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PRESS RELEASE: PUBLIC THEATER NEWS! 2016-17 Season Announced

THE PUBLIC THEATER
ANNOUNCES
2016-17 SEASON

TWELFTH NIGHT
PUBLIC WORKS MUSICAL ADAPTATION BY KWAME KWEI-ARMAH & SHAINA TAUB
DIRECTED BY KWAME KWEI-ARMAH
MUSIC & LYRICS BY SHAINA TAUB

THE GABRIELS: ELECTION YEAR IN THE LIFE OF ONE FAMILY
WHAT DID YOU EXPECT? & WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE
TWO WORLD PREMIERES WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY RICHARD NELSON

PLENTY
FIRST MAJOR NEW YORK REVIVAL BY DAVID HARE
DIRECTED BY DAVID LEVEAUX
FEATURING COREY STOLL & RACHEL WEISZ

SWEAT
NEW YORK PREMIERE BY LYNN NOTTAGE
DIRECTED BY KATE WHORISKEY

PARTY PEOPLE
NEW YORK PREMIERE BY UNIVERSES
(MILDRED RUIZ-SAPP, STEVEN SAPP, WILLIAM RUIZ AKA NINJA)
CHOREOGRAPHY BY MILLICENT JOHNNIE
DIRECTED & DEVELOPED BY LIESL TOMMY

TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS
BASED ON THE BOOK BY CHERYL STRAYED
ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE BY & FEATURING NIA VARDALOS
CO-CONCEIVED BY MARSHALL HEYMAN, THOMAS KAIL, NIA VARDALOS
DIRECTED BY THOMAS KAIL

SAINT JOAN
WORLD PREMIERE MUSICAL BY DAVID BYRNE
DIRECTED BY ALEX TIMBERS

JOHN LEGUIZAMO: LATIN HISTORY FOR MORONS
NEW YORK PREMIERE BY JOHN LEGUIZAMO
DIRECTED BY TONY TACCONE

THE OUTER SPACE BY ETHAN LIPTON AT JOE’S PUB
MUSIC COMPOSED & PERFORMED BY
ETHAN LIPTON, VITO DIETERLE, EBEN LEVY, & IAN RIGGS
DIRECTED BY LEIGH SILVERMAN

GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM
WORLD PREMIERE BY MARTIN SHERMAN
DIRECTED BY SEAN MATHIAS
FEATURING HARVEY FIERSTEIN

13^th ANNUAL UNDER THE RADAR FESTIVAL
TWO FREE MOBILE UNIT TOURS TO FIVE BOROUGHS

May 19, 2016 – Public Theater Artistic Director Oskar Eustis and Executive Director Patrick Willingham announced the line-up today for The Public’s 2016-17 season. For over six decades, The Public continues to make art that is of, by and for the people. Fundamentally democratic, artist driven and radically inclusive, The Public stages Shakespeare and the classics, musicals, contemporary and experimental works in equal measure at its six theaters at Astor Place, including Joe’s Pub, at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, home of Free Shakespeare in the Park and in communities across all five boroughs with the Mobile Unit. The Public is also currently represented on Broadway with the acclaimed new play Eclipsed, and the award-winning musicals Fun Home and Hamilton.

The Public’s 61^st season will include a free Public Works musical adaptation of Twelfth Night at the Delacorte; two free Mobile Unit tours to the five boroughs; a new musical by David Byrne that reunites him with his Here Lies Love director Alex Timbers; new plays by Lynn Nottage, UNIVERSES, and John Leguizamo; a world premiere by Martin Sherman featuring Harvey Fierstein; the return of Ethan Lipton & His Orchestra to Joe’s Pub at The Public; the continuation of Richard Nelson’s election year cycle plays, The Gabriels; the first major New York revival of David Hare’s Plenty featuring Corey Stoll and Rachel Weisz; a stage adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s beloved book featuring Nia Vardalos and directed by Hamilton’s Thomas Kail; the 13^th edition of the acclaimed Under the Radar Festival; a dynamic Public Forum line-up; Public Studio; and the Emerging Writers Group Spotlight Series.

“The Public is firing on all cylinders and this season reflects the tremendous diversity of our work,” said Artistic Director Oskar Eustis. “From a major revival of one of our iconic masterpieces of the last century, Plenty; to the latest brilliant workings of David Byrne and Alex Timbers, Saint Joan; from the climax of Richard Nelson’s astounding Gabriel family plays; to the premiere of Lynn Nottage’s Sweat, this season is as exciting as New York itself. It is a season that embraces American history in all its diversity, from the revolutionary experience of Party People to the gorgeous and elegiac Gently Down the Stream, and the amazing John Leguizamo’s Latin History For Morons. Two beautifully intimate pieces round out our season: Ethan Lipton’s sequel to the Obie Award-winning No Place to Go, The Outer Space, and Tiny Beautiful Things. Tiny Beautiful Things is an adaptation by writer Nia Vardalos and director Tommy Kail of Cheryl Strayed’s beloved and powerful book.”

Joe’s Pub at The Public will welcome back several performance residencies, including Employee of the Month with Catie Lazarus, The Meeting * Hosted by Justin Sayre, Women of Letters, and The Losers Lounge. In addition, Joe’s Pub will again present annual favorites like Toshi Reagon’s Birthday Shows, DanceNOW and more. Programming initiatives like New York Voices, Pub Club, and collaborations with arts organizations Kimmel Center (Philadelphia) and Lott Entertainment @ MATCHouston will continue and expand this season. The Library at The Public is open nightly for food and drinks, beginning at 5:00 p.m., with an American menu created by Chefs Andrew Carmellini and Brian Plante, featuring local ingredients and New York influence.

THE PUBLIC THEATER MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM offers patrons the opportunity to purchase significantly discounted tickets to shows and events throughout the year for an annual $65 (tax-deductible) donation. Memberships are available at www.publictheater.org or by calling 212-967-7555. Tickets for the 2016-17 season will go on sale later this year.

THE PUBLIC THEATER’S 2016-17 SEASON:

Public Works at the Delacorte Theater (Free)
Musical Adaptation of Shakespeare’s TWELFTH NIGHT

Conceived by Kwame Kwei-Armah and Shaina Taub
Directed by Kwame Kwei-Armah
Music and Lyrics by Shaina Taub
September 2 – 5, 2016

Public Works, The Public’s local and national initiative that invites diverse communities across New York to join in creating ambitious works of theater, celebrates its fourth year at the Delacorte with an enchanting new musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night with music and lyrics by the critically acclaimed songwriter Shaina Taub. Professional artists and community members from partner organizations in all five boroughs perform together on stage in this love story that follows the young heroine Viola, who disguises herself as a man when she washes up on the shores of Ilyria. When Viola’s new boss, Duke Orsino, sends her to win over his unrequited love, the Countess Olivia, Viola’s disguise proves too effective, and the Countess falls for the young girl dressed as a boy instead. Artistic Director of Baltimore’s Center Stage, Kwame Kwei-Armah, directs this musical fever dream about love in all its many disguises, and transformative power of walking a mile in another’s shoes.

World Premiere Three-Play Cycle
THE GABRIELS: Election Year in the Life of One Family

Play Two: WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?

