First Nighter: Margulies's 'Dinner With Friends' Served Piping Hot; 'Vera,' An Oscar Wilde Oddity by David Finkle

I admire Margulies's nuanced understanding the dynamics of friendships. He's put "Dinner" is his title, and he plays with it by devoting two scenes to Karen and Gabe preparing food…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 10:09pm on February 13, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: Britten's Billy Budd an Absolute Brooklyn Academy of Music Must-Hear by David Finkle

Standing ovations are so prevalent they are meaningless. The consensus is that ticket buyers paying so much for a seat rise at curtain calls in order to convince themselves they've just gott…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 4:02pm on February 10, 2014☆⚑

The Many Great Gals of Charles Busch by David Finkle

"The Tribute Artist" continues a comic canon.

SOURCE: Clyde Fitch Report at 10:44am on February 9, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: Little Me Big and Christian Borle Even Bigger by David Finkle

When Little Me opened in November 1962, its major pluses were Sid Caesar, the Carolyn Leigh-Cy Coleman score and the rarely-miss Neil Simon gags. Revived at City Center this weekend, it can…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 4:32pm on February 7, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: "Bronx Bombers" Fields Yogi Berra Well Enough by David Finkle

Eric Simonson, who gets his kicks writing plays about sports figures, is jumping the gun on Valentine's Day by sending a...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 11:30pm on February 6, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: CSC's 'A Man's a Man' Somewhat Mouse-y by David Finkle

Brian Kulick certainly attempts to get around the inherent problems with all manner of theatrical notions in a new translation by Gerhard Nellhaus, with Duncan Sheik's music carrying Brecht'…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 10:28pm on January 30, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: Rude Mechs Live Down to Their Name With Stop Hitting Yourself by David Finkle

Before I get to an outright pan of the immoderately irritating Stop Hitting Yourself -- created by Austin's Rude Mechs and now squatting in the Lincoln Center Theater at the Claire Tow -- I'…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 10:46pm on January 27, 2014☆⚑

Bob Fosse Dances Through a New Biography by David Finkle

Sam Wasson looks at a enormously gifted man's chronic lack if assurance.

SOURCE: Clyde Fitch Report at 12:07pm on January 27, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: Loneliness of Long Distance Runner a Bracing Race by David Finkle

Depending on how the individual observer assesses Colin's choice, he can be considered either as declaring his independence or as self-destructively tossing it aside. Either way, Sillitoe's…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 10:33pm on January 21, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: The Public Theater's Under the Radar Plusses and Minuses by David Finkle

The annual event -- this is the 10th year -- is supposed to focus on the new and experimental. Maybe yes, maybe no, but certainly there are helpful hints about whom and what to look for in …

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 2:37pm on January 20, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: Frank Langella Fights the King Lear Storm and Conquers by David Finkle

Frank Langella is doing a completely respectable King Lear at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Harvey in William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name. But wait. Better be more specific, s…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 11:41am on January 17, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: Three Overly Similar Entries From Manhattan's January Festivals by David Finkle

If it's true that great minds think alike, it may be equally true that minds a notch or two below great also think alike.

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 12:51pm on January 16, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: "Beautiful: The Carole King Musical" Is Beautiful Where It Counts by David Finkle

Before we get to what's wrong with Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at the Stephen Sondheim, let's establish what's...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 11:06pm on January 12, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: The Gotham Chamber Opera's Top-Notch "La descente d'Orphée aux enfers" by David Finkle

Much of the intense charm of Marc-Antoine Charpentier's La descente d'Orphée aux enfers (Opheus's Descent...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 6:29pm on January 2, 2014☆⚑

First Nighter: The Met's New "Die Fledermaus" Far Too Batty by David Finkle

Die Fledermaus back again as the Metropolitan Opera's New Year's Eve gala confection? Directed by Jeremy Sams,...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 2:48pm on January 1, 2014☆⚑

Jim Simpson and The Flea Theater Champion OOB by David Finkle

The Flea builds a new theater...and community.

SOURCE: Clyde Fitch Report at 12:11pm on December 23, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Five-Actor "Christmas Carol," One-Actor-Singer "Love, Linda," Four-Actor "Handle With Care" by David Finkle

Okay, I admit it, I entered A Christmas Carol at St. Clement's thinking, Oh no, not another one! Which just goes to show...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 5:57pm on December 17, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Robert Wilson's "Life and Death of Marina Abramovic," Martha Clarke's "Cheri" by David Finkle

The one thing you can safely say about The Life and Death of Marina Abramovic at the Park Avenue Armory is that it is what...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 5:55pm on December 14, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Conor McPherson's 'The Night Alive' Is Mostly Alive by David Finkle

The Night Alive suspense then builds on whether Aimee will be able to extricate herself from Kenneth's sinister demands, which include stealing money Tommy has hidden beneath floorboards. W…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 9:06pm on December 12, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: London's Latest Private Lives Comes Cheerfully to Movie Screens by David Finkle

Some plays need to look as if they're being performed with absolutely no effort whatsoever. They must seem merely tossed off. That's the fun of them. Perhaps the most famous example is Priva…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 12:07pm on December 10, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Bacharach Revue Awkwardly Asks 'What's It All About?' -- Steve Tyrell Smoothly Answers by David Finkle

Truth is, Tyrell's effortlessly infallible phrasing has the effect of making what he does appealingly conversational. The emotion he's experiencing is a component of his seemingly off-handed…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 9:58pm on December 5, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Daniel Kitson Strides Again at St. Ann's Warehouse by David Finkle

Daniel Kitson is not only a marvelous story-teller. He may be our foremost meta-storyteller, and possibly because...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 11:54pm on December 4, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Terrence McNally's "And Away We Go" Love Letter to Actors by David Finkle

Theater and opera crazo Terrence McNally loves writing about his passions, especially anything to do with their...

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 4:52pm on November 25, 2013☆⚑

"Song of Spider-Man" Sings a Melancholy Tune by David Finkle

Glen Berger's book examines Julie Taymor's extravagant mediocrity.

SOURCE: Clyde Fitch Report at 4:43pm on November 25, 2013☆⚑

First Nighter: Met's Second Cast Eugene Onegin Has Chekhovian Flair by David Finkle

The new cast of Eugene Onegin, the season opener at the Met, has weighed in. Turns out -- hooray! -- they're a troupe of heavyweights, especially as conducted by debuting Alexander Vedernik…

SOURCE: Huffington Post at 1:07pm on November 24, 2013☆⚑