All stories by Michael Sommers on BroadwayStars

Monday, September 23, 2019

runboyrun & In Old Age: Ghosts Haunt a Nigerian-American Family Saga by Michael Sommers

★★★ New York Theatre Workshop stages two installments of Mfoniso Udofia's epic nine-play cycle The post runboyrun & In Old Age: Ghosts Haunt a Nigerian-American Family Saga appeare…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:00PM
Monday, September 16, 2019

Wives: Life With Papa and Three Other Feminist Truths by Michael Sommers

★★★ An episode involving Ernest Hemingway's several widows is a highlight of a new satirical comedy The post Wives: Life With Papa and Three Other Feminist Truths appeared first on New…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:30PM
Tuesday, September 3, 2019

Felix Starro: Not Entirely a Magical New Musical by Michael Sommers

★★★ A sorrowful story about a faith healer does not entirely satisfy The post Felix Starro: Not Entirely a Magical New Musical appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:00PM
Thursday, August 29, 2019

Eureka Day: A Comical Clash from the Current Culture Wars by Michael Sommers

★★★★★ A smart new comedy takes a satirical shot at the antivax issue The post Eureka Day: A Comical Clash from the Current Culture Wars appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 10:00PM
Thursday, August 15, 2019

Make Believe: The Games That Kids Play by Michael Sommers

★★★ Fine acting brings Bess Wohl's tender new drama to realistic life at Second Stage Theater The post Make Believe: The Games That Kids Play appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:50PM
Thursday, August 8, 2019

Bat Out of Hell—The Musical: Driving Through the Jim Steinman Songbook by Michael Sommers

★★ Too bad the show looks cheesier than the state of Wisconsin The post Bat Out of Hell—The Musical: Driving Through the Jim Steinman Songbook appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:51PM
Monday, August 5, 2019

Coriolanus: Private Feelings Versus Public Perceptions in a Raggedy Rome by Michael Sommers

★★★ Jonathan Cake has a sneer for every occasion as Shakespeare's most prideful Roman of them all The post Coriolanus: Private Feelings Versus Public Perceptions in a Raggedy Rome appe…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 10:15PM
Sunday, August 4, 2019

Manilow Broadway: He Writes the Songs That Makes the Audience Sing Right Along With Him by Michael Sommers

★★★★ The ever-exuberant entertainer delivers a dandy Broadway concert The post Manilow Broadway: He Writes the Songs That Makes the Audience Sing Right Along With Him appeared first …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 03:30PM

Summer Shorts Series B: Neil LaBute Delivers a Typically Toxic Comedy by Michael Sommers

★★★ A smart topical comedy outshines lesser works in an annual off-Broadway festival The post Summer Shorts Series B: Neil LaBute Delivers a Typically Toxic Comedy appeared first on Ne…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 03:29PM
Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Rinse, Repeat: Regarding a Family’s Cycle of Eating Disorders by Michael Sommers

★★★ A new play about dangerous eating habits scarcely satisfies as a family drama The post Rinse, Repeat: Regarding a Family’s Cycle of Eating Disorders appeared first on New York St…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:55PM
Friday, July 26, 2019

The Black Clown: Black Existence in a White World by Michael Sommers

★★★★★ An obscure Langston Hughes poem is brilliantly transfigured into epic musical theater The post The Black Clown: Black Existence in a White World appeared first on New York …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 05:04PM

Little Gem: Mothers and Daughters Tell Their Stories at Irish Rep by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Marsha Mason anchors an intimate Irish drama that lives up to its title The post Little Gem: Mothers and Daughters Tell Their Stories at Irish Rep appeared first on New York Sta…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 11:01AM
Tuesday, July 23, 2019

Broadway Bounty Hunter: Exploiting a Darling Character in Pursuit of Laughs by Michael Sommers

★★★★ A beloved showbiz veteran was born to be adorable in a goofy musical gloss on exploitation flicks The post Broadway Bounty Hunter: Exploiting a Darling Character in Pursuit of L…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:56PM
Wednesday, July 17, 2019

Mojada: Medea Remade as a Sorrowful Stranger in a Strange Land by Michael Sommers

★★ A modern variation on the Medea legend sadly depicts the enchantress as an undocumented immigrant The post Mojada: Medea Remade as a Sorrowful Stranger in a Strange Land appeared firs…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:55PM
Monday, July 15, 2019

The Rolling Stone: Fear and Loathing in Uganda by Michael Sommers

★★★★ A worthy drama imported from England tersely relates hateful happenings in Uganda The post The Rolling Stone: Fear and Loathing in Uganda appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:45PM
Friday, July 12, 2019

