Pericles -- smartly staged & performed in Brooklyn. See it

Pericles - Pericles is Trevor Nunn's first American staging of Shakespeare. And those who see this production will be part of something very special. . R

A Room of My Own-- Except for Mario Cantone, Messina's memoir is a misfire

A Room Of My Own - Charles Messina write and directs a play tapping into his memories of growing up in Greenwich Village in the late '70s. Too bad it's only intermittently poignant or funny.

Women without Men- rescued from obsucurity and with an all-female team

Women Without Men - The Mint once again fulfills is archeological mission with Hazel Ellis's all female play nodding to diversity in action with a female director and all female crafts team. . .

Hughie- O'Neil's 1-hr semi -monologue delivered by film star Forest Whitaker

Hughie - Lauded film star Forest Whitaker is making his Broadway debut Read More

Paul Auster City of Glass from page -to-stage works only to a point

City of Glass - Edward Einhorn has undertaken the formidable task of creating a dramatization of Paul Auster's novel and also directing it. It works but only to a point Read More

A troubled Sondhei musical -- trouble free in DC

Road Show - Finally, a smooth landing for this troubled Sondheim/Weidman musical, thanks largely to director Gary Griffin and Josh Lamon and Noah Racey as the Mizner brothers . . Read More

Colman Domingo's family drama at the Vineyard

Dot -Colman Domingo's third play in its impressive Vineyard premiere . . . Read More

The Body of an American - terrific performances by Michael Cumpsty and Michael Crane

The Body of an American - Even without the all too timely focus on what's entailed in being a photo-journalist in bloody war zones, seeing Michael Crane and Michael Cumpsty on stage throughout this 2-hander's 90-minutes is worth a trip to the West Village for anyone who values good acting.

Her Requiem- a talented teenager obsessed by death at LCT3

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Her Requiem - Maybe death isn't a subject that you typically warm to in the heart of winter. But if you visit Greg Pierce's new play at Lincoln Center's Claire Tow Theater, you will discover that the Grim Reaper isn't just that hooded guy who knocks at the door of the dying but can tap insistently on the mind of a young artist

Angel Reapers- more dance piece than play

nking over feeling. Read More
Angel Reapers - Playwright Alfred Uhry and director-choreographer's Martha Clarke's dance=theater piece focuses on the struggle-filled life of the Shaker community's founder Ann Lee and the fallout of the group's ritualistic excesses and celibacy. R

Smokefall-- Noah Haidle's family drama: witty but not for everyone

Smokefall - Noah Haidle's magical realism–infused family drama prioritizes thinking over feeling. Read More

The Promised Land at DC's Mosaic theater

The Promised Land - Mosaic Theater Company never shies away from tough questions. Its current offering by Shachar Pinkhas and Shay Pitovsky takes a hard look at the subject of refugees. . . Read More

Tennessee Williams 1984-- 2 rare 1-acts from Williams'final years

Tennessee Williams 1982 - essential and unforgettably haunting fragments Read More

Old Hats-- still hilarious and touching

Old Hats - There are two good reasons to see the current revival of Old Hats at the Pershing Square Signature Center: The first is Bill Irwin, and the second David Shiner. Joined at the hip or performing solo, Irwin becomes ying to Shiner's yang

Hand to God arrives in London-- irreverent as ever

Hand to God A humorous look at sex and religion from extreme puppets and not suitable for children . . . Read More

Drunken With What-an ambitious but flawed study of O'Neill's Mourning Becomes Electra

Drunken with What: A Study of Mourning Becomes Electra   - Despite game performers this fails to provide a sense of the cumulative power of O'Neill's magnum opus or the complexity of the Mannons.

Buried Child -The New Group revisits Sam Shepard's American gothic

Buried Child - Ed Harris heads Sam Shepard's creepy American gothic family in the New Group's riveting revival. . . Read More

Yet a nother take on Uncle Vanya

Uncle Vanya Director and adaptor Robert Icke brings a different perspective to Chekhov's classic play. . . . Read More

A BronxTale now sings and dances in NJ-- and maybe n Broadway?

A Bronx Tale, The Musical - This song-filled, exuberantly acted and smartly staged trip down one man's unapologetically sentimentalized memory lane has the makings of a hit. Read More

Please Continue-- continues EST Sloan science drama

Please Continue - The newest EST Sloan Project production dramatizes the Milgram obedience experiments to explore the relationship between power, responsibility, and human nature. Read M

The End of Longing-sure to appeal to the "Friends" generation

The End of Longing Matthew Perry's first play about the Friends generation ten years on . . Read More

Smart People: Trimely & smart. but could be smarter

Smart People - Lydia R. Diamond's conversation about prejudice is stylishly staged and timely but not quite as smart a satire as it wants to be. . .

Ralph fiennes a fine Master Builder in London

The Master Builder Ralph Fiennes delivers a deep and satisfying portrait of Ibsen's flawed master builder in a definitive production from Matthew Warchus' Old Vic. . . Read More

Not a Jane Austen fan? No matter with Bedlam'sSense & Sensibility

Sense & Sensibility - Bedlam's hilariously inventive take on Jane Austen's first novel . . . Read More

Cyrano de Bergerac plus an intriguing update. . .

ogy. . . Read More
The Language of Love: Cyrano De Bergerac and Burning - Something new to update something tried and true in Resonance double bill. . . Read

Shanley's Prodigal Son--not quite another Doubt, but a compelling coming of age story

Prodigal Son - John Patrick Shanley's compelling new coming-of-age play turns his trilogy based on personal history into a tetralogy. . . Read More

The Woodman-- one of a kind theatrical story telling

The Woodsman - The multi-talented James Ortiz has created a hauntingly beautiful, spectacularly imaginative adult theater piece about the back story of how a flesh and blood wood chopper turned into Frank Baum's Tin Man without a heart. . . Read Mor

The Moor premieres in Connecticut

The Moors - Clocking in at an intermissionless 95 minutes, Jen Silverman's melodramatic comedy is as adventurous and stylish as it is strained and vapid. . . . Read More

The e Very Hungry Caterpillar Show-- a treat for the preschool set

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show - Th doesn't arrive on the scene til rather late in this show for the preschool set. But so many enchanting characters that precede him that they won't mind a bit.

Broadway and the Bard--Actor Len Cariou's mashup of the Bard and Broadway tunes

Broadway and the Bard - Len Cariou interweaves Shakespeare's verse with the Great American Songbook, and seasons it with tidbits of theater lore culled from his own personal history on Broadway, and beyondRead More

Skeleton Crew-- Atlantic Theater is moving its stage 2 hit to its main stage

Skeleton Crew - The show will have another run at the Atlantic's Main Stage next Spring!Dominique Morisseau has created four vivid, likeable characters and provided them with authentic dialogue and stories in this final play of her Detroit trilogy. . . Read More

Note:  If the author fine tunes her first  2 Detroit sotries--  and,  per my suggestion,  brings the trilogy up to date with a 4th play--  this might  end up as   a marathon event  in a future season--

My Sister-- our LA critic found these identical twins in Nazi era compelling

My Sister - Janet Schlapkohn's play is an intelligent and compelling examination of a sibling relationship which is tested not only by one sister's physical limitations, but by untenable socio-political circumstances. .

Alexandre Dumas's Monte Cristo lives off-off-Broadway

Monte Cristo - New York actor Jared Reinmuth has embraced the challenge of adapting Dumas' literary behemoth. Rea