10 Monologues for Any Gender by Performerstuff

10 Monologues for Any Gender Written by: Amanda Grace July 28, 2020 The gender binary is reductive, boring, and restrictive- in short, so two-thousand-and-lame. Whether you’re a nonb…

Concerts online are here to stay — but can it pay?

Crunch time has arrived for orchestras and operas with many companies moving to pay-per-view

Royal Academy’s Gauguin and the Impressionists — a shock of beauty in troubled times

Works from the Ordrupgaard Collection comprise London’s first major opening of a new show since lockdown

London’s Design Museum: the beat goes on

Electronic: From Kraftwerk to The Chemical Brothers

THE 40 BEST IRISH FICTIONAL CHARACTERS – IN ORDER by Robert Shuman

(Chosen by Rosita Boland, Donald Clarke, Peter Crawley, Martin Doyle, and Hilary Fannin for the Irish Times, 8/1; Photo: The Irish Times.) FROM NIDGE AND CONNELL WALDRON TO GRETTA CONROY…

Activists, artists paint San Jose mural to honor lives of homeless residents by Fiona Kelliher

The mural, showing two touching fists surrounded by English and Spanish words, aims to empower passersby — and remind them of the link between homelessness and racism.

Louisville photographer’s work tells local immigrant story as part of ‘PBS American Portrait’ that airs in August by Elizabeth Kramer

Amira Karaoud sought to tell the immigrant story for the upcoming special “Family of Us: A PBS American Portrait Story” that premieres Aug. 2

The place of higher education in professional dance life by Admin

It’s something that seems to hit many dance students when graduation is in sight: “Now what?” How can one leverage tools, skills and networks from academic dance degrees to build a sus…

Woolly Mammoth announces next season of live shows with dates TBD by News Desk

Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company announces its 2020–2021 season featuring the return of a postponed production, new partnerships, a digital season, an evolution of Woolly’s subscription pl…

Attend a play? During the COVID plague? A personal reflection of a terrified critic by Tim Treanor

Into the valley of death rode the six hundred…no, no, no, that’s not it at all. I’m looking for a poem to help me decide what to do – poetry is the oldest form of literature, after a…

Seeing "Macbeth" Again, Again, And Again by Jan Simpson

Macbeth is a great gateway drug for Shakespeare newbies. It’s got a straight-ahead plot, some of the Bard’s most memorable lines, plus witches. Us Shakespeare oldies like it too. It’s …

"Seared" is Cooking on Almost All Burners by Jan Simpson

Sometimes you want a gourmet meal filled with rare or surprising ingredients. But sometimes you just want a big yummy bowl of macaroni and cheese. Seared, the latest play by Theresa Rebeck, …

The Irish Rep's "Pumpgirl" Drives Too Hard by Jan Simpson

The monologue play is an odd hybrid. Unlike traditional monologues in which one actor talks directly to the audience, it usually features three or more performers. But unlike traditional pla…

"Tina, The Tina Turner Musical" May Not Run Deep, But Its Sensational Star Soars High by Jan Simpson

In the old days, when tickets were cheaper, people went to musicals for the thrill of hearing new songs. Today, when seeing a Broadway show can cost more than a car note, they go for the sec…

The Humble Appeal of "One November Yankee" and "Harry Townsend's Last Stand" by Jan Simpson

Yes, I know it’s not a Saturday when I usually post but the holidays and other end-of-the-year obligations have turned my schedule topsy-turvy. So I’ve decided to invoke my old practice …

Turning on the Ghost Light by Jan Simpson

It’s been a while since I last turned on the ghost light that theaters use when they’re temporarily empty but I’m doing it now. That's mainly because I’ve been running around seeing …

Wishing You a Very Merry Christmas... by Jan Simpson

..and a Happy Chanukah, a tardy Good Winter Solstice, a strong Happy Festivus, a slightly premature Joyous Kwanza and the all-around sincere hope that however you celebrate it, your holiday …

The Most Meaningful Shows of 2019 For Me by Jan Simpson

For those of us who write about culture, the holiday season includes making Top 10 lists. But this year, I’ve decided against trying to anoint the best shows I’ve seen or even tallying u…

Happy New Year by Jan Simpson

Happy New Year!  Happy New Decade!!  Here’s hoping that they’re both filled with more happiness (including lots of good theater) than not.  Cheers!!!

