Suzanna Bowling — Theater Critic

What makes this so effective is that Hall does not simply ask us to imagine injustice. He makes us watch familiar characters experience it from the opposite side. The reversal exposes the arbitrary cruelty of a system in which one person’s humanity is determined by another person’s authority. It is bold, unsettling, and theatrically ingenious.

What initially feels like a wonderfully offbeat musical about a young woman hiding from an approaching apocalypse slowly deepens without announcing that it is doing so. Blaemire allows us to laugh. He allows us to become comfortable with Charlie’s peculiar little existence. We become accustomed to the couch, the peanut butter, the fish, the increasingly unbearable heat and the parade of people trying to get Charlie to participate in life. Then the emotional ground begins to move.

The cast is extraordinary. The score is terrific. The book needs clarity. The premise remains difficult for me to accept, yyet, would I tell you to see it? Absolutely.

Viertel’s direction, however, compounds the play’s problems rather than clarifying them. This is a small theatre, yet the production does not consistently reach the back of the room. More importantly, the staging needs to help us navigate Browne’s many competing ideas, distinguishing the essential from the incidental. Instead, too much arrives with equal dramatic importance, leaving the audience to sort through an already overcrowded narrative.

David Lindsay-Abaire’s The Balusters, now at Manhattan Theatre Club, arrives with the biting precision of Clybourne Park and the uneasy political sting of The Minutes—but with a sharper, more contemporary edge. This is comedy with teeth, where civility is a costume and hypocrisy is the true language spoken.

Yet, for all its speed and humor, the emotional through line is clear: this is a story about digging out. About recognizing the patterns that trap you and choosing—sometimes messily—to break them. Travolta doesn’t over-polish the redemption. She earns it in fragments, in jokes, in the willingness to say the uncomfortable thing out loud.

Despite the strength of the cast, Act I lacks cohesion. Director David Zippel never quite gels the performers into an ensemble and not enough connection. The musical arrangements (again, from Galante) often isolate rather than elevate. Songs feel like islands, not chapters in a musical journey. And then—Act II. Suddenly, everything snaps into focus. The arrangements tighten. The ensemble clicks. The spirit of Bacharach finally arrives—not as a backdrop for a piano prodigy, but as the central, beating heart of the show.

If you love Grease, or just want a wildly fun night out filled with satirical genius and powerhouse vocals, light it up — and get to Vape! before the smoke clears.

If you love Grease, or just want a wildly fun night out filled with satirical genius and powerhouse vocals, light it up — and get to Vape! before the smoke clears.

In Not Ready for Prime Time, Erik J. Rodriguez and Charles A. Sothers attempt to dramatize the early days of Saturday Night Live, retracing the origin stories of its now-legendary original cast. What emerges, however, is a disjointed, scattershot play that feels more like a foggy hangover than a revelatory trip down memory lane. Compared to Jason Reitman’s far more engaging 2024 film Saturday Night, this stage version falls disappointingly flat.

Ultimately, Kowalski is a fascinating exploration of two extraordinary minds colliding in a moment that would change theater forever. Anchored by exceptional performances, particularly Flynn’s magnetic Brando, the play is a must-see for fans of Tennessee Williams, Brando, and the art of storytelling itself.

Spencer Liff’s direction seamlessly blends the glamorous world of drag with genuine emotional storytelling. While the show is undoubtedly campy and fun, with big numbers and plenty of glitter, Liff ensures that the heart of the story remains intact. The conflict between the two main characters, is both comedic and heartfelt, with Liff skillfully navigating the tension between their past romance and present rivalry.

Spencer Liff’s direction seamlessly blends the glamorous world of drag with genuine emotional storytelling. While the show is undoubtedly campy and fun, with big numbers and plenty of glitter, Liff ensures that the heart of the story remains intact. The conflict between the two main characters, is both comedic and heartfelt, with Liff skillfully navigating the tension between their past romance and present rivalry.

They also amazed and baffled famed magicians, entertainers, and scientific skeptics, the legendary Penn & Teller on the first season of their long-running television show, “Penn & Teller: Fool Us!” Penn & Teller decided that Brynolf and Ljung deserved a chance and have decided to produce their New York theatrical debut, with Stalker. This show combines street magic, illusions and physical mentalism, leaving you mystified. My only complaint would be the directed by “Eurovision” Edward Af Sillén. The magic is mind boggling, but how it’s presented is not. In order to get the most out of this show offer to participate.

Part of the problem is Podschun, Keum, and Jones are not charismatic as friends. What is done well are the musical arrangements by Carmel Dean and Bryan Perri. The harmonies are well crafted and they blend beautifully. Podschun is the standout here. She has the best vocals, if not the best songs and makes the most out of her breakdown solo “The Same Old Music”. We believe her character every step of the way and she is believable. Keum’s songs are sweet and well meaning. As for Jones who has the best songs, I just was not a fan of their vocals.