There is that moment, when the house is dark and just before the curtain rises, that sends a small shiver down your spine. Let's capture that moment together!
Lights dim, the curtain goes up. Suddenly, we are transported into the imagination of a playwright and actors we do not know! The stage is set for magic and fireworks.
Kelly AuCoin, as Peter, Kerry Butler as Annie with Eisa Davis as Rebecca and Crystal A. Dickinson as Drea in Tanya Barfield's "The Call" at Playwrights Horizons. Photo by Jeremy Daniel.
Couples desperate to be parents often use hope and sometimes each other in their efforts to conceive.
In Tanya Barfield's new drama, "The Call," in a joint Playwrights Horizons and Primary Stages production at the Peter Jay Sharp Theater extended to May 26th, the struggle to adopt just prolongs the agonies of a young married pair.
Annie (Kerry Butler) and Peter (Kelly AuCoin) suffer mightily for the want of a child. One can see the yearning in Peter's eyes as they assemble a crib in their spare room.
Kerry Butler as Annie, Kelly AuCoin as Peter, Russell G. Jones as Alemu, Crystal A. Dickinson as Drea and Eisa Davis as Rebecca in Tanya Barfield's "The Call." Photo by Jeremy Daniel.
Over dinner with a couple, Drea (Crystal A. Dickinson) and Rebecca (Eisa Davis) who have just returned from Africa where they got married, share their expectations of a private adoption. When the birth mother backs out, Peter and Annie are unmoored. Peter presses Annie into seeking help from an agency. The fact that the child they hope to parent will come from Africa stirs up concerns from them and their friends and a neighbor.
Kelly AuCoin as Peter with Eisa Davis as Rebecca, Crystal A. Dickinson (standing) as Drea and Kerry Butler as Annie in "The Call." Photo by Jeremy Daniel.
"The Call," directed by Leigh Silverman moves a bit slowly through the first act, but is grippingly transcendent in the second. The actors acquit themselves splendidly, with Russell G. Jones, as Alemu, an odd African neighbor of Peter and Annie's, adding a poignant humor to the story. Crystal A. Dickinson stands out in the fine ensemble as Drea, the truth-talking girlfriend of Peter and Annie's old friend Rebecca.
At its heart, "The Call" is a parlor drama, exploring relationships, race and responsibility in a well-written, intelligent play that is also thought-provoking and likeable.
So much to do, so little time. If this familiar refrain has you wondering how to plan your weekend, here are some suggestions from T&B On The Aisle: Check out "ONE NIGHT STAND," opening April 26 and playing through May 2nd at the Quad Cinema, a backstage documentary, chronicling the production of The 24 Hour Musicals in which teams of top-notch musical theater talent have 24 hours to create, cast, rehearse and put on a live benefit show. See Cheyenne Jackson, Richard Kind, Rachel Dratch (among other performers) and directors like Sam Gold, along with writers and composers like Jonathan Marc Sherman and Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.
A scene from "ONE NIGHT STAND"
The pressure cooker environment behind the scenes as 4 short musicals come to life was echoed by the crews behind the camera as they plunged into a sleepless shoot. Produced by Elisabeth Sperling and Trish Dalton with the assistance of 10 shooters, four production assistants, and three editors, "ONE NIGHT STAND" is a wonder of improvisation and inspiration.
Rachel Dratch and Richard Kind in a scene from "ONE NIGHT STAND."
Visit www.onenightstandthemovie.com to learn more about "ONE NIGHT STAND." The Wild Project, a production and venue for emerging artists and new theater, film and visual arts, has on-going programming to entertain and enlighten. Catch Kara Manning's "SLEEPING ROUGH," through April 27th, for instance in which an American woman spews graffitti of discontent all over London. Next, "ALONDRA WAS HERE" by Chisa Huthcinson, takes the stage, from May 4th to the 18th, with a tale of politics and brutality. For more information about these and other productions at The Wild Project, visit www.thewildproject.com. You think you can dance goes on parade with the Shakedown Dance Collective, a gang of 55 people of all shapes and sizes, ages and aspirations, under the tutelage of professional dancers Jamie Benson and Deborah Lohse.
Deborah Lohse. Photo by Peter Sperling
The Shakedown consists of weekly 2 hour dance rehearsals that prepare would be dancers for performances throughout New York City.Lohse and Benson have declared Sunday, April 28th "International Dance Day" with a Gala at Dixon Place. On May 18th, join Shakedown for "DANCE PARADE NEW YORK," from 1pm to 7pm from Broadway to Tompkins Square Park.
This is what a Shakedown class looks like! Photo by Bonny Kahane.
"I AM AN OPERA," at Dixon Place through April 27th, takes us from a large crowd to a one man show, in which Joseph Keckler, writer/performer, sings arias of lament and exultation. "I AM AN OPERA" details Keckler's life as a portrait of the artist taunted by demons, tripping on hallucigens, and suffering through day jobs.
Joseph Keckler in performance. Photo by Gerry Visco.
To learn more about "I AM AN OPERA," please visit dixonplace.org.
There was a time when Detroit rolled out great big cars, and an even bigger sound. The music of the Motor City was humming in everyone's ears, and playing "with a brand new beat" on and off the Billboard charts.
Berry Gordy's memoirs turned into "Motown The Musical," now at the Lunt-Fontaine Theatre, based on Gordy's book To Be Loved: The Music, The Magic, The Memories of Motown, are condensed to bring us up to the 25th Motown Reunion in 1983. His Hitsville USA studios brought an exciting new formula to
pop music. Motown records was modeled after the assembly lines of Detroit automobile factories where Gordy had worked.
Berry Gordy, Jr.'s (Brandon Victor Dixon) glam vision added lavish costumes and complicated dance moves to the "short stories," as he put, in the songs his writers created. Gordy gave each of his groups their own persona-- "The Temptations," "The Vandellas," with Martha Reeves (Saycon Sengbloh) at the helm "The Supremes," with Diana Ross (Valisia LeKae) and Smokey Robinson's (Charl Brown) "Miracles."
Brandon Victor Dixon, center, as Berry Gordy Jr., with cast. Photo by Joan Marcus
"Motown The Musical" is a cover of many of the great hits Gordy's studio produced over the years. With success came disappointments. The Supremes' songwriting team of Holland, (Daniel J. Watts as Eddie), Dozier (Julius Thomas III as Lamont), Holland, (Eric LaJuan Summers as Brian) were among the first of many defections from the Motown labels. As soon as the acts Gordy cultivated gained popularity, a big studio swept in to gobble them up.
Sydney Morton as Florence Ballard, Valisia LeKae as Diana Ross and Ariana DeBose as Mary Wilson -- aka The Supremes with Brandon Victor Dixon as Berry Gordy, Jr. Photo by Joan Marcus
Berry Gordy's friend, Smokey Robinson, remained loyal, writing and recording many of the famous tunes from Motown. His early chart-topping songs was "My Guy," which gave Mary Wells early success, soon followed by the iconic "My Girl."
"Motown The Musical" is part revue, part Awards Tribute show, and part an evening at the Palladium. With the grandiloquent flair Gordy demonstrated as an impresario, "Motown The Musical" is visually splendid. The choreographic numbers, by Patricia Wilcox and Warren Adams, from the celebratory dance after Joe Louis's victory bout in 1938 to the smart-stepping moves of the Temptations, put a lively time-stamp on each scene. David Korins, sets, and Esosa, costumes, add their eye-catching verisimilitude to the timeline.
Was Motown an integral part of the civil rights movement? Or did the Motown moment coincide with great and necessary changes in the social fabric of America? Gordy did not intend to be a force for equality; he just wanted to make music that would move everyone. His talent for making money and spending it was legendary. Gordy's skill in business meant he could cover the costs of his extravagances. Gordy fell in love with one of his players, and sacrificed a great deal to make Diana Ross a big star. With this part of the tale, "Motown The Musical" could be seen as a kind of "A Star is Born-Lite."
Its story line is a little weak, but its production values are high and very stylish.
Andrew Scott-Ramsay and Blythe Duff star in
David Harrower's "Good With People," launching the 2013 Brits Off Broadway
festival at 59E59 Theaters. Photos by Carol Rosegg
Having a nuclear test site in your town might put a damper on tourism. Helensburgh, Scotland has been made relatively desolate.
People come, but just for day trips, as Helen Hughes (Blythe Duff) laments in "Good With People," David Harrower's play enjoying a NY premiere at 59E59 Theaters, through April 21st.
Helen works at the Seaview Hotel where Evan Bold (Andrew Scott-Ramsay) is one of the few guests. Evan, who's been in Qatar and Peshawar as a charge nurse for many years, has returned for his parents' remarriage.
Blythe Duff and Andrew Scott-Ramsay star in David Harrower's "Good With People," launching the 2013 Brits Off Broadway festival at 59E59 Theaters. Photos by Carol Rosegg
Evan and Helen share an unpleasant history since Evan, out of loyalty to his dad's job at the naval facility, was one of the boys from the base who bullied her son Jack after he protested nuclear testing.
The actors are both very good story tellers, holding the attention, despite a minimal story to tell.
Puns and misapprehensions provide some modicum of amusement in "Good With People,"
but Harrower's very short script seems a bit self-indulgent. Long pauses seem like superfluous dramatic tics in a play that is just an hour long.
"Good With People" is the Scots part of 59E59's annual Brits Off Broadway festival. It is produced by Traverse Theatre Company and Datum PPaines Plough.
For more information about "Good With People," and Brits Off Broadway, please visit 59e59.org..
Little girls dream of dressing in gowns and looking like a princess, and, as they get a little older, of charming princes who can whisk them off to a castle.
The fantasy in "Rodger's + Hammerstein's Cinderella," in an open run at the Broadway Theatre, is about transformation and aspiration.
Poor Cinderella (Laura Osnes) leads a terrible life, toiling at thankless tasks for her thankless stepmother, Madame (Harriet Harris) and ne'er-do-well stepsister Charlotte (Ann Harada) and the nicer Gabrielle (Marla Mindelle.) She dreams of escape, "In My Own Little Corner," and goes back to work mending and cleaning.
Laura Osnes as Cinderella and female ensemble. Photo by Carol Rosegg.
Douglas Carter Beane sees in Cinderella both the hopes for betterment and the determination to make a better world in his script adaptation of the Rodgers and Hammerstein original TV production. His take is perhaps just a little too up-to-the-minute. Or maybe, it contributes to making "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella" so much more than a made for TV version of a timeless fairytale, even if that 1957 live broadcast featured Julie Andrews in the heyday of television. There is a shiny sort of do-good, feel-good quality to Beane's rescripting, and to the lyrics he and David Chase have added to Rodgers and Hammerstein's original.
Santino Fontana as Prince Topher and Laura Osnes as Cinderella at the ball. Photo by Carol Rosegg.
Laura Osnes, whose ascent to Broadway was as the winner in a TV contest for her role in "Grease," has proven to be the quintessential stage actor. She is also more than a made for TV star. Since being "discovered," she's done yeomen's work in the much-maligned "Bonnie and Clyde," subbed seamlessly for Kelli O'Hare as Nellie Forbush in Rodgers and Hammerstein's "South Pacific," played Hope Harcourt in "Anything Goes." She's performed at Carnegie Hall and in concerts at 54 Below. In short, Laura Osnes is a genuine Broadway actor.
Cinderella's desires and dreams resonate as they always have. She's just a little pluckier and gutsier than you might remember her. Her Prince Topher (Santino Fontana) is a little more evolved and sensitive, too.
Santino Fontana is delicious as Prince Topher. Ann Harada gets to sing one of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most wonderful anthems, "The Stepsister's Lament" with a touch of irony and innocence. Marla Mindelle as the stepsister who falls in love with a rabble-rousing poor boy, Jean-Michel (Greg Hildreth) is endearing, as is Greg Hildreth, in an endearing subplot. Victoria Clark makes a sweet Fairy Godmother, Marie although she looks a bit uncomfortable during her stint in the air.
What would Cinderella's trip to the ball be without exquisite costumes? We don't have to imagine anything so dire, since William Ivey Long gives us glamourous gowns worthy of a fairytale and happy endings. Anna Louizos's sets are also gorgeous and imaginatively rendered. Paul Huntley's headdresses are extravagant enough to make hair and wigs a character. Mark Brokaw 's direction keeps "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella" moving at a lively pace.
"Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella" will make your wish for a captivating evening come true.
Sweet dreams. (Visit VP for more on "Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella.")
Being drunk and lovesick may not be an ideal combination.
In Anita Loos's "Happy Birthday," at Theatre Row;s Beckett Theatre in a TACT production through April 13th, the combination proves magical.
Mary Bacon as Addie Bemis and Todd Gearhart as Paul Bishop in "Happy Birthday." Photo by Hunter Canning.
The mousy librarian, Miss Addie Bemis (Mary Bacon) is lovestruck. She shows up at Gail Hosmer's (Karen Ziemba) Jersey Mecca Cocktail Lounge to warn Paul Bishop (Todd Gearhart) that her father Homer (Anderson Matthews) intends him harm. Paul is the object of Miss Bemis's affections.
Don't know how many of us thrive through liberal doses of alcoholic beverages, but Addie Bemis comes into her own the more she drinks. Her priggishness melts and her confidence builds. As the evening goes on, she is sure she can get Mr. Bishop away from Miss Maude Carson (Victoria Mack.)
Addie's barroom full of new friends, and the audience, are all pulling for her. The bartender, Herman (Ron McClary) gives her godfatherly advice. She sings, she dances, but can she prevail over Miss Carson's obvious charms?
The large cast to a man and woman are as delightful as the lighthearted, but savvy, romance in "Happy Birthday." Mary Bacon is especially poweful, as she carries Addie seamlessly from stiff to giddy.
There is a mystique that romanticizes the gold-digger. Holly Golightly is an icon of that ambitious young woman. She is a naif, an innocent, a survivor.
Emilia Clarke as Holly Golightly with Vito Vincent in a photo by Nathan Johnson.
Fred, a writer whose success is not guaranteed, and whose charm is plentiful, comes on the scene in a torrential rain, reciting lines so poetic he sounds like Tennessee Williams reincarnate. In fact,there are many positively lyrical passages in Richard Greenberg's adaptation of Truman Capote's "Breakfast At Tiffany's," currently enjoying an open run at the Cort Theatre, with the young British star from "Game Of Thornes," Emilia Clarke, as Holly Golightly.
George Wendt as Joe Bell in "Breakfast at Tiffany's." Photo by Nathan Johnson
Holly is an object of desire for men of all persuasions, even Joe Bell (George Wendt) the bartender with whom Fred (Cory Michael Smith) and I.Y. Yunioshi (James Yaegashi), both now prosperous, reminisce about the long lost Holly.
As a conceit, having breakfast at Tiffany's doesn't conjure the intended image of luxury. As a play, "Breakfast at Tiffany's" is a little like a tonic one takes in aid of sleep. Perhaps to enjoy that early meal amid gold and diamonds.
The staging, with scenic design by Derek McLane and projections designed by Wendall K. Harrington, and lighting by Peter Kaczorowski, is remarkably alive and vivid. The storyline and production is a bit dull, even though all the acting is excellent. Cory Michael Smith's lovestruck Fred is particularly outstanding. Emilia Clarke is aflutter with the conflicting emotions and intelligence of her character.
Emilia Clarke as Holly with Cory Michael Smith as Fred. Photo by Nathan Johnson.
In the interest of complete honesty, not entirely in keepig with Holly's vaunted style, this reviewer is neither a fan of Truman Capote nor smitten by the film his novella inspired.
Don't expect to be humming "Moon River" on your way out of the theater.
This is the premiere season of "To Make Crops Grow," a deadly funny character study of modern folk
embroiled in ancient rites.
It is always an honor and a privilege to witness a Taylor dance performance. The Paul Taylor Dance Company is holding its second spring at the David H. Koch Theatre on the Lincoln Center campus through March 24th.
So many of the pieces Paul Taylor has created elevate our understanding of even simple things to delightful new heights. Among those exciting and sometimes revelatory experiences, there are the flowing movements of "Cascade," a dance he choreographed in1999 or "Eventide." The latter is a companion piece to Taylor's beautiful new work, "Perpetual Dawn." (See the review of the world premiere here.) Or is it the other way around, since the intimate "Eventide" was created in 1997?
The moody backdrop of a lone tree -with set and costume design by Santo Loquasto-- and Jennifer Tipton's lighting are characters in "Eventide." The dance is set in seven parts to music by Ralph Vaughan Williams.The exceptionally lovely interlude in "Eventide," Musette wasdanced by Parisa Khobdeh and Michael Trusnovec at our performance with a wonderful lyricism. Heather McGinley and Francisco Graciano also made a particularly nice pairing in Moto Perpetuo.
Photo by Tom Caravaglia from Paul Taylor's new "Perpetual Dawn"
The souls writhing in gayly silk robes (the women) or workmen-like overalls (the men), sets and costumes by Alex Katz, present a Hieronymous Bosch-like vision of end times in "Last Look." Donald York composed the music for the Taylor dance, which was first performed in 1985. Mirrors and darkness create a haunting texture for "Last Look."
Story-telling is one of the delights of a Taylor work, and in "To Make Crops Grow," he takes his time to the reveal, riffing along the way on human nature and foibles. "To Make Crops Grow," enjoying its premiere season this year, making it dance number 137 in the Taylor compendium,with music by Ferde Grofe, is tantalizing in its pace.
