All stories by Jan Simpson on BroadwayStars

Saturday, August 26, 2017

The "Prince of Broadway" is Too Stately by Jan Simpson

Whether you walk out of Manhattan Theatre Club's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre feeling as though you got you money's worth after seeing Prince of Broadway is going to depend on what you go into…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:24PM
Saturday, August 19, 2017

A "Hamlet" Without a Semblance of Majesty by Jan Simpson

Hamlet is hands down the world's most famous play. People who have never been inside a theater quote its lines "To be, or not to be" and "To thine own self be true." And parodies and homages…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 07:06PM
Saturday, August 12, 2017

"Curvy Widow" Plays to its Demographic by Jan Simpson

Women of a certain age (which usually means between 50 and 75) make up the majority of the theater's ticket buying audience. And Curvy Widow, the new musical that recently opened at the West…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 12:42PM
Saturday, August 5, 2017

"A Parallelogram" Doesn't Play It Straight by Jan Simpson

Whimsy has never really been my cup of tea. And alas, A Parallelogramthe Bruce Norris play that opened at Second Stage Theater this past week, is reeking of it.  A dark comedy…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 10:48AM
Saturday, July 29, 2017

"The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds her Chameleon Skin" Didn't Get Time to Show Off Its Star by Jan Simpson

It may seem silly to talk about The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds her Chameleon Skin because it was scheduled for just two performances this past week, half the usual five or six-show run for prod…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:36AM
Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Drifting into Summer Vacation Mode by Jan Simpson

It's that time of year again: temperatures have heated up, show openings have cooled down and I've succumbed to summer sloth. So while I'll continue to see a few shows and to share my though…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 01:33PM
Saturday, July 22, 2017

"Ghost Light" is a Love Letter to Theater by Jan Simpson

Although he's usually game for just about anything, my theatergoing buddy Bill declined when I suggested that we see Ghost Light, the immersive theatrical experience that the experimental th…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:54AM
Wednesday, July 19, 2017

"Pipeline" is Unsure of Where It Wants to Go by Jan Simpson

Dominique Morisseau's reputation as both a lyrical and thoughtful playwright has been growing for a few years now. Detroit '67, the first in a three-play cycle she wrote about her hometown, …

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 01:54PM
Saturday, July 15, 2017

Taking Time Out to Celebrate My Mom by Jan Simpson

Today would have been my mother's 100th birthday so although she left us 14 years ago, I'm going to take time out from the usual postings to wish her a Happy Birthday and to give her a stand…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:24AM
Wednesday, July 12, 2017

"1984" Isn't as Scary as It Should Be by Jan Simpson

The producers of 1984 are marketing their show as though it were a horror movie. They've put out a warning that children under 13 will not be admitted (click here to read about that). And th…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 02:18PM
Saturday, July 8, 2017

Pondering the Metaphysics of Life in "Marvin's Room and "Cost of Living" by Jan Simpson

What's the purpose of life?  I know that's a ridiculously big question but it's been on my mind because two shows I've recently seen take direct aim at that metaphysical enigma. And bot…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 05:42PM
Wednesday, July 5, 2017

Theater Books for Summer Reading 2017 by Jan Simpson

Happy Fifth of July. The Independence Day fireworks may be over but we've still got nine more weeks of summer to celebrate until Labor Day. For me that means time to sit on our terrace …

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 01:48PM
Saturday, July 1, 2017

"Napoli, Brooklyn" is All Over the Map by Jan Simpson

The woman sitting next to me at the Roundabout Company's Laura Pels Theatre was the perfect audience for Napoli, Brooklyn, the new family drama that opened there this week. She guffawed…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:04AM
Wednesday, June 28, 2017

"Animal's" Bark is Stronger than Its Bite by Jan Simpson

Madness is unimaginable to those of us unaffected by it and yet that hasn't stopped writers from trying to recreate what it must feel like to lose control of one's mind. And actors also embr…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:12AM
Wednesday, June 21, 2017

An intermission by Jan Simpson

My husband K and I are away on vacation so no posts until we get back next week.

