A Grateful Sixteenth Anniversary Message by Jan Simpson

So here we are celebrating—albeit slightly belatedly—the 16th anniversary of Broadway & Me. My first post went up on Feb. 14, 2007 and in the intervening years, I've seen so many wo…

"Pictures From Home" Lacks A Clear Focus by Jan Simpson

  Around 1982 the photographer Larry Sultan began taking photos of his parents at their home in California’s affluent San Fernando Valley. And he kept at it over the next 10 years, final…

Cozy At-Home Theater for a Cold Weekend by Jan Simpson

A frigid cold front is sweeping across a large part of the country this weekend. And that can be a disincentive to go outside for even the most avid theatergoer. Luckily, there are—thanks …

Why the OCC (and Me) Made the Switch to More Gender-Inclusive Acting Awards by Jan Simpson

Giving awards can be tricky. We all want to—and should—celebrate extraordinary theatrical talent. But every time one person is ushered into the winner’s circle, a whole lot of other fo…

Finally Seduced by "Phantom of the Opera" by Jan Simpson

January can be a quiet time on Broadway. Lots of shows close (click here for a list of some of them). Very few open. Which makes it a good time to catch up with the ones still running that y…

All the Drama: 1982 Pulitzer Prize Winner “A Soldier’s Play” by Charles Fuller by Jan Simpson

All The Drama is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of deep dives into the plays that have won The Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prize for Drama: “A Soldier’s Play”1982 Pul…

High Hopes For a Very Happy New Year by Jan Simpson

  Wishing you a year filled with all of the above, plus, of course, lots of great theater...

My Favorite Theatrical Things in 2022 by Jan Simpson

Theater worked hard this year to come back from the pandemic. As part of those efforts, Broadway dropped its requirement that theatergoers show proof of being vaccinated and made mask wearin…

Christmas Tidings 2022 by Jan Simpson

"The Far Country" Recalls Forgotten History by Jan Simpson

The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust announced this week that it is awarding its $100,000 Mimi Award to two mid-career playwrights: James Ijames and Lloyd Suh. I’m pleased for bo…

All the Drama: 1996 Pulitzer Prize Winner “Rent” by Jonathan Larson by Jan Simpson

All The Drama is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of deep dives into the plays that have won The Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prize for Drama: “Rent”1996 Pulitzer winner �…

How Broadway's "KPOP" Lost Its Mojo by Jan Simpson

The world of musical theater is divided right now between the people who saw KPOP before it came to Broadway and those who saw it afterward. I sadly fall into the latter group.  The origina…

Digging Deep Into Empathy With "Downstate" by Jan Simpson

Bruce Norris has a knack for making people uncomfortable.  His 2006 play The Pain and the Itch featured a 4-year-old with a genital rash, a metaphor for her family’s dysfunction that call…

Succumbing to the Charms of "& Juliet" by Jan Simpson

  & Juliet, the exuberant new musical that mashes up Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet with the songbook of the pop hitmaker Max Martin wasn’t made for me. It was made for the tween g…

All the Drama: 1921 Pulitzer Prize Winner “Miss Lulu Bett” by Zona Gale by Jan Simpson

All The Drama is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of deep dives into the plays that have won The Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prize for Drama: “Miss Lulu Bett”1921 Pulitze…

Life and Death Stories In "Everything's Fine," "Walking With Ghosts," "Where the Mountain Meets the Sea," and "My B by Jan Simpson

The writer Joan Didion once said that “we tell ourselves stories in order to live.” But lately an increasing number of theater makers have not only been telling the stories of their live…

Stagecraft: Joseph Dougherty, Playwright of “Chester Bailey” by Jan Simpson

The Stagecraft podcast is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of interviews with playwrights (and musical book writers) of shows opening on Broadway and off-Broadway. Guest: Joseph Dougher…

In Memoriam: Seymour "Red" Press by Jan Simpson

My friend Seymour "Red" Press died yesterday. Although to call him a friend doesn’t really describe what he meant to my husband K and me. Red was a longtime musical contractor and K, a tru…

A Nay for "Baldwin & Buckley at Cambridge" by Jan Simpson

As a recent story in the online magazine TDF Stages noted, James Baldwin is having a theatrical moment (click here to read more about it). The black writer and intellectual, who died in 1987…

The New "1776" Isn't Revolutionary Enough by Jan Simpson

Revivals used to be fairly simple. A producer would take a beloved title or maybe even an underappreciated one, cast it with a star or two and voilà, a show. But that’s not how it goes no…

Alan Cumming Follows His Passion in "Burn" by Jan Simpson

The very limited six-day run of Burn, Alan Cumming’s solo performance piece at The Joyce Theater, ends this weekend but there is so much joy in it that I can't resist celebrating it.  Cu…

All the Drama: 1949 Pulitzer Prize Winner “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller by Jan Simpson

All The Drama is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of deep dives into the plays that have won The Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prize for Drama: “Death of a Salesman”1949 Pu…

A Labor Day Salute to Stage Managers by Jan Simpson

Monday is Labor Day, which means that it’s time for my annual tribute to some of the people whose labor makes the theater we all love work. I’ve been doing this for 15 years now and I ca…

"The Butcher Boy" and "On that Day in Amsterdam" May Have Arrived Too Soon by Jan Simpson

Everyone who loves serious theater loves the idea of giving talented new writers a chance to show what they can do. The question is the timing. Too many workshops (and the notes that come al…

All the Drama: 1967 Pulitzer Prize Winner “A Delicate Balance” by Edward Albee by Jan Simpson

All The Drama is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of deep dives into the plays that have won The Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prize for Drama: “A Delicate Balance”1967 Pul…

This Post-Modern "Oresteia" is No Classic by Jan Simpson

Greek tragedies don’t get done a lot. Which is why I really try to see them when I can. So my theatergoing buddy Bill and I bought tickets for the new production of the Oresteia that is pl…

"Between the Lines" Tells a Familiar Story by Jan Simpson

So many musicals nowadays are based on movies or other pop culture IP (by which I mean jukebox musicals of one kind or another) that it’s nicely retro to have one based on a book. That’s…

Stagecraft: Brian Watkins, Playwright of “Epiphany” by Jan Simpson

The Stagecraft podcast is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of interviews with playwrights (and musical book writers) of shows opening on Broadway and off-Broadway. Guest: Brian Watkins,…

Women and Politics in "POTUS" and "53% Of" by Jan Simpson

Sometimes you have to laugh to keep from crying. At least that’s the approach two recent plays have taken with the current political morass in which we all find ourselves.  Selina Filling…

All the Drama: Biographer Mimi Pockross on the 1945 Pulitzer Prize Winner “Harvey” by Jan Simpson

All The Drama is hosted by Jan Simpson. It is a series of deep dives into the plays that have won The Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prize for Drama: “Harvey”1945 Pulitzer winner…

Theater Books for Summer Reading 2022 by Jan Simpson

Now that Covid has been around for more than two years and vaccines have made contracting the virus a little less scary, a new kind of normal is settling in. The Tony award ceremonies return…