Critic unbound

No need for me to add to the ecstatic praise (“thrilling,” “a masterpiece,” “best play of the century”) that has poured in from nearly every critic for The Ferryman, the Jez Butterworth play that has just opened on Broadway after a much-lauded, award-laden run in London. I can understand some of the enthusiasm. The play … Continue reading ‘The Ferryman’: Broadway’s Wannabe Masterpiece →

A brief movie interlude:  I’ve seen a bunch of new films lately — many of them at last weekend’s Hamptons International Film Festival — and what has struck me is how thoroughly my reaction to them, even films that have little or no political content, has been infused by the Trump presidency. Also how inspiring many … Continue reading Moviegoing in the Time of Trump →

Though it's not far from my hometown of Kansas City, I had never been to Branson, Mo., at least not since it became the entertainment capital of the Ozarks. But having just finished writing a book on Las Vegas entertainment, I figured it was high time to at least lay eyes on the town sometimes … Continue reading Branson: A Visit to the ‘Redneck Las Vegas’ →

The blog has been inactive for a couple of months. My apologies — with an explanation. I have just finished the manuscript for my latest book. It's a history of the 1960s golden age of Las Vegas entertainment — the heyday years of the Vegas show, from the Rat Pack to Elvis. I focus especially … Continue reading From Vegas to Broadway →

I have to be careful talking about Straight White Men, the new Young Jean Lee play that has opened on Broadway, following an acclaimed off-Broadway run in 2014.  It's hard to imagine a play more perfectly calculated for this multicultural, gender-fluid, #MeToo moment. Lee is the first Asian-American woman ever to have her work produced on … Continue reading ‘Straight White Men’: Faking It →

Now that the New York Times has taken to polling the Tony voters in advance — getting to a fairly sizable portion of the relatively small population of voters — the Tony Awards show has largely been drained of whatever suspense it once had. Almost every award went as predicted. The Band's Visit won pretty much everything … Continue reading Three Quick Thoughts About the Tony Awards →

What’s to be done about Chess? I mean, of course, the 1980s musical about Cold War chess rivalries, with a score by the ABBA boys, Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, and lyrics by Tim Rice. This show simply can't catch a break.  It opened in London in 1986 and ran for three years, but reviewers … Continue reading ‘Chess’ Redeemed: A Glorious London Revival →

  I consider Alan Ayckbourn the great playwright of my theatergoing lifetime. Through most of the 1980s and '90s, I would plan my trips to London to coincide with new plays from the prolific British dramatist: Henceforward, The Revengers' Comedies, Man of the Moment, Wildest Dreams — an amazing string of masterpieces, most of which have not even … Continue reading Admiring Ayckbourn: ‘A Brief History of Women’ →

The Tony nominations are out, and they have brought home something that hadn't really occurred to me as I raced through the busy last few weeks of Broadway openings.  It's been a pretty bad season. Yes, I saw several things I enjoyed, but as I look back, nearly all of them were revivals. The powerful … Continue reading The Tonys: Wrapping Up a Weak Season →

Let's talk about the ending to My Fair Lady. None of critics apparently want to — that is, give away the little twist that director Bartlett Sher has tacked onto the last scene of his Lincoln Center revival of Lerner and Loewe's great musical. I understand their caution, but I don't think you can properly … Continue reading That Awful Ending to ‘My Fair Lady’ →