Off-Broadway

How do you produce a play that is two hours and forty-five minutes long - not a musical, just a play - and have total confidence that you will not lose your audience by intermission?&nbsp;Make sure your writer is Stephen Adly Guirgis and your director is John Ortiz.&nbsp;I was so in it with this ensemble cast of characters in <a href="/show/halfway-bitches-go-straight-to-heaven">Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven</a>, that I would have gladly spent three more hours with them.&nbsp;Raw human struggle served without a prescription for hope or cheerful poetic explanations to make white people feel better is happening at the <a href="/theatres/linda-gross-theater">Linda Gross Theater</a> on West 20th&nbsp;Street, and you gotta go see it.Guirgis has us feel like mice in the corner in a halfway house full of women in New York City witnessing all the pain, all the injustice and some switchblade sharp comic relief.&nbsp;Father Miguel (Dave Anzuelo) says, 'No saint without a past, no sinner without a future'.&nbsp;All these characters are suspended like Tantalus between a way out they cannot trust and acting on hope that just digs them further into darkness.&nbsp;We love Bella (Andrea Syglowski) who has escaped an abusive alcoholic husband with her infant son and we have great hope for her, but her path to recovery is complicated by her own addiction.&nbsp;When she shoots up with a friend and we are terrified about what is going to happen to her baby, we also don't want anything terrible to happen to her.Guirgis has a way of not judging his characters so that we won't either.&nbsp;What we are witnessing is not preaching about how we have to fix the fucked up reality for those born behind the starting line; rather, it's 'Hey!&nbsp;Have you ever really looked&nbsp;at this problem?&nbsp;Get out of your Imaginarium, Mayor, Congressperson, President and live this problem; feel this grit in your marrow'.&nbsp;There are people who want to contribute, participate in the economy, be loved... just like you.I want to gush over every single one of these characters and the amazing skill with which these actors brought them to life, but I've got a word limit to keep to. So, just a couple more highlights: Sarge (Liza Colón-Zayas) is a veteran who does not fit a government-regulated protocol for mental health despite being tough as nails and surviving military combat.&nbsp;She is always on the defensive and Collier brings a sexuality to her that is like a tigress; beautiful but so very dangerous.&nbsp;Wanda Wheels (Patrice Johnson Chevannes) has kindness and beauty for everyone but herself; she floats with the grace of an angel above the wheelchair that confines her character and packs a hell of a punch toward the end of the show when she finally asks for what she wants. Venus Ramirez (Esteban Andres Cruz) is an out-loud transsexual who is a saint to Betty Woods (Kristina Poe) when it comes to confronting the imperfect bodies God put them in.&nbsp;But Cruz layers Venus with pride and shame so intensely that you want to hug her and slap her at the same time when she falls down yet again.&nbsp;I want to see Poe do more more more on Broadway because this debut performance was so deliciously honest.&nbsp;There is no neat ending because solutions can't be final and peace is overrated,&nbsp;human connection is everything.&nbsp;Ortiz weaves these threads through this play like a master.(Photo by Monique Carboni)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"I'll admit that I spent the show's first 10 minutes or so in a state of slightly irritable resistance, seeing so many curmudgeonly eccentrics assembled for an in-house talent night. But it wasn't long before I succumbed to the surging vitality and diversity of its wayward throng of lost souls. When the script doesn't provide the individualizing details that transcend stereotypes, the performances do. And Guirgis makes sure that every person onstage is filled with the contradictions that are part and parcel of being human." Ben Brantley&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/09/theater/halfway-bitches-review.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"Guirgis doesn't give these characters one-liners. He stuffs each mouth with a fusillade of explosives. Typically, Guirgis' plays begin loud and funny. "Halfway Bitches" is no exception, but here the pathos begins to sift in a little earlier than usual, although the theatrical fireworks are never far behind." Robert Hofler&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/highway-bitches-go-straight-to-heaven-theater-review-stephen-adly-guirgis/" target="_blank">The Wrap</a>"Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven, whose title stems from a poem recited by one of the teenage residents, doesn't fully live up to its considerable ambitions. But those ambitions are not to be taken lightly, nor for granted, in this work bursting with emotional life." Frank Scheck&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/halfway-bitches-go-straight-heaven-review-1261045" target="_blank">Hollywood Reporter</a>

Review of Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven at Atlantic Theater Company

The Cast of Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven

Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven [19125]

Halfway Bitches Go Straight to Heaven

What in tarnation is going on here?&nbsp;Why the sudden glut of plays that are three hours long?&nbsp;Have all the dramaturges traded in their shingles for a "Gone Fishin'" sign?&nbsp;Three hours is just too damn long -&nbsp;<a href="/show/the-ferryman">The Ferryman</a>&nbsp;is an exception. <a href="/show/greater-clements">Greater Clements</a>&nbsp;has now joined the three hour club, and for no good reason unless exposition and obfuscation are your preferred delivery formats for the theatre.Let's start with the good news. Samuel D. Hunter has created a character, Joe, who is unstable in the extreme. Hunter treads a very fine line so skillfully that we are able to walk around inside Joe's head and view the wreckage. This is due in no small part to the artistry of Edmund Donovan as Joe. His dueling/dancing partner is the extraordinary Judith Ivey who, as Joe's mother Maggie, places us outside looking in at Joe and makes us feel the helplessness that consumes her.Place these two in an Idaho town that is dying because the mine on which it depended is dead, and you have a sad tale of the highest order.&nbsp;The town, Clements, is not only dying - it is disappearing entirely.&nbsp;Proposition 42 was voted on, and a majority of the people voted to disband the town. Mostly this was in reaction to the rich folks from California who moved in, set up shop in their McMansions and outlawed the unsuitable habits that the locals have had for years. One being their right to have the messiest goldarn yards you ever did see. The rich versus poor conflict combined with an unstable man about town is epic, and would have been enough for a play of say, a couple of hours.Mr. Hunter, however, decided to introduce a long lost love into the mix in the form of Billy (Ken Narasaki) who brings a small dash of romance as well as the subject of Japanese Americans in internment camps during WWII. Mr. Narasaki's performance does not stand up against the expansive Ivey and his contribution, along with that of his petulant granddaughter Cal, adds nothing except time to this story.The tale is really centered around Joe, but the script wanders off to other pastures over and over again.&nbsp;The simplicity and danger are lost until the last moments of the play. Even then the playwright does not let it rest and adds two more scenes that try the soul.Judith Ivey and Edmund Donovan shine mightily. But the minutes drag nonetheless. Defeat snatched from the jaws of victory, indeed.(Photo by T. Charles Erickson)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"Perhaps "Greater Clements" isn't too long but too short: It might be better off as a mini-series, where its net of ideas could unwind more naturally. As a play, though, it's like that mine elevator: creaky and skeletal but with intermittent access to wonderful things.&nbsp;" Jesse Green&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/09/theater/greater-clements-review-samuel-d-hunter.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"There's not a false note in the ensemble's performances, building on the playwright's insightful observation of ordinary lives. But it's the towering work of Ivey and Donovan — the latter already a quiet revelation in&nbsp;Clarkston&nbsp;— that gives the production such rewarding dimensions." David Rooney&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/greater-clements-theater-review-1260674" target="_blank">Hollywood Reporter</a>"Hunter's version of the American Dream is lyrical in so many of the right places, but not boldly so. If only all of "Greater Clements" were as wiry as Ivey and Donovan's performances." A. D. Amorosi&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://variety.com/2019/legit/reviews/greater-clements-review-theater-1203430034/" target="_blank">Variety</a><h2>&nbsp;</h2>

Review of Greater Clements at Lincoln Center Theater

Judith Ivey & Edmund Donovan, with Nina Hellman, Ken Narasaki & Andrew Garman in Greater Clements

Greater Clements [19717]