Written and Directed by Richard Nelson
Featuring Meg Gibson, Lynn Hawley, Roberta Maxwell, Maryann Plunkett, Jay O. Sanders, Amy Warren
September 10 – October 2; Opening Night: Friday, September 16, 2016

Tony-winning writer and director Richard Nelson returns to The Public this fall with the next play in his new three-play cycle, THE GABRIELS: Election Year in the Life of One Family. The second play, WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?, brings us back to the kitchen of the Gabriel family, with the country now in the midst of the general election for president. In the course of one evening in the house they grew up in, history (both theirs and our country’s), money, politics, family, art and culture are chopped up and mixed together, while a meal is made around the kitchen table.

First Major New York Revival
PLENTY
Written by David Hare
Directed by David Leveaux
Featuring Corey Stoll and Rachel Weisz
October 4 – November 6, 2016

One of the most celebrated plays in The Public’s history, David Hare’s PLENTY returns this fall in a riveting new production. This groundbreaking play, which first premiered at The Public in 1982, is the story of Susan Traherne, a fiercely intelligent British secret agent flown into France during the Second World War. Susan’s experiences among her war-time colleagues and over the two decades that follow are distilled in powerful scenes in this endlessly layered work about a woman of remarkable bravery, who cannot find in peacetime the values and relationships she cherished in war.

New York Premiere
SWEAT
Written by Lynn Nottage
Directed by Kate Whoriskey
October 18 – November 20, 2016

The Public presents the New York premiere of SWEAT, the “extraordinarily moving drama” (The New York Times) by the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of Ruined, Lynn Nottage. With warm humor and tremendous heart, Sweat tells the story of a group of friends who have spent their lives sharing drinks, secrets and laughs while working together on the line of a factory floor. But when layoffs and picket lines begin to chip away at their trust, the friends find themselves pitted against each other in the hard fight to stay afloat. Kate Whoriskey (Ruined) directs this stunning new play about the collision of race, class, family and friendship, and the tragic, unintended costs of community without opportunity.

New York Premiere
PARTY PEOPLE
By UNIVERSES: Mildred Ruiz-Sapp, Steven Sapp, William Ruiz aka Ninja
Choreography by Millicent Johnnie
Directed and Developed by Liesl Tommy
November 1 – December 4, 2016

UNIVERSES, the award-winning ensemble known for their fusion of theater, poetry, jazz, hip-hop, politics, down home blues and Spanish boleros, makes their Public Theater premiere with an explosive new work about the complicated legacies of the Black Panther Party and the Young Lords Org/Party. Directed and developed by Tony Award nominee Liesl Tommy, UNIVERSES created PARTY PEOPLE based on dozens of interviews with members of these groundbreaking, society-changing groups. PARTY PEOPLE imagines a present-day reunion at an art opening curated by two young counter culturalists; but the curators themselves have complex relationships with the Party members, who fought injustice and provided free food and medical care for their communities—often at the expense of the people who loved them most. Old wounds and generational divides collide in this astonishing, multi-media theatrical event about the price of being a revolutionary, and what it means for those who come after. Breaking the bounds of the expected, the members of UNIVERSES (Steven Sapp, Mildred Ruiz-Sapp and William Ruiz aka Ninja) and Liesl Tommy —invite audiences of every age, color and creed to join them as they continue to revolutionize American theater and explore the fight to bring power to the people, and the people to power.

World Premiere Three-Play Cycle
THE GABRIELS: Election Year in the Life of One Family
Play Three: WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE
Written and Directed by Richard Nelson
Featuring Meg Gibson, Lynn Hawley, Roberta Maxwell, Maryann Plunkett, Jay O. Sanders, Amy Warren

November 4 – November 27; Opening Night: Tuesday, November 8, 2016

In the exquisitely moving finale of his three-play cycle, Tony-winning writer and director Richard Nelson brings us back into the Rhinebeck kitchen of the Gabriel family as they await the results of the Presidential Election on November 8, 2016. WOMEN OF A CERTAIN AGE takes place in the course of a single night, eight months after we first meet the Gabriels. Patricia, the family matriarch, joins her children and daughters-in-law as they prepare a meal from the past and consider the future of their country, town and home. Paying tribute to the difficult year behind them, the Gabriels compare notes on the search for empathy and authenticity at a time when the game seems rigged and the rules are forever changing.

World Premiere
TINY BEAUTIFUL THINGS
Based on the Book by Cheryl Strayed
Adapted for the Stage by Nia Vardalos
Co-Conceived by Marshall Heyman, Thomas Kail, & Nia Vardalos
Directed by Thomas Kail
Featuring Nia Vardalos as “Sugar”
November 15 – December 18, 2016

Academy Award-nominated writer and actress Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) makes her Public Theater debut with a richly funny, uniquely uplifting new play she has adapted from the bestselling book Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed, the internationally acclaimed author of Wild. Vardalos is Sugar, the online advice columnist who thousands of people have turned to for words of wisdom, honesty and hope. As anonymous readers come to her with their deepest and most personal problems, Sugar—who ultimately revealed herself to be Strayed—finds a way to weave her own life experiences together with theirs, creating a beloved column about the monstrous beauty, endless dark and glimmering light at the heart of being human. Tony Award nominee Thomas Kail (Dry Powder, Hamilton) directs this powerful new play about reaching when you’re stuck, healing when you’re broken, and finding the courage to take on the questions which don’t have an answer.

13^th Edition
UNDER THE RADAR FESTIVAL
January 4 –15, 2017

Curated by UTR Director Mark Russell, the 13^th edition of this highly-anticipated 12-day downtown winter festival will bring together exciting artists from around the world who are redefining the act of making theater.

World Premiere
SAINT JOAN
Written by David Byrne
Directed by Alex Timbers
February 14 – March 19, 2017

Once upon a time, there was a girl who talked to God. She built a nation, and they burned her for it. Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe winner David Byrne, lead singer of the Talking Heads and creator of The Public’s hit Here Lies Love, explores the electrifying, meteoric rise of Joan of Arc through the lens of a one-of-a-kind rock musical concert. Directed by Golden Globe winner Alex Timbers (Here Lies Love, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson), SAINT JOAN is a thrilling and provocative new show about challenging the powerful and believing in the impossible.

New York Premiere at Joe’s Pub at The Public
THE OUTER SPACE
Written by Ethan Lipton
Music composed and performed by Ethan Lipton, Vito Dieterle, Eben Levy, Ian Riggs

Directed by Leigh Silverman
February 24 – April 2, 2017

This season, Ethan Lipton (No Place to Go, Red-Handed Otter) returns to The Public with a new adventure in bittersweet and hilariously off-kilter storytelling. With music by Vito Dieterle, Eben Levy and Ian Riggs and performed by the quartet (Ethan Lipton & His Orchestra), THE OUTER SPACE follows one married couple as they leave the noise, pollution and overpriced rents of Earth for the vast beauty and treacherous terrain of the final frontier. But can they survive the journey? Leigh Silverman (No Place to Go, Well, Violet) directs this out-of-this-world musical about the sacrifices we make for sustainable living and love. The New York Times calls Obie-winning playwright and songwriter Ethan Lipton an “expert at keeping music, jokes and personal narrative tightly knitted together into one consistent human package.”

