‘The Saviors’ Review: Childlike Faith, Adult Betrayal by Helen Shaw

Bubba Weiler’s new play about two altar boys at a crossroads includes several beautiful performances, even when the line between sweetness and treacle blurs.

‘A Chorus Line’ at 50-ish: Seeing Through Perfection to the Pain by Helen Shaw

A new production at Barrington Stage Company reminds us of how the “singular sensation” changed our relationship to performance.

‘Heated Rivalry,’ ‘Dukes,’ With Jane Wickline, and More Must-See Theater by Helen Shaw and Elisabeth Vincentelli

As the summer heats up, here’s seven not-to-miss Off Broadway shows.

‘Shifters’ Review: Fast-Forwarding Through a Predictable Romance by Helen Shaw

Des (Heather Agyepong) and Dre (Daniel Ezra), navigate a mutual magnetic pull in this British love story by Benedict Lombe at Cherry Lane Theater.

At Hudson Valley Shakespeare, a ‘King Lear’ Worth Traveling For by Helen Shaw

A beautifully observed version of a man’s final act, along with a lively staging of “As You Like It,” engage the surrounding mountains in conversation.

‘The Potluck’ Review: The Greensboro Massacre, and a Heavy Legacy to Bear by Helen Shaw

César Alvarez’s ambitious new work is a mixed musical meal: It wants to be a call to revolutionary action but is surprisingly lacking in it.

The 10 Most Mind-Altering Theater Moments of 2026 (So Far) by Helen Shaw

Our critic chose 10 moments from the theatrical year that shifted her thinking.

‘Birthright’ Stages a Thrillingly Complex Conversation on Conversation Itself by Helen Shaw

Jonathan Spector’s ambitious drama about six Jewish friends and their shifting relationship with Israel stretches over three hours and nearly two decades.

Listen to This Sondheim Masterpiece and It Will Bring Order to Your Day by Helen Shaw

Stephen Sondheim’s masterpiece, “Sunday in the Park With George,” contains a song capable of making order out of mayhem. Listen to hear how he did it.

Dito van Reigersberg, Avant-Garde and Drag Virtuoso, Dies at 53 by Helen Shaw

A co-founder of Pig Iron Theater Company, known for its surreal productions, he also gave energetic performances as his alter ego, Martha Graham Cracker.

Review: ‘Romeo & Juliet’ Find Too Little Love in the Park by Helen Shaw

For the Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park, the director Saheem Ali presents a strangely low-energy version of the tragedy.

Maximalism Is Back at the Tonys by Helen Shaw, Léo Hamelin and Laura Salaberry

Our chief theater critic, Helen Shaw, shares her highlights of the Tony Awards on Sunday in New York City.

A Landmark Tonys Win for the Trans Costume Designer Qween Jean by Helen Shaw

Qween Jean won for “Cats: The Jellicle Ball,” becoming the first openly transgender person to win a Tony Award, according to a “Cats” publicist.

June Squibb is one of the oldest actors ever to be nominated for a Tony. by Helen Shaw

In ‘Can I Be Frank?,’ Imitation Is the Sincerest Form of Tragedy by Helen Shaw

Morgan Bassichis, whose solo show “Can I Be Frank?” resurrects an act by Frank Maya, joins others this season who are recreating the works of deceased artists.

‘Girl, Interrupted’ Review: A Musical That’s a Little Too Tranquilized by Helen Shaw

While the 1999 movie went for melodrama, this stage adaptation with songs by Aimee Mann honors the memoir’s coolly clinical prose.

‘Jerome’ Review: Darkness Swallows a Three-Way Romance by Helen Shaw

John J. Caswell’s triangular romance set in the early 1990s speaks to us from the smoking psychic caldera left by AIDS.

Review: ‘The Maids’ Makes a Ruckus but Not Enough Mess by Helen Shaw

Jean Genet’s psychosexual drama gets a social-media-heavy update. But what does it say beyond “internet=bad”?

‘The Emporium’ Review: Thornton Wilder Doesn’t Make the Sale by Helen Shaw

This newly discovered play by Wilder is part picaresque, part fable, featuring a Midwestern boy who dreams of working at a department store in the big city.

Review: In ‘Dad Don’t Read This’ a Playwright (Maybe?) Grows Up by Helen Shaw

Eliya Smith’s disturbing teen dramedy explores the ambivalence and confusion of life on the brink of adulthood.

Tonys 2026 Predictions: Who Will Win? And Who Should? by Helen Shaw

Our chief theater critic looks at this year’s nominees and makes some predictions (and recommendations).