Greater Clements

Famous for hit musicals like Titanic, Grand Hotel and Nine, Maury Yeston is a Tony Award-winning composer whose stylistic gifts range from witty to uplifting to solemn.&nbsp;In <a href="/show/anything-can-happen-in-the-theater-the-songs-of-maury-yeston">Anything Can Happen in the Theater: The Musical World of Maury Yeston</a>, Gerard Alessandrini, of Forbidden Broadway fame, has gathered a diverse cast of five singers to explore the wealth of material in Yeston's library.&nbsp;Clearly enjoying the music and each other, the group has a rapport that is vital when performing in a small venue such as <a href="/theatres/york-theatre-company">York Theatre Company</a>.I found the opening number, a satirical ode to how actors will do anything to get onstage, to be more forced than fabulous.&nbsp;The piano overture, backed by Jacob Zedek's dramatic, color-drenched lighting set up a more glamorous opener than that.&nbsp;I mean, it's not as if we have no standards at all.&nbsp;Then again, I did once play a singing tree...Mamie Parris kicked off the evening with a delightful mash-up of two sassy uptunes from Death Takes a Holiday and Grand Hotel.&nbsp;A bright-eyed blonde, she clearly knows her way around the musical theater stage. Later on, purring her way through "Call From the Vatican" (Nine), she has a chance to sing in her shimmering soprano range. Parris is alternately sexy and comedic in her portrayal.&nbsp;I think it would work better if she could veer in one direction or the other more completely.In her first solo of the evening, "Danglin'"as well as her 11 o'clock number "Strange," winsome Alex Getlin held the audience in the palm of her hand.&nbsp;Her focus and vulnerability were palpable. Getlin occasionally belted a line or two, which I found a little jarring.&nbsp;Have faith in the small and simple! Similarly, Justin Keyes&nbsp;really knows how to tell a story in song.&nbsp;His solo "Halloween," was possibly my favorite number, primarily because of his excellent singing.&nbsp;Relaxed vocally and physically, he didn't get in the way of the lyric, even as he maintained a clear emotional presence.&nbsp;In addition, Alessandrini has blocked this song adorably, adding to its wistful effect.In contrast to the experience level of the other singers, Jovan E'Sean, tall, dark and elegant, felt a little young. His presence is somewhat tentative.&nbsp;True, it is refreshing to cast a diverse range of ages, but perhaps Alessandrini should have allowed that to inform his song choices a little more precisely.&nbsp;E'Sean seemed more at home in the delightful trio (with Getlin and Keyes) "I Don't Want to Rock 'n' Roll."Rounding out the cast, lanky tenor Benjamin Eakeley crooned with confidence.&nbsp;He could be a leading man or a character singer, moving easily from heartfelt to comical and back again.&nbsp;A few vowels sounded a bit nasal, but his voice is smooth and easy on the ear.The penultimate song of the evening, the toe-tapping number "Feet" (In the Beginning) stopped the show.&nbsp;To follow a high energy crowd pleaser with a quiet, nostalgic song like "Home" (Phantom) kind of harshed my buzz, however.&nbsp;"Home" is a beautiful song that really pulls at the heartstrings, and I love that is was arranged for five voices, but it felt a little too internal as a show closer.&nbsp;It would, however, make a nice encore.It is very worth a trip to the York to take this happy walk down memory lane.&nbsp;The music alone is worth it, but Alessandrini's restrained yet witty staging and the deeply satisfying romantic lighting seal the deal.(Photo by Carol Rosegg)

Review of Anything Can Happen in the Theater: The Musical World of Maury Yeston at York Theatre Company

The Cast of Anything Can Happen in the Theater

Anything Can Happen in the Theater [20311]

Anything Can Happen in the Theater

Dep Kirkland is the playwright, star and own worst enemy of <a href="/show/mstrial">MsTrial</a>. Tasked with portraying a high-powered attorney who is not above committing a violent assault when tanked up on tequila, Kirkland underplays the part to mixed effect. And as playwright, this former trial attorney loads the script with legalese and misdirection in the first act, before unloading a devastating lesson on the misunderstanding and withholding of evidence in the second. Despite the play's punny title, this is no courtroom farce. It's a somber and uncomfortable look at the dangers of a sexually charged workplace which, in itself, explains why the play, last staged in 2002, comes seeking relevance in a winter run at <a href="/theatres/new-world-stages">New World Stages</a>.Kirkland has written primarily for film and television and there is a distinct "Law &amp; Order" meets John Grisham vibe to his structuring of this work. He portrays John Paris, the head of a boutique law firm where he employs as associates his competent nephew Dan (Alan Trinca) and the attractive, whip-smart Karen (Christine Evangelista). The trio are deep into a case, representing a couple whose young daughter has been killed in a train accident. The opening scenes, full of tough talk and inappropriate banter amid narrative exposition, also spill out the details and strategy of the trial, generating a lot of data for the audience to process.It turns out to be much more information than needed though, since Kirkland's real interest is in what comes next. Having won the case, the victory party winds into the early morning hours until Karen finds herself alone with John, in dangerous proximity to a sofa. The play then pivots to the party's aftermath, with Karen seeking legal recourse and raging against the "she asked for it" blame put upon her. John, in a stretch of credibility, employs Dan as his defense lawyer. Karen's lawyer, Cathryn (Janie Brookshire), knows not of what she speaks, leaving her client shattered. John will ultimately show remorse, but way too little and much too late.John is such an alpha dog that he literally barks when he hits on Karen. Kirkland, with a hint of a Southern drawl and a determined emotional suppression, suffocates John's feelings, at least when playing sober. Dan, we are advised early and often, is gay. It's a character trait seemingly there only to be used as fodder for some questionable humor and a poorly advised bit of off-stage business where Karen tests his sexuality. Trinca aptly captures the frustration of a man caught in the middle of a mess.&nbsp;In the complicated role of Karen, Evangelista skillfully maneuvers the slippery and catastrophic slope that begins with a consensual kiss.Directed at a languid pace by Rick Andosca, the actors' dialog is sometimes so riddled with pauses that a jury of their peers would find them guilty of involuntary line slaughter. Bill Clarke's scenic design offers a nicely appointed law office but it's laid out in such a way that the evening's biggest battle seems to be between Dan and his desk chair, always hopelessly turned in the wrong direction.(Photo by Jeremy Daniel)&nbsp;

Review of MsTrial at New World Stages

Alan Trinca, Christine Evangelista & Dep Kirkland in MsTrial

Horton Foote's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, <a href="/show/the-young-man-from-atlanta">The Young Man from Atlanta</a>, is lovingly brought to life again by Signature Theatre at Pershing Square Signature Center. Directed with respectful humor by Michael Wilson, the play immerses us in the quietly desperate lives of Will and Lily Dale Kidder (Aidan Quinn and Kristine Nielsen) of 1950 Houston Texas. Six months ago the Kidder's only son, Bill, walked into a lake and drowned. Will accepts that his son committed suicide but Lily Dale wants to believe it was an accident. On top of this tragedy Will was just fired from the company he built and dedicated 25 years to. A proud man Will refuses the three months notice Southern Wholesale Grocery gives him, even though he recently spent all their savings building a gorgeous modern home to help his wife and himself get over the death of their son.Bill was living in Atlanta when he died. We learn that his roommate, Randy, (never appears in the play), came to Houston for the funeral and made fast friends with Bill's mother, Lily Dale, against Will's instructions. Lily Dale is comforted by Randy and the affection he had for her son. Will doesn't trust him.All except the opening scene of the play takes place in the pastel living room of the Kidder's new home. Their life is typically mid-century American. So typical that the Kidders don't want to know that their son was homosexual. The love that dare not speak its name, is never spoken, never named by the couple. As Will explains to Lily Dale, "...there are things I'd have to ask him (Randy) and I don't want to know...There was a Bill I knew and a Bill you knew and that's the only Bill I care to know about." Lily Dale doesn't want to know either. She doesn't want to know that her son was gay, or that he committed suicide, and in a funny aside, but actually pertinent point of the play, she also doesn't want to know that her step-father (who she adores) molested her cousins. She confesses to Will that she never believed her cousins. In response to all of the confusions and disappointments Lily Dale finds in people she loves she asks, "Who are we to believe, Daddy?"The Young Man from Atlanta is ingeniously written. It is old fashioned in style and characterization and that is perfect. It lets us into private moments with a couple that are unaware of their political positions in life. They have never examined why they think what they think, or do what they do. They just do what they have been taught should be done; there is no gay rights movement, no #MeToo or women's movement. Aidan Quinn and Kristine Nielsen are touching and hilarious. The sincerity that Nielsen brings to Lily Dale's child-like wife makes it impossible for us to laugh at her. We sympathize with her confusion and innocence. Quinn moves from macho to vulnerable with grace, and like Nielsen, a sincerity that commands that we respect Will. There are silent moments of Quinn's that are worthy of a silent movie. A wonderful evening of old fashioned theater that does not feel old fashioned, just honest and funny.(Photo&nbsp;by Monique Carboni)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"An affectionate, slow and steady revival by Michael Wilson&nbsp;for the Signature Theater... In the second act...&nbsp;as that stealthy Horton Foote magic asserts itself anew. The revelations of plot make way for the bigger revelation that the complacent, well-heeled Will and Lily Dale are defenseless against life's universal solitude. The emotional floodgates collapse, and each has a devastating, fully earned moment of breakdown and release." Ben Brantley&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/24/theater/young-man-from-atlanta-review.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"Go-to Foote director Michael Wilson, who helmed 2007's superb&nbsp;Dividing the Estate&nbsp;and 2009's nine-play masterwork the Orphans' Home Cycle, at least gives this head-scratcher of a play a handsome production at the Signature, with a couple of inspired touches." Melissa Rose Bernardo&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/the-young-man-from-atlanta" target="_blank">Time Out New York</a>"Fortunately, melodrama thrives under capitalism gone amok, and "The Young Man From Atlanta" is ultimately an effective indictment of it." Robert Hofler&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/the-young-man-from-atlanta-theater-review-aidan-quinn-horton-foote/" target="_blank">The Wrap</a>&nbsp;

