Standing Room Only

May 8, 2019 Stagebuddy Before there were the gory massacres and rapes of GOT, there was “Titus Andronicus,” one of Shakespeare’s first tragedies. A revenge play, it was one of his most violent works ,and in it, all the central characters were killed, some in very unusual and creative ways. Inspired by the play and […]

The Island Now – April 29, 2019 By Elyse Trevers Rupert Murdoch’s The Sun, changed the face of newspapers. Indeed, he irreparably changed the nature of the media. No longer would the newspaper be merely informative; now it would cater to the wants of the people. The recent British play “Ink” by James Graham is […]

The Island Now – March 28, 2019 By Elyse Trevers They don’t make musicals like “Kiss Me, Kate” anymore — musicals where the attractive lovers argue, sing and then make up, the music is memorable, the athletic dancing is breathtaking and even the bad guys are likable. The musical, by Samuel and Bella Speck with […]

The Island Now – April 5, 2019 By Elyse Trevers It’s no wonder that Billboard called The Temptations “the number one group in the history of rhythm and blues.” With four No. 1 songs, 15 Top 10 hits and 53 singles, the group clearly made its mark on American music. From 1963 until today, 24 […]

April 19, 2019 Stagebuddy Who would have ever thought the words ‘dark’ and ‘sexual’ would ever apply to the 1943 classic musical Oklahoma?  Without considerable changes to the script or the music, director Daniel Fish has totally reimagined the musical, infusing a whole new vision into the landmark show. For some, his pared-down version, which recently moved from St. […]

– The Island Now April 22, 2019   When the revival of Lanford Wilson’s play “Burn This” opens, the characters are in mourning. Robbie, a young choreographer, and his lover Dom have died in a freak boating accident. Robbie’s two roommates, dancer turned-choreographer Anna (Keri Russell) and Larry (Brandon Uranowitz) are trying to cope. Upon […]

April 7, 2019 Stagebuddy Lara Pulver, Kara Mikula, Benjamin Eakeley, Tony Yazbeck, and Ian Lowe photo by Joan Marcus The original production of the 1937 play with music, “The Cradle Will Rock” by Marc Blitzstein was almost as significant as the show itself. The play, which was funded under the WPA’s Federal Theatre Project, was […]

The Island Now – April 12, 2019 By Elyse Trevers I generally don’t read reviews, so I had few expectations about “What The Constitution Means To Me” written by and starring Heidi Schreck. I knew that it ran successfully off-Broadway and then transferred to The Helen Hayes Theater. Although I was familiar with Miss Schreck, […]

April 4, 2019 Stagebuddy “We don’t need another hero,” sang Tina Turner. Well, maybe we don’t really need another musical about superheroes either. The short-lived Off-Broadway musical “Superhero,” with book by John Logan, and music and lyrics by Tom Kitt, begins well, but unfortunately doesn’t maintain its creativity. Wearing a distinctive red-hooded sweatshirt, Simon (talented […]

February 27, 2019 For some of us fans, Stephen Sondheim can do no wrong. However, that is not to say all of his musicals have been winners. “Merrily We Roll Along” has always been described as a ‘problematic’ play. The show, with music and lyrics by Sondheim, a book by George Furth and originally directed […]