687 stories by "Wendy Caster"
If I were forced to name one favorite show, it might well be Sweeney Todd. (Actually, it would be Sweeney-Night Music-Follies, but that's cheating.) Sweeney's size, wit, pathos, beauty, and …
Tennessee Williams's play Orpheus Descending (recently at the Theatre for a New Audience) was the first of his works to be produced. While it is not one of his masterpieces, it is still rich…
Once Upon a One More Time is not a show I would usually see. The only thing I know about Britney Spears is that she's in the news a lot and has had some tough times. And I don't care much…
I reviewed Blanche: The Life and Times of Tennessee Williams's Greatest Creation at Talkin' Broadway:
Blanche: The Life and Times of Tennessee Williams's Greatest Creation, by Nancy Schoenb…
Blanche: The Life and Times of Tennessee Williams's Greatest Creation, by Nancy Schoenberger, is an odd little book. Saying that it runs some 193 pages of actual content is generous, as that…
The Gallery Players production of Assassins is unfortunately not up to its usual standards. I admire the ambition of attempting Assassins, with its non-plot, odd politics, long swaths of …
Once again, MasterVoices has provided an evening of charm, joy, and fabulous music. In this case, it was Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe, not one of their best, but still great fun. (There a…
Entertainment awards are silly and they're also endlessly fascinating. Part of the allure is the fashion, pomp, and party atmosphere. A bigger part, for me, is the speeches--at least, those …
She's a legend. She has been nominated for a Tony 10 times, winning for The Rink and Kiss of the Spider Woman. She has a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement, plus at least 10 other lifetime …
The rollicking, deeply silly, remarkably funny production of the The Knight of the Burning Pestle currently at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, brought to us by Red Bull Theater and Fiasco The…
 I review Smart over at Talkin' Broadway:Â
Elaine is committed to taking care of her mother, but it's far from easy. Ruth had a stroke, and she frequently has difficulty speaking, o…
Elaine is committed to taking care of her mother, but it's far from easy. Ruth had a stroke, and she frequently has difficulty speaking, occasionally has difficulty moving around, and receiv…
The York Theatre Company's production of Vanities, running through April 22, has many strong points. The main strength is the cast.
The story of three friends from roughly age 18 (in 1963…
Red Bull's fabulously entertaining production of Arden of Faversham, directed with a wry hand by Artistic Director Jesse Berger, tells the story of Alice (the terrific Cara Ricketts), a y…
I reviewed this show for Talkin' Broadway. The review can be accessed here.
I have very mixed feelings about this review, just as I had mixed feelings about the show.Â
The press invitation to the The Bushwick Starr's open-hearted, funny, and smart Dark Disabled Stories, by Ryan J. Haddad and now onstage at Public Theater, offers detailed guidance on writin…
In 1995, Lynn Nottage had her first professional production: Crumbs from the Table of Joy, at Second Stage in New York. The Keen Company is now presenting Crumbs' first New York reviva…
An odd and lovely play is opening at Playwrights Horizons on March 5th and running through March 19th. Written by Agnes Borinsky and directed by Tina Satter, The Trees is the story of a b…
When Eulalie Spence died in 1981 at age 86, her obituary noted that she was a retired school teacher but didn't mention that she was also an award-winning playwright of the Harlem Renaissanc…
While Betty Smith is famous today for her novel A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, her great love was playwrighting; she wrote over 70 one-act and full-length dramas, some of which were performed in …
As made clear in James Lapine's must-read Putting It Together (review here), the development of his and Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park With George was hectic, odd, and messy. In…
Among Václav Havel's extraordinary traits--talent, bravery, more bravery--his compassion is in some ways the most impressive. In his one-act play Audience, Havel's stand-in, Ferdinand Van…
It was sad to see Ain't No Mo' come and go so quickly, but was Broadway the right place for it?
I get the attraction of Broadway. It's the place. But was there ever a chance that Ain't No…
My third viewing of the amazing Hadestown was from third row mezz on a Wednesday matinee. Although I have an aversion to Wednesday matinees going back to the 1970s, I was pleasantly surpr…
Here's the amazing thing: the musical 1776 is so solid, so excellent, that the creators of the current Roundabout production didn't manage to completely ruin it. Though they did try.…
