All stories by Eric Grode on BroadwayStars

Monday, July 8, 2013

Jeanine Tesori Rocks the “Cradle” by Eric Grode

The composer’s vision for a summer of Off-Broadway musicals Putting together a three-show summer season is ambitious enough, let alone when it’s being done by a musical theatre c…

SOURCE: TDF at 02:36PM
Thursday, June 27, 2013

Off Broadway Borrows From Reality Televsion by Eric Grode

You won’t find the reality shows “Rehabilitation” and “Nobody Loves You” on the upper reaches of your dial. And it’s because playwrights snagged those titles first.  &n…

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:48AM

Stage Actors on Honey Boo Boo and Company by Eric Grode

Cast members from stage shows about reality TV weigh in on the guilty pleasures that have filled their down time between jobs.    

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:42AM
Saturday, June 22, 2013

If You Don’t Have Kids, Can You Write About Them? by Eric Grode

A Kid Like Jake tackles the anxiety of New York parenting — Kids say and do the darnedest things. Which is fine unless those kids are being judged on an absurdly rigorous basis and in …

SOURCE: TDF at 07:29AM
Thursday, May 30, 2013

Jenny Schwartz’s ‘Somewhere Fun’ to Open at the Vineyard by Eric Grode

Jenny Schwartz writes and rewrites by making unusually heavy use of theater workshops, and “Somewhere Fun” is only her second play from the last decade.    

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:10PM
Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Can “Good Television” Still be Moral? by Eric Grode

Good Television scours the ethics of reality TV — Call it a case of biting the hand that feeds his wife. “My wife works in reality television,” says the longtime actor and …

SOURCE: TDF at 11:26AM
Thursday, May 23, 2013

Hamish Linklater and Jesse Tyler Ferguson at the Delacorte by Eric Grode

Hamish Linklater and Jesse Tyler Ferguson take on two roles each in “The Comedy of Errors” at the Delacorte Theater.    

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:00AM
Thursday, May 2, 2013

Snapshot | Wrenn Schmidt: Wrenn Schmidt in ‘The Master Builder’ by Eric Grode

A chat with Wrenn Schmidt, who will play the young muse Hilde in a production of Ibsen’s “Master Builder” at the Harvey Theater at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.    

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:19PM
Monday, April 15, 2013

A New Voice for the Virgin Mary by Eric Grode

How Colm Tóibín wrote Broadway’s The Testament of Mary The Master, perhaps Colm Tóibín’s best-known novel, looked at a rare artistic misstep in the life of Henry James—…

SOURCE: TDF at 04:14PM
Wednesday, March 27, 2013

How to Play Straight in “Kinky Boots” by Eric Grode

In a drag-heavy Broadway musical, Stark Sands brings the straight man (ahem) to life — Welcome to Building Character, TDF Stages’ ongoing series about actors and how they create …

SOURCE: TDF at 04:22PM
Thursday, March 14, 2013

Trey Anastasio and the Musical ‘Hands on a Hardbody’ by Eric Grode

Trey Anastasio of the band Phish prepares for the opening of his Broadway musical, “Hands on a Hardbody.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:00AM
Thursday, March 7, 2013

Throwing Shivs at the American Songbook by Eric Grode

Nellie McKay adds zip to Bill Irwin’s “Old Hats” Nellie McKay’s limbs might not be as nimble as those of Bill Irwin and David Shiner. (Whose are?) But her ukulele-str…

SOURCE: TDF at 12:10PM
Thursday, February 28, 2013

Seth Rudetsky’s ‘Midtown March Medley’ by Eric Grode

Seth Rudetsky, whom Audra McDonald calls “the mayor of Broadway,” will spend the next month putting on multiple shows a day.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:38PM
Thursday, February 14, 2013

Edie Falco’s New Role, in Her Colleague Liz Flahive’s Play by Eric Grode

The lead actress and executive story editor of “Nurse Jackie” are joining forces onstage.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:00AM
Thursday, January 31, 2013

Female Directors, Present, Past and Future by Eric Grode

Some of the more active female directors identify their influences and their aspirations.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 11:15AM
Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Lyle Kessler, New York’s old and new playwright by Eric Grode