Review of The Young Man from Atlanta at Signature Theatre

Kristine Nielsen & Stephen Payne in The Young Man from Atlanta

<a href="/show/a-bright-room-called-day">A Bright Room Called Day</a>, now at the <a href="/theatres/public-theater">Public Theater</a>, first breathed life back in 1985.&nbsp;We know this because playwright&nbsp;Tony Kushner appears as a character in the story about 10 minutes in and tells us.&nbsp;Mind you, he is not identified as Kushner. He is not named anywhere except the program. He is Xillah (Jonathan Hadary), and presents himself as the author in a quandary.&nbsp;This is the play he wrote 34 years ago. It never worked until Trump was elected - and now everyone wants to produce it, but it needs an upgrade.&nbsp;He brings with him another character Zillah (Crystal Lucas-Perry). While Xillah is located in our present, Zillah is located in the present of the writing of the original play - 1985.&nbsp;Xillah is playing fast and loose with time - but he can do that because he is the writer.&nbsp;The rest of us are merely along for the ride - and it will be a bumpy one.The story covers the events in Berlin from January 1, 1932, to November 1933.&nbsp;Specifically, the exact months during which Hitler came into power, dismantling the German democracy, anointing himself supreme leader, and building the first concentration camp. Agnes Eggling (Nikki M. James) lives in the bright room of an apartment with her lover Vealtninc Husz (Michael Esper) and entertains her dearest friends Annabella Gotchling (Linda Emond), Paulinka Erdnuss (Grace Gummer) and Gregor Bazwald (<a href="/actor-profile/michael-urie">Michael Urie</a>).&nbsp;This coterie dabbles in political debate.&nbsp;Capitalism is failing. There is inflation and unemployment everywhere (in the U.S., the Depression was in full bloom).&nbsp;The choices seem to be Communism or Fascism.&nbsp;We, the audience, know where this is going.&nbsp;The people onstage do not.The parallel of Germany's terrible decent and our own political cesspool are clear. Racism, homophobia, the disregard for protocol, betrayal of foreign allegiances, and the demand for loyalty - these are chilling and not lost on any of us.&nbsp;Kushner, however, insists on driving the points home using Xillah and Zillah's sidebar conversations. These are labeled "Interruptions" in the script and become the didactic portions of the play.&nbsp;So dense that they bring the show to a slow halt.&nbsp;Over and over again.The story is clear enough.&nbsp;As Germany begins to crumble, we watch the safety net unravel, bit by bit. Political parties are outlawed. People are taken away never to be seen again.&nbsp;Food is scarce. The powers are closing in on anyone not toeing the line.&nbsp;The life options soon become either leave the country (find the holes in the borders) and end your life as you know it, or end your life - period. Agnes is frozen in place and tormented by her personal nightmare, the character of Die Älte (Estelle Parsons) who is part ghost, part menace, part prophesier.&nbsp;And let's not forget that short visit by the Devil (Mark Margolis). Agnes becomes the iconic person in the crowd who does not salute Hitler.&nbsp;She grips her purse with both hands and tries to wish the evil away.&nbsp;She cannot, however. She is brought down by the sheer weight of Hitler's regime whose appetite for power is insatiable.&nbsp;She is swallowed whole.It is only in the final moments of the play that the past and the present merge.&nbsp;Agnes' spirit rises to the challenge and we finally see Kushner's intended destination. The scene is shattering.&nbsp;Would that we had arrived earlier.(Photo&nbsp;by Joan Marcus)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"Among those portraying semi-decadent, left-leaning Berliners waiting for&nbsp;that other jackboot to drop&nbsp;in the early 1930s are some of my favorite performers: Linda Emond, Michael Esper, Nikki M. James and Michael Urie. And in a cumbersome allegorical role called Die Älte is the great Estelle Parsons, 92, who gives a performance of such bravura ferocity that the production's fiery special effects seem pallid beside her... Yet these promisingly eccentric elements rarely cohere into any form that combats an inevitable numbness. In portraying people who debate themselves into a state of stasis — endlessly discussing philosophies of history and politics — Bright Room&nbsp;itself freezes into&nbsp;flamboyant paralysis." Ben Brantley&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/25/theater/a-bright-room-called-day-review.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"Kushner gives us an almost daily, sometimes hourly, account of what happened in Germany from 1932 to 1933. Factoids about the Hitler's rise to power are projected on the upstage wall of David Rockwell's handsome apartment set. These statements of horrible political facts are simple and riveting. Some of the communist characters in Bright Room&nbsp;are not." Robert Hofler&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/a-bright-room-called-day-theater-review-tony-kushner-revisits-his-first-flawed-play/" target="_blank">The Wrap</a>"Reviewing the new revival/revisal of Tony Kushner's 1985 play&nbsp;A Bright Room Called&nbsp;Day&nbsp;seems almost redundant. After all, the playwright does much of the heavy lifting himself, thanks to the periodic interruptions of two fourth wall-breaking characters who provide meta-theatrical commentary about the work even as we're watching. One of them, Zillah (Crystal Lucas-Perry), also appeared in the play's original version, as a woman from the then Reagan-era present day to provide contemporary commentary about the work set in 1932-33 Germany. The other is the unimaginatively named Xillah (Jonathan Hadary), who serves as a stand-in for Kushner himself. Judging by the lacerating comments of both figures, the playwright feels more than a little sheepish about this early effort." Frank Scheck&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/a-bright-room-called-day-theater-review-1257931">Hollywood Reporter</a>&nbsp;

Review of Tony Kushner's A Bright Room Called Day at the Public Theater

Michael Urie & Nikki M. James in A Bright Room Called Day

A Bright Room Called Day [17923]

A Bright Room Called Day

"<a href="/show/the-half-life-of-marie-curie">The Half- Life of Marie Curie</a>" is a very clever title for Lauren Gunderson's new world premiere play, now being presented by&nbsp;Audible&nbsp;at the <a href="/theatres/minetta-lane-theatre">Minetta Lane Theatre</a>, considering Curie discovered and named the elements radium and polonium, but it gives the wrong impression altogether.&nbsp;It should be the incredible life of Marie Curie.&nbsp;She was the first woman to win a Nobel prize, the first person to win two Nobel prizes, the only woman to win in two fields, and the only person to win in multiple science fields - physics and chemistry - all before women were allowed to vote in France.What is remarkable about Gunderson's The Half-Life of Marie Curie&nbsp;is that it manages to convey not only her astonishing achievements without sounding like a book report, but it captures her personal life as a female scientist of the times in a particularly elegant manner. There are only two characters, Marie Curie (Francesca Faridany) and Hertha Ayrton (Kate Mulgrew), a British engineer, mathematician, physicist, inventor and passionate suffragette.&nbsp;The structure of the play is fluid.&nbsp;It moves between a memory piece that breaks the fourth wall with monologues directed at the audience and scenes in the present with dialog between the two characters. But it all works seamlessly, and the writing is so resonant and insightful that I am tempted to quote every other line.Gunderson presents both Curie and Ayrton with sympathy, understanding and a great deal of humor at some particularly tough moments.&nbsp;The Half-Life of Marie Curie&nbsp;begins with opening monologues by both Curie and Ayrton.&nbsp;Curie talks about radium and how it transforms itself over time into something "other than self" and equates it with a kind of abandonment.&nbsp;Which she relates to herself in her present state with her beloved husband and scientific partner, Pierre Curie, dead.&nbsp;Voilá, the melancholy and reflective Marie Curie who, when the play opens in 1911, is in the middle of a horrible social scandal that has her vilified in the press and on the streets.Hertha, her brash and bold British colleague introduces herself to us by saying "There was a technical problem in the world and I fixed it and you're welcome."&nbsp;And she goes on to explain how she solved the problem of the hissing of the arc light that was in use at the time.&nbsp;She is on her way to Paris to stand by her fellow scientist Marie and stare down her enemies with her.&nbsp;She finds a howling crowd on Curie's doorstep that she threatens with bodily harm, and a thoroughly crushed and defeated friend inside.&nbsp;Through the process of whisking Marie and her children away from the toxic atmosphere of Paris to the tranquil English seaside of her country home, the two widows fight and heal and form a lifelong unshakeable bond.The Half-Life of Marie Curie&nbsp;illustrates in a very organic, almost off-hand way how remarkable these two women were.&nbsp;What they were able to accomplish simply for the love of doing it, boggles the imagination.&nbsp;Equally impressive are the two actresses who play the roles of Curie and Ayrton.&nbsp;Faridany is luminous and vulnerable while maintaining an inviolate aura of passion and integrity for her work.&nbsp;Mulgrew is an absolute delight.&nbsp;She imbues Ayrton with a wry sense of humor and all the intelligence and compassion of a true leader of women.&nbsp;The two play extremely well together and it is impossible not to fall a little bit in love with them both.The Half-Life of Marie Curie&nbsp;is not only a wonderful experience in the theater, it's an important work to be presented at this moment in time when we are trying to get more young women interested in science.(Photo by Joan Marcus)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"Unbeknownst to many New Yorkers, Gunderson has been the most produced contemporary playwright&nbsp;in the United States for two of the past three seasons, and she knows how to build actors' showcases that are sturdy, if not necessarily challenging for the audience. So this production — commissioned by the audiobook company Audible&nbsp;and directed by Gaye Taylor Upchurch — is at its best when it lets the two stars strut their stuff." Elisabeth Vincentelli&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/19/theater/the-half-life-of-marie-curie-review.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"While&nbsp;The Half-Life of Marie Curie&nbsp;may not be as inventive as the women it celebrates, it's enlightening and entertaining. Under Gaye Taylor Upchurch's unfussy direction, Faridany fleshes out the passive-depressive Curie with revealing flashes of intense passion for science and sex. Impressively, she holds her own opposite supernova Mulgrew, who is playing the lesser-known figure but has all the best lines. (Mulgrew's expressive voice will certainly be a highlight of the recording&nbsp;of the play that Audible plans to release.) Their performances do a lot to bring Gunderson's history lesson to life. These two women have chemistry." Raven Snook&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/the-half-life-of-marie-curie" target="_blank">Time Out New York</a>"Despite Curie's name in the title, Kate Mulgrew's butch Ayrton is the major attraction... Gunderson lavishes all her best retorts and epigrams on Ayrton, and Mulgrew knows just what to do with them." Robert Hofler&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/half-life-of-marie-curie-theater-review-kate-mulgrew/" target="_blank">The Wrap</a>&nbsp;

