Look Back in Anger - - West End Articles Page 1

As I am writing this for the Rhode Island section of Broadway World, I feel as though I am uniquely equipped to talk about Tennessee Williams, or at least the world that so often lives inside his work, being that I am a Southerner who has now spent roughly thirteen years in New England.

There is a distinct alchemy that occurs when a massive, legendary rock opera is stripped of its traditional stadium-sized distance and placed directly in front of an audience. At Studio Tenn’s Turner Theatre at The Factory in Franklin, Tennessee, director Patrick Cassidy has done just that, turning Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Jesus Christ Superstar into a visceral, in-your-face exploration of celebrity, devotion, and mortal terror.

When FUNNY GIRL opened on Broadway it was a smash hit in 1964 and would jettison the career of Barbra Streisand. It became a staple on repertory companies, regional and community theatres and summer stock. But the looming memory of Streisand's iconic performance  on stage and then on screen seemed to have destined the show to be unproduceable without a genuine triple threat actress who could sing, act, AND be a comedian par excellence. It took almost 60 years for a Broadway revival to occur, and poor Beanie Feldstein was not up to the leading lady task, being replaced with the much more appropriate star Lea Michele. Once again, the tale of  Fanny Brice had resurfaced and the often comedic, often dark musical comedy has been re-introduced to audiences who can look at the piece without Streisand's interpretation burned into our memory.

There are some shows that feel untouchable, which is why it takes a certain amount of courage or lunacy to approach a beloved musical and decide to reinvent it. Co-directors Sherri Eden Barber and Coleman Ray Clark do exactly that, taking some big swings with Diversionary Theatre's production of RENT playing through June 28th.

In all of my favorite works, I think that the lessons presented are unique and widely applicable, especially in college. I believe there is so much importance to the messages that some of my favorite stories present. All in all, they don’t just speak to the pieces within which they are articulated, but rather the broader importance of theatre in general and how it can impact people. 

Tony winner Lena Hall opens up about playing a grieving daughter on Your Friends & Neighbors while her own father was dying in real life.

A new revival of Tennessee Williams' Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is set to come to Broadway next year, directed by Tony Award winner Sam Gold. Learn more here!

Now having its Southern California regional production, MEAN GIRLS - THE MUSICAL continues performances at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts through May 3, 2026. Produced by McCoy Rigby Entertainment, this fun, high-energy, youthfully-targeted new iteration of the 2018 stage adaptation of Tina Fey’s beloved 2004 film comedy looks and feels like a brand new show—boosted by impressive new visuals and a highly-caffeinated ensemble whose enthusiasm and verve is quite infectious. A dazzling, entertaining show with high-caliber polish, La Mirada's production is a slick, electrically-charged iteration that is a worthwhile new chapter in the show’s evolution.

A dazzling farewell: 'Mrs. Doubtfire' concludes its German run as an emotional tour de force, combining exuberant choreography, impeccable design, and a superb ensemble into a production brimming with heart. Bound for the UK tour, it sets a formidable standard.

Lakewood Playhouse will stage Dominique Morisseau's PIPELINE, featuring a cast led by Whitney Crawford as Nya, a public school teacher navigating systemic forces threatening her son's future.

Cabaret star Kim David Smith returns to Joe’s Pub on Saturday May 2, 2026 at 9:30 pm with Comme Une Folle – torch songs for tough times because gay (or else). Read a conversation with Smith about the show.

Two decades after Spring Awakening first premiered on Broadway, BroadwayWorld is taking a look back at what the cast of this era-defining musical, including Lea Michele, Jonathan Groff, and more has been up to.

Center Theatre Group has revealed twelve productions for the 2026/27 Season. The eight-show One CTG subscription package includes plays and musicals at the Mark Taper Forum and Ahmanson Theatre, including The Turning world premiere and more.

Raven Theatre in Chicago has appointed Jonathan Berry as its new Executive Artistic Director, following the departure of Sarah Slight to Goodman Theatre. Berry will lead the theatre into its 44th season.

BroadwayWorld's March 2026 Debut of the Month interview features Rachael Stirling in Giant on Broadway. BroadwayWorld interviewed Stirling about bringing the play to Broadway, starring opposite John Lithgow and much more.

The New York Times critic's pick production of Bubba Weiler's Well, I'll Let You Go will return for seven-weeks only for a strictly limited engagement at Studio Seaview.

What did our critic think of THE NEIGHBOURS at Tarragon Theatre?

Performances are now underway for the Broadway run of the Olivier Award-winning hit play Giant, directed by two-time Tony Award winner Nicholas Hytner and written by Mark Rosenblatt. Meet the cast here!

La Jolla Playhouse has announced full programming for the 2026 WOW Festival of immersive, interactive and site-inspired work, presented in partnership with UC San Diego. The WOW Festival will take place April 23 – 26 on the UC San Diego campus.

Many of us have, at some point in our lives, operated on the basic assumptions that our chosen communities, particularly those aligned by basic ideology, had our best interests at heart and would look out for each other.

“What a thing to have a mother!” That’s how Anna Ziegler’s new play ends. Studies show that it takes two to five years for a blended family to become a cohesive unit, and when Jennifer marries John, his daughter Delilah refuses to cooperate. Jennifer badly wants to be in Delilah’s life. In her fifties, she’s never been married nor had any romantic liaisons before, but the young woman struggles to reconcile her devotion to her late mother with the recent addition to her world. Ziegler introduces two women who struggle with change. They’re extremely different, but, unsurprisingly, very much the same. 

Laura Bell Bundy – who brings “Songs & Stories with Laura Bell Bundy” to Foxborough’s Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center on February 22 – has been a performer since she was just nine years old and made her stage debut in the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall.

A telephone, a key, and a carefully timed call. DIAL M FOR MURDER wastes no time laying out its stakes. At the Stanley BFL Canada Stage, the Arts Club Theatre Company presents Jeffrey Hatcher’s adaptation of the classic thriller, directed by Jillian Keiley and running February 5 to March 8. In partnership with Theatre Calgary, the production pulls the audience into a polished 1950s London flat where each gesture feels deliberate and even the quiet moments heighten the tension. 

Here's my interview with director Guillermo Cienfuegos and Richard III star Ann Noble about their vision for the production.

It’s… Hairspray! BroadwayWorld is taking a look back at what the cast of this beloved musical has been up to since the show first graced the Broadway stage!