The End of Longing

Matthew Perry tries his hand at playwriting and believe it or not, my review for Newsday was among the kindest ones! Click here.

Ducklings

Always a pleasure to go to Jack (especially since it's one of the theater venues I can walk to from my house) and this time didn't disappoint. Click here for my review of Ducklings.

Rotterdam

My latest review for The New York Times is Jon Brittain's Rotterdam, right this way.

The Whirligig

My latest review for Newsday is Hamish Linklater's The Whirligig, at the New Group.  Click here for the goods.

A chat with Brendon Urie

Brendon Urie's enthusiasm when we chatted about his going into Kinky Boots really, really made me want to see him in the show. Click here for the interview.

What to do upstate this summer

This theater actually loves the outdoors, and upstate has plenty to offer. My (necessarily limited) selection for Newsday is here.

Will I ever get tired of writing about Eurovision?

Short answer: no. And it was tons of fun to pundit the 2017 edition for Slate.

See you in Lisbon next year!

Venus

Very happy to review the Signature revival of Suzan-Lori Parks' Venus for Newsday. Check it out here!

Ski End

It's the rare event that combines two of my great loves: theater and skiing. Lo and behold, I give you my review of Piehole's Ski End!

The Dreyfus Affair

The Ensemble for the Romantic Century's latest dives into the Dreyfus Affair, one of the darkest episodes of French history. And you think it's in the past now, you're sadly mistaken. My review's here.

Multi-resort ski passes

Multi-resort passes have changed the way the ski industry sells tickets and the way people plan their ski vacations. I rounded up the best passes for next season for the New York Times.

Interview with Corey Hawkins

It's always great when actors you've seen shine in supporting parts or in big parts but smaller shows suddenly find themselves propelled to the kind of stardom that lands you first row at the Paris Fashion Week. My chat with Corey Hawkins is here.

Cuisine & Confessions

Les 7 Doigts de la main's new show isn't quite as good as Traces but still a treat for kids of all ages. My review's here.

How Steve Earle got back into downtown theater

Some people object to Steve Earle's radical positions (come on, the Yankees?!?) but they should read my interview with him anyway!

Gently Down the Stream

Harvey Fierstein starring in a Martin Sherman play about gay history and its transmission from one generation to the next? If someone would know about that topic, it's these two men. I reviewed the show for the Times.

A double dose of Inge

We don't see plays done in rep very much in New York, so right after the Acting Company at the New Vic it was interesting to see the Transport Group do it. Lo and behold, it was another good pairing, this time of a couple of William Inge classics. My joint review for the Times is here.

Chess Match No. 5

The first Anne Bogart show I ever saw was Bob, almost 20 years ago. So I was more than happy to get a stab at her latest, which is another cerebral look into a genius' mind. Click here for my review.

Shakespeare meets Black Power

Always interesting to consider plays done in repertory, and it doesn't happen all that often in New York. I reviewed the Acting Company's double bill of X: Or, Betty Shabazz v. The Nation and Julius Caesar for the Times. 

The Strangest

One of the most fascinating things about Albert Camus' The Stranger is how open it is to interpretation, and to riffs on the story. The latest is The Strangest, a play I just reviewed for the Times here.

A travel guide to Aspen

I never thought Aspen would be my bag but darn, it does ski well! My report for CNN Travel is here.

Tim Minchin

What a treat to profile Tim Minchin for the New York Times! Click here for the piece.

Marilyn in Manhattan

My review of Elizabeth Winder's Marilyn in Manhattan is just out in Newsday.

The View Upstairs

My latest for the Times is The View UpStairs, set at the New Orleans bar that was arsoned in 1973. Click here for more.

The Expanse

The Expanse is science fiction and proud of it! I wrote about why its low-budget, sometimes cheeseball genre charms are so wonderful for the Village Voice. Click here for the intergalactic fun.

A chat with Sarah Ruhl and Joshua Harmon

It was great fun to spend some time with Sarah Ruhl and Joshua Harmon, who both have new plays opening soon (well, his is a transfer and was seen Off but still). And they seemed to dig each other, too. Click here and scroll down the interactive Times spring preview.

August Wilson's Pittsburgh

A few weeks ago, I went down to Pittsburgh and had the privilege to tour the Hill District with August Wilson expert Chris Rawson. The resulting article is in The National, Amtrak's excellent magazine.

King Woman

It's been fun to return to music writing, and chatting with King Woman's Kristina Esfandiari was a treat. Click here for the Bandcamp interview.

The Mother of Invention

For his latest play, James Lecesne stretched a bit, but it didn't quite come together. My review is here.

