All stories by Alan Smason on BroadwayStars

Saturday, February 12, 2022

Spellbinding ‘Lizzie: The Musical’ rocks at Beck Center by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO Vickie Bussert, the director of Lizzie: The Musical, an exploration of the Lizzie Borden story, now on stage as a joint production between Baldwin Wallace’s nationally respect…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 12:50PM
Saturday, February 5, 2022

World premiere of ‘Gardens of the Finzi-Continis’ continues in New York by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Times have been very busy both together and separately for the composing team of composer Ricky Ian Gordon and librettist Michae…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 02:09PM
Friday, January 28, 2022

‘Mean Girls’ tour raises high school angst to a new level by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL MILWAUKEE, WI – Life hasn’t been all unicorns and rainbows for the national tour of Mean Girls, which is playing in Milwaukee January 25-30. Some of its performances in ot…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 07:06AM

Riveting TV series from Austria finds a niche mystery audience on PBS by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Desert Local News Agatha Christie was the queen of the murder mystery genre hands down. The transfer of her novels to the stage and for viewers of the film medium only increa…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 06:02AM
Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Rivertown’s ‘Cabaret’ fires on most of its cylinders by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) With its current production of Cabaret finally on the boards, the Rivertown Theaters for the Performing Arts has achieved some m…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 06:21PM
Saturday, January 8, 2022

Hope, beauty arise in Speilberg’s dynamic new ‘West Side Story’ film by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS It is said that with age comes wisdom. It is also said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The eyes of today’s beholders are currently in love with “West Side Story�…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 08:17AM
Friday, January 7, 2022

‘Kimberly Akimbo’: A Young Soul in an Old Body by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN Kimberly Akimbo, the newly penned musical with book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole, Shrek the Musical) and music by Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home, Caroline, or Ch…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 08:18PM
Thursday, December 30, 2021

Joyous national tour of ‘Hadestown’ opens appropriately at Saenger Theater by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) If ever there was a city with which a spiritual kinship could be forged with the national tour of Hadestown, there is little dou…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 08:14AM
Friday, December 24, 2021

Feldshuh scores in live production of ‘Becoming Dr. Ruth’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Crittic (“Steppin’ Out“) Tovah Feldshuh had described herself as a “transformational” actor. Among her previous outings in one-woman shows were Isra…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 01:57PM
Saturday, December 18, 2021

Poignant drama explores gay women’s sexual mores of the past 75 years by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Desert Local News The Desert Ensemble Theatre Company (DETC) of Palm Springs launched its 2021-2022 season in its new home at Theatre # 3, inside the Palm Springs Cultural Cen…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 10:48AM

Classic endearing musical returns to the stage of Palm Canyon Theatre by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, Desert Local News Live theaters all over the country are mounting their various holiday versions of Christmas-themed plays and musicals.  The Palm Canyon Theatre, the city’…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 04:24AM
Friday, December 17, 2021

‘Caroline, or Change’: Now More Than Ever by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Coming just a year after the tragic deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor and last summer’s massive Black L…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 12:42PM
Tuesday, December 14, 2021

‘Flying Over Sunset’ is an ethereal, experiential journey of sight and sound by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Any child of the Sixties or worthy Deadhead would probably bet their monthly Social Security check that Harvard professor Timoth…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 06:28PM
Friday, December 10, 2021

Insightful comedy ‘Bakersfield Mist’ intrigues at CV REP by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS, The world of theatre can become a transformative experience for many in the audience as each person views the production through different lenses at the same time.   What i…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 10:11AM
Tuesday, December 7, 2021

Manhattan Theatre Club’s production of ‘Morning Sun’ a must-see by Alan Smason

By EDWARD RUBIN Manhattan Theatre Club’s production of British playwright Simon Stephen’s three-generation memory play Morning Sun runs through Sunday, December 19th at New York City Cen…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 07:06PM
Saturday, November 20, 2021

Laughter, Tears and Gossip in a Beauty Salon by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL MILWAUKEE, WI – It may seem unusual for the state’s largest performing arts organization to open its doors after the pandemic with a comedy from the genteel South. Yet, a …

