All stories by ELISABETH VINCENTELLI on BroadwayStars

Thursday, May 2, 2019

Review: A Jazz Legend Retold Fast and Loose in ‘Playing Hot’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The play, based on the story of Buddy Bolden, a cornetist who is said to be one of jazz’s founders, is equal parts theater, concert and dance party.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:36PM
Thursday, April 18, 2019

Review: An Actor’s Life Story Grounds ‘Jack &’ With ‘The Cotillion’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Kaneza Schaal’s experimental theater work has three sections and is paired with an installation featuring paintings and videos of the show’s inspirations.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:30PM
Monday, April 15, 2019

Review: In ‘17 Border Crossings,’ Some Areas Are Left Unexplored by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Thaddeus Phillips’s genial show retreats every time things get sticky or uncomfortable.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:45PM
Monday, April 8, 2019

Review: ‘Marjana and the Forty Thieves’ Gives a Lesson in Storytelling by Elisabeth Vincentelli

With the theater made up to resemble a nomadic tent, audience members sit on cushions, couches and bean bags, while the actors roam about the space.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:15PM
Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Exit Interview: Goodbye, Omar Sharif: Katrina Lenk Reflects on ‘The Band’s Visit’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The Tony Award-winning actress, who has been with the musical since its first performance, looks back on its runs on and Off Broadway.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:59PM
Monday, April 1, 2019

Critic’s Pick: Review: Stranded Between Hope and Regret in ‘Life Sucks.’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Aaron Posner’s bitingly funny, unexpectedly touching play is “sort of adapted from ‘Uncle Vanya.’”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:03PM
Friday, March 29, 2019

Streamiing Movie Review: ‘The Legend of Cocaine Island’ Review: Florida Man’s Silly Odyssey by Elisabeth Vincentelli

A harebrained scheme ends in comic confusion in Theo Love’s goofy documentary.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 08:00AM
Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Review: ‘Smart Blonde’ Revisits a Classic Star of Old Hollywood by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Willy Holtzman’s play, with the storytelling quality of PowerPoint, offers a biography of Judy Holliday, an award-winning actress who died young.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:45PM
Sunday, March 24, 2019

Review: Fixing a Dispassionate Stare on Slavery in ‘Southern Promises’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Niegel Smith’s revival of Thomas Bradshaw’s 2008 play is presented at the Flea Theater by a cast made up of people of color, and with a new ending.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:45PM
Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Critic’s Pick: Review: In ‘Skinnamarink,’ Follow Instructions. Or Else. by Elisabeth Vincentelli

A troupe that specializes in “junk spectaculars” turns to McGuffey readers — and peanut butter — in a show that explores schooling and humiliation.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 09:45PM
Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Review: ‘Imagining Madoff’ Invests in Trust and Guilt by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The first draft of Deb Margolin’s play pitted Bernie Madoff against Elie Wiesel. The current version gives her freedom to embellish.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:09AM
Friday, March 1, 2019

Review: In ‘The Price of Thomas Scott,’ Puritanism Prevails by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The Mint Theater Company brought back Elizabeth Baker’s drama from 1913 as part of a project dedicated to the British playwright.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 11:02AM
Thursday, February 21, 2019

Review: One Cheer for ‘We Are the Tigers’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

High schoolers, jump scares and songs are a tantalizing mix. But Preston Max Allen’s meandering show squanders a promising concept.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 08:00PM
Sunday, February 17, 2019

Review: No Surrendering to This ‘British Invasion’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

There are plenty of earworms in this jukebox musical about Peter Noone of Herman’s Hermits, but the hackneyed love-triangle story lowers the volume.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 11:18AM
Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Isabelle Huppert Is Busy. But There’s Always Time for Theater. by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The French actress has five films coming out in 2019, including one while she stars in Florian Zeller’s play “The Mother” at Atlantic Theater Company.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 05:48AM
Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Review: ‘Master of the Crossroads’ Embraces Irrationality by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The show, written and directed by Paul Calderon, begins intensely and continues on a harrowing, one-way trip to hell.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:48PM
Friday, January 25, 2019

Streaming Movie Review: ‘Soni’ Review: Two Delhi Policewomen Struggle Against Misogyny by Elisabeth Vincentelli

In the world described in Ivan Ayr’s debut feature, men casually assume they are entitled to say or do whatever they want to women.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 12:18PM
Monday, January 21, 2019

Review: A Catalog of America’s Problems in ‘Awake’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

K. Lorrel Manning takes on racism, homophobia, sexism, police violence and immigration in nine short plays.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:48PM
Thursday, January 17, 2019

‘LaBute New Theater Festival’ Review: It’s Neil LaBute in a Minor Key by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The festival, presented by St. Louis Actors’ Studio, comprises three one-act plays by Mr. LaBute: “Great Negro Works of Art,” “The Fourth Reich” and “Unlikely Japan.”

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:54PM
Monday, January 14, 2019

At BroadwayCon, Fans Get a Curtain Call by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Started in 2016, the three-day expo provides singalongs, meetups, workshops and, of course, “marketplace” booths targeting theater buffs.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:12PM
Wednesday, January 9, 2019

The Demolition Artist: 3 Critics Debate Ivo van Hove by Ben Brantley, Elisabeth Vincentelli and Jason Zinoman

Visionary stylist or one-trick pony? With “Network” on Broadway and “All About Eve” on the horizon, the multimedia-mad stage director is ready for his close-up.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 04:24AM
Monday, December 31, 2018

A Short Statement for the Exponential Festival by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Gracie Gardner’s “Cowboy,” which runs from six to 20 minutes, is part of a triple bill: “I just love having a single visual image onstage,” she said.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:54PM

Despite Scary Buzz, Director at Under the Radar Says Don’t Worry by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Peter Mills Weiss and his collaborator, Julia Mounsey, put the audience on edge with the simplest of theatrical tools.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:54PM
Sunday, December 16, 2018

Review: The Devil Wears Pleather but Can’t Save ‘Christmas in Hell’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

A musical must have a minimum of internal logic and some good tunes. “Christmas in Hell” comes up short on both counts.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 04:54PM
Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Critic’s Notebook: Rib-Eye Steak With a Side of Shakespeare by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Our intrepid theatergoer ate her way through a spate of shows that make food part of the experience. Her stomach sometimes ended up fuller than her imagination.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:54AM
Tuesday, December 11, 2018

Review: ‘Ruben & Clay’ Reunites ‘Idol’ Rivals for Christmas Fun by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken, who once competed on “American Idol,” banter, sing and try to upstage each other in this holiday revue.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:18PM

Streaming Movie Review: ‘The World Is Yours’ Review: Isabelle Adjani Revitalizes the Comic Caper by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Adjani’s turn as a flamboyant con artist sends up her own aloof image in this fun and sophisticated comic caper from Romain Gavras.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 04:18PM
Monday, November 26, 2018

Review: Exploring Addiction in ‘Chasing the New White Whale’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The playwright Mike Gorman tries to equate Melville’s “Moby-Dick” with the opioid crisis. The ambition is there, but the play falls short.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 10:18PM
Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Review: ‘Bernie and Mikey’s Trip to the Moon’ Is Old-School Drama by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Scott Aiello’s play about an Italian-American family dealing with a disabled daughter offers no-nonsense American realism.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 03:24PM
Tuesday, November 20, 2018

Review: A Hip-Hop Sidekick Eyes Center Stage in ‘Hype Man’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Idris Goodwin’s energetic but overstuffed play explores race, gender, police brutality and the quest for fame.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 11:18PM
Monday, November 19, 2018

critic’s pick: ‘Christmas Spectacular’ Review: Where Rockettes and Drones Dazzle by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Radio City Music Hall successfully merges old-fashioned showmanship and state-of-the-art technology in this year’s Christmas pageant.

SOURCE: The New York Times Subscription at 01:42PM

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
Nov 17, 2024: Elf - Marquis 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