All stories by Gary Naylor on BroadwayStars

Friday, January 20, 2023

Allegiance, Charing Cross Theatre review - George Takei's childhood story makes a heartfelt musical by Gary Naylor

★★★★ ALLEGIANCE, CHARING CROSS THEATRE Beautifully sung show shines light into a dark corner of American history   Star Trek's Mr Sulu honours fellow Japanese-American survivors o…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 06:31AM
Friday, January 13, 2023

A Streetcar Named Desire, Almeida Theatre review - Patsy Ferran rises above fussy staging by Gary Naylor

★★★★ A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, ALMEIDA THEATRE Torment, toxicity and trauma in New Orleans   Torment, toxicity and trauma in New Orleans It’s a long way from the dank chill of…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 06:20AM
Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Watch on the Rhine, Donmar Warehouse review - Lillian Hellman's 1940 play is still asking awkward questions by Gary Naylor

★★★★ WATCH ON THE RHINE, DONMAR Country house comedy transforms into call to arms In wartime, when tough actions are needed to back up easy words, what do you do? We’re reminded, …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 06:15AM
Thursday, December 15, 2022

Dolly Parton's Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol, Queen Elizabeth Hall review - Scrooge goes to Tennessee by Gary Naylor

★★★ DOLLY PARTON'S SMOKY MOUNTAIN CHRISTMAS CAROL, SOUTHBANK CENTRE Great songs, but a sanitised book declaws Yuletide parable  Dolly and Dickens team up for dreams and deliverance …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 04:42AM
Wednesday, December 7, 2022

Hex, National Theatre review - 12 months after being sent to sleep by Covid, Rufus Norris's show is back by Gary Naylor

Victoria Hamilton-Barritt brings superstar quality and emotional depth to villainous ogre Hovering way, way above us, three aptly named high fairies, in voluminous chiffon, open a show that …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:06AM
Saturday, November 26, 2022

Elf, Dominion Theatre review - hit musical revival slays it again by Gary Naylor

★★★★ ELF, DOMINION THEATRE Plenty of presents for all the family in a spectacular show based on the much loved film  Buddy the Elf charms everyone on either side of the fourth wall…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 07:36AM
Saturday, November 19, 2022

A Christmas Carol, RSC, Stratford review - family show eases back the terror and winds up the politics by Gary Naylor

★★★★ A CHRISTMAS CAROL, RSC Old favourite finds contemporary relevance in sanitised staging The RSC Christmas show delivers exactly what it promises Life is full of coincidences and…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 11:24AM
Thursday, November 17, 2022

Here, Southwark Playhouse review - award-winning kitchen sink drama goes down the drain by Gary Naylor

★ HERE, Southwark Playhouse Characters drown in a surfeit of issues The prestige of the Papatango Prize cannot rescue a play that fails to transcend its inexplicable limitations The kitch…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 07:54AM
Wednesday, November 9, 2022

From Here to Eternity, Charing Cross Theatre review - Pearl Harbour musical fails to fly by Gary Naylor

Super songs can't quite rescue an ill-focused story and sparse staging Whorehouses, gay prostitution and suicide – you can see why James Jones’ bestselling 1951 novel was bowdlerised by …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:06AM
Thursday, October 27, 2022

Tammy Faye, Almeida Theatre review - Elton John's often dazzling new musical by Gary Naylor

★★★★ TAMMY FAYE, ALMEIDA THEATRE The rise and fall of a iconic figure whose reach stretched across late 20th century American culture Plenty of heart and bite in a show illuminated …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 12:03PM
Friday, October 7, 2022

The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Rose Theatre review - new production of classic proves a gruelling experience by Gary Naylor

★★ THE CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE, ROSE THEATRE Uncompromising adaptation of Brecht outstays its welcome Carrie Hope Fletcher one of few bright sparks on a tough evening for the audience Bre…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:37AM
Saturday, October 1, 2022

Iphigenia in Splott, Lyric Hammersmith review - raises as many questions as answers by Gary Naylor

★★★ IPHIGENIA IN SPLOTT, LYRIC HAMMERSMITH THEATRE Howl of protest at the cost of austerity leads to a different conclusion seven years on Timely revival of Gary Owen's solo play It�…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:37AM
Saturday, September 24, 2022

The Wonderful World of Dissocia, Theatre Royal Stratford East review - wild trip gets a welcome revival by Gary Naylor

★★★★ THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF DISSOCIA, THEATRE ROYAL STRATFORD EAST The landscape of mental health explored in surreal comedy A woman confronts her neuroses in a phantasmagorical wor…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 09:43AM
Thursday, September 22, 2022

Clutch, Bush Theatre review - new comedy-drama passes its test by Gary Naylor

★★★ CLUTCH Odd couple in a Corsa drive in fourth gear for comedy but second gear for pathos After a strong start, newly commissioned play takes a wrong exit from the roundabout Max is…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:07AM
Thursday, September 15, 2022

The Two Popes, Rose Theatre review - sparkling with wit and pathos by Gary Naylor

Funny, poignant and stimulating, a delightfully welcome piece of intellectual escapism It can’t have been an easy pitch. “Popes. Both foreign, yes. German and Argentinian – sorry, can…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:33AM
Thursday, September 1, 2022

