Category: theatre

“Anyone who makes things knows — you always go into it naive. You wouldn’t do it if you knew what was going to happen to you; you are transformed by it. In that deep imagining, in that deep imaginative identification, you lose yourself. You lose control.”

“The victory came at the end of Broadway’s biggest night, and suggested Tony voters were in an artistic mood this year, choosing ambitious, sophisticated productions over more conventional and commercial fare.”

“The Tony Awards really need kids. If the Theater Wing could find a way to give kids a routing interest by getting more of them in to see these wildly overpriced productions (I know, it does try to), then the Nielsen numbers would follow. Kids ought to be part of the television show’s focus — not to infantilize the telecast any more than it already is, but to trumpet the party innocently and joyously, and end it early.”

“Despite the Encuentro’s diverse programming, which featured 15 plays from the four corners and Puerto Rico, no Texas-based theatre companies were represented. On the surface, this could suggest that Texas is not producing the quantity or the quality of Latina/o theatre as other parts of the United States. But those of us working to historicize Texas theatre are providing other evidence.”

Who will triumph tonight?

“To pass the time, the actors performed impromptu renditions of ‘The Circle of Life’ and ‘Arabian Nights, and [Tony winner James Monroe] Iglehart dropped an impressive freestyle to the tune of Black Star’s ‘Lions of Hip-Hop.'”

“It is tempting to see this contest as a battle between an arty, alternative show and a mainstream attraction with great touring potential. But what’s alt anymore? It is also worth noting that both of these musicals are innovators, formatively and in terms of their subjects.”

“The truth is, there is plenty that is worthwhile on Broadway, maybe more this season that has just concluded than most. And, equally important, there are some promising developments.”

“While fans of Kristin Chenoweth and Kelli O’Hara duke it out, let’s raise a glass to Oskar Eustis, the Public Theater’s game-changing artistic director who, since he began his tenure 10 years ago, has been retooling the American musical at the historic off-Broadway venue founded by Joseph Papp.”