Why "Sing Street" is Slightly Off-Key For Me by Jan Simpson

Sing Street, the new musical that opened last week at New York Theatre Workshop and which is the final big show of the fall season to open, arrived with high expectations. But that can hurt …

"Judgment Day": More Style Than Substance by Jan Simpson

Bigger isn’t always better. The British director Richard Jones won deserved kudos in 2017 for staging The Hairy Ape in the vast drill hall at the Park Avenue Armory. That production lite…

An Invitation to Join Me (and Some Great Playwrights) at This Year's BroadwayCon by Jan Simpson

No review post this week (although if you have a chance you should try to catch Talene Monahon’s How to Load a Musket, a really thought-provoking play about historical reenactors and the f…

Some Must See Shows for the Spring Season by Jan Simpson

The best preview for the spring 2020 theater season I’ve seen was the one that my friend and fellow theater junkie Howard Sherman posted on his Facebook page a couple of weeks ago: I c…

The Madness of a Post-Modern "Medea" by Jan Simpson

Just like Shakespeare, the great Greek playwrights staged their plays with all-male actors. But unlike the Bard, Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides centered many of their plays around great …

Question: What Makes a Modern Musical? Replies From: "Bob & Ted & Carol & Alice," "Romeo & Bernadette" & &quo by Jan Simpson

Wither the musical? Not the jukebox musical or the ones that strap themselves to popular movies like a shipwreck victim clinging to a lifeboat or even those with rock scores whose songs self…

"A Soldier's Story" Flies Its Flag at Half-Mast by Jan Simpson

One of my best friends worked for the Negro Ensemble Company back in its heyday and so I got to see the original productions of such shows as Zooman and the Sign, The River Niger and the NEC…

The Clever Mysteries of “The Headlands” by Jan Simpson

Christopher Chen’s intriguing memory play The Headlands works on so many levels that it’s hard for me to keep track of all of them. It starts out as a crime procedural centered around …

Joyfully Celebrating 13 Years of B&Me by Jan Simpson

© maksum iliasin | Dreamstime.com Time flies. And this year it’s whizzing by so quickly that I almost forgot to take some time out to celebrate the 13th anniversary of Broadway & Me…

The Coronavirus Forces All of New York Theater to Turn on the Ghost Light by Jan Simpson

I had planned to post a review this week but it was a pan of a play that I really didn’t like and that seems somehow wrong at this time when concerns about the spread of the COVID-19 virus…

Dragging Out the Ghost Light by Jan Simpson

Spring doesn’t officially arrive this year until week after next but the spring theater season is already here, with new shows opening almost every day. And I’m already running behind as…

Where There's A Will... by Jan Simpson

It's been a month since I last posted here. With theaters everywhere closed, there's been too little to say. But today is Shakespeare's birthday and I'm taking comfort from the fact that he…

Theater Life in these Uncertain Times by Jan Simpson

We’re all longing for moments of clarity, sanity and even a little levity during these days of social distancing and self-isolating.  But while there may be no live performances on Broadw…

Theater Books for Summer Reading 2020 by Jan Simpson

Happy Fourth of July! This is obviously a more unusual summer than most. COVID-19 continues its rampage across the country and most theaters remain closed. People are marching in the streets…

Finally, Some Good Theater News, Compliments of the Outer Critics Circle by Jan Simpson

Good news, particularly good news about theater, has been hard to find over the last two months since concerns about the coronavirus locked most of us indoors and closed theaters around the …

A Hopefully Helpful List of Two-Handers by Jan Simpson

My pals at BroadwayRadio invited me to join them for this past Sunday’s “This Week on Broadway“ podcast. We talked about some of our all-time favorite plays (you can hear us by clicki…

Ramy Youssef by NPR

Ramy Youssef, actor and comedian, joins us along with panelists Helen Hong, Josh Gondelman, and Negin Farsad.

TWELFTH NIGHT Red Rose Chain by Libby Purves and Friends

A SINGING, SEASIDE,  STRIKING DEFIANCE OF THE NEW SEPARATION   Theatrecat remains dark,  as it has been since December when chemotherapy began and then ran seamlessly, in March, into loc…

Practice 30: Ryan Roberts, New York Philharmonic English Horn / Oboe by New York Philharmonic

‘Each of the five characters are recognisable’: LOST SOULS – Loosely Based Theatre (Online review) by Elaine Chapman

The latest work by Jayne Woodhouse comprises of five monologues performed in the compilation of Lost Souls produced by Loosely Based Theatre.

VIDEO: Renee Fleming Performs 'Adieu, notre petite table' in Rehearsal For Upcoming Performance

A video was released of Soprano Renée Fleming, accompanied by Robert Ainsley, singing a?oeAdieu, notre petite tablea?? from Masseneta??s Manon in a rehearsal for her August 1 performance.

Watch Broadway Bares: Zoom In on Playbill August 1 by Andrew Gans

The annual striptease heads online to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.

VIDEO: Bryan Cranston Reveals He Had COVID-19, Shares Video While Donating Plasma

Bryan Cranston has posted a video to Instagram, revealing that he had COVID-19. In the video, he is at the UCLA Donation Center, where he went to donate plasma.

BWW Prompts: Who Should Star in the Once on This Island Adaptation?

We asked our readers who they would dream cast in the upcoming Once on This Island adaptation.

VIDEO: Ramin Karimloo Sings 'Being Alive' From COMPANY

Ramin Karimloo sang Being Alive from Company as part of the Kings Of Broadway 2020 concert, celebrating Jule Styne, Jerry Herman and Stephen Sondheim.

Will one of these ideas become San Jose’s new landmark? by Sal Pizarro

A jury is set to pick three finalists from 963 submissions received by Urban Confluence Silicon Valley in its effort to create a new landmark in downtown San Jose.

DCTS recommended viewing starting July 31 by Lorraine Treanor

This week we’re highlighting some local works, plus a few others we couldn’t pass up.  And hang on, at the end, for a fun quiz. For a robust list of  viewing beyond our area, we recomm…

August 2020 Online Theater Openings: What’s streaming day by day by New York Theater

Click here for August 1 openings Below is the day-by-day calendar of “theater openings”* in August, 2020, a month of abundance: Two theatrical celebrations of the 100th anniversary of wo…

Why the 2020 Edinburgh fringe will be missed by Brian Logan

The yearly festival is a celebration of entertainment, art, rain, booze, cobbles and closeness to strangers. Roll on 2021 ... Remotely entertaining: Edinburgh highlights beamed to your livi…

Gagging order: the jokes comedians would have told at Edinburgh by The Guide

From Flo & Joan to Stephen K Amos, standups share the material they would have taken to the fringe this year A joyful, sweaty jamboree: why the 2020 Edinburgh fringe will be missed Remo…

‘Entertaining & engaging at an emotional level’: DON’T STOP THINKING ABOUT TOMORROW – Chickenshed Theatre (Online review) by Michael Davis

Combining music and choreography with the spoken word, Don’t Stop Thinking About Tomorrow is thoughtful in its conception and ambitious in its scope, looking at the ‘bigger picture’.

Nyx Calder and the representation of trans identities on the Australian stage – Part 2 by Maddi Ostapiw

In this time of immense hurt for our worldwide industry, many theatre professionals and audience members are taking stock of

Warm-Up Game: Buyer & Seller by Kerry Hishon

This improv warm-up game helps students think quickly and creatively, listen to their peers, and choose their words with care. It can be done in person in the drama classroom (with physical …

Disrupting Taboos, Staging Cancer: Snowdrops and Chlorine’s Eruptive Intervention by Hannah Trivilino and Vassiliki Rapti

The following review is based on the Snowdrops and Chlorine script, which differs slightly from the play’s hybrid recording. To watch the Snowdrops and Chlorine recording, please visit Sta…

AVENUE Q REUNION! by Corine Cohen

Corine discusses the “AVENUE Q” reunion.

AWOOOGA! This Year’s “Broadway Bares” Just Actors Baring Their Souls, Processing the Year, Crying by Broadway Beat

by Justin Ayer. @JustinAyer. NEW YORK, NY - Broadway Bares, the long-running fundraiser known for its sexy stripteases, sweaty six packs,...

Donmar Warehouse Temporarily Reopens August 1 With Socially Distanced Sound Installation by Andrew Gans

Based on the novel by José Saramago, Blindness is adapted by Simon Stephens and directed by Walter Meierjohann.

Revisit Adrienne Warren, Taylor Louderman, and More in Bring It On: The Musical by Marc J. Franklin

The musical opened on Broadway at the St. James Theatre August 1, 2012.