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:54AM
Saturday, June 17, 2017

"The Government Inspector" Triumphs by Jan Simpson

The Red Bull Theater Company has a gift for silliness. Its production of Richard Brinsley Sheridan's 18th century classic The School for Scandal was one of the best evenings I had in th…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 12:12PM
Wednesday, June 14, 2017

Tony Talk Podcast: Episode 12: Wrapping Up by Jan Simpson

The 2016-2017 theater season that ended on Sunday night with the Tony Awards ceremony hosted by Kevin Spacey was one of the best in recent memory. That made the contest for the top prizes on…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 09:18AM
Saturday, June 10, 2017

Tony Talk Podcast Episode 11: Final Predictions by Jan Simpson

After enduring 40 days of awards lunches, newspaper ads, TV appearances, magazine interviews and all kinds of social media interactions, the Broadway community (fans included) will finally g…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:24AM
Wednesday, June 7, 2017

The Shared Promise and Common Failings of "Can You Forgive Her?" "The End of Longing" and "The Whirligig" by Jan Simpson

Has someone been traveling around peddling the idea that all a play now needs to be successful is quirky characters, snappy dialog and a speech at the end about the meaning of life?  I …

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:18AM
Saturday, June 3, 2017

Tony Talk Episode 10: The Broadcast by Jan Simpson

The Tony Awards ceremony, which will air on CBS next Sunday, June 11, is more than just a celebration of the best of the theater season. It's the way that many people, especially those outsi…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:48AM
Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Little Musicals with Big Aspirations: "The Boy Who Danced on Air" and "Ernest Shackelton Loves Me" by Jan Simpson

Over the past few months, I've been bingeing on the big awards-baiting musicals that have opened on Broadway. Several of them are terrific but it was nice last week to see two smaller shows …

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:06AM
Saturday, May 27, 2017

Tony Talk Episode9: The Design Categories by Jan Simpson

Just like everyone else involved in putting on a show, costume and set designers see their main job as telling a story. But that job--and winning a Tony for it--is harder than it looks. Desi…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 12:12PM
Wednesday, May 24, 2017

The Misfortunes of "The Lucky One" by Jan Simpson

Most people know A.A. Milne as the creator of the Winnie-the-Pooh children's stories but in the two decades before he published the first Pooh book in 1926, Milne was best known as a humoris…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 03:05PM
Saturday, May 20, 2017

Tony Talk Podcast-Episode 8: The Campaign by Jan Simpson

The race is on. It may be done more politely than it was during our last presidential campaign (thank goodness), but the Tony nominees are beginning to elbow one another out of the way as th…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:06AM
Wednesday, May 17, 2017

"Seven Spots on the Sun" Sheds Light on the Darkness a Repressive Regime Can Inflict by Jan Simpson

Getting a show in front of a mainstream audience ain't easy and it can be even tougher when you're a playwright of color. Which is why I'm happy to have seen Martín Zimmerman's Seven Spots …

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 01:54PM
Saturday, May 13, 2017

Tony Talk Podcast-Episode 7: The Other Awards by Jan Simpson

The theater awards season is like a presidential campaign. Everyone has their eyes on the ultimate prize but there are lots of other contests along the way that offer trophies and with them,…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 10:05AM
Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Cheering The Outer Critics Circle's Awards by Jan Simpson

I promise to get back to talking about shows I've seen soon but as a card-carrying member of the Outer Critics Circle, I feel honor-bound to tout the awards we announced on Monday. The OCC r…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 12:24PM
Saturday, May 6, 2017

Is There Life After the Tony Nominations for "Anastasia," Bandstand" and "Charlie & the Chocolate Factory"? by Jan Simpson

All Tony awards are coveted but the awards for Best Musical tend to be the most coveted of all. And because 13 new musicals debuted during the 2016-2017 season, the odds of getting one this …

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 02:06PM
Wednesday, May 3, 2017

The Tony Talk Podcast-Episode 6: The Tony Nominations by Jan Simpson

If you're reading this blog, then you already know that the Tony nominations were announced yesterday.  And depending on how you look at it, this year's nominators had one of the toughe…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 12:18PM
Saturday, April 29, 2017

Annie Baker Contemplates the Vagaries of Storytelling in "The Antipodes" by Jan Simpson

Like most talented playwrights these days, Annie Baker has no doubt been asked to spend some time in a writers' room for one of the prestige TV shows. But on the basis of her new play The An…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 08:36AM
Wednesday, April 26, 2017

Parsing the Outer Critics Circle Nominations by Jan Simpson

There's no question that the Tonys are the Oscars, or most desired awards, of the theater world but there are other coveted prizes too. Yesterday, the Outer Critics Circle, of which I'm a pr…

SOURCE: Broadway & Me at 11:42AM

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
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic