some excellent actors who do their damnedest to inject life and excitement into a series of woeful events.

A remarkable performance by Laurie Metcalf and quite a sympathetic one by John Lithgow, two superb actors playing at the top of their exceptional games in the title roles, make this offbeat comedy a must-see for savvy viewers who cannot be bothered with the usual tourist crap on Broadway.

A new Broadway musical that takes audiences to hell and back, Hadestown looks and sounds terrific, and yet it lacks something vital. Drawn from a classical Greek legend, the musical somehow reminds me of a handsome ancient statue that is missing its head.

The cartoonish musical is modelled after snappy 1960s Broadway musical comedies, complete with passing scenes staged 'in-one' in front of a curtain to cover changes in décor. Sure, that's retro, but it suits the light-hearted material as well as a Disney crowd who probably prefers familiar formats. Casey Nicholaw, an ace director-choreographer, maintains a slightly tongue-in-cheek quality throughout the fast-moving show, especially in his frisky dances that, with their sinuous arm gestures, synchronized moves and general acrobatics, often suggest Bollywood production numbers. A lively and good-looking ensemble expertly undulates through the sometimes zany choreography.

For all of their evident excellence as circus troupers and dancers, the company in general appears to be working much too hard to entertain the audience. More than anyone, Patina Miller needs to relax into her key role as the Leading Player. Ceaselessly grinning, quivering with energy, singing at full throttle, Miller is impressive but so relentless in her triple-threat attack that she becomes somewhat tiresome...As the ringmaster of this bustling production, Paulus perhaps has been cracking her whip too often for the show's good. With a little more ease, the revival might be a tad more genuinely charming than this nonstop whirl of entertainment that at times seems more distracting than diverting.

Director Joe Mantello no doubt has something to do with Midler's emotional shadings and he otherwise provides a posh production. Draped by designer Ann Roth in a voluminous sea-blue caftan, sporting oversized glasses and long pewter-blond bangs that she often sweeps back with an airy gesture, the exuberant Midler appears entirely comfortable inhabiting Mengers' florid persona, and that's half the battle of animating a solo show. Consider 'I'll Eat You Last' as a serving of fruity sherbet to end the Broadway season and you may not feel so guilty over enjoying this trifle.

Bountiful doings on Broadway indeed: Cicely Tyson gives a beautiful performance in a sterling new production of Horton Foote's touching play, 'The Trip to Bountiful.' The show...marks Tyson's first Broadway appearance in 30 years. It is obvious from her sensitive yet secure work here that Tyson has lost none of her stage technique. Expect to enjoy a memorable performance that you will cherish always.

Other than providing a tour-de-force challenge for an actor, however, the point of this production escapes me. It sheds no fresh light on the drama...Some people believe that Cumming is an exceptional and magnetic artist. I think that Cumming is an all right actor, but a little bit of him goes a very long way. So for me, at least, watching Cumming doing a lot of crazy Shakespeare was not an edifying experience. Better read somebody else for a more balanced opinion on Cumming's performance, which I certainly admire for its febrile energy.

Director Jeff Calhoun stages and choreographs the musical with no-holds-barred bravado that results in a fiendishly entertaining show...Soberly wearing muttonchops and spectacles as a sweetly geeky Dr. Jekyll, Maroulis unleashes his pony-tail into the medusa-like mane of a believably fiendish Hyde. His rock tenor sounds bright as Jekyll and then darkens and turns a tad guttural as Hyde...Sounding a bit like Linda Eder, who created the role of Lucy, Deborah Cox powerfully sings with a velvety purr that compensates for her high school-style acting...Not my cup of blood, the lurid 'Jekyll & Hyde' gives plenty of pleasure to others, and fans of the musical will find it rendered here with raging intensity.

Older theatergoers especially will appreciate the tender mercies of 'The Assembled Parties.' Richard Greenberg's absorbing new family drama essentially regards people's hopes for their future and the poignant reality of how things turn out with the passage of time.

Director Doug Hughes and his designers provide an extremely glossy production that undoubtedly is meant to frame Odets' trashy story and its dubious protagonist in the most flattering light possible...Some viewers may well fall for the great charm that Bobby Cannavale sympathetically lends Charlie...But Richard Kind is slyly humorous as a folksy meltdown of Sam Goldwyn and Louis B. Mayer...With the exception of Marin Ireland, who simply seems uncomfortable in the ambivalent character of Charlie's semi-estranged wife, the remainder of the capable company handles their roles very well...Roundabout subscribers already booked for 'The Big Knife' should be in the mood to swallow a big helping of stale cheese that is being served with the utmost skill.

Partly a history lesson, partly a laugh riot and partly a gay weeper, 'The Nance' is an ambitious new play by Douglas Carter Beane that does not coalesce into a completely persuasive drama. Thanks partly to a vivid performance by Nathan Lane in the title role, director Jack O'Brien's evocative production usually makes the most of Beane's troubling look at homosexual existence in Manhattan during the 1930s.

Don't expect a 'Jersey Boys' level of dramatic sophistication. Still, at the very least - and it generally is - Gordy's sketchy script presents a straightforward framework that does not get in the way (usually) of more than 60 much-loved songs that are performed like blazes by a dynamic 30-member company of singers and dancers...Certainly the performers are tip-top.