Sally and Tom by Suzan-Lori Parks Directed by Steve H. Broadnax III Public Theatre June 2, 2024 Production website 💉💉💉 out of 5.
Sally and Tom
This play was a slow burn for me. It took me a good long time to see the value of the play and to start to care about the characters but thankfully, near the end of the first act I was hooked in. The story of Sally and Tom focuses on a group of actors playing members of Good Company, a ragtag theatre company putting on a show called The Pursuit of Happiness, written by Luce, who also plays Sally (the 14 year old slave owned and impregnated several times by President Jefferson), and directed by her white romantic and creative partner Mike. He is playing the man they refer to as TJ (President Thomas Jefferson).
Water for Elephants Book by Rick Elise Music and Lyrics by Pigpen Theatre Company Based on the novel by Sara Gruen Directed by Jessica Stone Imperial Theatre June 1, 2024 Production website 💉💉💉 out of 5.
This show began with one of the most magical, energetic physical first acts that I can remember. The circus truly sprung into life. I learned more about the circus and had more fun in the theater than I have had in a while. Every transition, every movement of a piece of scenery or a prop, every curtain that had to move, became a wondrous physical event. I can’t remember the last time I saw the stage spectacle so alive.
The Notebook Music and Lyrics by Ingrid Michaelson Book by Beech Brunstetter Based on the book by Nicholas Sparks Choreographed by Katie Superman Directed by Michael Greig & Scheme Williams Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre May 29, 2024 Production website 💉💉💉 out of 5.
I must have been the ONLY person in the audience who had never read nor seen the movie for the Notebook. I was a rarity in the theatre. I was a bit concerned coming into the theater. One thing that struck me with worry is that even in the merchandise counter as you came in, they were selling boxed tissues for the audience as if we were going to be incapable of getting through the show without pouring tears onto our laps.
Messy White Gays a staged reading by Drew Droege The Fabulous Invalid Productions at the Soho Playhouse April 8, 2024 Production website 💉💉💉 out of 5.
Tonight I saw a staged reading of Messy White Gays. I came into the piece with relatively low expectations knowing that I was going to see a lot of gay silliness on stage and hoping not to be to bothered by all the cliches and worn out stereotypes. But I was surprised. Messy White Gays provided a rather fresh take on a gay situation comedy and introduced some new themes of race awareness and polyamory in an engaging fashion. The story launches off quickly as an upscale gay couple are offing their mutual boyfriend for really nothing more then just being a bit of a bore.
Appropriate by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Directed by Lila Neugebauer 2nd Stage Theatre at Helen Hayes Theater February 15, 2024 Production website 💉💉💉 out of 5.
Appropriate was a very difficult play to sit through- particularly the first act. I cannot remember the last play that I have seen in which there was so much yelling and non-stop, unrelenting anger. From the first moment to the Act 1 curtain, every single character was raging about something. And the problem when everything is yelled out – nothing is angry – and where do you go from there. We, the audience, take yelling as the norm so when you really DO want to yell or highlight and attack we don’t even notice it – you have already used that ammunition. Granted, Sara Paulson is a truly gifted actress and a powerhouse on stage. She has a charisma on stage that is very rare – but even she became a leader in the anger campaign and spent Act 1, and, unfortunately, most of Act 2 angry and yelling away.