World Premiere
GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM
Written by Martin Sherman
Directed by Sean Mathias
Featuring Harvey Fierstein
March 14 – April 16, 2017

Tony winner Harvey Fierstein takes the stage this spring in a ravishing world premiere by one of the most influential playwrights of our time, Tony Award nominee Martin Sherman. Directed by Tony Award nominee Sean Mathias, Fierstein plays Beau, a pianist expat living in London, who meets Rufus, an eccentric young lawyer, at the dawn of the internet dating revolution. After a life spent recovering from the disappointment and hurt of loving men in a world that refused to allow it, Beau is determined to keep his expectations low with Rufus. But Rufus comes from a new generation of gay men who believe happiness is as much their right as anyone else’s, and what Beau assumed would be just another fling grows into one of the most surprising and defining relationships of his life. A remarkably moving, brilliantly funny love story that reflects the triumphs and heartbreaks of the entire length of the gay rights movement, celebrating and mourning the ghosts of the men and women who led the way for equality, marriage and the right to dream.

New York Premiere
JOHN LEGUIZAMO: LATIN HISTORY FOR MORONS
Written by and featuring John Leguizamo
Directed by Tony Taccone
In a co-production with Berkeley Repertory Theatre
March 17 – April 23, 2017

Emmy and Obie Award winner John Leguizamo schools his son—and the rest of us—on the buried and forgotten history of Latinos in the Americas in this outrageously funny one-man show about uncovering the truth, and recovering from the past. Inspired by the near total absence of Latinos in his son’s American history class, Leguizamo embarks on a frenzied search to find a Latin hero for his son’s school project. From a mad recap of the Aztec empire to stories of unknown Latin patriots of the Revolutionary War and beyond, Leguizamo breaks down the 3,000 years between the Mayans and Ricky Ricardo into 90 irreverent and uncensored minutes in his trademark style. Artistic Director of Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Tony Taccone, directs this incendiary new show from one the most provocatively hilarious satirists in American theater.

ONGOING AT THE PUBLIC THEATER:

FREE SHAKESPEARE IN THE PARK at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park is one of the cornerstones of The Public Theater’s mission. Since 1962, over five million people have enjoyed more than 150 free productions of Shakespeare and other classical works and musicals. This summer The Public will present THE TAMING OF THE SHREW (May 24-June 26), directed by Phyllida Lloyd; and TROILUS AND CRESSIDA (July 19-August 14), directed by Daniel Sullivan. Bank of America is the lead sponsor of Shakespeare in the Park.

PUBLIC WORKS is a groundbreaking new initiative working with community partner organizations in all five boroughs. It is designed to bring community partners into the full life of The Public through workshops, classes, dialogues, invitations to shows at The Public, visits from the Mobile Unit, and culminating in the creation of ambitious works of participatory theater. The community partner organizations of Public Works are Brownsville Recreation Center (Brooklyn), Casita Maria Center for Arts and Education (Bronx), Center for Family Life in Sunset Park, a program of SCO Family of (Brooklyn), DreamYard Project (Bronx), The Fortune Society (Queens), Military Resilience Project (all boroughs), and alumni partners Children’s Aid Society (Manhattan) and Domestic Workers United (all boroughs). Lead support for Public Works is provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Ford Foundation, New York City Theater Subdistrict Council, The Tow Foundation, and The Stavros Niarchos Foundation. Additional support is provided by the New York Community Trust, New York State Council on the Arts, The One World Fund, David Rockefeller Fund, and Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, LLP. The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation provides support for The Public’s access and engagement programming. The LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust provides leadership support for The Public Theater’s year-round activities.

MOBILE UNIT is a reinvention of Joseph Papp’s Mobile Shakespeare program, which began in 1957 to bring Shakespeare to the masses, evolving into the New York Shakespeare Festival and ultimately becoming The Public Theater. Now in its seventh year, it presents Shakespeare and other works for free to prisons, homeless shelters, social advocacy organizations, and other community venues throughout the five boroughs. The Mobile Unit has already toured Romeo & Juliet, The Comedy of Errors, Macbeth, Pericles, Measure for Measure, Richard III and Much Ado About Nothing. The Mobile Unit is made possible with the support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The Stavros Niarchos Foundation, The Tow Foundation, and Bloomberg Philanthropies. Additional generous support provided by Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi LLP. The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation provides support for The Public’s access and engagement programming. The LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust provides leadership support for The Public Theater’s year-round activities.

JOE’S PUB AT THE PUBLIC, named for Public Theater founder Joe Papp, opened in 1998 and plays a vital role in The Public’s mission of supporting young artists while providing established artists with an intimate space and superior acoustics to perform and develop new work. Joe’s Pub presents the best in live music and performance nightly, continuing its commitment to diversity, production values, community and artistic freedom. In addition, Joe’s Pub features seasonal dinner and bar menus from acclaimed Chef Andrew Carmellini and Brian Plante. As part of The Public’s programming downtown at its Astor Place home, Joe’s Pub showcases talent from all over the world, hosting approximately 800 shows and serving over 100,000 audience members annually. Joe’s Pub also offers unique opportunities like New York Voices, an artist commissioning program that provides musicians (Allen Toussaint, Ethan Lipton, Toshi Reagon, Bridget Everett and more) resources and collaborators to develop new theatrical works; and Pub Club, the venue’s new artist development program.

PUBLIC FORUM, now in its seventh season, brings together talented members of the theater community and interesting individuals from the arts, media, politics, and society to discuss, debate, and further explore the ideas present on The Public Theater’s stages. Alec Baldwin, Anne Hathaway, Cynthia Nixon, Sam Waterston, Jeremy McCarter, and former NEA Chair Rocco Landesman have hosted its programs, which have featured insights and performances from the likes of Uzo Aduba, Christine Baranski, David Brooks, David Byrne, Jessica Chastain, Matt Damon, E.L. Doctorow, James Earl Jones, Tony Kushner, Wynton Marsalis, Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels, Audra McDonald, Stephin Merritt, Suzan-Lori Parks, Salman Rushdie, David Simon, Anna Deavere Smith, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, and many more. Through curated conversations and surprising combinations, Public Forum seeks to engage audiences in discovering answers to the questions that drive us, both onstage and off.

PUBLIC STUDIO is a performance series dedicated exclusively to developing the work of emerging writers. In a laboratory environment, writers rehearse with actors and a director, incorporate bare-bones design elements, and open the process to an audience over a series of performances. More than a reading or workshop, but not a full production, this middle step affords early career writers the important opportunity to deepen their experience of working collaboratively over an extended rehearsal period and to see their work staged in front of an audience. Previous Public Studio plays include Pretty Hunger by Patricia Ione Lloyd, Teenage Dick by Mike Lew, Ping Pong by Rogelio Martinez, Fidelis by Christina Gorman, Manahatta by Mary Kathryn Nagle, and The Urban Retreat by A. Zell Williams. Public Studio was founded with support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and Time Warner, Inc. Continued support for Public Studio is provided by The Time Warner Foundation. The Harold and Mimi Steinberg New Play Development Fund at The Public Theater supports the creation and development of new plays.