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 07:43PM
Friday, November 12, 2021

Improbable ‘Tootsie’ opens Saenger Theatre back on national tour circuit by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) There is an obvious conversation addressed early in Tootsie, the David Yazbek musical that won Santino Fontana a Leading Actor i…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 11:14AM
Friday, November 5, 2021

‘The Prom’: Old fashioned musical with contemporary moral by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO In 2010 a gay Mississippi high school student was banned from coming to her senior prom by the school’s Board of Education because she wanted to bring her girlfriend as her da…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 11:35AM
Thursday, November 4, 2021

Too many cooks in the kitchen wreak family havoc in ‘Stew’ by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL The opening of Zora Howard’s Stew marks a return to the stage for one of Milwaukee’s longstanding companies, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre. For the past 20 months, one of the …

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 12:02AM
Sunday, October 31, 2021

Where Did We Sit on the Bus? is a trip centering on Latinx-American culture by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO For the last several years more and more attention has been placed on The Black Lives Matter and #MeToo movements, woke language, microaggressions, radical feminism, transgender…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 10:51AM
Wednesday, October 27, 2021

JPAS’ ‘The Addams Family’ is a spooky good show by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) With the opening of The Addams Family musical last week, director Leslie Castay added a new company, the Jefferson Performing Ar…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 11:02PM
Thursday, October 14, 2021

Bryan Batt’s ‘Dear Mr. Williams’ a funny, poignant discovery of freedom by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) When Bryan Batt steps on the stage of Le Petit Theatre du Carré as the star of the one-man play Dear Mr. Williams, he is litera…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 12:29PM
Saturday, October 9, 2021

Eye-opening ‘The Exonerated contains important message at Beck, but is not compelling theatre by Alan Smason

By ROY BERKO The death penalty carries the inherent risk of executing an innocent person. Since 1973, more than 186 people who had been sentenced to death have been exonerated. Research by …

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 05:38PM
Friday, October 8, 2021

Hello, Ricky! Wish this ‘Dolly’ would never go away! by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) When it was announced that Ricky Graham would be in the director’s chair for   Hello, Dolly! at Rivertown Theaters for the P…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 02:14PM
Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Choosing whether or not to worship Yasmina Reza’s ‘God of Carnage’ in Westwego by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) With its most recent production of God of Carnage, the Jefferson Performing Arts Society has taken the wraps off Yasmina Reza’…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 09:15AM
Monday, October 4, 2021

Updated version of ‘Scenes from a Marriage’ draws mixed reviews by Alan Smason

By JACK LYONS When it comes to original stories made into movies and TV films about the subject of love and marriage, one would be hard pressed to ignore the angst-filled dramas of the great…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 08:05AM
Thursday, September 30, 2021

Cutting Edge Theater’s ‘Cabaret’ establishes new musical star by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) There are times when a single performance rises above all others within a given production. While these times are rare, when the…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 05:47AM
Saturday, September 18, 2021

A Tense Family Journey at Oregon Shakespeare Festival by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL (Dashland, OREGON) – Water by the Spoonful is perhaps even more relevant today than when it was staged at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in 2014. The play initially appeare…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 09:04PM
Saturday, September 11, 2021

A Gripping Tale at American Players Theatre by Alan Smason

By ANNE SIEGEL SPRING GREEN, WI. – This summer, while audiences were flocking to the large, outdoor theater to view Shakespeare under the stars, another small miracle was taking place insi…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 06:33AM
Thursday, August 12, 2021

Diversity, talent highlight Cutting Edge Theater’s ‘Sunset Boulevard’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) When the notices first went out proclaiming an upcoming production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard at Slidell’s C…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 03:36AM
Tuesday, August 3, 2021

Tony Award winners enjoy comic romp in ‘Judgment Day’ by Alan Smason

By ALAN SMASON, WYES-TV Theatre Critic (“Steppin’ Out“) Rob Ulin must be a very happy man. He obviously has been saying his prayers and living a proper and pious life. That must be the…

SOURCE: TheatreCriticsm.com at 09:50AM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards