Thursday, April 3, 2025
DruidShaekespeare's Richard III is a bruising experience, which is as it should be. The Irish troupe's contribution to the tenth anniversary season of Lincoln Center's White Light Festival (playing thru November 23rd at John Jay College's Gerald W. Lynch Theatre), absolutely fulfills the festival's mission of looking and listening without distraction for greater understanding. Shakespeare never hides Richard's ambition and watching it played out in the ugliness The War of the Roses created makes it inevitable. Director Garry Hynes has the perfect Richard in Aaron Monaghan. No one would ever mistake him for a weakling, but when things don't go his way his voice becomes high pitched like a
Reviews
The Bad’uns: Clown Acts of Contagion at La MaMa’s Downstairs Theatre
On Saturday I found the wellspring of funny -Kendall Cornell's all-women clown troupe: Clowns Ex Machina. I am still suffering from acute bouts of sudden, uncontrollable laughing at the flashbacks from their show -The Bad’uns: Clown Acts of Contagion. It's 90-minutes of intense bliss. There is a palpable, vast intelligence that forms the canvas for every scene. The humor bounces off this backdrop imbuing each moment with the massive force of thinking, focused, funny women. The clever comedy comes at you faster than Venus Wiliams' 56.95 m/s tennis ball serve -you have to gird up your loins for the shock and the skill of
Ars Nova presents ‘Dr. Ride’s American Beach House’ by Liza Birkenmeier
Historic events impact lives. There are the famous examples of Walt Whitman's Civil War poetry, Abraham Zapruder's home movie of the events in Dealey Plaza on November 22, 1963 and the January 21, 2017 Women's March posters currently displayed at Poster House. But then there are the private ones. BFFs Harriet (Kristen Sieh) and Matilda (Erin Markey) confront a turning point in their relationship during a landmark event in U.S. space history in Liza Birkenmeier's Dr. Ride's American Beach House, now playing through November 3, 2019 at Ars Nova at Greenwich House. Birekenmeier is Ars Nova's current Tow Playwright-in-Residence. Harriet and Matilda
THE HOPE HYPOTHESIS at The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture
THE HOPE HYPOTHESIS is a super slick production - a place for everything and everything in it's place. It is a neat freaks nirvana. The whole show feels perfectly conceived and executed. We are looking straight into the face of the absurdity of the American immigration situation in this tight, fast-paced dark comedy. The audience were laughing on cue offering a constant laugh track to this sitcom styled theater piece. Yet, through the fog of witty repartee the cruel, cold, ruthless face of the fascist interrogator peeps out at you, making you squirm in your seat. Cat Miller is both the
Monsoon Season at The Rattlestick Playwrights Theater
You get two riveting solo shows performed by two exceptional performers for the price of one! Monsoon Season is a great gift to give yourself in November - a pre-thanksgiving/festive season present.It's almost like watching a theatrical episode of The Affair or The Slap where we get two versions of the same moment told from the perspectives of each character - it is deeply satisfying to watch. There are many elements that make this production rewarding - an engrossing text, expert direction, masterfully crafted performances, magical stage design transformations, daring lighting and a gloriously jarring sound scape. And it all plays out
‘Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation’ at The Triad
Forbidden Broadway: The Next Generation is review-proof. Creator/Writer/Director Gerard Alessandrini started parodying The Great White Way in 1982, and The Triad Theatre (158 West 72nd Street) was packed with show-tune types for its first reincarnation in five years. Running through November 30, the 80-minute revue is the best kind of tried-and-true evening, matinee or celebratory time out with a great cast and Fred Barton at the piano. Alessandrini didn't have to look hard for new material. Most of the skewering is for movies turned into musicals - a formula with mixed creative and box office results. Moulin Rouge!, Tootsie and Beetlejuice all get
Next Wave 2019: ‘The Second Woman’ at BAM Fisher
The happiest and worst memories are those that last, re-playing over and over in one's head. Movies have the same effect, like smiling when thinking about Han Solo winking at Princess Leia in the throne room, or grinding teeth because the sights and sounds of La La Land won't ever go away. Co-creators Nat Randall and Anna Breckon apply the continuous loop to The Second Woman. Starting in BAM Fisher on Friday,October 18 at 5 PM and ending 24 hours later, the intrepid, amazing Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development, Transparent, Drunk History) repeated the same awkward love scene with 100 actors. An
William Forsythe: A Quiet Evening of Dance at The Shed
Walking to The Shed, NYC's newest cultural center on West 30th Street and 11th Avenue, is a visual lesson in urban planning. After exiting the A train on 34th Street at the eyesore that is Penn Station and crossing Eighth Avenue, signage indicates that there will be the new Moynihan Station. (Among the many reasons to see Ed Norton's Motherless Brooklyn when it opens next month is the recreation of the original Penn Station.) Heading towards 11th Ave. and the Hudson River are more glassy complexes way closer to completion than the long-delayed station. There's also Neiman Marcus. The Shed's physical address, 545 30th Street, is
Emma Van Heyn at The Bitter End
Emma Van Heyn is a quirky millennial memoirist using music as flypaper for her unique perspective. She is one of those actor/pianist/storyteller/composer artists that create instant fans on a first viewing. We are seeing the epic rise of this breed of multi-skilled performer that are equally strong as musicians and actors, able to craft original monologues, lyrics and compositions to craft a powerful theatrical experience. Van Heyn has a mighty vocal instrument that booms out of her slight frame with the force of a cannonball. She has a strong, sensual sound that ricochets around the room filling it with warmth
11 Questions With Carie Karavas: Because This One Goes Up To Eleven
Photo: Courtesy of Google Long Island is a never ending bevy of comedic genius. There is no denying the incredible talent that has poured forth from the mouth of the comedy circuit on this tiny island 20 miles easy East of Manhattan over the last 100 years. From Lenny Bruce to Rosie O'Donnell and Eddie Murphy to Ophira Eisenberg. Long Island boasts the best. That is no different with the inimitable Carie Karavas. This past week At 7pm on September 27th at The Argyle Theater in Babylon Long Island this very true statement was no different. Carie first started stand up