The Bacchae: Women Go Powerfully Wild in a Refreshed Classic by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Classical Theatre of Harlem offers an exuberant staging of an ancient Greek drama The post The Bacchae: Women Go Powerfully Wild in a Refreshed Classic appeared first on New Yo…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 03:18PM
Friday, June 28, 2019

Dragon Spring Phoenix Rise: Kung Phooey Doings at The Shed by Michael Sommers

★ The latest commissioned endeavor in the Hudson Yards arts space is an incredible mishmash of martial arts, pop songs, and a silly story The post Dragon Spring Phoenix Rise: Kung Phooey D…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 12:00PM
Thursday, June 27, 2019

In the Green: Forging a Medieval Saint by Michael Sommers

★★★ A cool though cryptic musical considers Hildegard von Bingen The post In the Green: Forging a Medieval Saint appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:45PM
Thursday, June 20, 2019

The Mountains Look Different: No, They Really Look Rather Flat by Michael Sommers

★★ A rural Irish melodrama of 1948 vintage needs some magic to thrive The post The Mountains Look Different: No, They Really Look Rather Flat appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 07:30PM
Sunday, June 16, 2019

Fairview: A Shape-Shifting Study In Black and White Perceptions by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Jackie Sibblies Drury's 2019 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama reopens in a larger theater The post Fairview: A Shape-Shifting Study In Black and White Perceptions appeared first on …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:44PM
Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Handbagged: Unpacking British History by Michael Sommers

★★★ Tea and scant sympathy are shared by Queen Elizabeth II and Margaret Thatcher The post Handbagged: Unpacking British History appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:29PM
Tuesday, June 4, 2019

Long Lost: Blah Blah Black Sheep by Michael Sommers

★★ The eminent Donald Margulies delivers a tedious effort at Manhattan Theatre Club The post Long Lost: Blah Blah Black Sheep appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:59PM

Little Women: Time Marches On for Louisa May Alcott’s Characters by Michael Sommers

★★★ Kate Hamill's modern take on a Victorian classic is not as radical as it seems The post Little Women: Time Marches On for Louisa May Alcott’s Characters appeared first on New Yor…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:01PM
Monday, June 3, 2019

Dying City: Puzzling Out a Significant Mystery About Love and War by Michael Sommers

★★★ Christopher Shinn directs the Second Stage revival of his Pulitzer-nominated drama The post Dying City: Puzzling Out a Significant Mystery About Love and War appeared first on New …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:45PM
Saturday, June 1, 2019

Underground Railroad Game: Unorthodox and Provocative Classroom Studies by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Race and sex are smartly studied in a delightfully adventurous play The post Underground Railroad Game: Unorthodox and Provocative Classroom Studies appeared first on New York S…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:49PM
Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Something Clean: A Woman Wounded By a Crime She Did Not Commit by Michael Sommers

★★★ Kathryn Erbe anchors Selina Fillinger's earnest new drama about a sex crime The post Something Clean: A Woman Wounded By a Crime She Did Not Commit appeared first on New York Stage…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:00PM
Tuesday, May 21, 2019

Continuity: A Lighter Look at Making a Movie Changes into Darker Realities by Michael Sommers

★★★ Rachel Chavkin of Hadestown fame directs a slight yet thoughtful comedy by Bess Wohl The post Continuity: A Lighter Look at Making a Movie Changes into Darker Realities appeared fi…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:51PM
Sunday, May 19, 2019

Octet: How Modern Technology Makes Us Mad, In Exuberant Song by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Dave Malloy delivers a powerful new musical that's too thoughtful for Broadway The post Octet: How Modern Technology Makes Us Mad, In Exuberant Song appeared first on New York S…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:51PM
Thursday, May 16, 2019

Happy Talk: A Misleading Lady Enjoys Her Role of a Lifetime by Michael Sommers

★★★ Susan Sarandon depicts a matchmaker whose intentions may not be so pure The post Happy Talk: A Misleading Lady Enjoys Her Role of a Lifetime appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:31PM
Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Proof of Love: A Classy Lady Speaks to Classism in African-American Life by Michael Sommers

★★★ Brenda Pressley coolly portrays a woman of quality in a life or death quandary The post Proof of Love: A Classy Lady Speaks to Classism in African-American Life appeared first on N…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 01:55PM
Saturday, May 11, 2019

Around the World in 80 Days: Whirlwind Entertainment and Laughter for All by Michael Sommers

★★★★★ An inventive version of Jules Verne's classic visits the New Victory Theater The post Around the World in 80 Days: Whirlwind Entertainment and Laughter for All appeared first…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 06:15PM