"Le Sacre Du Printemps (The Rehearsal)" is celebrating the anniversary of the Nijinsky-Stravinsky collaboration that ended in near riot in Paris in 1913. Taylor's take blends humor with brutality, making fun of Nijinsky's maligned ballet, but not completely abandoning its theme of sacrifice. Amy Young's on-going tantrum of loss is poignantly amusing. The mix of joyful and barbaric, is also seen in "Company B," a personal favorite, where the hope and bounce of the dancing and the songs by the Andrews Sisters contrast with the ugly realities of war.
Randy Sharp’s “Last Man Club” is being remounted by Axis Theatre Company through 30 Mar, having been cancelled in the aftermath of Sandy. It is a fitting irony that a storm blew away the original launch date for this performance. Wild weather is the backstory for "Last Man Club," too.
“Last Man Club” is set in the Dust Bowl of 1936. As ten years of drought have decimated farms in a 200-mile wide surge of storms, one family has decided to risk staying.
Working together is the very definition of collaboration, of course, so the 2nd Annual Collaborative Concert features a large group of musicians working with the youngsters from the Noel Pointer Foundation's Youth Orchestra.
Members of the NPF Youth Orchestra are getting a big break this week when The Noel Pointer Foundation and the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music co-host this concert. Twenty-three of them will perform with musicians from Julliard, N.Y.U. and Manhattan School of Music at this grand event at St Ann & The Holy Trinity, 157 Montague Street, Brooklyn on March 22nd at 7pm. The program ends on a high note, with Gershwin's beautiful and emblematic "Rhapsody in Blue," featuring World Piano Competition Winner, Tatiana Tessman.
Heeding the admonition to "write what you know," A.R. Gurney chronicles the WASP experience with its expectations and disappointments. The expert interpreters at the Keen Company are reviving a slightly updated version of Gurney's 1991 "The Old Boy," through March 30th at the Clurman on Theatre Row. Jonathan Silverstein directs the production which features Peter Rini, Cary Donaldson, Tom Riis Farrell, Laura Esterman, Chris Dwan and Marsha Dietlein Bennett.
For more information and tickets for "The Old Boy," visit Keen Company on-line.
There is an adage that luck is what you make it. Having advantages is not the same as being advantaged.
In "The Luck of the Irish," Kristen Greenidge's excellent new play at LCT3's new Claire Tow Theater that just closed March 10th, the well-educated middle class Taylors would seem to be ideal neighbors in a decent suburb of Boston, except for the redlining that keeps black families from buying in to the American dream. The Donovans, poor and uneducated have to ghost buy the property for them.
Patty Ann Donovan's (Amanda Quaid as the younger and Jenny O'Hara in 2012) mantra "There is an order to things..." is the whine of the overlooked. Dr. Taylor (Victor Williams) and his wife Lucy (the phenomenal Eisa Davis) are sophisticated people. Mrs. Taylor and Patty Ann's husband, Joe (Dashiell Eaves) are kindred spirits,dreamers lost in a love of words.
The winds of change that Joe foresees in the late 1950s do not serve the Taylor's granddaughters, Nessa Charles (Carra Patterson) and Hannah Davis (Marsha Stephanie Blake) and her husband Rich (Frank Harts), as they try to negotiate among their neighbors in 2012.
Change takes on a very different form in Annie Baker's "The Flick," at Playwrights Horizons through March 31st, when a movie theater in the Worcester environs changes hands.
Rose (Louisa Krause) with Sam (Matthew Maher) and Avery (Aaron Clifton Moten) in "The Flick" by Annie Baker. Photo by Joan Marcus
The new owner will take it from celluloid to digital-- the wave of the future, but one that has Avery (Aaron Clifton Moten) distressed. The feel and look of film, as he points out, is meant to be on celluloid. His fellow employees are movie buffs also, but they are just working minimum wage jobs. Neither Sam (Matthew Maher) nor Rose (Louisa Krause) share his passion or intensity.
David Zinn's set for "The Flick" is very impressive.
There is nothing wrong wth "The Flick" that some prudent editing couldn't fix. Many of the pregnant pauses, slow takes and musical transitions, really belong on the cutting room floor.Sam Gold might have done more with his discretion in pacing the play better, Annie Baker could have been more concise.
Avery (Aaron Clifton Moten) is ever introspective in "The Flick" at Playwrights Horizons. Photo by Joan Marcus.
In "The Madrid," Liz Flahive's concise and tightly written new play at Manhattan Theatre Club's NY City Center Stage I through May 5th, on the other hand, the pacing and structure are really quite perfect. Change is something for which the main character in "The Madrid" yearns, and her family dread.
Edie Falco, as Martha, the mom gone missing, and Phoebe Strole as her daugher Satah. Photo by Joan Marcus
"The Madrid" offers an odd point of view, but one that calls for thinking and questioning. Martha (Edie Falco) is a kindergarten teacher who chooses to disappear. She moves to a somewhat derelict apartment near the lovely home she shared with her husband, John (John Ellison Conlee) and their daughter Sarah (Phoebe Strole). Her disappearance is no surprise to her mother, Rose (Frances Sternhagen) who undertakes some desperate measures to bring her back, nor to John. Sarah on the other hand is completely unmoored. She raises to the occasion, moving back to live with her dad, driving her grandmother around, and dealing with the ostreperous neighbors, Danny (Darrne Goldstein) and Becca (Heidi Schreck), who feels the loss of her friend keenly.
Martha, it seems, simply wants a timeout, from the responsibilities of her life. She likes the noise and quiet of her new life, but she misses Sarah.
John Ellison Conlee as the steady John, Phoebe Strole as Sarah, Frances Sternhagen as Rose. Photo by Joan Marcus.
Let's face it, none of us likes to be left hanging. It's natural to want to know how a story, once begun, ends.
Due to a habit of writing for serialization, and his sudden death, "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" was a bit of unfinished business for Mr. Charles Dickens.Fortunately, Rupert Holmes came along with a wonderfully theatrical solution in his rendition of "The Mystery of Edwin Drood," in a revival at the Roundabout Theatre Company's Studio 54 through this weekend. (Clsoing March 10th after a splendid and extended run.)
For the occasion of this production, the entire theater is turned into London's Music Hall Royale at the turn of the century, presided over the master of ceremonies, The Chairman/Mr. William Cartwright (Jim Norton).
Holmes' musical of "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" is set as a solid Victorian melodrama enveloped in a lively vaudeville. Since this is a play within a review, each cast member has two parts, as actor and character of rhe play within. The audience participates, all the way to "voting" on whodunnit and is incited to applause and mayhem from the beginning to the end.
There is a villain, John Jasper/Mr. Clive Paget (Will Chase) and the delicate ingenue, Rosa Bud/Miss Deirdre Peregrine (Betsy Wolfe) whom he pursues even though she is engaged to his nephew, Edwin Drood, played in the play within the vaudeville by Miss Alice Nutting, the company's male impersonator (Stephanie J. Block.)
It is the Princess Puffer. the Music Hall's doyenne, Miss Angela Prysock (Chita Rivera) who supplies John with the opiates that fuel is evil spirits.
The "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" is grand fun. William Ivey Long's opulent costumes add to the playful tone set by Scott Ellis's direction and the superb cast.
The gift that Paul Taylor shares with us is not his longevity --he's 82, as it happens-- but his lifelong creativity!
His latest creation, "Perpetual Dawn," which enjoyed a world premiere at the Gala on March 5th at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater, is a balletic work set in a rustic backdrop. A troupe of eleven dancers, clad as turn of the century peasants under a gorgeous landscape backdrop.The set and costumes are by Santo Loquasto with lighting by James F. Ingalls adding to the blissfully pastoral atmosphere of the piece. "Perpetual Dawn" is excitingly balletic!
"Offenbach Overtures," Paul Taylor's 1995 tweak on the composer of the can-can makes for a light-hearted and beautiful romp. Even for big fans of Moulin Rouge, Toulouse-Lautrec and La Belle Epoque, "Offenbach Overtures," is supremely funny.
The Paul Taylor Dance Company's spring season offers more hi-jinks and high kicks, continuing on through March 24th.
For information and tickets, please visit www.ptdc.org Tickets may also be purchased at the David H. Koch box office on the Lincoln Center plaza.
Have you ever noticed how often nonsense makes the most sense? Before you find a dozen contradictory examples, just think about it.
"Clive," based on Bertolt Brecht's "Baal," at The New Group through March 9th, is surreal and disjointed, spinning a coherent and emotionally satisfying tale of an unredemptive soul.
Jonathan Marc Sherman has retold, "stolen from," been "inspired by," Brecht, in creating "A play in 21 shards" as directed by and starring Ethan Hawke, with alot of help from a marvelous cast of 9 (including Jonathan Marc Sherman, Brooks Ashmanskas, and Vincent D'Onofrio.)
There was a time, not so long ago, when being in an interracial relationship was actually dangerous.
Sheldon Best as David at 22 and Auden Thornton as Stace at 22 in "Years of Sky" at 59 E59. Photo by Carol Rosegg.