EMERGING WRITERS GROUP is a component of The Public Writers Initiative, a long-term program that provides key support and resources for writers at every stage of their careers. In just seven years, it has nurtured numerous playwrights who have gone on to have their plays staged at The Public and elsewhere around the country. Time Warner is the Founding Sponsor of the Emerging Writers Group, and provides continued program support through the Time Warner Foundation.

UNDER THE RADAR FESTIVAL, over the past 13 years, has presented over 194 companies from 40 countries. It has grown into a landmark of the New York City theater season and is a vital part of The Public’s mission, providing a high-visibility platform to support artists from diverse backgrounds who are redefining the act of making theater. Widely recognized as a premier launching pad for new and cutting-edge performance from the U.S. and abroad, UTR has presented works by such respected artists as Elevator Repair Service, Nature Theater of Oklahoma, Belarus Free Theatre, Guillermo Calderón, and Young Jean Lee. These artists provide a snapshot of contemporary theater: richly distinct in terms of perspectives, aesthetics, and social practice, and pointing to the future of the art form. Under the Radar is made possible with the generous support of the Ford Foundation.

DEVISED THEATER INITIATIVE at The Public is one of the first of its kind in the U.S., providing support and resources to the next generation of independent artists and ensembles. The Public Theater has been a strong supporter of the devised theater movement and has helped promote the work of prominent and emerging devised theater-makers. Through The Public’s annual Under the Radar Festival and year-round downtown season at Astor Place, many examples of this inventive art form have been brought to the attention of audiences in New York and around the world. The Devised Theater Initiative is made possible with the generous support of the Ford Foundation.

THE LIBRARY AT THE PUBLIC is open nightly for food and drink, beginning at 5:00 p.m. Chefs Andrew Carmellini and Brian Plante have created an American menu of bar snacks, shareable appetizers, sandwiches, dinner plates and desserts sourcing local ingredients and New York influence that is available in both The Library and Joe’s Pub.

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ABOUT THE PUBLIC THEATER:

The Public Theater, under the leadership of Oskar Eustis and Executive Director Patrick Willingham, is the only theater in New York that produces Shakespeare, the classics, musicals, contemporary and experimental pieces in equal measure. Celebrating his 10^th anniversary season at The Public, Eustis has created new community-based initiatives designed to engage audiences like Public Lab, Public Studio, Public Forum, Public Works, and a remount of the Mobile Unit. The Public continues the work of its visionary founder, Joe Papp, by acting as an advocate for the theater as an essential cultural force, and leading and framing dialogue on some of the most important issues of our day. Creating theater for one of the largest and most diverse audience bases in New York City for nearly 60 years, today the Company engages audiences in a variety of venues—including its landmark downtown home at Astor Place, which houses five theaters and Joe’s Pub; the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, home to free Shakespeare in the Park; and the Mobile Unit, which tours Shakespearean productions for underserved audiences throughout New York City’s five boroughs. The Public’s wide range of programming includes free Shakespeare in the Park, the bedrock of the Company’s dedication to making theater accessible to all; Public Works, an expanding initiative that is designed to cultivate new connections and new models of engagement with artists, audiences and the community each year; and audience and artist development initiatives that range from Emerging Writers Group and to the Public Forum series. The Public is located on property owned by the City of New York and receives annual support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; and in October 2012 the landmark building downtown at Astor Place was revitalized to physically manifest the Company’s core mission of sparking new dialogues and increasing accessibility for artists and audiences, by dramatically opening up the building to the street and community, and transforming the lobby into a public piazza for artists, students, and audiences. The Public is currently represented on Broadway by the Tony Award-winning Fun Home and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s acclaimed American musical Hamilton, and Danai Gurira’s Eclipsed featuring Lupita Nyong’o. The Public has received 47 Tony Awards, 167 Obie Awards, 52 Drama Desk Awards, 54 Lortel Awards, 32 Outer Critics Circle Awards, 13 New York Drama Critics Awards, and five Pulitzer Prizes. www.publictheater.org.

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An Interview with Ed Asner

An Interview with Ed Asner
at The Metropolitan Room
January 16, 2016
before his performance of

A Man and his Prostate
written by Ed. Weinberger

SPECIAL THANKS TO

Bernie Furshpan & staff of the Metropolitan Room

Evan Seplow
For his generosity in taping and editing this interview

The Image Factory
evan@imagefactory.tv
http://imagefactory.tv

Office: 646-414-6668
Cell: 917-442-8426

Elli does Reggae with The Amazing Bottle Dancers

Elli does Reggae
with The Amazing Bottle Dancers

Upside Down

Vincz Lee feat Popcaan, Cali P, FireFly & Riga

Filmed in Crown Heights, Brooklyn

Available on Itunes https://itunes.apple.com/ch/album/ups…
Video directed by Goodwiine
© Hemp Higher Productions

The Amazing Bottle Dancers

Cheyenne Gross, Elli, Brian Henry
Spencer Ryoma Baumgart

https://www.facebook.com/bottledancers/
https://twitter.com/BottleDancers

Vincz Lee:
http://www.vinczlee.com

FireFLY:
https://www.facebook.com/fireflylifei…

Riga:
http://www.hemphigher.com/

You just never know…

B”H – Thursday Sept. 24th 2015 – The day after Yom Kippur 5776

You just never know..

No, this is not me….

Today, on my way home from shopping for a Lulav & Esrog and some food supplies for Sukkos I had an interesting ride in a LYFT car. (Use Code Elli49 to sign up and get $20 toward a ride!)

While chatting with the driver, he said he is only in NYC 5 years and is originally from Tajikistan (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tajikistan) where they speak Tajik a dialect of Farsi (Persian) and Russian!

We had a wonderful discussion about the Jewish things he knows of, he asked me to tell him about “the coming holiday called Sukkot”. He said that he lives in Midwood near an Iranian Synagogue and can understand everything that everyone is saying on their way to/from Shul! (Note to self….)

While in the car, a friend called me sounding a little depressed, so I did my best to try and cheer him up and at one point in the conversation he asked me for my opinion on, “what’s the meaning of life? Is there a purpose?”

I explained to him that every person he asks will have a different outlook but my outlook is I was born a Jew and the purpose of my life is to follow HaShem’s Torah and do as many of the 613 mitzvahs as I can in my lifetime.

I was surprised that he understood what I was talking about and asked me if I could count how many mitzvahs I had done in the past week. I explained that it doesn’t actually work like that – we don’t keep a running count – but that I did attend services on Rosh HaShanah, the Jewish new year, I kept the Sabbath in between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, I fasted on Yom Kippur, spent the entire day in the synagogue and didn’t return home until almost an hour after the fast ended. I only eat kosher food, tried to be kind to my fellow man and generally spread as much joy as possible.

He then asked me how I know if I’m actually doing anything good and being effective?

I told him that not always is the purpose for everything you do open & revealed. Most of the time you just do what needs to be done and hope that along the way you affect somebody positively.

I related a story from just this past week. I met Brad in the city and we only had a few minutes from the time he got there until we had to be at our event. We decided to eat dinner after the event and to just go into Walgreens and get a quick nosh to hold us over.