  A writer takes Broadway and Off Broadway at the same time After more than 30 years of West Coast sun and valet parking, playwright Lyle Kessler would be forgiven for slowly re-enterin…

SOURCE: TDF at 11:27AM
Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Theater Review: ‘In Acting Shakespeare’ at the Pearl Theater by Eric Grode

James DeVita charts his career during “In Acting Shakespeare” at the Pearl Theater, a play adapted from Ian McKellen’s “Acting Shakespeare.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 02:42PM
Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Theater Review: Fleur Elise Noble and Puppets in Under the Radar Festival by Eric Grode

In “2 Dimensional Life of Her” the Australian performance artist Fleur Elise Noble has brought puppets (without visible handlers) to the Under the Radar Festival.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:01PM
Monday, January 14, 2013

Theater Review: ‘Hollow Roots’ at the Public Theater by Eric Grode

“Hollow Roots,” Christina Anderson’s play starring April Matthis, attempts to stoke a postracial discussion.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:18PM
Thursday, December 27, 2012

Laurie Metcalf, on Broadway in ‘The Other Place’ by Eric Grode

Laurie Metcalf is back on Broadway with a familiar show, “The Other Place” (she did it off Broadway); a familiar director (Joe Mantello); and a familiar co-star (her daughter, Zoe Perry).

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:00AM
Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Diving Back Under The Radar by Eric Grode

Inside this year’s festival of cutting-edge theatre How do you prefer your cutting-edge theatre? As a 30-minute Hamlet adaptation in Farsi? As an 11-hour exploration of an ordinary lif…

SOURCE: TDF at 12:24PM
Monday, December 10, 2012

Whipping “Golden Boy” Into Fighting Shape by Eric Grode

Bartlett Sher’s vision for his Broadway revival When Bartlett Sher first floated the idea of directing Golden Boy for Lincoln Center Theatre, he proposed doing it in repertory with Ham…

SOURCE: TDF at 02:23PM
Thursday, November 29, 2012

Theater Review: ‘Trojan Women (After Euripides)’ at BAM Next Wave Festival by Eric Grode

In “Trojan Women (After Euripides)” the pathos have been dialed back, with emotional clarity being emphasized more than cathartic tumult.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:29PM
Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Christopher Durang Fantasy Camp by Eric Grode

The playwright on his new show “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike“ Baseball fans with extra-disposable incomes are familiar with the idea of fantasy camp. A big paycheck earns …

SOURCE: TDF at 12:07PM
Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Drinking to Forget the Bomb by Eric Grode

How Cusi Cram created her nuclear play “Radiance” The pair of watering holes in Cusi Cram’s new play Radiance will look familiar to fans of Labyrinth Theater Company. These…

SOURCE: TDF at 03:42PM
Wednesday, October 31, 2012

How Do You Write for a Man Who Can’t Move? by Eric Grode

Samuel Hunter tackles “The Whale” Samuel D. Hunter is well aware of how audiences will react to the first image in his new play The Whale: As soon as the show begins, we see a 60…

SOURCE: TDF at 10:15AM
Sunday, October 28, 2012

Theater Review: ‘Dispatches From (A)mended America’ at 14th Street Y by Eric Grode

At the heart of “Dispatches From (A)mended America” are interviews with Southerners on the eve of the Obama era.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:51PM
Thursday, October 25, 2012

How to Craft an Opening Line to Electrify a Theater Audience by Eric Grode

Playwrights labor long and hard over the first words we hear; here they share how and why they begin the way they do.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:13PM
Wednesday, October 17, 2012

War, Peace, Electro-Pop, and Dumplings by Eric Grode

How Tolstoy’s novel became a kicky new musical Say you’re faced with a literary tome and an itch to put it on stage. Do you find a way to dramatize every word? After all, that…

SOURCE: TDF at 12:15PM
Thursday, October 11, 2012

Ping Chong Delivers a New Set of Undesirable Elements Plays by Eric Grode

A production featuring refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo is part of the Undesirable Elements series at LaMaMa in which nonactors from marginalized groups tell their stories.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 07:03PM
Thursday, September 27, 2012

‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’ Returns for an Anniversary by Eric Grode

Theater notables who saw the 1962 production of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” share their recollections, reservations and realizations.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:29PM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic
TBA: Ragtime