Shania Russell

Here, there's a skin-crawling effect to watching the story unfold onstage. The Broadway production capitalizes on discomfort, keeping tension taut and surprises around every corner. Grade: B+

For all the grief boiling over in Marjorie Prime, I walked away yearning to be more thoroughly wounded. But Harrison's script is less interested in piercing the heart than it is the mind. It's much too busy prodding at the bounds of humanity. What makes us who we are? How much can we rely on technology? Can it soothe us, numb us, replace us completely? Marjorie Prime offers few clear-cut answers, but does make one thing clear: There is no replacement for the power of human love and connection. And the absence of that is what keeps this show from truly leaving a mark on its crowd. Grade: B

The script has been reworked and the characters retooled, only for Chess to end up back where it started: impeccable music, a flat story and a baffling execution. But the eternal contradiction of Chess is that while its flaws are many, it's still a delight to witness. Like those that came before, this lively production is bursting with talent both on and offstage.

Here we have a show that examines where we are as a nation, and just as it did half a century ago, finds us wanting. It asks the very questions that have been front of mind over the past few weeks, months, years. It agonizes over the American Dream, debates the merits of political violence, slams the mistreatment of immigrants, prods at gender inequality, and grapples with grief. It does so while preaching hope for a brighter future — then thrusts its audience into that future, their present, a maddening contradiction. Ragtime isn't the kind of show you walk out of unscathed, not if you're really paying attention. Grade: B

Lloyd's Godot makes plenty of fascinating choices, some more effective than others. The characters often stare back at the audience; the tree is nowhere to be seen; the props are pantomimed; and there is a throwaway reference to Bill & Ted, equally likely to elicit chuckles as it is to yank you from the play's subject matter back into a world where you're staring at Reeves and Winter's reunion rather than Vladimir and Estragon's despair.

More importantly, despite the differences, the message remains the same. There is still a very clear sense that this is a story that sees each and every one of these women; that makes no apologies as it allows them to take up space; that demands its audience accept them, gives the room to accept themselves and always believes in their ability to grow. By the end of the show, the young Ana is indeed taking flight, but she is not soaring solo.

The energy of Just in Time is its greatest tribute to Darin: a recreation of his natural habitat buoyed by the dazzling charm of its stars. Everything from the stunning lighting design (courtesy of Justin Townsend) to Groff's crooning vocals emulates a '50s night club. And therein lies the real surprise of the show — beyond honoring Darin in particular, it serves as a love letter to live music.

There's no question that both of these stars know how to command a stage. Jonas' pop star status means he is no stranger to winning over a crowd, while Warren is a proven success with a Tony already under her belt. But the emotional disconnect is impossible to overcome in a show that's almost entirely sentimental ballads.

Though Snook is the show's undeniable star, she has stiff competition: Director Kip Williams' is also a standout. The meticulous direction goes hand in hand with Snook's performance and strikes a fascinating balance. Polished as it must be — to seamlessly pull off her collaboration with her video selves — it doesn't quite feel precise, often presenting with an element of messiness that suits Dorian, as he wallows in his moral decay, frazzled by the Faustian trade he's made, by the power it affords him, by his own detachment from the rest of humanity.

And therein lies the magic of the show. Mincemeat is so flippantly funny — with its premise alone it asks us to laugh off the rise of facism — that you expect the laughter to never die out. But it's secretly full of heart, and unafraid to slam us back in our seats with an emotional wallop.

If there's an answer, I'm convinced it's here somewhere, buried in this delightfully messy family holiday, waiting to be accessed by the Dahls and all the rest of us held hostage by the promise of our family's enduring love. Grade: B+

Alas, charm goes a long way. Criss is often his most compelling when given a character with edge (his stint as the titular East German rocker in Hedwig and the Angry Inch or his Emmy-winning turn in The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story) but here he is charming, spirited and wonderfully funny. Meanwhile, the show around him is grasping at many bubbling themes and carrying only a select few over the finish line. But Maybe Happy Ending dazzles with its love story and astounds with its visual accomplishments. There’s nothing robotic about this production: it wears its heart on its sleeve and on charm alone, succeeds.

Not coincidentally, the most striking aspects of this particular production are baked into the DNA of Wilder’s timeless play. There’s something undefinable missing: perhaps a cut line that was the secret skeleton key or merely the fact of changing the pacing and losing the reality of the show’s slow simplicity. Ultimately, Wilder’s words remain the magic; the progression from a day to a wedding to a funeral a guaranteed gut punch. It is, if nothing else, a reminder that life itself ought to be thoroughly appreciated. Grade: B

Carell’s presence will no doubt invite fans of The Office and his other works to the theater, and they won’t be disappointed: he certainly earns his laughs as Vanya buries his pain, pokes fun at his companions, chases after a lost love. Though the bitterness boiling beneath the piece may catch them off guard, Neugebauer and Schreck have crafted an especially accessible adaptation, for better or worse. B–

If nothing else, we never wonder how Jacob is swept away by the circus. The romance may fall short, and the songs lack a certain luster, but the magic of the circus is winning. Grade: B–