We looked for a place to sit down and eat and finally found a ledge on the corner of the store that we could kind of squeeze onto.

While we were sitting there a couple from Israel noticing my beard and Yarmulkah came over to us looking very confused and asked if I could help them get to 770 Eastern Pkwy. the Lubavitcher headquarters in Brooklyn? I was only too happy to help and proceeded to give them the fastest route. The conversation was in Hebrew, and the lady had scribbled some numbers on a piece of paper from someone else that had given her instructions that confused her. She couldn’t seem to understand why my instructions differed from the ones she’d been given. I explained again and thankfully we were close enough to Times Square that I could point and show her where the 3 train would take her quickly to her destination. With a smile they thanked me and went on their way.

Without missing a beat, Brad turned to me and said, “See! That’s why we sat here!”

We can’t always wait for those moments to come. We always have to live **as if** that moment will always come.

“…and that’s what life is all about for me”, I said.

The Baal Shem Tov said “For 70, 80 years a Neshama (Soul) wears and tears just to do a favor for another.”

Our conversation came to an end as I arrived at my home, and I believe that it had a positive effect on my friend. I also believe it had a positive effect on my driver as well, as he insisted on carrying all my packages into the house for me!!!

You just never know what one kind word can do…

The Lubavitcher Rebbe quoted many times that it takes “JUST ONE MITZVAH to tip the scales and bring…

MOSHIACH NOW!”

-elli-

Greetings for Rosh HaShanah 5776

Greetings for
Rosh HaShanah 5776

Elli – The King of Broadway
&
www.BroadwayKingdom.com

Wish You and Your Loved ones a
Healthy, Happy, Sweet, Prosperous New Year 5776

In the year to come may the Al-mighty
grant you everything you need
(and a little of what you want as well!)

Kesivah v’Chasimah Tovah
Shana Tovah U’mesuka
May you be inscribed and sealed in
the Book of Life for a
Good, Sweet, Healthy New Year

I hope to see each and every one of you very soon.

Elli

***********************************

IMPORTANT HOLIDAY LINKS/INFO:

Make sure you hear the Shofar BOTH Days!

To Find Holiday Services Near You CLICK HERE

For Rosh Hashanah/Shabbos Candle Lighting Times
PLEASE CLICK HERE

For a Rosh Hashanah Holiday Guide Click HERE

For a Rosh Hashanah Meal Guide Click HERE

On Rosh Hashanah it is customary not to eat foods which are sour or tart (the gefilte fish will have to do without the horseradish…). Instead, we focus on sweet foods, symbolizing our desire to have a sweet year full of blessings and abundance. It is also customary not to eat nuts on Rosh Hashanah, as the numerical value of the Hebrew word for nuts (“egoz”) is the same as the Hebrew word for sin (“chet”).

The Other New York – Episode 1 – All About Background Acting

The OTHER New York
Elli Interviews NY Background Actors

(Preview –Watch in 1080p HD)
Air Date on http://www.mnn.org/ TBD

Elli sits down with a group of actors in NYC who do Background (Extra) work in Film & TV
as well as Principal (speaking) roles. Learn what it’s like to be ‘on set’ in NYC.

Courtesy Barbara Rosenfeld

PRESS RELEASE: Leslie Jordan to appear at the legendary CROWN & ANCHOR in PTown July 13-14

Leslie Jordan to appear at the legendary
Paramount Theatre
at the
CROWN & ANCHOR
in Provincetown, MA
July 13-14
Two Shows Only!

The Cape is about to experience it’s very own special “night at the races” as one of American pop culture’s most recognizable, enduring (and endearing) personalities rides back into town. In LJ, Back By Popular Demand, the diminutive, delightful Deep South dynamo saddles up for an evening of horse feathers hilarity with his new show.As always, he remains characteristically frank, charming, self–effacing and real. Jordan’s career has effectively redefined the standard for “celebrity”, and he remains the consummate professional. By staying the course, he realized his goals against all odds.

Leslie Jordan has a track record that’s fairly astonishing, upon closer glance. His is one of those consistently recognizable faces in popular entertainment. Yet, often, you’re not quite sure where you know him from! His perpetually mobile “amazing race” towards stardom has provided one of the more unusual, yet impressive and varied career trajectories of the past few decades. His arrival in Hollywood back in 1982 (with $1500 sewn into his clothing by his steel magnolia Mother) was the starting gate. There’s notable irony in the fact that Jordan actually had a brief career as a jockey. He trots the audience around the track of his career; the highlights, the bumps in the road, the big breaks, the acclaim, the dangers of being type cast or stereotyped; the victory laps and the ever present concern about being put out to pasture by a youth obsessed culture and profession. By show’s end, audiences clearly realize they’re not listening to -nor seeing- just another “one trick pony”. Jordan’s antics, quirks, observations, and, most significantly, his ability to take it all in stride, puts him in the winner’s circle with each performance! The prestigious Emmy Award winner in 2006 for “WILL & GRACE”, Leslie Jordan has received rapturous reviews for his original stage plays (“MY TRIP DOWN THE PINK CARPET”, “STORIES I CAN’T TELL MAMA”, “FRUIT FLY”), supporting presence in one of Hollywood’s most prestigious, message-minded films of the last decade (“THE HELP”, 2012), and was singled out with great notices for his off-Broadway musical theatre debut in 2011 (“THE LUCKY GUY”). His defining role as “BROTHER BOY” in the cult film classic “SORDID LIVES” evolved into a well received prequel on the LOGO Channel. As the celebrated author and star of his own HBO Special (“Pink Carpet”); Leslie Jordan is consistently sought after as a Guest Star on every imaginable form of episodic, comic television (TV Land’s “THE EX’ES”, Fox’s “RAISING HOPE”, Disney Channel’s “SHAKE IT UP!” ABC’s “THE NEIGHBORS”). He has conquered the international stage scene with sold out runs in Mexico, Canada and the U.K., and remains an in-demand mainstay as a stage/tv/film performer, voice-over artist, fund raiser, spokesperson, out artist, equal rights activist and all around Southern Baptist celebutante.
The absurdity of it all and yet, his absolute willingness to prove “nay sayers” wrong by doing WHATEVER it takes to keep him out of the proverbial Glue Factory, Leslie Jordan IS…“LJ, Back By Popular Demand”!!!

Don’t miss the fun, when Jordan returns to play Provincetown’s popular Paramount Theatre at the legendary CROWN & ANCHOR. Located in the heart of Provincetown at 247 Commercial St., the show is set for a two (2) night exclusive engagement Monday July 13th and Tuesday, July 14th 2015.

Showtime is 8:00 P.M.

Tickets are currently available by visiting www.onlyatthecrown.

http://thelesliejordan.com/site/

Date Name Description
7/13/15 8:00 pm Leslie Jordan 2 Nights Only
7/14/15 8:00 pm Leslie Jordan 2 Nights Only

PRESS RELEASE: PANEL DISCUSSION ON MADELINE KAHN

Guest Review of Encores! “THE BAND WAGON” at New York City Center

Off the wagon.

A Guest Review of Encores!

“THE BAND WAGON”

at New York City Center

November 8, 2014

THE BAND WAGON is an energetic celebration of the music and lyrics of Messrs. Arthur Schwartz and Howard Dietz. Based on the 1953 MGM film THE BAND WAGON, Mr. Douglas Carter Beane uses the original screenplay by Ms. Betty Comden and Mr. Adolph Green to provide a workmanlike pastiche of scenes in which to launch the songs; many of which had originally been created for the 1931 Broadway review of the same name. And what a lovely score there is, with fun numbers like “I Love Louisa,” the wistful “I Guess I’ll Have to Change My Plan,” and the intense “Dancing in the Dark” to name but a few. All are played with the flair and obvious pleasure that has come to be a hallmark of the Encores! Orchestra which is led for THE BAND WAGON by Mr. Todd Ellison. Indeed there is such a wealth of beloved songs that the couple behind me had a lovely time quietly singing along with the music onstage and I had not the heart to turn around and ask them to stop.

The plot is simple: Hollywood Screen Idol Tony Hunter is slipping at the box office and in hopes of revitalizing his career Tony has accepted the invitation of British Thespian Jeffrey Cordova to star in a new Broadway show. Tony arrives in New York only to learn to his reluctant surprise that the show is going to be a musical that Jeffrey will direct – his first musical to be precise. Adding more to Tony’s hesitation is the fact that his former friends Lily and Lester Martin – who aren’t exactly thrilled to be working with Tony again – are supposed to supply the book and score to this new production. Toss in Paul Byrd, a self-important choreographer, and his girlfriend Garielle Gerard, a former member of the Tony Hunter fan club and you know that there are going to be complications, hijinks, tantrums and spur-of-the-moment decisions of such significance before they make it to Broadway, that I wondered why they didn’t simply resort to Judy and Mickey’s barn – actually someone DOES ask that same question in the show.

The cast works very hard to flesh out the cinematic shadows they are saddled with. Mr. Brian Stokes Mitchell gives a pleasantly light performance as Tony Hunter that is in keeping with the “aw shucks” 1950’s ambiance. In fact he’s a somewhat more entertaining but slightly flawed “Father Knows Best” figure; trying to marshal his troupe to a successful first night and at the same time renew his career and inspiration. But there was very little Tony Hunter for Mr. Mitchell to work with so I took Mr. Mitchell at his word that this was his role and just enjoyed watching him try to make the best of it. Song and dance-wise he was simply delightful.

The Great British Dramatic Actor Jeffrey Cordova is a theatrical babe in the woods who is such a good sport and so eager to take up the latest half-baked idea that he would be absolutely impossible to believe as a character had not Mr. Tony Sheldon had so much fun playing him with a wink and a nudge. Jeffery is unreal, but Mr. Sheldon makes him amusingly good company.

Complementing Jeffrey Cordova is his devoted right-hand man Hal Meadows. Hal is down to earth and often keeps Jeffrey from running off the rails. As the show proceeds Hal is often the one who is there to keep things moving forward for everybody. Mr. Don Stephenson plays Hal with wonderful understatement often providing an ideal counterpoint to the more volatile “creative” people.

Speaking of volatile, Mr. Michael Berresse is the egocentric choreographer Paul Byrd. Byrd is something of the heavy of the piece – determined to have an advanced ballet produced in the show at all costs (Boo! Hiss!). Thankfully Mr. Berresse remembers that this is a MOVIE version of Broadway and NOT “A Chorus Line” and if he does not quite twirl a moustache and mutter “Curses,” he does exude a villainous single-mindedness to his plot to inflict his interminable ballet upon the public, even at the expense of the show.

It is surprising that Paul Byrd has a girlfriend as talented and idealistic as Gabrielle Gerard who clearly seems to overshadow him. There is something of a blushing “Gee Whiz” demeanor in Gabrielle that Ms. Laura Osnes makes believable. Here is a sweet and likable young lady who has something of a full story to tell us. Better still Ms. Osnes makes us root for her.

Lester Martin is another incompletely drawn character; he is there to sit at the piano and push his music while worrying about losing his wife Lily to Tony Martin. Somehow Mr. Michael McKean brings him sweetly to life and makes us care for this man who knows that his wife had settled for him after Tony left for Hollywood.

Indeed I too was in love with Ms. Tracey Ullman’s Lily Martin. Lily is not glamorous nor does she have any major dance number, but she is the most three dimensional and sympathetic of all the people trying to bring this musical to a successful Broadway opening. Here we have a successful woman who was deeply in love and only married her best friend Lester because she could not have Tony. She has to work out her feelings for both men while trying to keep the show from closing out of town. Watching Ms. Ullman’s superb portrayal of Lily, I thought, “What an amazing musical there might have been had Lily Martin been the focus of THE BAND WAGON – not Tony Hunter.”

The rest of the ensemble do their best to be believable city people and show folk, not even cracking a smile during the most ludicrous of Paul Byrd’s dance excesses.

The problem with adapting a well-known and beloved film into another form is that the original is a ghostly presence that haunts whatever new version is created. In the case of THE BAND WAGON an exorcism would have been a good idea. Mr. Douglas Carter Beane’s book does not want to risk alienating the audience who remembers the original – like the musical duo I mentioned before – but at the same time he often forgets that the speedy development of the plot points that might work in a movie may come across as incomplete onstage. Interactions that can mean a lot in close-up need more fleshing out when on a big stage. Matters that should be detailed are merely relayed to the audience in a second hand way, sometimes with minimal exposition: Who really cares about Tony Hunter and his bad movie making decisions?

Director and Choreographer Kathleen Marshal has to make the most of the uneven script but she cannot get beyond some of the moments that are staged for the sole purpose of setting a song that has no logical place in the script. She tries to interest us in these musical numbers that are often part of the Broadway bound show in a show but beloved as some of these scenes are in the movie (like “Triplets” and “Louisiana Hayride”) it might have been better just to assemble them as some sort of independent entre-act rather than waste time in a painful attempt to make them integral. Again, I have to hearken back to Mr. Beane’s adaptation. I understand that this BAND WAGON is based on Hollywood’s take on Broadway, but the creaky conventionalities (commercial entertainment versus ART, the comeback of the has-been, etc…) and the hackneyed theme of the Lester and Lily Martin’s plot for the Broadway Bound show are either a spoof or a lousy script.

Even when there are departures that seem promising, everything is firmly buried in what Mr. Beane assumes are the Hollywood conventions of the day. Mr. Beane claims the script was a tribute to Ms. Comden’s and Mr. Green’s work as a writing team. As an admirer of the duo, I had this sinking feeling that they’d have demanded a rewrite Happily when the musical numbers get going they are a lot of fun to hear and watch. Ms. Kathleen Marshal does know how to make performers move and some of the staging is memorable such as for the song “I Love Louisa.”

Mr. Derek McLane’s excellent sets and Mr. Peter Kaczorowski’s lighting followed and highlighted the action smoothly, while Mr. William Ivey Long’s costumes were very much of the 1950’s and he allowed himself a sly joke of dressing some performers in the show within the show as recognizable characters from other musicals of the era. But little point: Ms. Osnes please tuck in ALL of your hair for “Triplets” – it just spoils the point when the three babies sing about how they are all alike when one of them is sporting long flowing curls down past her shoulders. Then too in “Triplets”, Mr. Brian Ronan’s sound design is either muffling some of the lyrics or amplifying the performers’ mumbling of them – and not only in that number.

I feel like a grump writing down all these criticisms – especially as the audience seemed to be having a whale of a time. And I enjoyed THE BAND WAGON too for what it was: a pleasant diversion that entertained in spite of its story – not because of it.

Cast & Credits

Book by Douglas Carter Beane
From the screenplay by Betty Comden and Adolph Green
Music by Arthur Schwartz
Lyrics by Howard Dietz
Based on the classic MGM film
Produced by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures
Featuring The Encores! Orchestra
Guest Music Director Todd Ellison
Directed and Choreographed by Kathleen Marshall

Starring Brian Stokes Mitchell, Tracey Ullman, Michael McKean, Tony Sheldon, Laura OsnesWith Michael Berresse, Don Stephenson, Lawrence Alexander, John Carroll, Joyce Chittick, Jason DePinto, Ericka Hunter, Dionna Thomas Littleton, Gavin Lodge, Erica Mansfield, Brittany Marcin, Paul McGill, Kaitlin Mesh, Jermaine R. Rembert, Brandon Rubendall, Jennifer Savelli, Eric Sciotto, Samantha Zack
An Encores! Special Event

The Band Wagon
- Mainstage
- Nov 6 – 16, 2014
- Tickets start at $30 available here:

About the reviewer:

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions. I live in New York. Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

GUEST REVIEWER: ON THE TOWN – Lyric Theater – October 21, 2014

Bringing up Gabey.

A review of the revival of
ON THE TOWN
At the Lyric Theater

October 21, 2014

by Moshe Bloxenheim, Guest Reviewer

When the house lights dimmed in the Lyric Theatre on 42nd Street and the audience hushed expectantly, no strains of Bernstein rose from the orchestra pit – instead we heard the stately notes of the “Star Spangled Banner.” Ours was doubtless not the first performance where everyone looked at one another in confusion, but soon enough all rose from their seats, hand over heart, and began to join in singing the National Anthem – first unsure of themselves but finishing the first stanza in full. It was only then that the curtain – itself a large US flag – rose and the show began.

A cynical scheme to make sure no one could hate this show?

No, we are traveling back to 1944 and wartime when New York was truly part of the Home Front and all theater performances started off with this tribute to our embattled country before taking the audience away from the grim realities of battle news, casualties, blackouts and rationing.

Happily there is no rationing or actor shortage in this revival of ON THE TOWN. Nicely cast, cleverly staged and lushly orchestrated, the new production is an enthusiastic valentine to a bygone New York City: a glorious eyeful and earful that goes far to please the audience.
The premise of ON THE TOWN is simple: Ozzie, Chip and Gabey are three US Sailors who have 24 hours leave in New York City before they ship out. As they ride the subway from the Navy yard, Gabey sees a picture of the latest month’s “Miss Turnstiles” and longs for the exotic young lady who has been so honored by the New York City Board of Transportation: Miss Ivy Smith. The three young men agree to split up and use clues from the Miss Turnstiles poster to locate her. As they search, Chip meets the delightfully direct ex-cabbie Hildy Esterhazy and Ozzie encounters a soul-mate in the volatile anthropologist Claire de Loone. But poor Gabey must endure many more obstacles before he can meet the Ivy Smith of his dreams.

Jay Armstrong Johnson, Tony Yazbeck and Clyde Alves

These three young men and three young ladies may be the lead roles, but the starring spot is reserved for the setting of ON THE TOWN itself; the big, confusing, often tawdry New York City that even in wartime offers a magic wonderland that beats the organized, rational happiness of Disneyland hollow.

To populate such vibrant metropolis, the company has to be large by necessity and many performers play multiple roles: exiting as one citizen of the fair city and reentering the scene as another different character, each one with his or her own story to tell, be they sailor, cop, schoolgirl, commuter, lover or employee of Mr. Godolphin. Such careful delineations are certainly due to the efforts of the director and the choreographer, but a long and hearty ovation surely must go to these actors who never devolve into walking stage properties.

One of these many-faceted players is the very talented Mr. Stephen DeRosa. He plays a motley series of individuals and the spectator is hard put to recognize the tired shipyard worker, wise guy bill poster, harried professor, hackneyed club hosts, etc., as one and the same person even though Mr. DeRosa often adds his own funny touch that makes the most of each individual.

Mr. Phillip Boykin is another skillful actor who adds to the multitude, with his warm booming voice and the ability to go from the sleepy worker who memorably opens the show to the campily shrill announcer for the Miss Turnstiles contest and finishes off as a gritty Coney Island carny.

Megan Fairchild and Jackie Hoffman

If other actors are giving us a remarkable parade of the New York public, Ms. Jackie Hoffman gleefully rounds up her various personalities to show how many people can be a singular pain in the neck. Whether she is a crotchety Old Lady who objects to our heroes or becomes each of the various club singers who must moan the most inconveniently depressing of songs, Ms. Hoffman is hell bent on demonstrating how ruining everyone else’s fun can be a grand activity, especially when she is playing the chief obstacle between Gabey’s and Ivy’s meeting: the dipsomaniacally mercenary singing teacher Maude P. Dilly.

Though Mr. Michael Rupert only inhabits one role –Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework – he makes the most of this slowly building gag who is Claire’s relentlessly understanding fiancé. For the good Judge, realism is not worthy of a hearing.

Just as gratifying in her small, but vital part is Ms. Allison Guinn as the definitive drip and third wheel, Lucy Schmeeler.

So what of our sailor’s and their ladies?

Jay Armstrong Johnson and Alysha Umphress

The cutely handsome Mr. Jay Armstrong Johnson definitely gets a merit badge for his performance as the boy-scoutish Chip, who wants to see the big city but is there for his pals. One can easily see why Hildy is determined to get this Sailor away from his guidebook. Not that sensible Chip can resist Hildy for long, and who can blame him? The marvelously named Ms. Alysha Umphress provides a deliciously voluptuous and direct young lady who knows what she likes and is happy to let us all in on the secret. Vocally Ms. Umphress belts her numbers with a wonderfully knowing air that makes her singing “I Can Cook Too” one of the highlights of the evening.

In direct contrast to Hildy is Claire de Loone: she also knows what she wants, but is trying to make do with what she believes would be better for her – such as her fiancé Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework. But deep down Claire knows that better isn’t always best. She is a healthy mademoiselle who tries desperately to maintain a cool, intellectual facade only to give way to vigorous explosions of enthusiasm as she amusingly explains in the whimsical song “Carried Away.” Unfortunately Ms. Elizabeth Stanley never quite strikes the balance between a vessel of simmering passions about to hilariously blow her top or a cartoonish basket case who is dangerously close to putting her carefully manicure index finger to her rosy lips and going Bliblbliblblibl… Still, when avoiding the outright caricature, Ms. Stanley’s Claire can be quite a girl.

Ozzie might get carried away too, but the excellent Mr. Clyde Alves keeps it all in fun and avoids psychiatric undertones. Here is a likeable fellow who might get a bit full of himself but his reaction to the overwhelming Claire shows that he has a thing or two to learn.