"Years of Sky," directed by Christopher Scott at 59E59 Theaters through March 10th, follows the lives of a pair of star-crossed teens.
Amy Hargreaves as Stace at 45 and Gano Grills as David at 45 in "Years of Sky" at 59E59. Photo : Carol Rosegg.
Stace (Auden Thornton) stays true to the dream that she and David (Sheldon Best) can be together in JFK's more-perfect world. David's love for her is never completely derailed by other allegiances. By the time they reunite as adults in 1992, David (Gano Grills) is married, and Stace (Amy Hargreaves) is still idealistic.
Barbara Blatner's bitter-sweet love story plays out over three decades of change and stasis in American society. When they meet again after thirty years, David asks Stace, "In the course a' your day, ya ever find yourself thinkin' - 'I'm white?'
Auden Thornton (Stace at 22)., Tood Davis (Ben) and Sheldon Best (David at 22). Photo by Carol Rosegg.
The cleverly executed sets, constructed by The Ken Larson Co. from Rebecca Phillips fine designs, make excellent use of the small space in 59E59's Theater C.
Among the personable ensemble, Auden Thornton as Stace at 17 and 22, Amy Hargreaves as Stace grown-up and Sheldon Best as the younger David are standouts. Todd Davis rounds out the cast as David's dad, Ben.
For more information and tickets for "Years of Sky," please visit www.59e59.org.
Patrick Fitzgerald, Jon Fletcher, Margaret Daly, Wrenn Schmidt in Teresa Deevy's "Katie Roche" in a
photo by Richard Termine
Irish playwright Teresa Deevy was a master of middle-class parlor-room dramas.
"Katie Roche," at the Mint Theatre throough March 24th, is about a young serving girl who marries the master of the househould. Like most of Deevy's characters, Katie (Wrenn Schmidt) aspires to better herself. She's sure she comes from "grand people" and it is her cockiness that Stanislaus Gregg (Patrick Fitzgerald) finds most appealing. Stan also has aspirations; he believes that marrying will help his career.
Wrenn Schmidt as Katie in "Katie Roche." Photo by Richard Termine.
Katie's ascent from housemaid to mistress of the house does not go smoothly, of course. Amelia Gregg (Margaret Daly), Stan's sister is kind. On the other hand, their married sibling, Margaret Drybone (Fiana Toibin) is a meddling gossip. It's Katie, however, who is her own worst enemy, flirting with Michael Maguire (Jon Fletcher) and with disaster.
Jon Fletcher as Michael with Wrenn Schmidt as Katie. Photo by Richard Termine.
Deevy's gentle, well-mannered comedy gets off to a slow start in the first act, but then quickly finds its pace.
Wrenn Schmidt, as the headstrong Katie, Margaret Daly as her sweet employer turned sister-in-law, and Jon Fletcher as the charming working man who loses out on Katie's affections are stand-outs in this nice ensemble. Jonathan Banks knows how to direct an old-fashioned story for the maximum pleasure of its viewers.
Teresa Deevy's "Katie Roche" celebrate the ordinary, making it extraordinary. "Katie Roche" is a lovely evening (or afternoon, for that matter) in the theater.
To find out more about "Katie Roche," The Mint Theatre, and the Deevy Project, please go to http://minttheater.org/.
Launched in the turmoil of conflicting artistic opinion, with that performance on May 29, 1913, Igor Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” has enjoyed its place in the sun ever since. In fact, Stravinsky's music is one of the most recorded works in the classical repertory, and has had a great influence on many of the 20th century's leading composers.
This year, Igor Stravinsky’s beautiful work is getting the birthday bashes it deserves. And a revival of the Paul Taylor ballet “Le Sacre Du Printemps (The Rehearsal)”as an anniversary treatment as well. It’s like icing on the cake.
Michael Trusnovec and Laura Halzack in Paul Taylor's Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rehearsal), photo by Paul B. Goode
Never one to shy from a controversy, Paul Taylor gives his take on the Vaslav Nijinsky original in “Le Sacre Du Printemps (The Rehearsal),” set to the two piano version of the revolutionary composition.
In PTDC’s spring season, “Le Sacre Du Printemps (The Rehearsal)” will be performed on March 8th, 14th and 22nd at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center.
Also look for the premiere of Taylor's 138th dancepiece, along with the New York premiere of "To Make Crops Grow" (his 137th creation. Expect the return of old favorites, as well, of course, like "Company B" (see reviews at
There are times when there is nothing better than to be proven wrong. Pantomime and slapstick are two genres of comedy that have always left this reviewer unimpressed.
