All stories by Karen D'Souza on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

'Hamilton': Yes, we have dates for San Francisco run by Karen D'Souza

A national tour of 'Hamilton,' the breakaway hip-hop musical, is set to launch in San Francisco March 14-Aug. 5

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:47PM
Monday, August 29, 2016

Review: Andrew Lippa fans will savor 'Life of the Party'; but for anyone else ... by Karen D'Souza

Tony-nominated composer Andrew Lippa lends his charm to 'The Life of the Party,' an uneven medley of his songbook getting its American premiere at TheatreWorks.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 01:33PM
Friday, August 12, 2016

Review: Carole King musical 'Beautiful' soars in Bay Area return by Karen D'Souza

Smash Broadway musical 'Beautiful,' built around the life and music of pop legend Carole King, returns to the city where the jukebox hit was born starring Abby Mueller, the big sister of ori…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:07AM
Wednesday, August 10, 2016

Review: 'Florence Foster Jenkins' will drive you crazy by Karen D'Souza

'Florence Foster Jenkins' is a heartfelt look at the real-life New York socialite who thought she could sing, although everyone around her could tell she couldn't; but despite lovely turns b…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 08:18PM
Sunday, July 10, 2016

'Hamilton' star Leslie Odom, Jr. brings cabaret show to Bay Area. by Karen D'Souza

Grammy and Tony winner Leslie Odom Jr., who made a splash playing the bad-guy Aaron Burr in the hip-hop juggernaut 'Hamilton,' is working on a solo career and brings his cabaret show to Waln…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 07:05PM
Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Review: Listless 'BFG' makes effective bedtime story by Karen D'Souza

This visually compelling but otherwise bland adaptation of Roald Dahl's 1982 fantasy -- starring Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnshill and Penelope Wilton -- just may lull viewers to sleep.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 07:28PM
Friday, June 24, 2016

Review: Moving revival of 'Master Harold' at Aurora Theatre by Karen D'Souza

Set in South Africa during Apartheid, Athol Fugard's haunting drama about a world in which black lives do not matter is still sadly relevant today.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 04:52PM
Thursday, June 23, 2016

Review: Glam new revival of 'Cabaret' loses its edge by Karen D'Souza

This kinder, gentler 'Cabaret' is often fun to watch, but it has lost the potency to make us squirm, old chum.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 11:26PM

Review: Energetic 'Motown' musical motors into San Jose by Karen D'Souza

'Motown: The Musical,' a slick package of 1960s musical nostalgia, overcomes a skimpy story with a nonstop parade of hits and a tireless cast.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 08:44AM
Friday, June 17, 2016

Review: Debauched 'Wild Party' closes San Jose Stage season by Karen D'Souza

'The Wild Party,' adapted by Andrew Lippa from a racy poem set during the Roaring '20s, presents a steamy Prohibition tale of sex, drugs and destruction, delivered by San Jose Stage Company.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 10:33PM
Tuesday, June 14, 2016

'Remarkably Normal' thrusts the abortion debate onto center stage by Karen D'Souza

New theatrical docudrama shatters the silence around abortion issue by giving a voice to women's real-life experiences. Presented by the D.C.-based nonprofit called Advocates for Youth, the …

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:29PM

Five beloved Broadway musicals return to Bay Area this summer by Karen D'Souza

'Beautiful' and 'Cabaret' and 'Motown,' oh my! Broadway's greatest hits musicals are heading back to town for a victory lap this summer.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 02:39PM
Monday, June 6, 2016

Review: TheatreWorks opens 'Velocity of Autumn,' a powerful look at aging by Karen D'Souza

An elderly woman, her son and a dozens of Molotov cocktails set the stage for 'Velocity of Autumn,' Eric Coble's drama about the indignities of aging.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 05:18PM
Saturday, June 4, 2016

Review: 'Chester Bailey' is riveting, but could use more surprises, at ACT by Karen D'Souza

American Conservatory Theater stages the world premiere of Joseph Dougherty's mystery about a wounded soldier who can't remember how he was injured; David Strathairn stars.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:46AM
Friday, June 3, 2016

Update: Lin-Manuel Miranda leaving 'Hamilton' July 9, will star in 'Mary Poppins' by Karen D'Souza

'Hamilton' creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda will star with Emily Blunt in Disney's 'Mary Poppins Returns.'

