All stories by Tony Frankel on BroadwayStars

Friday, March 28, 2025

Broadway Review: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY (Music Box) by Tony Frankel

THE PICTURE OF ASTOUNDING THEATRE I’ve been fortunate to witness some extraordinary one-person plays on Broadway. To name a few: Zoe Caldwell in Lillian, Ben Kingsley in Edmund Kean, Rober…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 08:32AM
Wednesday, March 26, 2025

Theater Review: THE UNRAVELING (Ghost Road Theatre) by Tony Frankel

LOOM WITH A VIEW Ghost Road Theatre’s The Unraveling pulls you into its strange, hypnotic orbit and doesn’t let go. This is a truly original work with some breathtaking theatrical coups.…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:42PM
Tuesday, March 25, 2025

Broadway Review: PURPOSE (The Hayes Theater) by Tony Frankel

HERE’S A BROADWAY SUCCESS THAT ALSO BRIMS WITH PURPOSE Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ doesn’t just expose the cracks in a so-called perfect life—he shines a floodlight on them. Except for a…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 05:13AM
Monday, March 24, 2025

Off-Broadway Review: WE HAD A WORLD (Manhattan Theatre Club World Premiere by Joshua Harmon at NY City Center) by Tony Frankel

WE HAD A BALL Manhattan Theatre Club’s We Had a World is an unconventional modern-day three-hander memory play that covers roughly 30 years. Our diarist, memoirist, and damn funny playwrig…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 02:05PM
Sunday, March 23, 2025

Broadway Review: BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB (Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre) by Tony Frankel

FROM HAVANA TO BROADWAY: A SOCIAL CLUB WORTH JOINING Buena Vista Social Club is a sun-drenched, rhythm-soaked explosion of life, proving that sometimes a show just needs space to breathe—a…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 01:26PM
Friday, March 14, 2025

Off-Broadway Review: HAVE YOU MET JANE GOODALL AND HER MOTHER? (Ensemble Studio Theatre) by Tony Frankel

WIT, WONDER AND WILD CHIMPS Embarking on a theatrical safari at the Ensemble Studio Theatre (EST), I stumbled upon a wildly witty gem tonight that rivals the most exhilarating of jungle adve…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 02:22PM
Saturday, March 8, 2025

Theater Review: FROU-FROU: A MENAGERIE OF SORTS (Boston Court in Pasadena) by Tony Frankel

A MENAGERIE GONE MAD–IN THE BEST WAY Boston Court has never been a company to play it safe, and John Anthony Loffredo‘s world premiere of Frou-Frou: A Menagerie of Sorts is no exception.…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 12:37PM

Theater Review: BAT BOY: THE MUSICAL (Open Fist) by Tony Frankel

OPEN FIST’S BAT BOY SINKS ITS TEETH IN — AND DOESN’T LET GO Bat Boy: The Musical has returned to Los Angeles with a vengeance. This outrageous comedy/horror Off-Broadway musical, whic…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 12:37PM
Monday, March 3, 2025

Theater Review: WEST SIDE STORY (The Nocturne Theatre) by Tony Frankel

The Nocturne Theatre’s West Side Story proves that “professional community theatre” can still hit you in the gut like a Broadway-caliber production. With a book by Arthur Laurents, mus…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 11:03AM
Sunday, March 2, 2025

Highly Recommended Concert: FINN, THE MUSICAL (Stars in the House Fifth Anniversary at Town Hall, NYC) by Tony Frankel

THE MUSICAL FINN SWIMS TO TOWN HALL AFTER A STORMY SEA OF KENNEDY CENTER PIRATES TOSSED IT OVERBOARD The show they tried to sink is coming back stronger than ever. Finn, the vibrant family m…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 06:21PM

Theater Review: I LOVE YOU BECAUSE (Chromolume Theatre at the Zephyr Theatre) by Tony Frankel

I COULD’VE LOVED YOU BECAUSE Chromolume Theatre’s production of I Love You Because at the Zephyr Theatre tries to charm, but struggles under the weight of a broad acting style and a perp…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 06:21PM
Thursday, February 27, 2025

Theater Review: ALABASTER (Fountain Theatre) by Tony Frankel

RUMINATING ON RUMINANTS As a way to heal from recent tragedies, Alice (Erin Pineda), a big-city photographer, visits June (Virginia Newcomb), a reclusive artist on a small farm in Alabaster,…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 08:19AM
Wednesday, February 26, 2025

Theater Review: JERSEY BOYS (Musical Theatre West) by Tony Frankel

GET READY TO ENBOY YOURSELF Jersey Boys has been around long enough that you might assume it’s just another jukebox musical, cranking out hits for an easy nostalgia trip. But that’s neve…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:11PM

Theater Review: TARANTINO: PULP ROCK (CineVita) by Tony Frankel

THE SHOW WITH A BEAT TO A PULP INT. CINEVITA – NIGHT You walk in, and boom! You’re hit with this electric vibe, like stepping into a Tarantino flick—one minute, you’re feeling cool, …

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 12:38PM

Theater Review: TWELFTH NIGHT (Antaeus Theatre in Glendale) by Tony Frankel

WHAT PRODUCTION, FRIENDS, IS THIS? After a ship wreck, Viola and her twin, Sebastian, land on different shores, each fearing the other has perished (consider them separated at surf). And by …

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 07:59AM

Theater Review: AVENUE Q (Wisteria Theatre, North Hollywood) by Tony Frankel

FURFECT Peter Pan never grew up. Likewise Alice in Wonderland, the Hardy Boys, Freddy the Pig, Nancy Drew, or Huck Finn. It’s a pity that people do: Why must grown-ups leave behind innocen…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 05:05AM
Sunday, February 23, 2025