"Old Hats," at Signature Theatre's new Pershing Square Signature Center, already extended through April 14th, is a hilarious array of vignettes which tickled every funny bone in my body.
Photo by Gregory Costanzo. Bill Irwin and David Shiner in "Old Hats," directed by Tina Landau and featuring Nellie McKay.
David Shiner and Bill Irwin are the brilliant clowns and playwrights for this original theater piece. Nellie McKay contributes her skills as narrator, music director, composer, pianist, cellist and ukeleist to the entertainment. Nellie McKay sings and dances, to the able accompaniment of her band of merry men--
Alexi david on bass, Mike Dobson on percussions, Tivon Pennicott playing sax and flute, and Kenneth Salters on drums and assisting as the bartender in the "Cowboy Cinema" segment of "Old Hats."
There is foolishness a plenty, and audience participation, in the above mentioned "Cowboy Cinema" and in the marvellous "A Magic Act," for which Irwin gets to don a dress and show off his legs.
"Old Hats" will appeal to even the curmudgeons among us, as attested to by my delight in the program.
L-R: Emily Fleischer and Jen Tullock in ON THE HEAD OF A PIN at 59E59 Theaters. Photo by Hunter Canning
There were plenty of historical precedents for the use of paramilitary reinforcements before Bush the younger sent two hired guns for every soldier into Iraq. It's true that most of those did not involve using private companies to run operations in hot zones, but as long as there have been wars, there have been combatants whose allegiance to the cause was strictly for pay.
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L-R: Will Gallacher, Sofia Lauwers, and Devin Dunne Cannon in ON THE HEAD OF A PIN at 59E59 Theaters. Photo by Hunter Cannon
Mercenary corporations treat both their own personnel and combatants cavalierly. In "On The Head Of A Pin," in a Strangemen & Co. production at 59E59 Theaters through March 10, their actions fall under the scrutiny of an intrepid reporter. Lily Strauss (Sofia Lauwers) lost her job and reputation making allegations against them, but this time she has proof that Caliban, the company authorized to send Arab-speakers to interrogate prisoners, is involved in ugly dealings in Iraq.
L-R: Sofia Lauwers and Jason Ralph in ON THE HEAD OF A PIN at 59E59 Theaters. Photo by Hunter Canning
Chris Conrad (Jason Ralph), Caliban's head of HR, doesn't look too closely at Sarah Kennedy's (Emily Fleischer) motives when he sends her to an Iraqi prison despite the fact that he wonders why a newly wed wants to go so far away from her husband. Her boss, Kathleen Crane (Jen Tullock) browbeats her into forcing confessions. Sarah's only ally in her new job is a soldier named Russell Clark (Marcus Callender) whose offer of help to her goes very much awry.
Frank Winters' "On The Head of a Pin"is deeply earnest even when it's funny. From Gwen (Devin Dunne Cannon), the news intern who assists Lily in her expose to the interim editor, Jon Lowe (James Ortiz), the characters are all dedicated and righteous. Sadly, sincerity is not enough to make a drama work, even one that is as hard-working as this one. For more information about "On The Head of a Pin," please visit www.59e59.org.
Who is it that said "In comedy, as in life, it's all in the timing?"
Whoever it was, David Ives is on board at any rate with his 6 short playlets, "All In The Timing," in a Primary Stages revival at 59E59 Theaters through March 17. In its premier in 1993, this packet of one act comedies was hailed as masterly.
Unfortunately, mere zaniness does not guarantee hilarity Several of these sketches fall flat. Some contain the germ of a laugh; these are merely based on a funny premise Others are too tedious or too precious. Happily, a couple are truly wonderful. All six of these one-acters are very off-beat. A cafe pick up in "Sure Thing" runs through all the permutations of a flirtation in rapid fire.
"The Philadelphia" hits a high-point on this-- or admittedly, any-- program. It's at a fine tuneed level of absurdism.
Ives coul d not have found a better cast to deliver this material. Carson Elrod does pratfalls and "tongue stoppers" with equal grace. Each fall and every syllable he delivers is a surprise no matter the set-up. In "The Universal Language," Jenn Harris's verbal slapstick is as screamingly funny as Elrod's physical falls.
The theme of time and timing is cleverly picked up in the set design by Beowulf Boritt, who uses six different genres of clock to illustrate each skit. John Rando's quick-paced direction respects the spirit of silliness in "All In The Timing."
For more information about"All In The Timing," please visit www.primarystages.org.
