All stories by ELISABETH VINCENTELLI on BroadwayStars

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Irish play low on luck by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The Mint company is an expert in excavation, mining forgotten nuggets from the theatrical rubble. Usually choices are made on a case-by-case basis: an obscure American comedy here, an overlo…

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Friday, February 22, 2013

What would Jesus boo? by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The title of Lloyd Suh's feeble new comedy accurately sums up its starting point. The 18-year-old Jesus (Justin Blanchard) runs away from home after a blowup with his dad " Joseph, not God. …

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Tuesday, February 19, 2013

'Really Really' big manipulation on campus by Elisabeth Vincentelli

If it's sympathetic characters you crave, skip "Really Really." This campus-set show presents its 21-year-olds as materialistic, selfish, narcissistic, manipulative and glibly coarse. It's …

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Monday, February 18, 2013

A brawl made for lightweights by Elisabeth Vincentelli

In the Irish hamlet of Innisfree, native son Sean Enright, the hero of the musical "Donnybrook!," has the distinct feeling that he sticks out. And it's not because he spent most of his life …

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Much ado about two: the lovers sizzle onstage by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Watch out: There's a hot new couple in town! Maggie Siff and Jonathan Cake are so irresistible in "Much Ado About Nothing" that they would make the most embittered divorced believe in love a…

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Thursday, February 14, 2013

'Laramie' lengthy but worthwhile 'Project' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The 1998 attack on Matthew Shepard was so brutal, it shocked the nation. After meeting him at a bar one October night, two men took the openly gay University of Wyoming student to a remote a…

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Friday, February 8, 2013

Hawke watch by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Let's not judge Ethan Hawke solely on the basis of "Clive": For two decades, he's been a frequent presence on New York stages, both intimate and large, venturing into classics and championin…

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Thursday, February 7, 2013

Brecht to blech by Elisabeth Vincentelli

There are several good people involved in "Clive," including director/star Ethan Hawke and Vincent D'Onofrio, back onstage after years in the "Law & Order" trenches. For their sake and ours,…

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Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Woman's broad study of the Bard's works by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Tina Packer's survey of Shakespeare's female characters, "Women of Will," clocks in at almost three hours. And that's the abbreviated "overview": Starting in April, Packer will also perform …

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Sunday, February 3, 2013

It's a crime shame that 'Vandal' isn't any better by Elisabeth Vincentelli

You can't blame Hamish Linklater for playing it safe with "The Vandal": This is the actor's playwriting debut, after all. Don't want to go crazy and take a big public spill. So for his drame…

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Thursday, January 31, 2013

'Little Flower' power by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Two shows tied for the Tony for Best Musical in 1960. The one that City Center's beloved Encores! series is reviving this week is definitely not "The Sound of Music." Instead, we're getting …

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'Rage' against the anticlimax by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The new off-Broadway piece "All the Rage" starts off with a diffident man in a pale-blue button-down shirt giving out a few words of welcome. He concludes his brief speech with a meek reques…

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Monday, January 28, 2013

'Fever' not contagious by Elisabeth Vincentelli

America mostly knows Wallace Shawn as the cranky Vizzini from "The Princess Bride," but for many New Yorkers he remains half of the cult movie "My Dinner with André" and a provocative playw…

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Thursday, January 24, 2013

A bloody good time in 'House' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

From "Little Shop of Horrors" to "Carrie" and "Re-Animator," horror musicals aren't exactly new. But it's safe to say none tops "The House of Von Macramé" in the hemoglobin department. Thi…

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Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Campus-violence drama 'Collision' crashes by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Some shows leave you scratching your head, wondering when they went wrong. At least "Collision" makes it easy: It goes south in the first minute. And it's all downhill from there " a better …

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Life's too short to endure tedious 'Times' marathon by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Sunday's performance of "Life and Times: Episodes 1-4" started at 2 in the afternoon and petered out shortly before midnight. If only its events were as epic! There are no Norse gods and pow…

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Tuesday, January 22, 2013

A tougher, stronger America by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Crystal looks sharp in her black business suit and red pumps. Appearances are doubly important for her: She's a car saleswoman and she's dead broke. Projecting confidence means a lot. In fac…

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Monday, January 21, 2013

A feast in all senses by Elisabeth Vincentelli

By the time you take your seat, the cast of "Not by Bread Alone" is already onstage, kneading dough and splitting it into loaves at long tables. So begins a process " and a show " that ends …

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Thursday, January 17, 2013

Scarlett's Red-'Hot' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Maggie is young and attractive, and she just wants to have sex with her hot husband " is that too much to ask? You can hardly blame her for being on edge: The man would rather spend his time…

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Wednesday, January 16, 2013

A seasoned love story by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The new off-Broadway show "Midsummer (A Play With Songs)" proves that you can still get a lot of great mileage out of boy-meets-girl. Hollywood has cranked out so many awful romantic comedie…

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Monday, January 14, 2013

Count on terrific '7' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Just like "Amour" " Michael Haneke's austere movie about aging and death " could never have been made in America, "Opus No. 7" had to be imported from overseas. It's not just the subject mat…

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Sunday, January 13, 2013

'Picnic' a feast by Elisabeth Vincentelli

In William Inge's bittersweet 1953 hit "Picnic," a hunky charmer appears out of nowhere to unsettle the women of a small Kansas town " especially the local beauty, aimless and bored with her…

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Thursday, January 10, 2013

Metcalf's mesmerizing in a dark 'Place' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

'The Other Place" is billed as "a riveting new thriller." That's putting it loosely. The play is less riveting than it is reasonably engaging. It's not entirely new, either, having premiere…

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Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Tepid 'Water' pours on the schmaltz by Elisabeth Vincentelli

When the curtain drops on "Water by the Spoonful," the first thing that comes to mind is: This fine but innocuous show won last year's Pulitzer Prize? Over "Other Desert Cities" and "Sons of…

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Wednesday, January 2, 2013

Theater fest goes the offbeat path by Elisabeth Vincentelli

This isn't your daddy's Chekhov. Popping up twice this month alone, the melancholy Russian continues his run as New York's most popular dead playwright. But don't expect anything traditional…

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Thursday, December 27, 2012

It's no Page-turner by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Patti Page, the subject of the new jukebox musical "Flipside," was one of the most popular acts of the 1940s and '50s. Over a 65-year career, the canary " now 85 and still singing " sold mor…

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Monday, December 24, 2012

Hands-on drama by Elisabeth Vincentelli and Frank Scheck

Maybe it's because we live in a world where everybody's connected, but this year has seen an explosion of "immersive" shows that blur the line between audience and performers. In some, you w…

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Wednesday, December 19, 2012

'Hanu-mas' for everybody by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Being showbiz pros, Marc Kudisch and Jeffry Denman know full well the secret to a good comedy team is opposing personalities. You suspect they exaggerate their differences for their goofy ne…

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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Not quite enough heat for 'Pan' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

In most crime novels, you try to figure out who did the deed. In Amy Herzog's new drama, "The Great God Pan," the big question is whether the deed even happened. The play opens with the awk…

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Monday, December 17, 2012

'Grinch' missing the means by Elisabeth Vincentelli

We're lucky that this year brought several excellent options for family entertainment: "A Christmas Story, The Musical," "The Radio City Christmas Spectacular" and "Elf " The Musical" spring…

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Thursday, December 13, 2012

P.S. It's slight, silly fun by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Peter Jackson spent gazillions of dollars to tell the story of "The Hobbit." For the new off-Broadway epic "P.S. Jones and the Frozen City," playwright Robert Askins and director José Zayas…

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