Tony Yazbeck

As a farm boy from the Midwest, one might think the innocent Gabey would have a LOT to learn, but in spite of all his friend’s advice, Mr. Tony Yazbeck’s sweet and boyish Gabey does better relying on himself. From the moment he falls for Miss Turnstiles’ poster, Gabey has everybody rooting for this heart-struck young man. A one dimensional character would be hard put to convey the helpless loneliness of “Lonely Town” or the jubilation of “Lucky to Be Me,” let alone bring the audience along in Gabey’s nightmarish fantasy search of “Imaginary Coney Island.” Yet, Mr. Yazbeck makes it all feel real.

Megan Fairchild and the cast of On The Town

Happily for Gabey, Ms. Megan Fairchild’s Ivy Smith is just what he needs – a nice and pretty girl who is far from the exotic creature that was conjured up by the Miss Turnstiles campaign. Ms. Fairchild can soar in a fantasy ballet and do a Miss Turnstiles strut, but her Ivy is a likeable down-to-earth person who is more than a little bewildered by everyone else’s expectations for her and she proves a droll foil for Ms. Hoffman’s conniving Maude P. Dilly.

Such a big cast could easily engulf a less carefully thought out stage, but Mr. Beowulf Boritt provides a mix of sets, curtains, moving panels and projections that is well worth seeing on its own merit. Under the expert lighting of Mr. Jason Lyons, streets rush by, clubs spring up, subways hurry through a fantastic city that can seamlessly expand to handle the show’s biggest dances and contract to focus on the most intimate moments. This is ON THE TOWN’s native environment and everyone and everything involved seem to belong here and take sheer joy in the energy and motion of the show – even the Status of Liberty’s torch, which would have been blacked out during the war years, beams approvingly over the goings on.

If Messrs. Borrit and Lyons provide the world of 1944 New York, then the costumes, hair and makeup designs of Mr. Jess Goldstein, Ms. Leah Louks and Mr. Joe Dulude II do a fine job of filling the streets with believable 1944 New Yorkers, strikingly imaginary people for the dream ballets, eye-catching carnies and lots and lots of handsome sailors.

On the whole the direction is quite good with Mr. John Rando effectively keeping the development of the characters and their situations flowing smoothly and enjoyably. Unfortunately Mr. Rando does not always know where the fine line lies between the believably funny or the flatly cartoonish. There are, of course, downright caricatures like Judge Pitkin W. Bridgework and Maude P. Dilly where any degree of actuality would ruin the fun, but I somehow wondered if Director Rando had something to do with poor Claire de Loon’s operatic excess. Also Hildy’s speedy moderation of her initial “Duh Bronx” accent with its “Youse” and “Dese” inflections to a more pleasing enunciation show how much this was just a sloppy and unnecessary gimmick to establish character.

But I thought Mr. Rando’s staging had one misstep which went beyond funny-papers “haha” to downright crude: When the Announcer of the Miss Turnstiles competition struggles to relieve the unwilling Ivy of her crown at the end of the month, he looks like he is ripping it off her hair.

It is unfortunate that such lapses are there for both the actors and the audience to endure, but they are happily outnumbered by Mr. Rando’s better choices, Adding to the plusses, Conductor James Moore, the orchestra and the singers clearly appreciate Mr. Leonard Bernstein’s music and (Assisted by Mr. Kai Harada’s subtle sound designs) give it a glorious sound. Ms. Betty Comden and Mr. Adolph Green provided the lyrics as well as a fun book and, along with Mr. Bernstein, convey their own youthful enthusiasm for New York and life and optimism about the future. The songs are gems and more than a few are classic hits starting with the unforgettable “New York, New York (a helluva town).” From the blissful “Lucky to Be Me,” to the endearingly raunchy “I Can Cook Too,” to the sweeping ballet pieces, and the heartfelt “Some Other Time” it is clear that even in their twenties Ms. Comden and Messrs. Bernstein and Green could cover emotional and dramatic ground with a skill that seems harder and harder to find in modern musicals.

ON THE TOWN is a show that was inspired and in part developed by the legendary Mr. Jerome Robbins. Choreographer Joshua Bergasse understands this heritage, giving us a city where dance inhabits every onstage motion without any air of “art for culture’s sake”; it is often funny, frequently beautiful and more than one moment brings a lump to the throat.

With all the people and sets that must pass on and off the stage in such a smooth and continuous progression, it would be ungrateful not to offer up an extra round of applause to the Production Stage Manager Bonnie L. Becker. I bet her backstage work with its split second timings of cast and properties would be another fascinating performance to behold.

At any rate what is offered on stage is a true jewel of Musical Theater. It may not be a flawless pearl, but ON THE TOWN is still to be valued and delighted in.

————————————————————————-

Leaving the theater I was left with an interesting question; how many people below a certain age would now see ON THE TOWN as anything but three goofy sailors who have left their ship for a day?

When ON THE TOWN opened in 1944, the musical had dramatic undertones that were felt by everyone whether onstage or in the audience: At the end of their 24 hour leave, these three sailors who had already undergone combat would be shipped off once more to a possibly dangerous destination from which they may never return. Additionally, the three girls were discovering themselves in a world changed by war and no one knew what the outcome would be even at home. Even after 1945, further unrests in the world and the possibility of the draft must have lent the show’s final moments poignancy that I fear many of today’s younger people must miss – living as we now do in a compartmentalized world where the US can be fighting wars that have far less affect back at home than they once might have had. Who would have the nerve these days to talk of a home front or ask anyone to make sacrifices for our nation’s good?

I began my review by mentioning how the show attempted to evoke 1944 by the singing of the National Anthem. Perhaps the sense of those uncertain times could have been enhanced by the addition of one more lighting effect to the dazzling array of projections: a discreet image of World War II news sliding across the Times Square News Ticker.

One more notion: Although it might ruin a desired measure of surprise for the show, I think it would be a little more respectful to both the audience and the National Anthem if everyone had fair warning that the “Star Spangled Banner” was imminent before they got to their seats. It just isn’t something one ought to spring on people.

————————————————————————-

On the Town Tickets

ONLINE AT TICKETMASTER.COM
BY PHONE (877) 250-2929
or at the
BOX OFFICE
Lyric Theatre 213 W 42nd St, New York, NY 10036

RUNTIME
The performance is 2 hours 30 minutes, including one 15-minute intermission.

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About the reviewer:

I am a computer programmer, wannabe writer who loves theater and just got into the habit of inflicting my theatrical opinions.
I live in New York.

Moshe can be reached at MB1224@aol.com

Congratulations, #100,000!

THE PUBLIC THEATER ANNOUNCES 2016-17 SEASON

An Interview with Ed Asner at The Metropolitan Room January 16, 2016 before his performance of

A Man and his Prostate written by Ed. Weinberger SPECIAL THANKS TO

Bernie Furshpan & staff of the Metropolitan Room Evan Seplow For his generosity in taping and editing this interview The Image Factory evan@imagefactory.tv http://imagefactory.tv

Office: 646-414-6668 Cell: 917-442-8426