The Great American Drama

My latest review in the New York Times is of the latest show by the New York Neo-Futurists. What happens when you write a play by committee? Click here to find out.

Incident at Hidden Temple

I reviewed Damon Chua's latest play for the New York Times. Click here for the deets.

Drop Dead

Borrowing the Daily News' notorious headline is a great idea for a book. You can read my review of Hillary Miller's new tome about theater in 1970s New York here. Yay, American Theatre magazine!

Winter sports in upstate New York

Winter has come, and there's a lot more to do than skiing or snowboarding in upstate New York. Did you know what Old Forge is the snowmobile capital of the east? Did you know there is an Old Forge, for that matter? All this and more in my latest piece for Newsday.

Profile of Harriet Walter

It was a pleasure and a honor to chat with Harriet Walter for this New York Times profile. It's rare to meet such an upstanding actress and person.

Top Secret International + Real Magic

A joint review of Top Secret International and Real Magic, at the Under the Radar and Coil festivals, respectively. Click here for the fun.

Amtrak lets you go to Winter Park in comfort

I just wrote about the return of rail travel between Denver and Winter Park — what a civilized way to go skiing! Click here for the story.

Five foreign series to watch

I ingested a lot of TV for the Village Voice just so I could give you, dear readers, some informed tips. Head that way if you want to know what to binge on next.

Best theater of 2016

With just a few hours left to 2016, here's a list of my favorite shows of the year. Some new names, some older ones still doing great work; some Off Broadway, some on, and some Off that will be On soon enough. It was a good year, at least when it comes to the stage.

And so, in alphabetical order:

A 24-Decade History of Popular Music
The Crucible
Dear Evan Hansen
Indecent
Julius Caesar. Spared Parts.
Miles for Mary
Ride the Cyclone
Sweat
Underground Railroad Game
The Wolves

Gorey

Edward Gorey's eccentric life matched his eccentric output, and this new show pays him lovely homage. My review for the Times can be found here.

His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley

My latest review for the Times is now up. Find it here.

Women's skis and women's ski camps

I just wrote about women's skis and women's ski camps for CNN Travel. Fun! Now to get back on the slopes myself... Counting the days.

Favorite theater moments of 2016

I'm very excited to be part of the New York Times' roundup of theatrical moments that marked 2016. And how could I not mention Isabelle Huppert? It's her year! Click here for the fun.

Private Manning Goes to Washington

What would happen if Chelsea Manning chatted with Obama? What would happen if the late hacktivist Aaron Swartz wrote a play about it? My review of this show (not written by Swartz!) is here.

Where to ski in the West

Well hellooooo, Long Island! So pleased to be in Newsday, especially writing about one of my favorite topics: skiing! Click here for my short-and-sweet guide to some western resorts.

Theatre for One

The last time I went to Theatre for One, its mobile booth was in Times Square. Now it's in the Signature's lobby, but the experience remains daunting in its own way. My review is here.

Interview with Deke Sharon

Never mind being an a cappella practitioner: If you've seen Pitch Perfect or The Sing-Off, you've heard Deke Sharon's work. It was a treat to talk to him for the Times. Read on.

A French Village

It's a great treat to be back in The Village Voice after too long an absence. Especially since I got to review the stellar series A French Village. Click here for my take.

Furry!/La Furia!

If, for whatever reason, you've ever felt uneasy at the sight of the Times Square costumed characters, this show is for you. My review's here.

Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes

I got to review one of my favorite New York traditions for the Times. And here we go.

A Star Has Burnt My Eye

Howard Fishman explores the mysterious life and luminous work of Connie Converse in his play with music at BAM. My review for the NY Times can be found here.

Q&A with Molly Ringwald

Molly Ringwald is back on stage, as Aurora — that's the mother — in Terms of Endearment at 59E59. We chatted while she prepared to put on her show wig, and here's the result.

Request Concert

Another Polish production at BAM — after Songs of Lear and Phaedra(s) (well, that last one was Franco-Polish) — and my favorite of the bunch. Tough to watch but rewarding, and my review is here.

Public Enemy

David Harrower took his editing scissors to Ibsen's An Enemy of the People and ta-da: Five acts down to 100 minutes! He tweaked the title too, while he was at it. My review of the Pearl production is here.

Now Is the Time

Little Lord's new show at Abrons has quite the cumbersome title — Now Is the Time. Now Is the Best Time. Now Is the Best Time of Your Life. — and the production is just as unwieldy. Yet I enjoyed its ramshackle fun. Click here for my review.

Feature on the Mad Ones

I profiled the company the Mad Ones for the New York Times. I highly encourage everybody reading this to check out their latest show, Miles for Mary, which is still playing at the Bushwick Starr. Make sure you hit Queen of Falafel while you're at it!

Some thoughts on Taylor Mac and judy's audience

If you happened upon my Twitter feed, you saw my episodic reports on Taylor Mac's epic show, A 24-Decade History of Popular Music, under the #Macathon hashtag. There's a lot to unpack about that event, from the song choices to the costumes to the selection of themes for the various acts, but here I want to focus on the audience participation.

Taylor (I don't know him but writing just "Mac" feels a bit weird) has always had an amazing command over audiences, but what he did over the weekend was something else: He fully made us part of the show. Sometimes he picked individual volunteers, and believe me there was no turning him down. (Being the timid kind, I moved around the house to spots that felt safe, ie unlikely to draw attention from our roaming MC.) My personal favorites were the man who played Yum-Yum in The Marskado segment (Taylor's dinner-theater version of The Mikado, but set on Mars to deflect Gilbert and Sullivan's now-uncomfortable take on Japan), and his melancholy, electronically altered wailing of "Tit-Willow"; the man who played Stephen Foster in a match-up against Taylor's Walt Whitman; and the 80-year-old gentleman who was so good that he was invited onstage twice, and turned out to be the father of guitarist Viva DeConcini. Taylor had a sixth sense to pick people who were a little awkward, a little shy — he mostly steered clear from the many performers or would-be performers in the audience. He is not afraid to create discomfort but he doesn't make people feel under attack; audience terror this is not. The awkwardness enriches the performance.

But the ways in which Taylor used the entire room of 600+ people were even better. One tactic was to create subgroups, as when he asked all the bearded men to stand on their chairs, when he split drinkers and non-drinkers during the temperance era (leading to a gigantic game of beer pong, or rather root beer pong), or when he summoned the straight men to the stage. Another was to divide the room in sections, which he would then pit against each other. This was a fantastic way to illustrate one of the leading ideas in the show, which he expressed at least a couple of times: "Every decade is about a community that's building itself as a result of being torn apart," he said by way of explaining both his show and his show's take on American history.

And so he created theatrical antagonisms among audience members, pitting them against each other.

He had one side of the room playing Confederates to the other side's Union.

He divided the floor into groups that loudly made the cacophonous noises one would hear in a crowded tenement as he sang Irving Berlin's "All Alone."

Later the pro-war half of the room was set up against the pacifist side, the two camps hectoring each other — the pacifist one kept shrinking, though, until it was down to a couple of people drowned by the vociferous bellicose yahoos (ie the majority).

A tribute to Tiny Tim became a battle between 12 ukulele players and 12 Ulysses.

In the 1950s, he made the middle section vacate their seats and crowd over to the side to emulate the white flight from the cities to the suburbs. (Black audience members could stay in the middle, and since there weren't many of them at the show — something Taylor acknowledged — they had plenty of chairs to themselves.)

In the late 1960s (I think, it was a bit of blur by then), Taylor was the lone Queer of America and the audience was homophobes pelting him with ping-pong balls.

So: America, built on conflict, pillage, murder, oppression of the other and the weak. But also built on communities brought together by those very scourges and, at best, making art out of it. How to make this come to life over the course of a show? By forcing the audience to reenact that theater of conflict and appropriation — we were performing the making of Americans, to borrow from Gertrude Stein.

Each member of the audience brought their own baggage, their own history to St Ann's Warehouse. Me, I couldn't help grinning when Taylor wondered why America was still infatuated with its former colonial masters, the British, while it was the French who came to their aid during the revolution (I'm paraphrasing). I watched the show as someone who became a U.S. citizen ten years ago, enamored of the country's spirit but not blind to its shortcomings. What we experienced this weekend reminded us, through extraordinary artistry, that America is deeply, deeply troubled, to put it mildly, but we're all in it together. Or at least some of us are in it together. And maybe that's good enough.

Songs of Lear

I'm always up for a company taking a drastic approach to Shakespeare, but I wish Songs of Lear had a bit more diversity in tone and style. Still, the score was co-written by a Corsican so props to the homeland! My NYT review can be found here.

Verso

A little goes a long way in Helder Guimaraes' new show, Verso. My review for the New York Times is here.

Interview with Romeo Castellucci

It's safe to say that nobody does what director Romeo Castellucci does. Nobody. And now New Yorkers won't have to go to Montclair or Philadelphia to see one of this shows — at long last! I chatted with him a few days ago, and here is some of what transpired.

Interview with Peter Brook

For my first piece in The Wall Street Journal, I interviewed director Peter Brook. What a thrill and honor! Click here for the Q&A.

Empathitrax and Lewis Black

Big news on the Dilettante front: I've started contributing to the New Yorker's Goings On About Town section. Can you spot the theater capsules I wrote? OK, so I'm not quite pulling a reverse Janet Flanner in scope (ie, a French woman writing from the US as opposed to an American reporting from France) but still, I'm counting this as a win for ESL!

And there's more -- that is, more reviews for the New York Times! Earlier this week there was the new Colt Coeur production, Empathitrax, then I checked out Lewis Black's latest show, Black to the Future. Click on those links, why don't you?

The Jamb

I liked The Jamb, warts and all. At least it didn't feel overpasteurized by a lengthy workshop process. My NYT review is here.

Fringe roundup

I saw a few shows at this year's Fringe (including four on Wednesday alone, which isn't even competitive compared to what hardcore Fringe goers can do) and lived to tell the tale in the NYT. Click here for the lowdown.

Quiet, Comfort

Alec Duffy and the Hoi Polloi company gave Toshiki Okada's Quiet, Comfort a gem of a production at Jack. My review for the NYT is here.

Karen Finley's Unicorn Gratitude Mystery

By golly, Karen Finley still has it! My review of her new triptych, at the Laurie Beechman every Sunday, is here.

Alice in Black and White

Staten Island's homegrown hero, the pioneering photojournalist Alice Austen, gets an affectionate biographical play, Alice in Black and White. My NYT review is here.

Troilus and Cressida

Troilus and Cressida is described as a problem play. It looks like someone solved it. My NYT review of this Shakespeare in the Park production is here.

Roundup of three shows from the New York Musical Festival

I checked out NYMF's Nickel Mines, The Last Word and Tink! Read on to know which one was fabulous and which ones, not so much.

Summer Shorts, Series A

Summer wouldn't be summer without this anthology of one-act plays. And Summer Shorts wouldn't be Summer Shorts without a piece by Neil LaBute. My review is here.

The Iron Heel

I traveled to Fort Greene's South Oxford Space (which is awesome, by the way) for The Iron Heel, a stage adaptation of a fairly obscure Jack London novel. Click here for the review.

Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme

It was a pleasure to catch Denis Podalydès' staging of Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme at Lincoln Center Festival. Here's my review for The New York Times.

Fun fact: Podalydès' old pal Emmanuel Bourdieu is listed for "artistic collaboration," whatever that is. His father was famed sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, who came up with (among many others things) the concept of cultural capital — which of course is was the play is partly about.

The Execution of Mrs. Cotton

Good serendipity for my first New York Times theater review: a show with a marked guignol streak. Too bad it was petit rather than Grand. Click here for the full review.

Kayak polo at Brooklyn Bridge Park

Oops, there was one last NY Post piece due to run: an account of my kayak-polo adventure at Brooklyn Bridge Park. Click here to discover this addictive water sports.

My last NY Post pieces

Here are handy links to my last pieces for the NY Post. Not latest: last.

First off, click here for the deets on what happened in the spring of 1923, when the vice squad raided The God of Vengeance and put the kibosh on the show — that's what you get for bringing lesbians and religious sacrilege to Broadway.

I had serious problems with last year's Spring Spectacular but Radio City turned the show around this year, and now it's deserving of its name. There's still work to do but I do think they're over the hump now, and have something they can build on.

The hottest tour of the summer — nay, the year? It's a 400-year-old book. The Folger Library is putting some of its Shakespeare First Folios on the road.

Finally, meet Mexrissey, which puts a fabulous Mexican spin on Morrissey songs.

What to do and not to do when you exercise in the heat

Another outdoorsy piece, this time about precautions to take when you exercise outdoors and the temperature is climbing. I wish I'd known some of these things when I almost passed out after playing tennis in 100 degrees last summer...

Helen Mirren's deep catalogue

The only people who should be surprised to see Helen Mirren in the next Fast and Furious movie are the ones who haven't paid any attention to her long and wildly diverse career.

The Taming of the Shrew

Does this play work better with a single-sex cast? My favorite production remains Propeller's all-male one at BAM, but then I did like the mixed one with Maggie Siff a few years back. Phyllida Lloyd chose to go broad — in every sense of the term. My review's here.

Paddleboarding in the Rockaways

I just love exploring the nooks and crannies of New York, especially when I also get to try a new sport — in this case standup paddleboarding. I didn't do too much of the pilates session, though! More details on what I found out here.

The Baloneys are back

It was a lot of fun to award the Baloneys for the second year. As the Tonys celebrate Broadway's best, my little awards revel in Broadway's worst. The list of shame is here.