Ride, Charing Cross Theatre review - A true story of female empowerment by Gary Naylor

★★★★ RIDE New musical about a difficult, charismatic, barrier-breaking woman freewheels into the West End  New musical about a barrier-breaking woman freewheels into the West End …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:07AM
Friday, August 26, 2022

Into The Woods, Theatre Royal Bath review - If you go down to the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise by Gary Naylor

★★★★★  INTO THE WOODS Breathtaking production captures the unease at the heart of this fairytale musical Prepare to be dazzled and disoriented in a phantasmagorical festival of t…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:24AM
Thursday, August 25, 2022

Treason The Musical In Concert, Theatre Royal Drury Lane review - plenty of musical gunpowder but not enough plot by Gary Naylor

★★★  TREASON THE MUSICAL IN CONCERT Semi-staged production shows promise - and problems Semi-staged production shows promise - and problems A semi-staged concert performance of a musi…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:25AM
Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Wonderville Magic and Cabaret - fast-paced show delivers the promised wonder by Gary Naylor

Leave memories of Paul Daniels at the door and embrace the sweet deception inside There’s nothing quite like magic, live, up close and personal. Sure there are the TV spectaculars, the cas…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:07AM
Saturday, August 6, 2022

The Tempest, Shakespeare's Globe review - occasional gales of laughter drown out subtlety by Gary Naylor

If you think a fat man wearing yellow swimming trunks is funny, you're on the right island Alexei Sayle, in his angry young man phase, once said that you can always tell when you’re watchi…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:42AM
Saturday, July 30, 2022

Tasting Notes, Southwark Playhouse review - whining in the wine bar by Gary Naylor

★ TASTING NOTES New musical set in a wine bar should have stayed in the cellar  Not much goes right for a show whose characters are similarly ill-fated LJ's dream has come true - she h…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 10:18AM
Thursday, July 28, 2022

Sister Act The Musical, Eventim Apollo review- the West End meets the Westway by Gary Naylor

★★★★ SISTER ACT THE MUSICAL Event theatre and a sensational lead performance make the trip worthwhile Crowdpleasing musical retains its glitz and charm (and cheese, too) If jukebox…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 10:03AM
Saturday, July 23, 2022

The Darkest Part of the Night, Kiln Theatre - issues-led drama has its heart in the right place by Gary Naylor

★★★ THE DARKEST PART OF THE NIGHT, KILN Issues-led drama has its heart in the right place The didactic vies with the dramatic in Zodwa Nyoni's incident-packed new play Music plays a …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 01:33AM
Thursday, July 21, 2022

Closer, Lyric Hammersmith review - still sordid and sexy 25 years on by Gary Naylor

★★★★CLOSER, LYRIC HAMMERSMITH Still sordid and sexy 25 years on Lovers come together, split apart and come together again Drama is writing in thin air, its content instantly spirite…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 11:12AM
Thursday, July 7, 2022

The Dance of Death, Arcola Theatre review - hate sustains a marriage in new version of Strindberg classic by Gary Naylor

Fine acting and bleak humour barely ameliorates a grim slog through a broken relationship Rebecca Lenkiewicz's adaptation of August Strindberg's 1900 paean to the power of loathing over lovi…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 04:12PM
Friday, July 1, 2022

The White Card, Soho Theatre review - expelling the audience from its comfort zone by Gary Naylor

Claudia Rankine's 2018 play insists on raising difficult questions  Art and race intersect to provocative effect We’re in New York City, in an upscale loft apartment, with that absence of…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:18AM
Wednesday, June 1, 2022

The Glass Menagerie, Duke of York's Theatre review - memories flare and fade by Gary Naylor

A classic play can still collapse time and space with its heartrending relevance The stage is cluttered with objects; a pianola sits stage left; a large cabinet, soon to be revealed as a di…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:18AM
Saturday, May 28, 2022

Girl on an Altar, Kiln Theatre review - machismo, murder and motherhood in mesmerising myth by Gary Naylor

  Marina Carr's angry, poetic take on Clytemnestra's story is delivered in all its gory glory Playwrights return to classical myths for two main reasons – to shine a light on how we live …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 10:06AM
Wednesday, May 18, 2022

Grease, Dominion Theatre review - a super night out, great songs well sung and spectacular dancing by Gary Naylor

★★★★ GREASE, Dominion Theatre Nostalgia for the late 1950s and late 1970s underpins an entertaining show Crowdpleaser pleases crowd: this High School musical delivers what its audie…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 11:07PM
Saturday, May 14, 2022

Julius Caesar, Shakespeare's Globe review - the Bard buried in bad choices by Gary Naylor

★ JULIUS CAESAR, SHAKESPEARE'S GLOBE Misjudged masterpiece   Intrusive 21st century agenda and dismal staging waste an opportunity With tyrants licking their lips around the world and th…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 03:54AM
Thursday, April 21, 2022

Bonnie & Clyde, The Arts Theatre review - great songs, but plot fires too many blanks by Gary Naylor

Iconic couple shoot for West End success One of the more irritating memes (it’s a competitive field, I know) is the “Name a more iconic couple” appearing over a photo of Posh and Becks…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 03:42AM

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