Our Favorite Moments From This Year’s Tony-Nominated Broadway Shows by Helen Shaw, Jesse Green, Laura Collins-Hughes, Elisabeth Vincentelli and Sara Krulwich

Here are some of the brilliant moments our writers can’t shake from this year’s batch of Tony-nominated productions.

Revenge, Served Two Ways: Cold in ‘Othello’ and Lukewarm in ‘Hamlet’ by Helen Shaw

Shakespeare’s brooding prince comes off as bored at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. But Bedlam’s lean production of “Othello” is positively thrilling.

Tony Nominations Snubs and Surprises: Lea Michele Left Out, ‘Titaníque’ Shines by Helen Shaw, Jesse Green, Alexis Soloski, Scott Heller, Elisabeth Vincentelli and Laura Collins-Hughes

Lea Michele, Adrien Brody and other boldface names were left out, while June Squibb, André De Shields and Layton Williams as an iceberg were among the surprises.

‘Moby Dick’ Review: Robert Wilson’s Last Masterpiece by Helen Shaw

Wilson’s 2024 adaptation of Herman Melville’s classic, with music by the British singer-songwriter Anna Calvi, has a short run at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

‘The Lost Boys’ Review: Live, Die, Reprise by Helen Shaw and Sara Krulwich

A Broadway musical adaptation of the 1987 movie gets a lot of mileage from ’80s rocker aesthetics and over-the-top spectacle — until its second half.

Review: ‘Joe Turner’s Come and Gone,’ With Taraji P. Henson and Cedric the Entertainer by Helen Shaw

This revival starring Cedric the Entertainer and Taraji P. Henson may be uneven at times, but it still unlocks Wilson’s mysterious drama.

Review: ‘The Rocky Horror Show’ Revival Gives Us What We Want by Helen Shaw and Sara Krulwich

Sam Pinkleton’s new revival at Studio 54 gives us the big gay mayhem we want while also maintaining some order via Rachel Dratch’s droll Narrator.

Review: In ‘The Balusters,’ Neighborly Dysfunction Is on the Agenda by Helen Shaw

David Lindsay-Abaire’s comedy about a wealthy homeowners association thrown into disarray makes a case for the same social compact it skewers.

'Proof' Review: Ayo Edebiri as a Math Girl, Interrupted by Helen Shaw

The actress stars as a haunted genius opposite Don Cheadle as her father in David Auburn's 2001 drama. This revival, though, exposes the play's lack of rigor.

Review: 'The Fear of 13,' With Adrien Brody and Tessa Thompson, Doesn't Add Up by Helen Shaw

Adrien Brody and Tessa Thompson make confident Broadway debuts, but the uneven script makes for a narratively slippery prison drama.

'Death of a Salesman,' With Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf, Is Perfect for Our Time by Helen Shaw

Arthur Miller's classic tragedy returns to Broadway, starring Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf. Yet again, it is a triumph.

Fanciful and Fabulous: 'Cats: The Jellicle Ball' on Broadway by Helen Shaw and Sara Krulwich

For their 10th life, the cats strut and duckwalk in a reappraisal of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1981 musical, which has shifted to the queer ballroom scene.

Chekhov Plays for an Un-Chekhov Time by Helen Shaw

The directors Michael DeFilippis, Dmitry Krymov and Aleksandr Molochnikov all infuse their current productions with a burning, modern rage.

John Lithgow as Roald Dahl in 'Giant': A Study in Monstrosity by Helen Shaw

In Mark Rosenblatt's play, a powerful portrayal of the beloved children's book author who almost gleefully exposes his bigotry.

Why Are We Obsessed With Antigone? by Helen Shaw, Léo Hamelin and Laura Salaberry

Antigone, an ancient Greek play, is being adapted in several theaters across New York City. Our critic Helen Shaw explains why Sophocles's anti-heroine is such a relevant figure today.

Who Is Antigone? The 2500-Year-Old Rebel With a Cause. by Helen Shaw

"Antigone" gave us the original "bad girl," but its themes go beyond that. How do adaptations keep making Sophocles' ideas about democracy and theater new?

Two Revivals, 'Tru' and 'The Fever,' Tackle the Contagion of the Rich by Helen Shaw

Two monologue revivals " Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Truman Capote and Wallace Shawn's solo " reveal how wealth warps our perceptions. Only one pays dividends.

Review: 'The Wild Party' Has a Ball at City Center by Helen Shaw

Encores! revisits a Jazz Age tale of debauchery, with showstoppers from Jasmine Amy Rogers, Adrienne Warren, Jordan Donica, Tonya Pinkins and others.

Daniel Radcliffe Shines in 'Every Brilliant Thing' on Broadway by Helen Shaw

The actor's fondness for the audience radiates outward in this delightful interactive play about naming and noticing the good in the world.