8,501 stories from Backstage
When doing a piece of theatre that quotes directly from Hamlet, it might be wise to remember that the play is the thing. Classic Stage Company's starry production of The Seagull, though, clearly hasn't brushed up on its Shakespeare—or its Chekhov.
The relationship between Julius Caesar and a sea of adversaries takes time to sort through in Richard Nelson's latest play.
Breaching that razor-thin line between melodrama and tragedy is the undoing of the Pearl Theatre Company's revival of Henrik Ibsen's classic drama.
Victor Bumbalo's new play claims to be about a "gay bashing in reverse," according to press materials, a flagrant attempt to add a topical, sexy twist to something as repugnant as murder.
The narrative captivates children and is rich enough to be more than satisfying for adults.
Rigor mortis sets in early during "The Scariest," an omnibus of macabre tales more concerned with commenting on horror from a distance than inspiring horror in the audience.
These six short pieces by Asian-American playwrights include diverse scenarios and perspectives that are of interest to any contemporary audience.
After an award-winning run Off-Broadway, "In the Heights," the infectious musical about a Latino neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, has arrived on Broadway with the splash of a street carnival.
In this genial musical about the relationship between Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, the cast consists solely of women.
Half Assiduity Arts, a new organization of young theatre artists, displays an admirably cheeky attitude, but its decision to stage Larry Traiger's unfocused and occasionally puerile comedy m…
In cabaret, a tryout period is rarely allowed, and this week the unfortunate situation worked against the marvelous Euan Morton.
Jerome Kern's melodious 1933 ode to Paris fashion might seem an odd choice for the modest means of producer Mel Miller's enterprising company.
Whenever James Earl Jones leaves the stage, Debbie Allen's all-African-American revival of Tennessee Williams' classic Southern-fried scorcher suffers. Allen, best known as a dynamic musical…
Suiting up to play Big Daddy, James Earl Jones recalls acting for a lifetime.
Partly due to variable performances, Kate Moira Ryan and Linda S. Chapman's play doesn't always strike the right balance in blending nostalgia, knowingness, and emotional truth. Still, despi…
Kathleen Clark's comedy is no world-beater, yet under Judith Ivey's lively, perceptive direction of a trio of excellent actors, the titular lives of these somewhat desperate housewives are s…
Through structural insecurity, Jez Butterworth's new play at the Atlantic Theater Company ultimately comes off as a bit of a tourist -- it visits the dark places of the soul, but it's not re…