A Doll's House

I'd never have thought A Doll's House could be suspenseful but Carrie Cracknell's production is almost Hitchcockian -- without losing an ounce of emotional power. My admiring review's here.

London Wall

The Mint dug up a good one with John van Druten's London Wall, and gives it a worthy production. My review's here.

Kung Fu

David Henry Hwang's Bruce Lee bioplay Kung Fu misses the mark. Thataway for my review.

My Mother Has Four Noses

People were sniffling at Bridges of Madison County, but tears were really pouring at My Mother Has Four Noses, a new musical in which Jonatha Brooke talks/sings about her relationship with her dementia-afflicted mom. My review's here.

The Bridges of Madison County

I chose to see the Bridges of Madison County glass as half-full — click here for my review of the new musical.

Love and Information

New York Theatre Workshop delivers a really, really good production of Caryl Churchill's latest -- and it wasn't easy to stage. My review's here.

Transport

Thomas Keneally and Larry Kirwan's meh musical Transport opens at Irish Rep and my review's here.

After Midnight redux

It was a pleasure to return to After Midnight to check out new featured singer k.d. lang. The show still delivers, and so does she. Thataway for my review.

The Correspondent

Once in a while comes a play so bad, you have to pinch yourself. This time it's The Correspondent at the Rattlestick. Click here for the gory details.

Dinner with Friends

Donald Margulies' Pulitzer-winning Dinner with Friends returns in a Roundabout production. Click here for my review.

Bronx Bombers

I liked Bronx Bombers well enough off-Broadway, or at least I tolerated it. But the transfer to a bigger house didn't do the show any favors. Click here for my review of this unabashed paean to the Yankees.

Almost, Maine

Why sniff at Almost, Maine? Because it's popular in high schools? That's not a very good reason, and I for one had a nifty time at the Transport Group's revival. My review's here.

I Call My Brothers

Catching up with the cross-posting of reviews from this week (this is what happens when you go off the grid in Utah). I'd liked Jonas Hassen Khemiri's Invasion! but I was underwhelmed by his new one, I Call My Brothers. My lukewarm review's here.

A Man's a Man

On the one hand I like that Classic Stage is putting on so many Brecht plays, like Galileo, The Caucasian Chalk Circle and now A Man's a Man. On the other hand, the productions have all been mediocre. My review of A Man's a Man is here.

Stop Hitting Yourself

I have the same issue with Stop Hitting Yourself that I had with the other Rude Mechs productions I've seen: It comes up short of its stated ambitions. My review's thataway.

Intimacy

Thomas Bradshaw strikes again with Intimacy, possibly the most sexplicit play I've ever seen. Click here for my stunned review.

In praise of Episodes

Showtime's sitcom Episodes doesn't reinvent the wheel -- it's only very, very good. Plus, you know, Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig! Click here for my paean to this unjustly neglected series.

Row After Row

Civil War re-enactors: a fascinating subject, to be sure. But it's only half-cooked in the new play Row After Row, reviewed here.

Outside Mullingar

Someone's Irish whimsy is someone else's...well, let's just say Outside Mullingar wasn't my cup of tea. Click here for my review of John Patrick Shanley's latest.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner

Moving Alan Sillitoe's story from 1950s northern England to 2012 London isn't a bad idea, and neither is changing the hero's race from white to black. It's the execution that's lacking in the new Atlantic 2 production. My review's here.

Loot

Has any modern playwright aged as badly as Joe Orton? Exhibit A: Loot, currently in a middling revival by Red Bull. Click here for my review.

Interview with Walton Goggins

I love talking to character actors, and Walton Goggins delivered. Click here for my interview with Justified's one and only Boyd Crowder.

Green Porno

Isabella Rossellini adapts her Sundance series, Green Porno, for the stage, and it's comically droll. Thataway for my review.

King Lear

Here we go again with yet another King Lear. This time Frank Langella steps into the kingly role at BAM. My review's here.

Machinal

After The Winslow Boy the Roundabout is two for two with a revival of Machinal that's even better. This counts as a streak! Click here for my review.

The Surrender

Good timing: The nominations for this year's Razzies are coming out at the same time as my review of The Surrender — a play that would have scored a nom if it were a movie. Click here for my review.

Year of the Rooster

Thanks to Ensemble Studio Theatre for bringing back Year of the Rooster, which I'd missed on its first go-round. As much as cockfighting revolts me, this is one heck of a good show. Click here for my review.

Beautiful -- The Carole King Musical

Yes, Beautiful is boomer-bait. So what? Does anybody think Broadway producers don't target specific audiences? Also it's a bit rich of AARP-age critics to make fun of the AARP-age audience. My review's here.

Tyson vs Ali

Theater's totally infatuated with boxing. Example No. umpteenth is Reid Farrington's Tyson vs Ali. Click here for my review.

Top ten best shows of the year

Click here to find out which were my favorite shows of 2013.

Cirkopolis

I can't believe it took eight years for Cirque Eloize to return to NY. It was well worth the wait though. Click here for my review of Cirkopolis.

The Life and Death of Marina Abramovic

Maybe it was the right collaboration for Robert Wilson, who delivers his best show in years with The Life and Death of Marina Abramovic. Click here for my review.

Why isn't The Voice creating music stars?

The Voice is fun as a TV show but is it really fulfilling its mission to find new music stars? I ponder this deep, deep question here.

The Night Alive

At long last, I've enjoyed a Conor McPherson play! Thataway for my take on The Night Alive, at the Atlantic.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

If someone can hold my attention declaiming a 1798 poem, it's Fiona Shaw. And so it was with her performance of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner at BAM -- directed by Phyllida Lloyd, delivering a nice one-two punch after her Julius Caesar at St Ann's. Click here for my review.

Which musicals should be live-televised next

The Sound of Music got big ratings so NBC has announced it's game to do more live telecasts. But which musicals should be next? I picked 5 I'd like to see, and 5 I'd rather they avoid. Click here for the lists.

The (Curious Case of the) Watson Intelligence

I thought this type of title was reserved to semiotic textbooks and country songs, but I guess I was wrong. My review of this Playwrights Horizons bust is here.

Hit List

It lives! Well, sort of. Even hate-watchers -- especially hate-watchers -- are aware of Hit List, the musical that displaced Bombshell as the prime attraction in season 2 of Smash. Last night it came alive at 54 Below, and I'm glad I was there. Click here for my review.

Chéri

Having enjoyed Martha Clarke's work over the years, I was disappointed to be disappointed by Chéri. Oh well, next time. Click here for my review.

What's It All About?

Unfortunately the new Burt Bacharach revue, What's It All About?, doesn't include a medley from Lost Horizon. Click here for my review.

The Sound of Music

Full disclosure: I'm not a big fan of Rodgers and Hammerstein's churchy-Alpine-Nazi combo (though bonus points for having nuns), but last night's live telecast was pretty good overall. Click here for my review.

Bodycast

Artist lectures don't get more entertaining than Bodycast at BAM, even if hearing Suzanne Bocanegra feed lines to Frances McDormand through an earpiece was a little odd. But hey, I'm sure there was a point. Click here for my review.

Analog.Ue

Maybe I would have enjoyed Daniel Kitson's Analog.Ue more if I was the kind of person who loves The Moth or This American Life -- in other words, storytelling. As it is, I stayed outside of Kitson's show, looking in. My review's here.

And Away We Go

Terrence McNally's latest play — written for the Pearl company — hopscotches from one theatrical milestone to another. Click here for my review.

Regular Singing

I went up and down with Richard Nelson's Apple family tetralogy, and mostly liked Ep. 3, Sorry. But  I found No. 4, Regular Singing, mostly dull with an annoying icing of self-involved dourness. Click here for my review.

No Man's Land + Waiting for Godot

I know the hip factor is lesser by a factor of a thousand, but I liked the Bill Irwin/Nathan Lane Godot more than the current Ian McKellen/Patrick Stewart one. While everybody says Godot is the better of the two shows the latter are doing in rep, I preferred No Man's Land. My twofer review's here.

One Night…

Charles Fuller (A Soldier's Play) returns with another tale of dysfunction in the armed forces. This one's a lot less effective though. My review's here.

The Commons of Pensacola

I'm flabbergasted by MTC's decision to put up Amanda Peet's feeble debut as a playwright. Not just that, but Lynne Meadow herself directed -- talk about an endorsement -- and Sarah Jessica Parker and Blythe Danner signed on. Mystifying. Thataway for my review.

Macbeth

Ethan Hawke tackles Macbeth, and it's a big disappointment. Too bad -- unlike many, I was rooting for him. Click here for my review.

Small Engine Repair

John Pollono's fast and tawdry thriller ends with a hilariously satisfying scene straight out of a Tarantino movie. Another B-movie thing Pollono got right is speed: The show clocks in at 75 minutes. Click here for my review.

