All stories by FRANK SCHECK on BroadwayStars

Thursday, August 30, 2012

‘Tender Napalm’ drops a bomb by Frank Scheck

‘i could squeeze a bullet between those lips.” “I could get a spoon and prise it in your eye sockets.” “I could squeeze a grenade up there.” Such are among the not-so-tender decl…

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Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Shepard loses flock by Frank Scheck

Sam Shepard clearly hasn’t mellowed with age. The 68-year-old playwright’s newest work, “Heartless,” which the Signature Theatre’s giving a world premiere, reveals a writer still r…

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Monday, August 27, 2012

These cats sure can roar by Frank Scheck

One of the more depressing moments in a man’s life comes with the realization that he’s no longer young enough to be cougar bait. That was one of the random thoughts prompted by “Couga…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 12:11AM

On a mission for yuks, accompanied by ukes by Frank Scheck

‘the Book of Mormon” isn’t the only show in town to poke fun of Mitt Romney’s faith. Enter “Missionary in Manhattan” which is pretty amusing, if a lot less profane — and just $…

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Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Ripe for the spoofing by Frank Scheck

Broadway’s long sigh of relief is over: Gerard Alessandrini’s skewer-fest, “Forbidden Broadway,” is back with “Alive & Kicking!” Opening Sept. 6, it once again makes comic mincem…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:35PM
Monday, August 20, 2012

Down in flames by Frank Scheck

Club kids are familiar with the strange goings-on at The Box, the intimate Lower East Side venue that specializes in modern-day burlesque and risqué vaudeville acts. But the hot spot’s cu…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:04PM
Sunday, August 19, 2012

‘Romeo & Juliet’ gets ‘male’-d to the Middle East by Frank Scheck

It may advance the cause of Arab-Israeli relations, but the new play “Dogs” doesn’t do much to help theater. This new work by the Israeli company TheaterCan at the Fringe Festival conc…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:56PM
Thursday, August 16, 2012

‘Hills Are Alive’ with the sound of mediocrity by Frank Scheck

Ever wonder what happened to the singing Von Trapp family after they escaped the Nazis by climbing the Alps at the end of “The Sound of Music”? Probably not, especially since in real lif…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:25PM

A rocking tale of ’60s star sung in Shlomo by Frank Scheck

Long before Matisyahu made Orthodox Judaism hip, there was Shlomo Carlebach. This “Rock Star Rabbi,” whose accessible brand of Jewish music made him an unlikely pop star in the 1960s, is…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 12:18AM

Tapping into baseball & B’way lore by Frank Scheck

Imagine owning a home plate that once graced the old Yankee Stadium. Or the glove worn by the player who ended Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak with a catch. Or the letter Babe Ruth w…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 12:17AM
Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Review: Backbeat by Frank Scheck

Now playing in Toronto by way of Glasgow and London’s West End—and prior to a hoped-for Broadway run—Backbeat: The Birth of the Beatles is far from the cheery juke-box musi…

SOURCE: Scheck on the Arts at 10:35AM

For Dad, ‘Amore’ and more by Frank Scheck

By Beverly Hills standards, Deana Martin had a perfectly normal childhood. She sang Christmas carols with Rosemary Clooney, Judy Garland attended her school play and “Uncle Frank” Sinatr…

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Dirty pols mock the vote by Frank Scheck

It’s bad enough that politicians screw over their constituents. Do they have to screw over the English language, too? Thanks to sleazy politicos involved in career-breaking sex scandals su…

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Thursday, August 9, 2012

Into the Woods: Theater Review by Frank Scheck

Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's fairy tale-inspired musical starring Amy Adams is appropriately presented in the woods in this free Central Park revival. read more

SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter at 08:00PM
Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Bullet for Adolf: Theater Review by Frank Scheck

Woody Harrelson and Frankie Hyman's shaggy dog farce was inspired by their youthful days working together at a Houston construction site. read more

SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter at 11:23AM
Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Playing politics remains Vidal by Frank Scheck

Broadway dimmed its lights Friday night in Gore Vidal’s honor. Happily, a slew of cast changes at his scathing 1960 comedy, “The Best Man,” has scarcely diminished this fine revival’…

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These yuks are for you, Dad by Frank Scheck

‘shalom, my brothers,” Rain Pryor greets her audience — and if that sounds incongruous coming from a woman in a large Afro, well, that’s the point. As “Fried Chicken and Latkes” …

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 12:12AM
Sunday, August 5, 2012

It’s not ‘Sweet’ enough by Frank Scheck

Charity Hope Valentine is reborn as Caridad Esperanza Valentin in the new Latin-accented revival of “Sweet Charity.” But while the ethnic flavoring adds some spice to the 1966 musical ab…

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Friday, August 3, 2012

Look up, way up: It’s theater on high by Frank Scheck

There are plenty of places in this town where you can see Tony-winning actors perform. A roof isn’t usually one of them. That changes this weekend, when the Red Shirt Rooftop Reading Serie…

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Thursday, August 2, 2012

Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth: Theater Review by Frank Scheck

The controversial former champ tells his side of the story while settling scores along the way. read more

SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter at 11:22AM
Thursday, July 26, 2012

Don’t skip it, if you please by Frank Scheck

A Siamese cat imagines himself to be a Chihuahua in the delightful new kids’ musical “Skippyjon Jones.” This summer’s free offering from Theaterworks USA deserves a hearty olé! The…

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Wednesday, July 25, 2012

‘Milk’ has gone sour by Frank Scheck

‘it smells like armpits in here,” one of the characters says about the dilapidated train station in “Black Milk,” but the odor is the least of it. Vassily Sigarev’s play, now recei…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:33PM

Review: Jenifer Lewis: Black Don't Crack by Frank Scheck

The powerhouse performer shines in her first NYC cabaret gig in 20 years.

SOURCE: TheaterMania at 11:15AM
Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Review: Uncle Vanya by Frank Scheck

Leave it to the Aussies to deliver a rollicking Chekhov. The Sydney Theatre Company’s new Uncle Vanya being presented by the Lincoln Center Festival is a triumphant rendition that tha…

SOURCE: Scheck on the Arts at 05:23PM
Monday, July 23, 2012

Aging Bull: ouch! by Frank Scheck

Jake LaMotta may be 90, but he can still beat Mike Tyson to the punch. The legendary pugilist has opened his autobiographical show, “Lady and the Champ,” just before Tyson hits Broadway…

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Thursday, July 19, 2012

Evil that lurks in the arts of men by Frank Scheck

The most infuriating thing about “Serious Money,” Caryl Churchill’s 1987 satire of financial manipulations, is how damnably relevant it remains. The play was a flop in its 1988 Broadwa…

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Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Review: Dogfight by Frank Scheck

Much like the 1991 film that inspired it, the new musical Dogfight is a sweet, unassuming and quietly touching tale that has the feel of a tightly constructed short story. While its storylin…

SOURCE: Scheck on the Arts at 05:55AM
Monday, July 16, 2012

Maid to order Molière by Frank Scheck

Wearing a dress and bonnet while flouncing around and speaking in a high-pitched whine, Peter Dinklage makes a far different impression in the new production of Molière’s “The Imaginary…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 12:11AM
Friday, July 13, 2012

Overstuffed ‘Rio’ not our Copa tea by Frank Scheck

Like the teeming slums that are its setting, the new musical “Rio” is seriously overcrowded. This re-imagining of “Oliver Twist,” set in modern-day Brazil, is so stuffed with inciden…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:32PM
Sunday, July 8, 2012

Musical theater fest brings the noise of summer by Frank Scheck

Just when you thought it was safe to head into the water, here comes the New York Musical Theatre Festival. What used to be one of the best bets of the fall is now playing the hot days of s…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:29PM
Friday, July 6, 2012

Sharp tongue, satisfying songs by Frank Scheck

You don’t mess with Jackie Hoffman. At least, not if you’re going to ask her to perform at your new nightspot. Kicking off her show at 54 Below, the comedienne milked her chagrin at bein…

SOURCE: The New York Post Subscription at 11:57PM