All stories by Michael Sommers on BroadwayStars

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
Friday, May 10, 2019

BLKS: A Madly Expressive Night Out With Some Messy Millennials by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Newcomer playwright Aziza Barnes delivers an audacious comedy at MCC Theater The post BLKS: A Madly Expressive Night Out With Some Messy Millennials appeared first on New York S…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:35AM
Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Luzia: Cirque du Soleil Sweeps Viewers on a Glowing Journey Through Mexico by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Superb circus artists swing, spin, and soar amid surreal visuals and sonorous music The post Luzia: Cirque du Soleil Sweeps Viewers on a Glowing Journey Through Mexico appeared …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 02:20PM
Monday, May 6, 2019

Passage: A Cool Experiment in the ABCs of Xenophobic Behavior by Michael Sommers

★★★ Soho Rep's typically top-notch production fills in the blanks of an experimental endeavor The post Passage: A Cool Experiment in the ABCs of Xenophobic Behavior appeared first on …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 01:45PM
Friday, May 3, 2019

Paul Swan is Dead and Gone: Portrait of an Unusual Artist as an Old Man by Michael Sommers

★★ A new bio-drama is performed as a bizarre dance recital in a Chelsea townhouse The post Paul Swan is Dead and Gone: Portrait of an Unusual Artist as an Old Man appeared first on New Y…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 01:33PM

Caroline’s Kitchen: Neatly Dishing Out a British Menu of Rueful Humor by Michael Sommers

★★★ Playgoers with a taste for British humor may well enjoy what's being served at 59E59 Theaters The post Caroline’s Kitchen: Neatly Dishing Out a British Menu of Rueful Humor appea…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 01:30PM
Tuesday, April 30, 2019

The Plough and the Stars: Dubliners Come to Vivid Life in Irish Rep’s Revival by Michael Sommers

★★★★★ A superb company performs Sean O'Casey's tragicomedy about the 1916 Easter Rising The post The Plough and the Stars: Dubliners Come to Vivid Life in Irish Rep’s Revival app…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:51PM
Monday, April 29, 2019

Grief is the Thing with Feathers: A Mad, Murky, Melancholy Journey by Michael Sommers

★★★ Cillian Murphy delivers a remarkable performance as a man possessed The post Grief is the Thing with Feathers: A Mad, Murky, Melancholy Journey appeared first on New York Stage Rev…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 10:52AM
Saturday, April 27, 2019

Lady in the Dark: MasterVoices Lovingly Revives a Masterpiece Musical by Michael Sommers

★★★★★ Victoria Clark is the glowing central figure of a legendary musical The post Lady in the Dark: MasterVoices Lovingly Revives a Masterpiece Musical appeared first on New York …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 01:21PM
Thursday, April 18, 2019

Hillary and Clinton: Peering Inside the Private Lives of a Power Couple by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Laurie Metcalf and John Lithgow superbly depict a dynamic duo The post Hillary and Clinton: Peering Inside the Private Lives of a Power Couple appeared first on New York Stage R…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 07:20PM
Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Hadestown: Red, Hot, and Bluesy Score Fuels a Trip to Hell and Back by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Songwriter Anaïs Mitchell makes an impressive Broadway bow with an infernal musical The post Hadestown: Red, Hot, and Bluesy Score Fuels a Trip to Hell and Back appeared first …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:50PM
Tuesday, April 9, 2019

Norma Jeane Baker of Troy: The Shed Opens With a Mythical Misfire by Michael Sommers

★ Ben Whishaw and Renee Fleming valiantly appear in a gloomy chamber opera The post Norma Jeane Baker of Troy: The Shed Opens With a Mythical Misfire appeared first on New York Stage Revie…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:59PM
Monday, April 8, 2019

Mrs. Murray’s Menagerie: Focusing Upon a Slice of Late ’70s Life by Michael Sommers

★★★ The Mad Ones offers an awfully ultra-real look at a focus group The post Mrs. Murray’s Menagerie: Focusing Upon a Slice of Late ’70s Life appeared first on New York Stage Revie…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 07:00PM
Wednesday, April 3, 2019

The Cradle Will Rock: A Proletarian Musical Looks Kind of Labored by Michael Sommers

★★ Director John Doyle scarcely does justice by Marc Blitzstein's legendary 1937 musical The post The Cradle Will Rock: A Proletarian Musical Looks Kind of Labored appeared first on New …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:45PM
Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Do You Feel Anger?: A Mildly Absurd Look at Misogyny on the Job by Michael Sommers

★★★ A comedy about un-woke office jerks and the women who put up with them The post Do You Feel Anger?: A Mildly Absurd Look at Misogyny on the Job appeared first on New York Stage Rev…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 07:00PM
Sunday, March 31, 2019