A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder

This murder-mystery musical may sway Anglophiles, but I was left largely unmoved by its antics. My review's here.

When film directors make commercials

It was fun rounding up a bunch of ads from around the world — ok, mostly French and Japanese — directed by famous, often unlikely movie directors. Click here for the gallery.

Little Miss Sunshine

I so wanted to love this show! But William Finn and James Lapine took a tumble, and a couple of miscast parts don't help. My review's here.

A Bed and a Chair

More Sondheim! Frankly, I'm not sure the world needed the new revue A Bed and a Chair, but at least it gave us the opportunity to hear Bernadette Peters take on "Broadway Baby" and "The Ladies Who Lunch." Click here for my review.

700 Sundays

I can't say I was particularly looking forward to Billy Crystal's solo 700 Sundays, but he really got me -- the first act is as good as this type of show gets. Click here for my review.

Richard III + Twelfth Night

Mark Rylance leads an all-male cast in Richard III and Twelfth Night in rep. The latter's a better show but you may want to see both for a rare repertory experience on Broadway. My twofer review's here.

The Jacksonian

Beth Henley makes a return to form — though not her usual one — with this lurid Southern tale halfway between Jim Thompson and David Lynch. Click here for my review.

How to Make Friends and Then Kill Them

Halley Feiffer wrote but doesn't star in this pitch-black comedy with a taste for the grotesque. Doesn't add up to all that much, but it's appealingly odd. My review's here.

Disaster!

New jukebox musical Disaster! pays tribute to those cheeseball Hollywood movies with upside-down ships, killer bees and sharks. Of course there's also a nun. Click here for my review of this great little nugget of a show.

Domesticated

Bruce Norris tackles on the war of the sexes in Domesticated. If only the show wasn't so skewed against women. Funny how every single one of them is awful while the lone male characters is pathetic at worst. And yet...it's a worthy ride. Click here for my review.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

Julie Taymor waltzes back the way she knows how: with stage magic. Click here for more on her new eye-popping spectacle.

After Midnight

The creators of the revue After Midnight wisely didn't try to wrap the numbers around a plot: It's just one song after the other, and a great big band onstage. My review of this new Broadway delight is here.

The Landing

The debut musical by Kander and Pierce won't make anybody forget about the many musicals by Kander and Ebb. My review of The Landing is here.

The Returned

Ace French series The Returned, aka Les Revenants, finally debuts in this US! Click here for my review.

The Good Person of Szechwan

Lear DeBessonet's wise and fun production of Brecht's 1943 morality play reopens at the Public. Yay! Click here for my review.

Grasses of a Thousand Colors

I see what Wallace Shawn is doing with Grasses of a Thousand Colors, the intent of it all, but it's just not working for me. My review's here.

Betrayal

The season's hottest ticket so far has been this Harold Pinter revival — and that was before any word of mouth, let alone reviews. With Daniel Craig and Mike Nichols on board, the show's review-proof, but mine's here.

The Snow Geese

I have a feeling I'm going to be in the minority when it comes to Sharr White's period melodrama The Snow Geese. As we know, quality and satisfaction don't necessarily match -- and I enjoyed the show. My review's here.

Fun Home

Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron's adaptation of Alison Bechdel's graphic novel Fun Home is warm and affecting, if flawed. It's not a great musical but a good one, which is nothing to sniff at. My review's here.

A Time to Kill

Any adaptation of A Time to Kill would have to be really good to make us overlook the fact that we're meant to root for a vigilante to go free. The Broadway show that just opened doesn't pull off that trick. My review's here.

Marie Antoinette

David Adjmi's Marie Antoinette doesn't cast a new eye on the queen, but the Soho Rep production is quite good anyway. My review's here.

The Winslow Boy

The Roundabout does better by The Winslow Boy than by its previous Terence Rattigan production, Man and Boy (Frank Langella and Adam Driver, oh my!). My review of this rather good yarn is here.

Romeo and Juliet

CSC's version of Romeo and Juliet is a big mess. Did anybody steer that ship or did it end up on the rocks on its own? Click here for my review.

The Model Apartment

I can't say Donald Margulies is among my favorite playwrights yet I really liked The Model Apartment. But then it's not your regular Margulies play -- he's even called it his "problem child." My review's here.

A Night with Janis Joplin

A sanitized tribute show at Broadway prices — and you get to pay extra for the privilege of drinking in sippy cups. My review of A Night with Janis Joplin's here.