Theater Review: OKLAHOMA! (Valley Opera and Performing Arts at El Portal in North Hollywood) by Tony Frankel

WHAT A RELIEF: OKLAHOMA! IS OK WITH VOPA The real stars of Oklahoma!, presented for two weekends only by Valley Opera and Performing Arts (VOPA) at the El Portal Theatre, are—no surprise�…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:37AM
Thursday, February 20, 2025

Theater Review: NOISES OFF (Geffen Playhouse) by Tony Frankel

ONE COULD GO ON AND ON, EVEN THOUGH IT’S A LITTLE OFF Ah, Noises Off, the ever-reliable theatrical farce that’s been delighting us for decades with its impeccable timing, pratfalls, and,…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 01:12PM
Sunday, February 16, 2025

Theater Review: SONDHEIM’S OLD FRIENDS (Pre-Broadway Engagement at The Ahmanson in Los Angeles) by Tony Frankel

SONDHEIM MERRILY ROLLS ALONG, BUT OLD FRIENDS DOESN’T ALWAYS BOUNCE When a show is billed as a tribute to Stephen Sondheim, expectations are sky-high. His music isn’t just a collection o…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 01:28PM
Wednesday, February 12, 2025

Concert Review: LET’S MISBEHAVE: THE SONGS OF COLE PORTER (New York Pops) by Tony Frankel

MY HEART BELONGS TO THE NY POPS The New York Pops’ Let’s Misbehave: The Songs of Cole Porter was filled with many of Porter’s best-known songs: “Night and Day,” “I Love Paris,”…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 07:50AM
Saturday, February 8, 2025

Theater Review: WICKED (National Tour) by Tony Frankel

STILL A WICKED GOOD TIME The stage musical Wicked is is now Broadway’s fourth longest-running show—surpassing Cats; productions continue to sprout up globally in many languages; and last…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 12:58PM
Friday, January 31, 2025

Broadway Opening: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY (Sarah Snook at the Music Box Theatre) by Tony Frankel

A deal with the devil; eternal youth, for the ultimate price. The Picture of Dorian Gray is coming to Broadway’s Music Box Theatre for  a strictly limited engagement 14-week engagement fo…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 08:19PM
Monday, January 27, 2025

Theater Review: THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA (CV Rep) by Tony Frankel

A LUSH, ROMANTIC JOURNEY THROUGH LOVE AND TRANSFORMATION Since Adam Karsten‘s arrival as Artistic Director at CV Rep, the quality and consistency of the theater’s productions have improv…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 06:26AM
Tuesday, January 21, 2025

Highly Recommended Off-Broadway: LOS SOLES TRUNCOS (Repertorio Español) by Tony Frankel

NYC PREMIERE OF RENÉ MARQUÉS’ LOS SOLES TRUNCOS René Marqués‘ seminal work, Los Soles Truncos, stands as a cornerstone of Puerto Rican classical theater. Written in 1958, the play is…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 08:22PM

Highly Recommended Dance: MEMORYHOUSE (Los Angeles Ballet at The Wallis in Beverly Hills) by Tony Frankel

YOUR MEMORY WILL NEVER BE THE SAME With its gripping ensembles, intense partner work and evocative movement, Los Angeles Ballet’s Memoryhouse tells personal and collective stories of los…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:17AM
Sunday, January 19, 2025

Off-Broadway Review: SYMPHONY OF RATS 2025 (The Wooster Group at The Performing Garage in Soho) by Tony Frankel

RATS AND POLITICS TOGETHER? WHO EVER HEARD OF SUCH A THING! In the wildly entertaining and mind-bending Symphony of Rats, which I had the pleasure of experiencing at REDCAT in Los Angeles la…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 04:37PM

Theater Review: DEATH OF A SALESMAN (Panic! Productions at The Colony Theatre in Burbank) by Tony Frankel

ARTHUR MILLER’S CLASSIC DONE TO DEATH AT THE COLONY THEATRE What cachet Arthur Miller’s 1949 classic Death of a Salesman has in terms of power and artistry, nuance, subtlety and insight,…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:40AM
Sunday, January 12, 2025

Theater Opening: 42 BALLOONS (North American Premiere by Chicago Shakespeare Theater) by Tony Frankel

Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) will be presenting the North American premiere of the new musical 42 Balloons. From the multi-award-winning producers Kevin McCollum (Oh, Mary!, Rent), …

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:35AM

Highly Recommended Concert: THE HOLLYWOOD MODERNISTS: The Second Golden Age of Film Scoring (Scott Dunn Orchestra at The Wallis in Beverly Hills) by Tony Frankel

STEP INTO HOLLYWOOD’S MUSICAL LEGACY Beverly Hills is about to become the epicenter of cinematic symphony. On Saturday, January 18, 2025, the Scott Dunn Orchestra makes its grand debut at …

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 09:35AM
Tuesday, January 7, 2025

Theater Review: SANTASIA: A HOLIDAY COMEDY (Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks) by Tony Frankel

A LETTER TO SANTA Dear Santa: Well, what a year 2024 was. With the way things are going, I decided to count my blessings. So I’m writing to thank you for that pair of tickets to see Santas…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 06:29AM
Sunday, January 5, 2025

Off-Broadway Review: PEN PALS (Theatre at St. Clement’s) by Tony Frankel

The holidays have faded into memory, and the bitter chill of winter days have settled in. But fear not — when the frost bites, the theatre offers warmth, and somewhere out there, a play is…

SOURCE: stageandcinema.com at 06:52AM

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
Nov 17, 2024: Elf - Marquis Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre