460 stories by "Jacob Malizio"
Groff, assisted by a terrific trio of singer-dancers (Christine Cornish, Julia Grondin, Valeria Yamin) who back him up through the years and many, many fashions and dance styles, is tireless…
When Groff is singing and dancing (stunning choreography by Shannon Lewis), "Just in Time" absolutely dazzles. It doesn't matter if what's happening on stage ever makes you think of Bobby Da…
Groff is undeniably great at bending a crowd around his little finger, and he's working with an audience that's delighted to be pandered to. He spends much of the show weaving through that c…
The melding of personas successfully transmutes Groff's exceptional charisma and earned goodwill into the tale of a past celebrity most of the audience could not identify via photo. But it a…
The audience is situated in a sumptuously imagined, sparkling silver nightclub with multiple stages and a brilliant band in back. Groff spiritedly darts around the room, jumping on tables an…
Gilbert & Sullivan's pirate ship docks in New Orleans in this jazzy-bluesy vision of the crowd-pleasing classic, in an outrageously clever romp sizzling with Caribbean rhythms and French…
Except for the central performance by David Hyde Pierce, marvelously underplaying the tongue-twisting Major-General, the production has a sweaty quality, bordering on frenzy, that's hopeless…
This "Pirates!" (mind the punctuation) isn't particularly modern (adapter Rupert Holmes doesn't take it that far), but it is a major Broadway staging " and oh so general.
The post 'Pirates! …
More than that"it is Pirates staged with wonderfully energetic aplomb by director Scott Ellis, wittily choreographed by Warren Carlyle and expertly performed by a dream ensemble. In keeping …
Rather than a slave of duty, Pirates! is the servant of too many masters: Gilbert & Sullivan, Dixieland jazz, milquetoast liberalism, and the tourism lobby New Orleans & Company, whi…
If the cast seems instructed to play just a tad broadly, and hit the jokes a touch to hard, and the second act runs a bit too long, well, the overzealousness does little to dampen the overal…
There might be a few bumpy waves in this piratical adaptation, but the booty is well-worth the effort. Even though it is unlikely to spur a trend of Gilbert and Sullivan revivals, this produ…
The continental leap dusts off the 145-year-old operetta and gives it an energetic oomph of swing and ragtime music, and the stage is brightened up by hot-sauce pops of purple, yellow and fi…
Until Pirates!, "Dear Bill" from Operation Mincemeat was my standout sung performance of the Broadway season; but Hyde Pierce's rendition of "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General" n…
The delightful foam on the grog here is his being backed up by Scott Ellis' outrageous direction of a flag-waving chorus that carries out Warren Carlyle's foot-stomping choreography to milit…
The modern world is full of stress, so go and have a party, brah, And shake it like a necklace made of gaudy beads at Mardi Gras. Enjoy this Broadway hybrid that is tuneful and poetical: A m…
In 1959 Hawkins, Indiana, the Creel family seeks a fresh start, especially their teenage son Henry, who is eager to escape his troubled past. Initially, things go well " he finds friendship …
"The First Shadow" fulfills its franchise requirements in terms of spectacular art direction and compliance to the series' canon (to which it adds tantalizing tidbits). Whether it is satisfy…
Three hours in the "Stranger Things: The First Shadow" universe passes in a blink. By the end, you're convinced they've pulled off another trick: an exorbitant spectacle wrapped around the s…
Enough can't be said that this production doesn't just change the game of Broadway, it smashes the game board and shoots it into a new dimension. When you take one of the most watched televi…
The First Shadow, now an integral part of the ST canon, is an absolute must-see for all enthusiasts, and it will certainly inspire some of the uninitiated to binge the original (mission acco…
If The First Shadow is purely an act of fan service, at least it's an unapologetic and, if the audience around me was any judge, satisfying one. Is it a play? I mean, yes-ish? Is it an extra…
Immersive, heartfelt, and exhilarating, First Shadow is a must-see spectacle for the Stranger Things obsessive as much as it is for the theater aficionado who wants to see the medium pushed …
Nothing is left unscathed. Jump-scare noises blow out your eardrums. Blinding lights and raining sparks make you crave Anna Wintour's indoor sunglasses. And there's so much billowing haze th…
The result? A three-hour fan wiki brought to life, complete with origin stories, stilted dialogue, lame jokes, and sequences seemingly constructed only to set up the next visual effect. Yes,…