Julius Caesar

Phyllida Lloyd's production of this tragedy, set in a women's prison, kicks serious Roman butt. Click here for my review.

Anthem

I can deal with almost any sci-fi concept, no matter how far-fetched. It's ponderous speechifying I have a hard time with. Click here for my review of this Ayn Rand–based show.

Lady Day

Enjoy the songs during this Billie Holiday biomusical, but cover your ears during the book scenes. My review of Lady Day's here.

Big Fish

Rarely has there been such a discrepancy between a production and its score as in Big Fish. Susan Stroman's show looks great; Andrew Lippa's music is by-the-numbers. Click here for my review.

Bad Jews redux

Bad Jews loses a bit of its impact in a bigger venue, but it's still a vastly entertaining little comedy of hostility. My review's here.

The Film Society

Why bother to revive Jon Robin Baitz's The Film Society when he's written much better plays? And then why give it such a desultory production? Questions, questions... Click here for my review.

Natural Affection

William Inge's 1963 flop gets a rare revival from the TACT company. It's a fascinating project, if not quite as good as I'd hoped it would be. My review's here.

The Glass Menagerie

Was it a case of overly heightened expectations? John Tiffany's revival of The Glass Menagerie is good but not mind-blowingly revelatory. I actually preferred the 2011 one from the Roundabout, with Judith Ivey. Click here for my review.

Arguendo

Elevator Repair Service strikes back with Arguendo, the verbatim reenactment of a 1991 Supreme Court case. Click here for my review.

Philip Goes Forth

The Mint company unearths another half-forgotten — ok, completely forgotten — nugget with Philip Goes Forth. Click here for my review.

Romeo and Juliet

After each performance excited throngs wait outside the theater to see Orlando Bloom. If only what happens during the show was as feverish… My review of this dud is here.

The Blue Dragon

Robert Lepage returns sotto voce with -- and in -- The Blue Dragon at BAM. My review's here.

Women or Nothing

Great title for Ethan Coen's latest at the Atlantic, and great team too: David Cromer, Halley Feiffer, Susan Pourfar... The play's his best so far too, if you don't pay close attention to the plot holes and forced coincidences. My review's here.

Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play

Anne Washburn's Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play is one of the most thrilling shows I've seen in ages. Note: You don't need to have seen the Simpsons episode Cape Feare to appreciate the play, but it does add a whole new level of enjoyment. Click here for my rave.

Preview of Anna Nicole

I'm really looking forward to Anna Nicole, which starts at its BAMrun on Tuesday. Here's the preview I wrote for the Post.

Fetch Clay, Make Man

Des McAnuff did a terrific job directing Fetch Clay, Make Man: This is quite the stylish, kinetic show. Add a sterling performance from K. Todd Freeman as Stepin Fetchit (!) and you're in business. My review's here.

The Old Friends

Yet another Horton Foote play (directed, again, by Michael Wilson) ends up on our shores. I won't complain, not when it boasts Betty Buckley, Veanne Cox, Lois Smith and Hallie Foote at the top of their game. Click here for my review.

Stop. Reset.

Wow, Regina Taylor's new play at Signature is kind of a mess! At least it was a lot cheaper to put on than The Machine. My review's here.

The Machine

If you want to experience a colossal waste of time and money live, simply check out The Machine at the Park Avenue Armory. Or don't. My review's here.

The Hatmaker's Wife

The Hatmaker's Wife pushed all my buttons, and not in a good way. So much whimsy, it made Amélie feel like Pulp Fiction. Click here for my review.

The Hill Town Plays

Reviewing five shows in 550 words isn't easy, but that's what I had to do with Lucy Thurber's Hill Town Plays. In a nutshell: I'm not sure presenting these works together did them a favor. Click here for the review.

Everything Is Ours

Nikole Beckwith's surreal little comedy, Everything Is Ours, gets a good production from Adrienne Campbell-Holt's rising Colt Coeur company. It's nice to see a young playwright step away from grinding naturalism for a change. My review's here.

Once, again

I went back to Once to check out the new leads, and came back underwhelmed. Thanks god those songs are still dreamy. Full report here.

Former Idols raid Broadway

A belated cross-post for my latest piece: a look at how former American Idols have fared on Broadway. Click here for details.

Foreign is the new black

Spiral (aka Engrenages), Braquo, Borgen, Prisoners of War ... I rounded up some foreign -- that is, non-English-speaking -- series you need to check out. Click here for details.