Friday, November 4, 2011
The story behind a fascinating character in a new dark comedy They’re called playwrights and not “playwrites” because plays are wrought, constructed, carefully made. Even i…
SOURCE: TDF at 11:19AMThursday, November 3, 2011
In today’s NPR/Monkey See post, I’m arguing why it’s exhausting to learn that Ricky Gervais may host the Golden Globes again… and why it may permanently damage his va…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 04:02PMDavid Hallberg is a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre, and he recently made headlines by becoming the first American to join Russia’s famed Bolshoi Ballet. Our friends …
SOURCE: TDF at 03:28PMWednesday, November 2, 2011
My NPR week continues with this analysis of 7 Minutes in Heaven, the ridiculously funny web series hosted by SNL writer Mike O’Brien. If you haven’t watched these delicious clips…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 06:26PMTuesday, November 1, 2011
My week at NPR’s Monkey See blog continues with my secret wish for American Horror Story‘s second season. It doesn’t directly involve a scene where Dylan McDermott makes ou…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 12:26PMMonday, October 31, 2011
Hey all! While the head writer’s on vacation, I’ll be posting at NPR’s Monkey See blog every day this week. Woo! Today’s post is about the trailer for Extremely Loud …
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 12:29PMFriday, October 28, 2011
The folks at Frontier Psychiatrist have launched a fascinating experiment: They are “audio-serializing” Jim Knable’s new novel Sons of Dionysus, meaning that every Friday, …
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 09:33AMWednesday, October 26, 2011
I am in the lucky minority of Americans who walk to work everyday, and the commute is one of my favorite parts of the day. The exercise is nice, as is using my weathergear. (Back when I drov…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 03:52PM How crowds and spaces affect PigPen Theatre Company’s work A play’s identity changes based on where you see it and whom you see it with. The same production seems differen…
SOURCE: TDF at 12:22PMTuesday, October 25, 2011
Over at NPR’s Monkey See blog, I’m thinking about Your Man Reminder, a new app that uses sexy men to raise awareness about breast cancer I’m pretty ambivalent about the who…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 01:15PMMonday, October 24, 2011
Mary J. Blige doesn’t make mere albums. She makes testaments. That’s why I love her: As much as any pop star in history, Mary J. Blige turns her own life into an epic narrative. …
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 04:46PMSaturday, October 22, 2011
The “Chinglish” actors speak two languages in their Broadway debuts At the moment, Broadway shows are set everywhere from the African plains to the Australian outback to the tren…
SOURCE: TDF at 10:17AMMonday, October 17, 2011
Perhaps by accident or perhaps by shrewd design, Justin Bieber’s forthcoming Christmas album Under the Mistletoe perfectly encapsulates the current pop marketplace. It simultaneously c…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 02:24PMFriday, October 14, 2011
“Mangella” imagines a desktop-human romance For as long as there have been machines, there have been stories about machines replacing people, and that tradition gets a sly…
SOURCE: TDF at 11:06AMThursday, October 13, 2011
and MARK PEIKERT Inside Broadway’s first autism-friendly performance In many ways, the October 2nd matinee of The Lion King was like any other performance. The theatre buzzed wi…
SOURCE: TDF at 02:37PMRemember how cool it was when Kanye West featured alt-rock’s Bon Iver on his last album? And remember in the 90s when P.M. Dawn made amazing hip-hop records by referencing everything f…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 10:47AMTuesday, October 11, 2011
After two weeks away, I am back from China, and this is the most revolting thing I ate while I was there. Now that I’ve returned to the U.S., jetlag is pretty much dominating my daily …
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 05:37PMWednesday, September 28, 2011
The playwright makes her Broadway debut with “The Mountaintop” Playwright Katori Hall has the best kind of laugh—a loud explosion that almost forces you to laugh alo…
SOURCE: TDF at 02:54PMMonday, September 26, 2011
Hello everyone! I’m going to China for the next two weeks. Wooo! I’ll see you on October 10.
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 11:37AMThursday, September 22, 2011
We need to talk about Revenge, the ABC drama that has quickly joined NBC’s Up All Night as my favorite new show of the season. The pilot is delicious: It’s got the soapy intrigue…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 04:24PMWednesday, September 21, 2011
Looking for excellent film writing? I recommend Roommate Joe’s and Nick “Pop Songs Tournament” Davis‘ reflections on the movies they’ve seen this year. They&#…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 04:14PMTuesday, September 20, 2011
The title of this post is not a spiritual claim… it’s the name of a 1999 song by The Tamperer featuring Maya (not to be confused with Mya.) However, the song is so awesome that t…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 05:20PMMonday, September 19, 2011
* Overall, I enjoyed the show. I love upset winners, and these awards provided plenty. It was especially great to see Melissa McCarthy step out from the beauty-pageant line of Best Comedy Ac…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 12:35AMFriday, September 16, 2011
Elevator Repair Service gets inventive with Ernest Hemingway Elevator Repair Service’s new show The Select (The Sun Also Rises) is a lot of fun, but in between the stellar perfo…
SOURCE: TDF at 12:06PMThursday, September 15, 2011
If you’re wondering why I’ve spent the week vacillating between terror and joy, then I should remind you that the new TV season has begun. Every night brings a new companion to m…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 01:03AMWednesday, September 14, 2011
Given all the neck popping and hand flailing and implied snapping, you might think this Tide commercial perpetuates the stereotype of the “sassy black woman.” But think again. It…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 04:20PMMonday, September 12, 2011
Welcome to Sucker Punch, the only blog post that ranks the gaudiest moments on this week’s episode of True Blood. SPOILERS AHEAD —- Oh my God… it’s like this episode …
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 12:49AMFriday, September 9, 2011
Our friends at DancePulp have fantastic video series that features the best contemporary dancers and choreographers talking about their careers. From time to time, we’ll be sharing exc…
SOURCE: TDF at 03:02PMArs Nova nurtures ambitious insanity in “The Lapsburgh Layover” To the outside observer, Ars Nova could seem like your basic, respectable Off Broadway theatre: It’s got a posh building…
SOURCE: TDF at 11:41AMThursday, September 8, 2011
On next week’s Billboard Hot 100, the #1 song in America will be Adele’s “Someone Like You.” Thanks to her lovely performance at the VMAs, the song sold 275,000 digit…
SOURCE: The Critical Condition at 03:53AMWednesday, September 7, 2011
How Fiasco Theater created its celebrated Shakespeare production — Fiasco Theater’s production of Cymbeline is more than just bluegrass numbers and clever beheadings. Granted, those …
SOURCE: TDF at 02:09PM 
