All stories by Elisabeth Vincentelli on BroadwayStars

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Naughty your average Cole Porter revival by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Besides an ode to bodacious bosoms, Cole Porter’s “Nymph Errant” features white slavery, lesbianism and a heroine who desperately — and unsuccessfully — tries to get laid. Yet des…

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Friday, July 13, 2012

Still got the beat by Elisabeth Vincentelli

It may be a sweltering July, but you get the sense that “Fela!” would have the sweatiest cast on Broadway no matter the season. These guys work so incredibly hard that they’re glisteni…

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Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Not light, but Eire-y by Elisabeth Vincentelli

There’s no getting around the unrelenting misery of “DruidMurphy.” Made up of three plays by Irish playwright Tom Murphy — unknown in the US but much admired at home — this is one …

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Sunday, July 8, 2012

It’s not quite spot on by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Near the beginning of “Macbeth,” a character observes, “Have we eaten on the insane root that takes the reason prisoner?” It’s a line the creators of this production, which just op…

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Saturday, July 7, 2012

Grab another beer, Ahnuld by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Not only is “Terminator Too — Judgment Play” a cheap ticket, but that $25 includes a free beer. By all means, cash in: This is the kind of show that’s definitely better with beer gog…

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Thursday, July 5, 2012

Cheers & loathing by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Every so often, a show comes along that polarizes critics and audiences alike. Right now, “3C” is that show. Some reviewers, including myself and the New Yorker’s John Lahr, loved thi…

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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Targeted for speedy extinction by Elisabeth Vincentelli

‘Triassic Parq — The Musical,” which just opened at the SoHo Playhouse, sticks to an approach familiar to anyone who’s ever attended the New York International Fringe Festival. Proud…

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Monday, June 25, 2012

Fresh blood on Broadway by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Broadway is said to bet on stars. Well, yes and no. Look at the long-running hits: Do you know who’s in “Wicked” or “Jersey Boys” right now? At the same time, casting is key to the…

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Sunday, June 24, 2012

‘Monarch’ makes a good case, but the jury isn’t buying it by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Leslie Hendrix spent 19 seasons playing medical examiner Elizabeth Rodgers on all four “Law & Order” series. You’d think playwright Jim Henry would have asked the star of his new thril…

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Friday, June 22, 2012

Three’s a charm in take on classic ’70s sitcom by Elisabeth Vincentelli

‘come and knock on our door/We’ve been waiting for you . . .” Although the names have been changed, the premise of the new off-Broadway show “3C” will be familiar to anybody with a…

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Shakespeerless in the Park by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Shakespeare in the Park is turning 50 this year, and its new production of “As You Like It” is a great gift to itself — and us. Something special is happening here: The parts may not a…

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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

‘Bad’ good but could be ‘Better’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Whether you like them or not, the Amoralists’ gritty shows are like no other — thanks mostly to resident playwright Derek Ahonen’s distinctive mix of hyper-realism and satire, brash vi…

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Pluck be a lady by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Martha Gellhorn was a bold, opinionated woman. Fearless, too: She worked as a war correspondent and married Ernest Hemingway. Then she dumped him. Now, 14 years after her death, Gellhorn is…

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Monday, June 18, 2012

Slow ‘Vanya’ not vital to Chekhov your list by Elisabeth Vincentelli

It’s about depression, boredom, thwarted ambition and hopeless loves. And it’s one of the most popular plays in New York. Indeed, not a year goes by without someone taking a stab at Che…

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Friday, June 15, 2012

Big bunny theory works by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Few things on Broadway are as old-fashioned as “Harvey.” And it’s not just because Mary Chase’s play is from 1944 — plenty of older works have more edge than this butter knife of a…

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Thursday, June 14, 2012

Bummer vacation by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Abi Morgan is hot right now. Last year alone, this Englishwoman wrote the high-profile movies “Shame” and “The Iron Lady” and created the critically acclaimed miniseries “The Hour�…

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Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Too many cooks spoil ‘The Gods’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

It took a whopping seven writers, four directors and three producers to come up with “We Play for the Gods.” But rather than an embarrassment of riches, this new show by the Women’s Pr…

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Nuanced view of girl power by Elisabeth Vincentelli

There are two things you should know about “Rapture, Blister, Burn.” It’s about feminism, and it’s fun. Plays that focus on any kind of -ism tend to provoke a recoil reflex: Who goes…

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Monday, June 11, 2012

Nearly divine by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Set in The Bronx in 2009, “Storefront Church” includes balloon payments, influence peddling and the real estate crisis. But don’t go to John Patrick Shanley’s new play expecting ripp…

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Thursday, June 7, 2012

Tastes great, but not filling by Elisabeth Vincentelli

There are two surefire ways to make an audience go “awww” — prominently feature a puppy or food. As its title indicates, “Food and Fadwa” picked option B. In a series of mock cooki…

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Give ‘Medieval’ the rack by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The witless “Medieval Play” might have been written by a cocky 16-year-old boy. And not just any boy, but one eager to show off his arcane erudition (the story revolves around 14th-centu…

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Monday, June 4, 2012

Unexpectedly wise ‘Guys’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Some plays can stretch a tiny plot for hours. They finally grind to a halt, and you’re still wondering what the heck they were trying to say. And then there’s Alena Smith’s “The Bad…

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Sunday, June 3, 2012

‘Zoloft’ will give you a lift by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Don’t expect anything groundbreaking from “Chimichangas and Zoloft.” Fernanda Coppel’s play may be new, but its themes are well-worn: girls coming of age, sexual identity, philanderi…

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Fun at Potter-y yarn by Elisabeth Vincentelli

The new off-Broadway show “Potted Potter” is subtitled “The Unauthorized Harry Experience — A Parody by Dan and Jeff.” In truth, this British import has zero satirical bite. Rather…

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Friday, June 1, 2012

Exit, stage left by Elisabeth Vincentelli

It’s hard to believe, considering the amount of publicity they’ve gotten, but New Jersey is not just Snooki and her GTL routine. (For those unfamiliar with MTV’s “Jersey Shore,” th…

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Thursday, May 31, 2012

‘Jukebox’ is jumpin’ by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Though Lou Reed name-checked him in “Walk on the Wild Side” — as the one who “thought she was James Dean for a day” — Jackie Curtis is less famous today than fellow Warhol supers…

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Monday, May 28, 2012

All the world’s a stage by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Part of the fun of going to the theater is watching live performers create a different world in front of our eyes. That’s not enough for some enterprising directors, so they go the extra m…

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Friday, May 25, 2012

Bookish Brits’ war of words by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Anglophiles with a fetish for bookish Cambridge students politely arguing about literature and life may get a kick out of “The Common Pursuit.” Others may find themselves looking at thei…

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Too many lectures en route to liberation by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Anyone who caught the revivals this year of “The Road to Mecca” and “Blood Knot” knows that South African playwright Athol Fugard takes his sweet time to get to the point. Both shows…

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Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Home is where the art is in flawed musical by Elisabeth Vincentelli

Gypsy Rose Lee, Carson McCullers, Benjamin Britten and W.H. Auden walk into a house . . . This sounds like the setup for either a highbrow joke or Harvey Weinstein’s latest Oscar-bait movi…

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Monday, May 21, 2012

Kind of like Seinfeld in hell by Elisabeth Vincentelli

It’s tempting to think of “Title and Deed” as an elaborate prank played on a helpless audience. This new piece by Will Eno — the critically acclaimed author of “Thom Pain (based o…

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