Jean Smart’s performance is so smooth – even through rough bits – that she appears not to be acting at all. She simply transforms over and over again as she slips into each chapter of Izzy’s story, making what is a complicated feat of magic look easy.
ctors and singers practice their entire lives for a chance to be on a Broadway stage. Hundreds of people involved behind the scenes bring you eight performances a week that are pure joy.
Any day of the year, you can read stories about the rise and fall of Hollywood actors. Alcohol, drugs, and messed-up relationships with lovers and directors are just a sample of the struggles in theatrical life. Don’t forget the internal struggles we all have as humans.
Some evenings in the theater change you. They reach inside your chest and rearrange something fundamental about how you see the world. “A Letter To Lyndon B. Johnson or God: Whoever Reads This First” is such an evening—a production where technical artistry and human storytelling fuse so seamlessly that you forget you’re witnessing craft and surrender completely to emotional truth. But perhaps most remarkably, Xhloe Rice and Natasha Roland have created a theatrical experience that transforms dramatically depending on where you choose to witness it, creating two distinct yet equally powerful journeys through the same devastating story. This isn’t just theater. This is witnessing, elevated by staging choices that make every audience member complicit in different ways.
The other evening, despite meteorological prognostications of torrential rain that would send lesser diners scurrying for cover, I met a cherished companion at Union Square Cafe, that venerable institution nestled
Friday night’s performance of Gurtram was a remarkable unveiling of a rarely performed but powerful work by Richard Strauss. From the onset, Strauss’s mastery of rich symphonic intones was evident with its roaring motifs and orchestra colors, just as those that excite listeners like Till Eulenspiegel or Ein Heldenleben.
In this provocative one-woman show, Markell inhabits the controversial filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl with such fierce intelligence and nuanced complexity that she transforms what could have been a simple biographical sketch into a deeply unsettling meditation on art, complicity, and survival.
In a Stellar evening of musical artistry and cultural connection, the inimitable singer and composer Sabeth Pérez and her band delivered a mesmerizing performance at The Jazz Gallery, nestled in the vibrant Flatiron neighborhood of New York City. While the evening was billed as a preview of Pérez’s latest album “Searching for Beauty,” which became available worldwide on June 1, 2025, it transcended expectations, celebrating superb artistry and the profound connections between music, nature, and human experience.
Good evening from Birdland, where tonight Gabrielle Stravelli and Billy Stritch transformed song into pure magic—two master artists creating musical alchemy that reminds us why jazz is the heartbeat of this city
In an era when the world feels increasingly fractured and complex, Laurie Roldan arrived at The Green Room 42 like a beacon of comfort and hope. Her tribute to Karen Carpenter, “A Song For You,” offered more than mere musical interpretation—it delivered a genuinely personal meditation on resilience, faith, and the healing power of song. Resplendent in a white sequined ensemble that caught every stage light, Roldan commanded attention from her opening moments with Leon Russell’s “A Song For You”—a perfect choice that immediately established the evening’s intimate, confessional tone. But her warmth, not her sparkle, truly captivated the audience.
