4000 Miles

I didn't care much for Amy Herzog's After the Revolution but her latest, 4000 Miles, is delightful. Well worth a trip to the Duke on 42nd Street, especially since tickets are only $20. You could pay three times that for the privilege of seeing Mary Louise Wilson in action.

Side Effects

Today's review is of Side Effects at the Lucille Lortel. Ayee! Not a very good show, I'm afraid. The highlight of the evening I saw it was sitting behind Vanessa Redgrave -- whose daughter Joely Richardson is in the play.

Theater outside NYC

In today's Post, I offer some suggestions about catching theater out of town this summer. This is one of the few times when I wish I had a car -- so I could get myself to Williamstown and see everything. At least I can go to Vassar's Powerhouse Theater by train.

Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark redux

I saw Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark 2.0 last Friday and lived to write a review. Boy, what a ride it's been — getting this show to open, I mean, because the actual production isn't actually a ride. Or at least not a very fun one.

I also cooked up a handy timeline, so you can discover with astonishment that the seed was planted all the way back in 2002.

One Arm

More Tennessee Williams curios! This time it's One Arm, unearthed and put together from various drafts by Moisés Kaufman. Not a long lost masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but a worthy experience for Williams fans.

The Shaggs: Philosophy of the World

The Shaggs may not be a great musical, but it's a surprisingly warm, affectionate one — and very smart about varying perceptions and the pressures of family. I suspect those who love traditional musicals won't go for it, but fans of a certain brand of indie rock — and a certain indie spirit — should. I certainly did. Click here for my review.

Through a Glass Darkly

Don't mess with the master! Yes, I'm a bit of a Bergman freak (I even have a magnet of his face on my fridge), but even a dabbler could tell that the stage adaptation of Through a Glass Darkly completely misses the point of the movie. I liked Carey Mulligan's performance but that ending left me steaming. More thoughts here.

Lysistrata Jones

Yay, another good musical! What a spring season! Douglas Carter Beane and Lewis Flinn's Lysistrata Jones is a cheerleader update of the Aristophanes chestnut. It's ridic good fun. Full review here.