Beyoncé at Citi Field

As much as I admire Beyoncé's determination and just how cool her show looked, I found it hard to feel anything in this military-precision spectacle. My review's here.

The Bechdel test should not be a litmus test

Can you use a checklist to gauge a movie's quality? My take on how the Bechdel test is being used and abused is here.

Tegan and Sara

I was so primed to love Tegan and Sara's new album — for the past three years they've been doing all the right things, saying all the right things, wearing all the right things. And then I just liked it well enough. My review's here.

Hatsune Miku: the ultimate geek icon

Can it get any better for a geek than an artificial pop star whose shows consist of high-tech hologram projections backed by a live band? Meet Hatsune Miku, in town to turn the nerd nation into a glowstick frenzy!

Cirque du Soleil tries again in New York

And Cirque du Soleil fails again. I don't understand why they can't leave well enough (in Vegas) alone. My take on Paramour is here.

Stew writes great musicals, doesn't give a f--k about theater

I was a big fan of Passing Strange and was enchanted by Stew and Heidi Rodewald's new one, The Total Bent. It was a treat chatting with Stew, who's articulate, informed and opinionated -- it's so rare to see those three qualities at once! Click here for the chat.

Picks of the week: Turn Me Loose, Daphne's Dive, Skeleton Crew

Lots of good stuff happening off-Broadway right now. In addition to the exquisite Indecent, I recommend Turn Me Loose, Daphne's Dive and Skeleton Crew.

Gays on trial: Indecent and The Judas Kiss

Coincidentally two plays just opened in which homosexuality is put on trial, directly (Oscar Wilde in The Judas Kiss) and indirectly (the 1923 Broadway show God of Vengeance in Indecent). Check out which one you should see.

Blake Shelton's new album is the rare confessional that doesn't suck

I usually dread breakup/new hookups autobio records but Blake Shelton's pretty great! My review is here.

Tina Charles' weekend

I chatted with the Liberty's center Tina Charles (check here). Clearly it brought them good luck because the team's won its first two games!

Please let this hilarious nun perform at the Tonys

As anybody who follows Broadway (and off) knows, Jennifer Simard killed as a gambling-addicted nun in Disaster! So much so that she nabbed a Tony nomination -- the only one for the show. Now a movement's brewing to get her on the Tonys telecast. More here.

Interview with Gerald Marzorati

It was a delight chatting with Gerald Marzorati about his new book, Late to the Ball. And not just because we appear to have the exact same game (though he plays at a higher level). The convo is here.

Ukraine won Eurovision

For most of the voting it looked as if Australia was going to win the "Euro"vision Song Contest. But then Ukraine lapped Oz and the old continent prevailed. Oh the stares of the Russian delegation! Click here for my insta-review.

Interview with Daniel Dae Kim

Meet the new King in "The King and I"!

May means it's Eurovision time again!

If it's May, it must be Eurovision time! This year the contest is on a U.S. channel for the first time (why didn't they ask me to comment it?) and Justin Timberlake is the pre-vote entertainment. Neither of these things changes the ESC's fundamentally, defiantly European (as in non-American) nature. More here.

Pick of the week: Do I Hear a Waltz?

There were a few great flubs at last night's Encores! but that's par for the course considering how little rehearsal time they have. Overall Do I Hear a Waltz? is exactly the kind of show that the City Center series was invented for. More here.

The unexpected resurgence of Grey's Anatomy

One of the hottest dramas on TV is ... Grey's Anatomy? Yes, that 12-year-old war horse is enjoying a ratings resurgence. Pound for pound, it's a lot more satisfying to watch than most critical darlings of the moment. Click here for my take on the phenomenon.

Goodbye to The Good Wife

I freely admit it: I cried when The Good Wife ended last night. More thoughs on the series finale are here.

Picks of the week: Dear Evan Hansen and Kiki & Herb

What a beautiful surprise Dear Evan Hansen was! And there's a good chance it's going to transfer, so I'm looking forward to seeing it again. As for Kiki and Herb, the only surprise was how well those old cranks have aged. More details here.

Trump's music options are shrinking by the day

Yet another music act has asked Trump to stop using their songs. Who could it be? Click here.

Gillian Anderson's Streetcar

Gillian Anderson and Ben Foster star in A Streetcar Named Desire at St. Ann's Warehouse. I was a little underwhelmed. My review's here.

Interview with Stephen Mangan

Broadway fans know Stephen Mangan from his playing the title role in The Norman Conquests, but for everybody else (and that's still not that many people!) he's Sean Lincoln on Showtime's Episodes. I talked to Mangan about his new series, Houdini & Doyle.