The White Devil: Stylishly Wicked Fun for Everyone by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Red Bull Theater restores a circa 1612 thriller to lusty life in modern dress The post The White Devil: Stylishly Wicked Fun for Everyone appeared first on New York Stage Revie…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 07:38PM
Wednesday, March 27, 2019

Ain’t No Mo’: A Sharply Satirical Study in Black Manners and Matters by Michael Sommers

★★★★ The Public Theater unleashes a wildly serio-comical show about race The post Ain’t No Mo’: A Sharply Satirical Study in Black Manners and Matters appeared first on New York …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:51PM

The Nature of Forgetting: A Memorable Show for Kids of All Ages by Michael Sommers

★★★★ London's Theatre Re presents an uncommonly poignant and tender study in dementia The post The Nature of Forgetting: A Memorable Show for Kids of All Ages appeared first on New …

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 10:54AM
Thursday, March 21, 2019

I Married an Angel: Not Quite as Heavenly a Show as Hoped by Michael Sommers

★★★ A legendary Rodgers & Hart musical demands a higher '30s style to get airborne The post I Married an Angel: Not Quite as Heavenly a Show as Hoped appeared first on New York Sta…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 02:36PM
Wednesday, March 20, 2019

Anything That Gives Off Light: A Hazy Study in Oppressive Economics by Michael Sommers

★★ A metaphysical study in social significance suffers from a sea-change The post Anything That Gives Off Light: A Hazy Study in Oppressive Economics appeared first on New York Stage Rev…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:40PM
Monday, March 18, 2019

Nantucket Sleigh Ride: A Wild Trip To John Guare’s Magic (Realism) Kingdom by Michael Sommers

★★★ Jorge Luis Borges, Walt Disney, and a very large lobster pop up on a pointless journey The post Nantucket Sleigh Ride: A Wild Trip To John Guare’s Magic (Realism) Kingdom appeare…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 10:00PM
Thursday, March 14, 2019

Kiss Me, Kate: True to Cole Porter (and Shakespeare) in Their Fashion by Michael Sommers

★★★★ Cole Porter and Kelli O'Hara make beautiful music together in a snappy revival The post Kiss Me, Kate: True to Cole Porter (and Shakespeare) in Their Fashion appeared first on N…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:50PM
Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Skinnamarink: Going on an Experimental Journey by Michael Sommers

★★★ Little Lord's latest work playfully digs at the roots of indoctrination The post Skinnamarink: Going on an Experimental Journey appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:00PM
Sunday, March 10, 2019

Be More Chill: Desperately (and Delightfully) Striving to Be Cool at School by Michael Sommers

★★★★ A new cartoon musical delivers a story as timeless as "Faust" and twice as funny The post Be More Chill: Desperately (and Delightfully) Striving to Be Cool at School appeared fi…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:45PM
Tuesday, March 5, 2019

“Daddy”: More Splash Than Significance in Substance by Michael Sommers

★★ Alan Cumming plays a sugar daddy in a play that nearly drowns in talk The post “Daddy”: More Splash Than Significance in Substance appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:01PM
Sunday, March 3, 2019

Dying in Boulder: Karma, Conflict, and Cultural Appropriation by Michael Sommers

★★ A new play set in Colorado turns into a Rocky Mountain downer The post Dying in Boulder: Karma, Conflict, and Cultural Appropriation appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:00PM
Thursday, February 28, 2019

Superhero: A Capably Crafted New Musical That Resolutely Refuses to Fly by Michael Sommers

★★ Holy guacamole, Batman, how can these ace guys deliver such a dull show? The post Superhero: A Capably Crafted New Musical That Resolutely Refuses to Fly appeared first on New York St…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:55PM
Monday, February 25, 2019

Marys Seacole: Studying Maternal Cares Then and Now by Michael Sommers

★★★ Jackie Sibblies Drury centers her latest ambitious drama around caregivers of color The post Marys Seacole: Studying Maternal Cares Then and Now appeared first on New York Stage Re…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:01PM
Sunday, February 24, 2019

Hurricane Diane: A Seductive Deity Materializes in Suburban New Jersey by Michael Sommers

★★★ Madeleine George delivers a divine (in more ways than one) comedy about climate change The post Hurricane Diane: A Seductive Deity Materializes in Suburban New Jersey appeared firs…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 07:00PM
Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Bonnie’s Last Flight: A Misguided Journey to Nowhere by Michael Sommers

★ A cool concept for a comedy about a plane trip proves to be a tedious time The post Bonnie’s Last Flight: A Misguided Journey to Nowhere appeared first on New York Stage Review.

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 09:30PM
Tuesday, February 12, 2019

The Shadow of a Gunman: Sean O’Casey’s Seriocomic Saga of Dublin at War by Michael Sommers

★★★★ The Irish Rep kicks off its three-show cycle of the playwright's works with a winning revival The post The Shadow of a Gunman: Sean O’Casey’s Seriocomic Saga of Dubl…

SOURCE: New York Stage Review at 08:56PM