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 10:45AM
Sunday, May 29, 2016

Review: Sarah Ruhl's fanciful 'Peter Pan' doesn't fly high enough at Berkeley Rep by Karen D'Souza

'For Peter Pan on her 70th Birthday,'a quirky new fable from brilliant playwright Sarah Ruhl, feels intriguing but unfinished in its West Coast premiere at Berkeley Rep.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:07PM

Review: Cheeky 'Much Ado' mashup kicks off Cal Shakes season by Karen D'Souza

Jackson Gay and 'House of Cards' writer Kenneth Lin remix Shakespeare's 'Much Ado About Nothing' into a gender-bending romantic comedy that benefits from a stellar cast.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:07PM
Thursday, May 26, 2016

ABBA-solutely surprising: My 'Mamma Mia!' epiphany by Karen D'Souza

As a theater critic, I prefer musicals with a character-driven story arc. But 'Mamma Mia' is my mom's favorite, and over the years of going with her and feeling her unfettered joy, the chees…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 10:25PM
Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Review: 'Rock of Ages' a totally awesome musical full of 1980s big-hair hits by Karen D'Souza

Bust out the lighters! Center Repertory Company scores with the 1980s jukebox musical 'Rock of Ages,' which plays at Walnut Creek's Lesher Center through June 25.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 07:54PM
Monday, May 9, 2016

Darren Criss stars in 'Hedwig' revival coming to San Francisco by Karen D'Souza

'Glee' star and San Francisco native Darren Criss will star in the hit musical 'Hedwig and the Angry Inch' at the Golden Gate Theatre in San Francisco Oct. 4-30.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 05:37PM
Sunday, May 1, 2016

Review: Swashbuckling 'Treasure Island' delights at Berkeley Rep by Karen D'Souza

Berkeley Repertory Theatre is presenting famed theater director Mary Zimmerman's rollicking adaptation of 'Treasure Island,' the classic Robert Louis Stevenson adventure novel, through June …

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:19AM
Tuesday, April 26, 2016

Watch: 'Hamilton' creator Lin-Manuel Miranda raps on Puerto Rico crisis by Karen D'Souza

'Hamilton' creator Lin-Manuel Miranda goes on John Oliver's show to rap for segment on Puerto Rican debt crisis.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 12:12AM
Friday, April 22, 2016

Review: Hysterical 'Heir Apparent' hits the laugh jackpot by Karen D'Souza

Aurora Theatre Company revival of 18th-century farce is a highly funny lowbrow comedy.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 04:42PM
Thursday, April 21, 2016

Review: Fiercely moving 'The Lion' musical at American Conservatory Theater by Karen D'Souza

Singer-songwriter Benjamin Scheuer's roaring solo show about life, loss and musical bliss has west coast premiere at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 06:51PM
Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Ahoy! Mary Zimmerman bringing 'Treasure Island' to Berkeley Rep by Karen D'Souza

Award-winning theater director Mary Zimmerman adapts the Robert Louis Stevenson pirate masterpiece 'Treasure Island' for Berkeley Repertory Theatre, where it runs April 22-June 5.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 08:16PM
Thursday, April 14, 2016

Review: It's dated, but bawdy sex farce 'Boeing Boeing' flies at San Jose Stage by Karen D'Souza

Swinging 1960s sex farce 'Boeing Boeing' hits the runway at San Jose Stage, where it plays through May 1.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 07:50PM
Monday, April 11, 2016

Review: New 'Cyrano' misses by a nose by Karen D'Souza

TheatreWorks production of Michael Hollinger and Aaron Posner's unmannered twist on Edmond Rostand's 'Cyrano' has good performances and some inspired moments, but never fully hits on all cyl…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 05:40PM
Saturday, April 2, 2016

Review: 'Act of God' is sinfully hilarious by Karen D'Souza

Sean Hayes, of 'Will & Grace' fame, brings a solid dose of holy camp to 'An Act of God,' the Broadway hit that plays in San Francisco through April 17.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 10:16AM
Thursday, March 31, 2016

'Hamilton' update: Broadway blockbuster chiefs defend 'nonwhites only' casting call by Karen D'Souza

Some are not happy that casting calls for Lin-Manuel Miranda's smash musical 'Hamilton' emphasize that all starring roles will go to nonwhite actors, but producers say that is what makes the…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 06:41AM
Monday, March 28, 2016

Sean Hayes brings 'An Act of God' to Bay Area by Karen D'Souza

'Will & Grace' star Sean Hayes plays the Almighty in 'An Act of God,' the Broadway that plays in San Francisco through April 17.

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 08:30PM
Friday, March 25, 2016

Review: Science meets soap opera in Sarah Treem's 'The How and the Why' by Karen D'Souza

Sarah Treem, who has written for TV's 'The Affair,' 'In Treatment' and 'House of Cards,' creates an engrossing play of ideas in 'The How and the Why,' which gets its West Coast premiere thro…

SOURCE: San Jose Mercury News at 09:07PM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards