“A Chorus Line,” conceived, choreographed and directed by Michael Bennett, became a legend after it opened on Broadway more than 30 years ago. It won a Pulitzer Prize for Drama and ran for 15 years. Perhaps time has dimmed its luster, or what was shocking or unconformist then is now just ho-hum. The dancing is still exciting, but the story (book by James Kirkwood & Nicholas Dante) often seems offensive rather than groundbreaking.
Sons harbor envy and resentment and a secret you will probably guess By Lucy Komisar “Losing Louis” was a big hit in London. Maybe it lost in the translation from “Louis” to “Louie” as it crossed The Pond. If this is British humor, it‘s of the “No Sex Please, We‘re British” variety, not of the […]
Useless self-absorbed upper class ignores slide into war By Lucy Komisar The politics is subtle, the story is arch, the acting sublime. “Heartbreak House,” given a delightful production by Robin Lefevre at the Roundabout Theater, was written by a master who knew how to put his opinions forth with artistry. Shaw dissects the bourgeoisie at […]
But email musings by 20-something on Israel-Palestine is not good drama By Lucy Komisar This solo theater piece will be judged by two standards. The first is political: are viewers convinced by its arguments against Israeli policy in the West Bank and Gaza? Are they moved and persuaded by the writings — journal and emails […]
Brilliant revival of 1920s play evokes workers‘ alienation By Lucy Komisar Director Ciar¡n O‘Reilly has finely staged – sometimes choreographed — an emotionally and aesthetically powerful production of “The Hairy Ape,” Eugene O‘Neill‘s 1922 drama about class and alienation. Especially if you‘ve never watched it performed, this is a version to see. Yank (brilliantly played […]
Mix of classical and modern creates a vibrant dance idiom By Lucy Komisar Suddenly dancers in classical pose are transformed into modern angular shapes that twist and jump to the sounds of the baroque. The music becomes electronic as classical body language turns into erratic gyrations in “Anagram,” choreographed by James Sewell to the music […]
Classic and modern plays target Bush and (other) terrorists By Lucy Komisar The Public Theater in recent months consciously chose three plays to comment on the Bush war. Not by name, of course, but hardly mistakable. So did The Classic Stage. An import brought from Ireland by the Atlantic Theater Company skewered war in general. […]
Songs of love, loss and war shimmer in this witty cabaret By Lucy Komisar This charming, poignant, elegantly staged theater piece of love-and-loss songs envelopes one so completely that you feel as if you‘d wandered into a Paris cabaret instead of the slightly seedy Zipper Theater, where the lobby bar and cozy corners establish a […]
By Lucy Komisar Director John Rando, known for the brilliantly campy “Urinetown,” has another success here with a witty, lively send-up of 1980s style — a Boy George look-alike (Kevin Cahoon) with long hair and swishy demeanor – mixed with a 1950s “gotta get a husband” attitude. The long joke is about a small-time band […]
Exuberant sounds mix with realistic vignettes of remarkable lives By Lucy Komisar If you came of age in the 60s, this smart, vibrant, clever memoir of the ways things sounded will evoke shivers of delight. And also some fascination, as the pulsating, exuberant sounds of Motown and doo-wop are skillfully linked to the story of […]
Play gives errant gay prof a pass on pedophilia By Lucy Komisar Of all the plays I‘ve seen this season, “The History Boys” has been the most controversial, the most likely to provoke debate. On the one hand, the rotund, erudite, slightly overweening sixtiesh professor, Hector (excellently portrayed by Richard Griffiths) propounds a philosophy of […]
“His voice was soft, his manner mild
He seldom laughed but he often smiled
He‘d seen how civilized men behave
He never forgot and he never forgave
Not Sweeney
Not Sweeney Todd
The Demon Barber of Fleet Street…”
John Doyle‘s production of “Sweeney Todd” is a thrilling artistic achievement. The Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics) – Hugh Wheeler (book) collaboration is a powerful political parable about how a corrupt, lascivious upper class oppresses the poor and powerless.
This is not the Harold Prince 1979 Broadway staging where Angela Lansbury, Len Cariou and Victor Garber went through their paces in story-book fashion. Not another theatrical fantasy. Not the John Doyle treatment, which has you on the edge of your seat.
Class struggle, love and the search for the Holy Grail prove a witty mix. By Lucy Komisar There‘s nothing like an outrageous political satire written by left-wing Brits! John Patrick Shanley, who won this year‘s Pulitzer Prize for “Doubt,” wondered at a Drama Desk panel on theater and politics, which I moderated last year, why […]
Hokey Burlesque Mixed With Ethics Livens the Score. By Lucy Komisar I don’t like rock ‘n roll. I loved Hairspray, where rock is the major musical motif. I don’t care for men dressing up in drag. I thought Harvey Fierstein as Edna Turnblad, the overweight, tacky, attentive mother of a teenager, was terrific. This is […]
Brassy blues, R&B & gospel enliven poignant melodrama By Lucy Komisar This brassy, bluesy, R&B and gospel melodrama, based on Alice Walker’s novel, is a feminist cry of pain and rebellion, an operetta-style protest in the tradition of “Porgy and Bess.” It‘s a moving and memorable production. Playwright Marsha Norman generally succeeds in pulling the […]
This behind the scenes revisionist view of The Wizard of Oz is a political allegory about racism and discrimination. It’s fascinating as a literary work and stunning as theater. Based on the novel by Winnie Holzman, it’s an updated Animal Farm. It’s a play that exists on two levels, one for the kids and another for adults, who will find it intellectually stimulating. It’s Oz before Dorothy got there.
You might think this was a typical high-tech Broadway extravaganza. After all, a dragon belches smoke from the top of the proscenium and a huge witch’s hat flies around. (The set wizardry is by Eugene Lee.) Susan Hilferty’s costumes are great gobs of color and feathers.
The new Elton John smash musical in London is a stirring political work built around the Yorkshire miners‘ strike of 1984-5. It‘s a very British play, with workers mocking a giant puppet Maggie Thatcher and singing odes to labor solidarity. It tells also a universal truth that political struggle must defend personal freedom.
Should the Mother Superior act on strong suspicion if children are at risk? By Lucy Komisar ˜Playwright John Patrick Shanley, educated in Catholic schools in the Bronx, could hardly ignore the recent revelations of years of widespread abuse of children by Catholic priests. Clearly on the left of the political spectrum, he takes a careful, […]
If you are going to London, there‘s a very modern theater you should visit. It‘s not in the center of the city; it‘s in Hampstead in north London, the intellectual heart of town. Or at least that‘s the neighborhood where a lot of writers and theater people live. Giving honor to place, the theater is called the Hampstead Theatre, and its recent incarnation is the creation of Jenny Topper, artistic director from 1988 until 2003, the first woman to hold that post.