Review of Audible Theater's The Half-Life of Marie Curie at the Minetta Lane Theatre

Kate Mulgrew & Francesca Faridany in The Half-Life of Marie Curie

The Half-Life of Marie Curie [19169]

The Half-Life of Marie Curie

The legacy and history of the Broadway genre is defined most by its divas: Broadway's brightest and most archetypal stars have been women. They are charismatic, larger than life, and have voices that bring crowds to their knees and to their feet. Moreover, they are immense cultural properties that hold a special place in the hearts of those they reach.Both the titular character and source material of <a href="/show/evita">Evita</a> reflect this principle. Eva Perón, as a complex political figure, has endured as an international cultural icon, inspiring this very musical. Her career as an entertainer-turned-politician, with its engrossed public and cult of celebrity, was marked with as much controversy as glamour.Perhaps it's for this reason that, in her effort to revitalize Evita for contemporary audiences at <a href="/theatres/new-york-city-center">New York City Center</a>, Sammi Cannold has us re-examine what we feel about the glitz, and the woman behind it. Cannold's heavily researched approach pervades in this new streamlined rendition. Cuts and transitions make for a trim, two-hour runtime that leaves no dull moments. At worst, it's in want of a little breathing room. Cannold's incisive truthfulness zeroes in on the uglier facets of Perón's story—behind her talent and sexual power lie trauma and victimization at a young age. Behind the champion of descamisados and women's suffrage was also the wife of Perón's oppressive regime.All this culminates in a rendition perhaps a little darker than even the grand, emotional weight of the score is accustomed to. From the moment audiences enter the theatre, they see Perón's iconic white Dior dress: Recreated by Alejo Vietti, suspended above Jason Sherwood's piers of white roses. Like Evita's hands, they are a saintly, ethereal, almost virginal gesture. This same almost-monument is eviscerated in the end by the same ensemble that not long ago so sensationalized Evita; as her own mortality looms, and her vacillating legacies echoes to haunting chants of "Perón". The audience, watching a reduced Eva on her deathbed, with her younger counterpart in a fetal position nearby, cannot help but wonder: Are we complicit?Cannold's storytelling is complemented by all her collaborators, and a satisfyingly Latin-dominant cast. Evita's younger self is delegated to a separate actress: Maia Reficco's supple, poppy vocals as Young Eva deftly cycle Andrew Lloyd Webber's challenging score, but without much depth of character. However, despite an early transition to Solea Pfeiffer's stellar Eva, Reficco's presence throughout the rest of the show as a haunting, introspective shadow of Eva's past is no less potent. Jason Gotay's Che is fiercely sung, but lacking the gravitas and grit of former interpreters. Maria Cristina Slye, inversely, delivers an achingly show-stealing "Another Suitcase In Another Hall."&nbsp;All this is under Bradley King's colorful lighting, which dabbles frequently with Eva's mortal white and a menacing, Sith Lord-esque red for the more politically charged scenes.This distilling of an aging but timeless classic, with boldness and authenticity at its forefront, could not be truer to the directive of New York City Center.(Photo&nbsp;by Joan Marcus)&nbsp;<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"Cannold's interpretation, based in part on work she did for her undergraduate thesis at Stanford, is even more analytical than Prince's. Aside from separating the dress from the woman, she has separated the woman from herself: Eva is played from age 15 through 20 by Maia Reficco and as an adult by&nbsp;Solea Pfeiffer. Even after the girl turns into the woman, in the middle of the song "Buenos Aires," she hovers over the rest of the action as a caution. The result, as it must be for 2019, is a more ambivalent, feminist reading of Argentina's first lady, lay saint and lightning rod. But it's also, for much of its two hours, more muddled and less engaging." Jesse Green&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/15/theater/evita-city-center-review.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"The first Evita, Patti LuPone, was a force of nature. The latest Evita is a pretty cipher. That assessment is not a slam on Solea Pfeiffer's sly incarnation of Eva Perón. She wears the role with high-fashion hauteur in the new, insightful revival of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita." Robert Hofler&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/fires-in-the-mirror-theater-review-anna-deavere-smith-michael-benjamin-washington/" target="_blank">The Wrap</a>

Review of Evita at New York City Center

Solea Pfeiffer and the Cast of Evita

There are many interpretations of what happened. It's Crown Heights, Brooklyn and it's 1991, and it's the heat of August, and it's 8:20 on a summer night.&nbsp;People are on the street.There has been tension in this urban neighborhood for some time as the Jewish community that lives side by side with the African American community has been expanding its footprint, buying up property and changing the landscape. Then it happened.&nbsp;The spark that lit the fuse of an explosion.The driver of the car in the rear of the motorcade of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, the head of the Lubavitch Hasidic movement, lost control killing a 7-year-old black boy playing on the sidewalk.&nbsp;The fires immediately spread both literally and figuratively.I'm not going to get into the details of the Crown Heights riots&nbsp;because I want to put my efforts into expressing my admiration for this Signature Theatre&nbsp;production of <a href="/show/fires-in-the-mirror">Fires in the Mirror</a>, currently running at <a href="/theatres/pershing-square-signature-center">Pershing Square Signature Center</a>, as it takes this bit of history and lifts it to a higher plane.In putting together this play, the playwright Anna Deavere Smith spoke to over fifty black and Jewish residents of Crown Heights shortly after the riots, assembled this piece directly from those interviews and performed it herself in 1992 lifting the genre of documentary theater. The New York Times' Frank Rich said of that production that it had the "ability to find the unexpected and unguarded in nearly each speaker." That still stands today in the strong words that are spoken landing 27 years later, the unexpected in viewpoint and the unguarded in personal truth.Switching genders, what Ms. Smith has done in this production is given over the playing to the wonderfully mesmerizing actor Michael Benjamin Washington who brings to life the 29 characters in full force and fury.&nbsp;Mr. Washington surpasses capable and enters the realm of exquisite in his characterizations on both polemic sides of the rioting. His job is to not only embody but to feel the truth in the Jewish neighborhood wives, Al Sharpton, George Wolfe, Clarence Thomas, Jewish rabbis, young men and women in the neighborhood and Angela Davis.&nbsp;The standing ovation the night I was there was as much for Mr. Washington's compelling work as it was for the play and the production. All three deserve the ovation.Saheem Ali's direction brought temperance and smoothness to the production allowing Mr. Washington a path to follow in his shape-shifting that provided flow to the work and helped to cement each characterization in the broader picture.&nbsp;His vision for the piece and what it meant at that time and what it means today carries the piece forward from being a look-back to a this-is-us-now perspective that resonates in the now.Scenic designer Arnulfo Maldondo utilizes mirrors on stage to add a 360 degree visual to the piece.&nbsp;The mirrors distortions reflect back the full characters and allow movement where there is none, three dimensions where there is only two and an open stage chock full of possibility.&nbsp;The strong last visual of all the characters puts a final button on the evening that will haunt with its richness.This play is not meant to find ultimate truth, but to listen to the humanity that doesn't listen beyond itself and eke out a truth applicable to our own lives, to become better than we were instead of worse. We live in a world where there is no such color as red, no such note as middle C.&nbsp;These are all agreed upon subjective realities or truths. The subjective truth of this production of Fires in the Mirror, and the subjective reality, is that this is a wonderful evening of theater.(Photo&nbsp;by Joan Marcus)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"Nearly three decades after it was first unveiled, the panoramic view provided by Anna Deavere Smith's "Fires in the Mirror" still makes you catch your breath and shake your head in sorrow. In the Signature Theater's crystalline revival of this documentary drama about the Crown Heights race&nbsp;riots of 1991, its reflective surfaces seem, if anything, more acutely focused, its patterns both sharper and more damning." Ben Brantley&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/11/theater/fires-in-the-mirror-signature.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"A theatrical time&nbsp;capsule that feels eerily timely, Anna Deavere Smith's solo documentary play&nbsp;Fires in the Mirror&nbsp;is getting an appropriately fiery revival at the Signature... Director Saheem Ali deserves credit for eliciting this impressively fluid performance, and although there are minor missteps in this production—too much stage business, an excessively literal set—it is a stirring account of an urgent work of art." Raven Snook&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/fires-in-the-mirror" target="_blank">Time Out New York</a>"Can an Anna Deavere Smith docu-play work without, well, Anna Deavere Smith? Michael Benjamin Washington more than proves that it can in Signature Theater Company's stirring revival of Fires in the Mirror,&nbsp;which opened Monday night." Thom Geier&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thewrap.com/fires-in-the-mirror-theater-review-anna-deavere-smith-michael-benjamin-washington/" target="_blank">The Wrap</a>&nbsp;

Review of Signature Theatre's Fires in the Mirror by Anna Deavere Smith

Michael Benjamin Washington in Fires in the Mirror

I wanted to like this production of <a href="/show/cyrano">Cyrano</a>&nbsp;by The New Group, now playing Off-Broadway's <a href="/theatres/daryl-roth-theatre">Daryl Roth Theatre</a>.&nbsp;I am a fan of Peter Dinklage (who has the briefest bio in the Playbill) having first seen him in the movie "Station Master."&nbsp;In addition, I heard great things about Erica Schmidt's direction of Red Bull Theater's <a href="/show/mac-beth">Mac Beth</a> earlier this. I was psyched.Sadly, this production did not cooperate with my wishes.&nbsp;Initially it could stem from the story itself - a tale of Roxanne (Jasmine Cephas Jones) a young woman of no means, who is nevertheless turning heads in 1640 France.&nbsp;She is adored by her distant cousin and closest friend Cyrano (Peter Dinklage) and ogled over by the Evil Count De Guiche (Ritchie Coster), but she only has eyes for a slump shouldered but adorable soldier, Christian (Blake Jenner). We are asked to care about these people, but not given sufficient cause to gin up any emotion.In the original play, Cyrano was hampered by his large nose, which made him an oddity who was filled with doubt.&nbsp;In this version it is once again size, but this time the lack of it, that interferes with Cyrano's desire.&nbsp;This is never mentioned - only implied.There is a war on (isn't there always?) and the Count is ready to take command of his army and Roxanne.&nbsp;She would do well to let him because she has no money.&nbsp;But of course, love wins.&nbsp;Love wins because Cyrano becomes Christian's voice.&nbsp;First with letters, then in actual fact while Roxanne pines away on her balcony.&nbsp;But when Roxanne commits the outrage of marrying Christian, the Evil Count orders both Christian and Cyrano to battle where he hopes both will die an ugly death.&nbsp;Only half a wish is granted.Cyrano survives, but Roxanne goes into permanent mourning for Christian.&nbsp;The story picks up 15 years later where Roxanne is tending to her garden and awaiting a visit from Cyrano who visits regularly.&nbsp;Those around her mention that Cyrano is not well, and she refuses to believe it.&nbsp;But when he visits her that day it is clear, and when he asks to read Christian's last letter to her, but recites instead of reading - the jig's up.&nbsp;Too late.&nbsp;The story ends with declarations of love and Cyrano's death.I never hooked in, no matter how I tried.&nbsp;On the positive side, this show's entire design is intriguing and almost operatic in its specificity.&nbsp;The choreography and choral were superb, and the songs worked best delivered by the ensemble. Everything served to create an ethereal world of love and treachery that wove together like a French Braid.&nbsp;As to the performances, Dinklage and Coster stood out. Cyrano and De Guiche arrived to party fully formed and three dimensional.&nbsp;Ms. Cephas Jones and Mr. Jenner felt vague and uncertain - this is a problem as the entire story depends on them.&nbsp;It may have been the script to begin with, but at some point we need to see or at least feel the electricity.&nbsp;As it was, I couldn't figure out why either of them was a hot catch, ergo&nbsp;there was no investment on my part.I remained outside the party looking in through the window.(Photo by Monique Carboni)<div class="block block-block contextual-links-region " id="block-block-9"><div class="block-inner clearfix"><div class="block-title"><h2>WHAT THE OTHER CRITICS SAID</h2></div></div></div>"Presumably, most of those who have gathered to see Cyrano,&nbsp;as this New Group production is called, are there for the express purpose of setting eyes upon the possessor of that voice, Peter Dinklage... The man who won four Emmy Awards playing Tyrion, I hasten to announce, is by no means a disappointment as the&nbsp;witty, wily and dangerously underestimated title character of Cyrano,&nbsp;a musical adaptation of Edmond Rostand's classic by Erica Schmidt, who is also the show's director (and Dinklage's wife)." Ben Brantley&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/07/theater/cyrano-review-peter-dinklage.html" target="_blank">New York Times</a>"As a platform&nbsp;for the swoon-worthy Peter Dinklage, the New Group's musical take on Edmond Rostand's classic 1897 romance,&nbsp;Cyrano de Bergerac, has seductive moments. But it's hard to fall in love with this confounding production." Raven Snook&nbsp;for <a href="https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/cyrano-1" target="_blank">Time Out New York</a>"In 2003, the rock band the National released an album called "Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers." That would also make a good title for their new musical, Cyrano,&nbsp;which opened off-Broadway Thursday night. Because every song is mind-numbingly sad, and I hear 17th-century Paris wasn't big on bathing." Johnny Oleksinski&nbsp;for <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/11/07/cyrano-review-peter-dinklage-musical-is-a-moody-mess/" target="_blank">New York Post</a>"There's no prosthetic nose in writer-director Erica Schmidt's streamlined new take on Edmond Rostand's 1897 verse drama&nbsp;Cyrano de Bergerac, and most of the quips about the title character's plus-size proboscis have been excised. But the defensive pride and haunted solitude of the outsider who believes his appearance means that no woman could ever love him cuts deep in a transfixing performance from Peter Dinklage, bristling with humor, pathos and fierce magnetism. He's ably backed by Jasmine Cephas Jones as Roxanne and Blake Jenner as the dim pretty boy who lacks the words to woo her in this evocative alt-musical, with an original score by members of The National." David Rooney&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/cyrano-theater-review-1252887" target="_blank">Hollywood Reporter</a>"It's pride and not panache that drives this overly spare and gloomy musical adaptation of that classic tale of unrequited love and honor, Cyrano de Bergerac.&nbsp;Despite a mesmerizing performance by Peter Dinklage, hot off "Game of Thrones," and a haunting score by members of the band The National, this&nbsp;Cyrano&nbsp;is so reductive — the musical runs just two hours — that instead of an epic narrative poem of yearning, brio and noble sacrifice, there's just a haiku of rue." Frank Rizzo&nbsp;for&nbsp;<a href="https://variety.com/2019/legit/reviews/cyrano-review-peter-dinklage-1203395671/" target="_blank">Variety</a>

Review of The New Group's Cyrano, starring Peter Dinklage, at Daryl Roth Theatre

Peter Dinklage & Josh A. Dawson in Cyrano

Cyrano [18803]

Cyrano

Broadway

Happy Pride! Across the world, people celebrate Pride month throughout the month of June, honoring the history of the LGBTQ+ community and celebrating its continued survival. With states nationwide introducing anti-LGBTQ laws, this year's Pride Month is an especially important time to support LGBTQ stories and, in the theatre in particular, celebrate the work of queer artists.

The contributions of LGBTQ+ writers, directors, performers, choreographers, and so much more appear in so many shows on stage this month. All these stories are worth uplifting and celebrating, and most of them happen to be pure fun. Check out these plays and musicals this Pride month — everyone is welcome at these theatres.

![fat ham broadway-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/4ZhzLE1qhWKeFBZZ7t9Zqz/8f9e84ed08ca74fc9b67eb731d1738fd/fat_ham_broadway-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Fat Ham*

Everyone's invited to this cookout — but only through July 2, when *Fat Ham* ends its limited Broadway run. In his Pulitzer-winning and Tony-nominated play, James Ijames mashes up the classic plot of *Hamlet* with the sensibilities of a modern-day queer Black student, Juicy. Like Hamlet, he's tasked with killing his murderous uncle, but does Juicy really want to kill anyone? Is there another way that doesn't continue the cycle of violence? Is being sensitive and "soft" to such things really that bad?

Ijames, who also [grew up Black and queer in the South](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/james-ijames-shares-the-ingredients-from-his-life-that-make-up-fat-ham), explores these themes with humor, heart, and hot barbecue. Plus, Juicy's not the only character on stage exploring their identity and trying to access their truest self.

Get [*Fat Ham* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27141-fat-ham-tickets) now.

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![3 some like it hot-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/2jrcIPZ0ssP6aFpBOPB9U4/af86078c84c12ef262d7289716e3b6f1/3_some_like_it_hot-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Some Like It Hot*

If you're thirsty for a fresh update to a classic film that celebrates finding your most authentic self, *Some Like It Hot* delivers. Based on the 1959 Marilyn Monroe movie, this musical follows musicians Joe and Jerry as they escape the mob with an all-female traveling band, themselves disguised as women.

For Jerry, their identity as Daphne ends up being the part of themselves they didn't know they truly needed. Among *Some Like It Hot*'s 13 Tony nominations, including Best Musical, is one for [J. Harrison Ghee](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/j-harrison-ghee-contains-multitudes-in-some-like-it-hot-on-broadway). As one of the first non-binary actors to receive a Tony nomination, it means the most to them that "there's so many trans and queer and non-binary people at the stage door who are like, 'I've been struggling, and now I have more language; thank you for this visibility,’” said Ghee.

Get [*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) tickets now.

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![4 shucked-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/2A88TTJg0pds5UEOWzjQde/ef28d6d61e4aa6265901b3dfdae57a25/4_shucked-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Shucked*

Alongside Ghee in this year's ranks of Tony nominees is Alex Newell, also one of the first non-binary Tony nominees for acting. See them onstage as Lulu in *Shucked*, a "farm-to-fable" about a rural town that learns to embrace the outside world when their beloved corn crop starts dying, and they need to branch out to find help.

*Shucked* also features an all-queer lead creative team: book writer Robert Horn, songwriters Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, and director Jack O'Brien. They're all 2023 Tony nominees, proving that *Shucked* is nothing short of golden.

Get [*Shucked*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26987-shucked-tickets) tickets now.

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![& juliet pride-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/5xtq29vxJl4jOY1JRY0HVS/52775bdbed16f61071a04978ec319bcd/__juliet_pride-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *& Juliet*

It's gonna be you that sees *& Juliet* this June. In this nine-time Tony-nominated musical, Juliet — of *Romeo & Juliet* fame — decides not to die when Romeo does but instead ditches Verona for Paris in search of a new life and love.

*& Juliet* features characters old and new, and among the new characters is May, Juliet's non-binary pal who finds a star-crossed love of their own with the romance-challenged Francois. Not only is the show a celebration of all kinds of love, but it's simply a party. *& Juliet* is set to 30 chart-topping hits by songwriter/producer [Max Martin](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/how-max-martin-shaped-and-juliet-on-its-road-to-broadway) (the man behind "...Baby One More Time," "Since U Been Gone," "I Want It That Way," and much more) and electric dancing by queer, two-time Tony-nominated choreographer [Jennifer Weber](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/choreographer-jennifer-weber-proves-her-versatility-on-broadway). What more could you ask for in a larger-than-life Pride musical?

Get [*& Juliet*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets) tickets now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets)

![marla titanique 2-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/CKK1sCrTf9ZWnX8DwRcSf/ccf70b44938c0668f011fffcf1881e87/marla_titanique_2-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Titanique*

Shall we go for it? This campy parody musical is a kooky retelling of James Cameron's film *Titanic* through the character of Celine Dion, set to Dion's catalog of timeless hits. Multiple queer actors have appeared in *Titanique*, including *RuPaul's Drag Race* star Rosé, and it's by an all-queer writing team of Tye Blue, Constantine Rousouli, and Marla Mindelle.

Jack and Rose may be a straight couple, but *Titanique* is a love letter to the LGBT+ community, with plenty of references to queer pop culture, updated regularly as new trends go viral. But everyone will find something to love in this joyful, energetic comedy.

New York Theatre Guide's [four-star review calls *Titanique*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/reviews/titanique-off-broadway-review) "as much a love letter to the *Titanic* movie as it is to the people obsessed with that movie: pop culture-savvy, queer theatre kids, or so the creators presume from experience. [ ] Older and/or less theatre-obsessed audiences will find more of their enjoyment in the recreations of all the major *Titanic* movie moments and the Dion hits that score the show."

Get [*Titanique* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25241-titanique-tickets) now.

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![seven sins pride-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/5aFRRFa53aZKdUcGXK0xeg/3bc7be76192e53733f63737bd79b37ea/seven_sins_pride-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Seven Sins*

*Seven Sins* is a burlesque variety show based on the biblical tale of Adam and Eve. People don't often associate biblical stories with LGBT themes, but as our critic pointed out in a [five-star review](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/reviews/seven-sins-off-broadway-review), "What makes *Seven Sins* stand out, in particular, is its deliberate and gleeful queering of its source material."

"The show may end on a somber note, in keeping with the ancient story," our critic continues, "but the real takeaway from *Seven Sins* is that sometimes, what's considered sinful outside the theatre's four walls is actually worth indulging in — and unapologetically celebrating. Pleasure. Self-expression. Confidence. Beauty."

Get [*Seven Sins* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/20950-seven-sins-tickets) now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/20950-seven-sins-tickets)

![cocktail magique-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/XRKCaiw85wKF2UycjfwKl/b2ea44f7ab7eb4610edbe1593eaf7704/cocktail_magique-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Cocktail Magique*

For even more burlesque fun, go right across the street from *Seven Sins* to *Cocktail Magique*, a variety show that combines magic, mixology, and more. 
Performers of all genders serve up circus-like entertainment, intoxicating illusions, and plenty of libations. Yes, you get to drink along; every ticket type includes at least one cocktail distributed throughout the performance. Everyone gets a few snacks and access to plenty of water, too. 

Get [*Cocktail Magique* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26141-cocktail-magique-tickets) now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26141-cocktail-magique-tickets)

![love science-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/6txNiE1twARoHv4nY2MKi6/f9a9c573422c3aecaf398709de806876/love_science-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## *Love + Science*

Bring the tissues for this drama. *Love + Science* occurs at the onset of the AIDS crisis, when two gay medical students fall in love in the lab — and watch their community quickly succumb to the disease. The play makes the widespread epidemic searingly intimate and human, showing the possibilities for love and hope amid crisis.

*Love + Science* also reminds audiences that the history of Pride has a somber side, and just as important as celebrating LGBT people's lives is honoring the lives lost.

Get [*Love + Science*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/28528-love-science) tickets now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/28528-love-science)

## *Moulin Rouge! The Musical*

"No matter your desire, you're welcome here, for this is more than a nightclub. The Moulin Rouge is a state of mind." These lines from this musical's opening number set the tone immediately: Everyone can escape the outside world when they enter the Al Hirschfeld Theatre, transformed into the iconic French hotspot, and be free to be their most authentic selves. Pleasure, glamour, and fabulosity are the name of the game at this 10-time Tony-winning Best Musical adapted from Baz Luhrmann's film.

See the timeless love story of the writer Christian and showgirl Satine in 1899 Paris, set to more than 40 pop hits by artists ranging from Elton John to Lady Gaga. There's no better time than Pride Month to see a story that celebrates true love persisting against all odds.

Get [*Moulin Rouge! The Musical*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/15911-moulin-rouge-the-musical-on-broadway-tickets) tickets now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/15911-moulin-rouge-the-musical-on-broadway-tickets)

See these New York theatre shows for Pride month

& juliet pride-1200x600-NYTG

Many of these Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals and plays feature LGBTQ+ stories and artists, and others simply celebrate inclusivity, acceptance, and joy.

This season, several shows premiered on the West End before coming to Broadway, including [*& Juliet*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets), the jukebox musical featuring hit songs from powerhouse music producer/songwriter [Max Martin](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/how-max-martin-shaped-and-juliet-on-its-road-to-broadway)’s catalog. . *& Juliet*, featuring a book by David West Read, flips the script on Shakespeare’s tragedy *Romeo & Juliet* and reimagines the classic tale for a modern audience. In this feminist version, Juliet drops the dagger and chooses to live. The eponymous heroine ventures from fair Verona to Paris with her girlfriends, confidently stepping into a new chapter post-Romeo. 

*& Juliet* opened at the Manchester Opera House in 2019 before transferring to the West End in 2020. Then, it went to Toronto and Broadway in 2022, receiving nine Tony Awards nominations, including for Best Musical. For the show’s transfer to Broadway, the creative team honed in on the narrative storytelling and the audience experience through design elements.

For Gareth Owen, the show’s Tony-nominated sound designer, the transfer across the pond allowed the sound team to fine-tune the design. “*& Juliet* Broadway is a more polished, refined version of the London production as far as sound is concerned,” said Owen. 

The team pushed boundaries in London and tried several techniques for sound design. The team scrapped the failures for the Broadway iteration and further improved the successes. “The result is a much more cohesive overall picture — a sonic landscape that threads through the show from one end to the other with a definite purpose, as opposed to London, where we were often trying to be clever simply for the sake of it,” conceded Owen.

![2 & juliet-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/4uRxS4JCAwq28qRsfLQYse/a3e7a49d37437ce5ce8b0c37b59d75ed/2___juliet-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

Dominic Fallacaro and Bill Sherman, nominated for Best Orchestrations, tuned up the storytelling for the Broadway transfer. “There were some small musical tweaks and upgrades, from cutting a few bars here to changing a string line there,” said Fallacaro. “Ultimately, it's about serving the narrative the best and thinking about all the creative musical ways you can amp up the storytelling.”

The show features chart-toppers from the past few decades, including “...Baby One More Time,” “Since U Been Gone,” and “I Want It That Way,” which cleverly lend themselves to a new storyline of empowerment, self-acceptance, and love.

Sherman added, “The creative team definitely tightened some narrative screws before Broadway, including song cuts and character refinement. In addition, we continued to find new ways to bring Max Martin's music to life.”

One noticeable change was with the showstopping number “Can’t Stop the Feeling,” which closes the show. The entire creative team worked together to drive the show home. “Along with our choreographer, [Jennifer Weber](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/choreographer-jennifer-weber-proves-her-versatility-on-broadway), we workshopped hits and breaks into that number to maximize the explosive choreography and leave the show on an extra high note,” said Fallacaro. (Not just one, but two explosive confetti cannons extend that high note further.)

*& Juliet*’s lighting designer Howard Hudson also earned a Tony nomination. “Being able to work again on the show, having opened it in the West End, let us add another whole layer of detail,” said Hudson.

“Lighting-wise, when you leave a show, there’s always things with hindsight you think to yourself that you’d wish you’d done, and of course, we were able to make all those changes,” he said. “Broadway definitely feels more immersive as we tried to bring the piece into the auditorium more and really embrace the audience in the world of the show.” 

For the entire creative team, the experience of bringing some of the greatest pop songs to the stage, and bringing the audience into the fun, has been gratifying. “Working on this project has brought me to the West End in London, Abbey Road, Manchester, Toronto, and now to Broadway, with some of the most talented creatives and artists, and I've loved it,” effused Fallacaro.

Get [*& Juliet* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets) now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets)


How the ‘& Juliet’ creative team fine-tuned the Broadway design

& juliet review-1200x600-NYTG

Contains some strong language. Recommended for ages 6+. Children age 4 and under will not be admitted into the theatre. Everyone must have a ticket, regardless of age.

& Juliet on Broadway - NYC 

& Juliet on Broadway

The creative team behind Broadway's *& Juliet* shares how the show transformed from London's West End with amped-up choreography, sound, and lighting design.

The [American Airlines Theatre](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/american-airlines-theatre) will be renamed for Todd Haimes, the late former artistic director and CEO of Roundabout Theatre Company.

Haimes joined Roundabout in 1983, and he led the charge to restore and rename the venue, originally called the Selwyn Theatre, in the 1990s. The American Airlines theatre is now the flagship venue of Roundabout, which operates two other Broadway houses — [Studio 54](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/studio-54) and the [Stephen Sondheim Theatre](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/stephen-sondheim-theatre) — and the Off-Broadway [Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/harold-and-miriam-steinberg-center-for-theatre).

Plans to rename the American Airlines were actually in the works before Haimes's death at 66, as American Airlines's sponsorship of the theatre is set to end in 2024.

The renaming will take place during the 2023-24 Broadway season at a date to be confirmed.

Through July 2, the theatre is currently showing [*Fat Ham*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27141-fat-ham-tickets), James Ijames's Pulitzer-winning and Tony-nominated play.

Get [*Fat Ham* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27141-fat-ham-tickets) now.

[![Book Tickets CTA - LT/NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/3qAtGOdQq9x3k1WcHlaJnw/90ece91bbe47ed07e142c2e43c7a7a3f/BookTickets-250.png)](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27141-fat-ham-tickets)

*Photo credit: Todd Haimes. (Photo by Teddy Wolff)*

American Airlines Theatre to be renamed for Todd Haimes

haimes-1200x600-NYTG

Haimes, who died in April, was the longtime artistic director of Roundabout Theatre Company, the nonprofit organization that operates the Broadway venue.

It’s the summer of 76! 

Not [*Summer, 1976*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25993-summer-1976-tickets) — that’s the Tony-nominated David Auburn play — but the 76th annual Tony Awards on June 11. Tony host Ariana DeBose may not march on stage with 76 trombones in tow (*The Music Man* was last season, after all), but it does seem fitting that the 76th Tony Awards are taking place in the same season as Roundabout’s gender-flipped [*1776*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24270-1776-tickets) revival and Manhattan Theatre Club’s world premiere of *Summer, 1976*. 

Seventy-six isn’t the only notable number attached to this year’s ceremony, though. Read on to discover some of the exciting, historic firsts among the nominees and more fast facts on the 2023 Tony Awards by the numbers.

## 76 years of the Tonys

The very first Antoinette Perry Awards took place in 1947 in the Grand Ballroom at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City. (It took another two decades until the ceremony was broadcast on national television in 1967.) Awards were given in eight categories: 

- Actor in a Play
- Actress in a Play
- Best Performer in a Musical
- Outstanding Newcomer
- Director
- Choreographer
- Costume Designer
- Composer

The winners, including director Elia Kazan (*All My Sons*), composer Kurt Weill (*Street Scene*), actress Ingrid Bergman (*Joan of Lorraine*), and choreographer Agnes DeMille (*Brigadoon*), received gendered prizes by today’s standards. The women got engraved jewelry or compacts, while the men got engraved money clips or cigarette lighters. Two years later, the Tonys began awarding medallions to the recipients instead. 

![united palace-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/5fVs6gar9E47dbFcCw3mKX/e2cd678dea5fcb7dc10663a9a318f8e9/united_palace-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## 1 new venue

For the first time, the Tonys will take place at the United Palace theatre in Washington Heights. It is Manhattan’s fourth-largest theatre, with nearly 3,500 seats. In some ways, the Tony Awards are going back to their roots by happening there — Harold Rambusch, who designed the Waldorf Astoria, also designed the interior of the United Palace theatre.

Over the past 76 years, the Tonys have been held at 19 different venues, including other hotels like the Plaza, Broadway theatres like the [Winter Garden](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/winter-garden-theatre) and [Shubert](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/shubert-theatre), and iconic New York landmarks like the Rainbow Room and [Radio City Music Hall](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/radio-city-music-hall). Radio City has hosted the most Tony Award ceremonies of all time: 20.

## 3 modified ceremonies (in 3 years)

The pandemic shook up the past two Tony Awards ceremonies. The combined 2020 awards ceremony actually took place in 2021 after pandemic delays. And several of the 2022 Tony winning shows actually began performances just prior to the Broadway shutdown on March 12, 2020, and would have been considered among that year’s nominees had they not been shuttered as quickly as they opened.

The 2023 ceremony is also being modified, this time amid an ongoing strike by the Writers Guild of America, which writes material for televised broadcasts like the Tonys. While the ceremony will still be broadcast as planned on June 11, it won’t contain any original scripted material. The ceremony will consist almost entirely of awards presentations and performances from the nominated shows.

![ny ny 2-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/76uUS8WipVTT9QVHVh4amf/1bea349f9046dbe852c66037faa9e88d/ny_ny_2-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## 38 eligible shows

There were 38 total shows in the 2022-2023 Broadway season, and all were considered eligible for nominations. Of those, 27, or 71% of the eligible shows, received at least one nomination.

## 26 competitive award categories

Having come a long way since 1947, the Tony Awards now award performers, directors, writers, choreographers, and designers, with most categories split by play or musical. There are also multiple special Tony honors, a different number each year, awarded to educators, regional theatres, administrators, and artists celebrating lifetime achievement.

![3 some like it hot-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/2jrcIPZ0ssP6aFpBOPB9U4/af86078c84c12ef262d7289716e3b6f1/3_some_like_it_hot-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## 13 *Some Like It Hot* nominations

[*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) is this year’s most nominated show, receiving 13 nominations in 12 categories. [Christian Borle](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/stars-on-stage/christian-borle) and [J. Harrison Ghee](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/j-harrison-ghee-contains-multitudes-in-some-like-it-hot-on-broadway) were nominated for their work on the new musical in the same category: Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical.

There is a three-way tie for second place: The musicals [*& Juliet*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets), [*Shucked*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26987-shucked-tickets), and [*New York, New York*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26043-new-york-new-york-tickets) all received nine nods. [*Leopoldstadt*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26003-leopoldstadt-tickets), [*Ain’t No Mo’*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25907-aint-no-mo-tickets), and [*A Doll’s House*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26989-a-dolls-house-tickets) also tied three ways for the most play nominations with six each.

![jordan 1200 NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/2ZIzHupXCcEaU9Rq9HsgzB/f16227aa0fa3b54816165487442fccf6/jordan_1200_NYTG.jpg)

## 8 double nominees

8 nominees were either nominated in the same category for two different shows they worked on this season, or they were nominated in two different categories for their work on the same show. Here are all the double nominees this year:

- Playwright/performer Jordan E. Cooper ([*Ain’t No Mo’*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25907-aint-no-mo-tickets))
- Choreographer [Jennifer Weber](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/choreographer-jennifer-weber-proves-her-versatility-on-broadway) ([*& Juliet*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets) and [*KPOP*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24236-kpop-tickets))
- Costume designer Emilio Sosa ([*Ain’t No Mo’*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25907-aint-no-mo-tickets) and [*Good Night, Oscar*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26390-good-night-oscar-tickets)) 
- Director/choreographer Casey Nicholaw ([*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets))
- Bookwriter/lyricist David Lindsay-Abaire ([*Kimberly Akimbo*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25458-kimberly-akimbo-tickets))
- Set designer Scott Pask ([*Shucked*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26987-shucked-tickets) and [*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets))
- Sound designers Ben and Max Ringham ([*Prima Facie*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25983-prima-facie-tickets) and [*A Doll’s House*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26989-a-dolls-house-tickets))
- Lighting designer Natasha Katz ([*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) and [*Sweeney Todd*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26216-sweeney-todd-on-broadway-tickets))

[Read our feature spotlighting this year's double Tony nominees.](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/meet-the-broadway-artists-nominated-for-two-tonys-this-season)

## 60 first-time Tony nominees

Of note, Weber and Cooper, both among the double nominees above, made their Broadway debuts this season. Additionally, all the performers in the Best Featured Actress and Actor in a Musical categories, with the exception of Ruthie Ann Miles, are first-time nominees.

![4 shucked-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/2A88TTJg0pds5UEOWzjQde/ef28d6d61e4aa6265901b3dfdae57a25/4_shucked-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## More historic firsts at the 2023 Tony Awards

The 76th Tony Awards already made history with this year’s nominees, and pivotal moments could happen when the winners are announced. 

[*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets)’s Ghee and [*Shucked*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26987-shucked-tickets)’s Alex Newell are the first openly non-binary performers to be nominated in their categories. Ghee plays a gender-expansive character, and Newell plays a cisgender woman, but both performers were able to choose whether they wanted to be considered eligible in the Actor or Actress category.

Katy Sullivan ([*Cost of Living*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25892-cost-of-living-tickets)) is the first female amputee to perform on Broadway and the first to be nominated for a Tony Award.

Although the current [*A Doll’s House*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26989-a-dolls-house-tickets) revival is the 14th Broadway production of the famous Ibsen play, 2023 Tony nominee [Amy Herzog](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/tony-nominee-amy-herzog-flips-the-script-with-a-dolls-house) is the first woman to adapt the work for Broadway. And since she newly adapted it, not just translated it, she’s eligible for the Best Revival of a Play award, which is usually reserved for producers.

Jordan E. Cooper became the youngest Black American playwright in Broadway history when his play [*Ain’t No Mo’*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25907-aint-no-mo-tickets) opened this past fall. And now, he’s the youngest Black American playwright ever nominated!

Helen Park is the first female Asian composer/lyricist on Broadway and the first to be nominated for a Tony. She is, in fact, the first female Asian writer to be nominated for a Tony in any of the writing categories. If Helen Park were to win Best Score for her work on [*KPOP*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24236-kpop-tickets), she would be the first woman of color to do so in her category. 

Similarly, if either Amber Ruffin (*Some Like It Hot*) or Sharon Washington ([*New York, New York*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26043-new-york-new-york-tickets)) wins Best Book of a Musical, they will be the first non-white woman to ever receive the award for writing or co-writing the book of a musical. In fact, no non-white woman has ever won a Tony Award in either writing category (Best Book or Best Score). The closest exception is Yasmina Reza, a playwright of half-Central Asian descent who has won two Tonys for Best Play.

![kimberly akimbo-1200x600-NYTG 4](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/O3Pvd2E5ymYHMwRNNCeBO/2b8326d3df40952dadec774a363299fe/kimberly_akimbo-1200x600-NYTG_4.jpg)

## 66-year age range of nominees

*Kimberly Akimbo*’s Justin Cooley is this year’s youngest nominee at 19 years old. He’s up for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for starring in Kimberly Akimbo. In a close second, the youngest nominated woman is 23-year-old Best Featured Actress in a Musical nominee Julia Lester, who made her Broadway debut with [*Into the Woods*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25770-into-the-woods-tickets) last summer as Little Red Ridinghood.

At 85 years old, playwright Tom Stoppard is the oldest nominee at this year’s Tony Awards. His show [*Leopoldstadt*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26003-leopoldstadt-tickets) is up for Best Play.

![cost of living review-1200](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/5vCMxlC40yg6rktYgluAhk/bf7cf191ea6fc694206328651906640a/cost_of_living_review-1200.jpg)

## 6 Pulitzer Prize-winning plays

No matter what happens, they’re already winners! Three of this year’s Best Play nominees have already won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama: [*Between Riverside and Crazy*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26311-between-riverside-and-crazy-tickets) by [Stephen Adly Guirgis](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/the-real-life-friendship-that-led-to-between-riverside-and-crazy) (2015), [*Cost of Living*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25892-cost-of-living-tickets) by Martyna Majok (2018), and [*Fat Ham*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27141-fat-ham-tickets) by James Ijames (2022). 

Additionally, three plays that got revived this year won Pulitzers when they premiered: [*Death of a Salesman*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25459-death-of-a-salesman-tickets) (1949), [*The Piano Lesson*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24256-the-piano-lesson-tickets) (1990), and [*Topdog/Underdog*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25558-topdog-underdog-tickets) (2002). 

![8 sweeney-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/5d6m9eAI4F4cba33znc9mk/90fae9ace6c029c58d525e5a2f124ca4/8_sweeney-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## Which nominee has the most career Tony nominations?

Lighting designers are not often household names, but if you don’t know the name Natasha Katz, you should. Katz has received a whopping 17 Tony nominations for designing Broadway plays and musicals, including last year’s MJ. She has won the award seven times – four for musicals (*MJ*, *Aida*, *Once*, and *An American in Paris*) and three for plays (*The Coast of Utopia*, *The Glass Menagerie*, and *Long Day’s Journey into Night*).

This year, she is doubly nominated for her work on two musicals: [*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) and [*Sweeney Todd*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26216-sweeney-todd-on-broadway-tickets).

![ohio state review-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/7LYP2CqsoFdBdjjLnIvDcd/8cf87c36cc284ed9ecba5618b3d717af/ohio_state_review-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## Which nominee has the most career Tony wins?

Audra McDonald holds that record. She is one of only five performers to have been nominated in all four acting categories and is the only person who’s won all four acting categories. She has won six competitive awards; Julie Harris is the only other person in history with that many wins, but one of hers is a special award.

This year’s nomination for Best Leading Actress in a Play for [*Ohio State Murders*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24218-ohio-state-murders-tickets) is her 10th to date, tying her with Harris and Chita Rivera as the most nominated performer ever. If McDonald wins in 2023, she will become the performer with the most awards ever: seven.

The 2023 Tony Awards by the numbers

Tony Awards

Read on to learn fun facts and stats about the nominees, venue, and historic firsts associated with the 76th annual theatre awards ceremony, hosted on June 11.

The new musical [*Some Like It Hot*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) has garnered 13 Tony Award nominations — the most this season — for its swinging score, hilarious book, and brilliant cast. The nods include Best New Musical and four first-time nominations for co-writer Amber Ruffin and cast members J. Harrison Ghee, NaTasha Yvette Williams, and Kevin Del Aguila. 

Inspired by the 1959 Marilyn Monroe-led film of the same name, the musical features a book by Matthew López and Ruffin, and a score by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. The musical sees two musicians, Jerry and Joe, escape the mob by disguising themselves as women and joining a traveling all-female swing band, where they learn a lot about their own truths and identities. *Some Like It Hot* incorporates everything you’d expect in a Broadway mega-musical: ensemble numbers, plenty of tap dancing, and marvelous set pieces.

The stage adaptation is more inclusive and openly celebratory of LGBTQ themes than its predecessor, which was groundbreaking at the time but limited in what the story could and couldn’t include due to censorship in the film industry. Below, the three nominated cast members shared their journey with the heartwarming show and how it feels to receive recognition for their performances.

Get [*Some Like It Hot* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) now.

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## Creating a safe space

[J. Harrison Ghee](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/j-harrison-ghee-contains-multitudes-in-some-like-it-hot-on-broadway), who previously played Lola in *Kinky Boots*, another show celebrated for its inclusivity, touched on the heartfelt interactions with *Some Like It Hot* audiences.

“[I’ve had] moments at the stage door with a parent of a trans kid who's like, 'Thank you for showing my child that their existence matters,'” said Ghee. “There's a part of them living on stage.”

Williams, who plays Sweet Sue, the leader of the all-female swing band, shared how the show creates a sense of community. She hopes audiences see the show and realize they don’t have to be isolated. Instead, she wants them to think, “I have to reach out and embrace others and have others embrace me so that we can move forward.”

In addition to creating a safe space for audience members to feel accepted for who they truly are, *Some Like It Hot* gives people a joyous respite from difficulties in their everyday lives. “People go to theatre to escape, feel, and see a spectacle," said Ghee. “They want to see something beyond normalcy sometimes. We're giving them that, but in such a beautiful way that’s grounded in truth.”

![1 some like it hot-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/60bl9xOY63DGZIq7srVBNo/cde27655be206d00abb379cb8539a5de/1_some_like_it_hot-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## Living your truth

Both the movie and the musical explore the theme of identity. By the end of the story, all the characters transform in some way, having learned something crucial about themselves. In developing these characters, each of the nominated performers brought a piece of themselves to their roles.

“The whole show is about identity, right?” says Del Aguila. “You have this idea of who you are inside, but the world tells you that you must be something else. You have to figure out how to live your truth in this world that may not see that.”

Kevin Del Aguila plays Osgood, a millionaire infatuated with Daphne, and brings part of himself to the role. While recording a demo for the musical, Matthew López said he wanted to make Osgood half-Mexican, a departure from the film portrayal. “Everyone in the show could have this dual nature that they're trying to figure out,” said Del Aguila, who is half-Peruvian.

For her part, Williams found it most special to celebrate strong maternal figures through her character Sweet Sue, who builds her band from the ground up and watches over its members as if they were her daughters. For her portrayal, Williams drew upon inspiration from strong women in her own life, such as her aunt and mother.

“What an honor to mirror some of the women in my life who pushed me and said, ‘We don't have to take that; we can go do our own thing,’” she said. “I knew who Sue was. So it was an honor to be able to just slice off people in my life and make them come to life.”

For Ghee, taking on this role was important for the message they could send to other gender-expansive people. “[This role] met me where I am in my life of being able to, as I say, free myself to see myself,” said Ghee. “To allow life and circumstances to expand me beyond my own labels, limits, and boundaries.”

They made history this year as one of the first non-binary actors to receive a Tony nomination, alongside *[Shucked](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26987-shucked-tickets)*'s Alex Newell. 

“It is not something I take lightly, especially in this climate of legislation against queer and trans and nonbinary beings,” Ghee said of their historic Tony nomination. “It is something I care for with pride. I live with intention and purpose and love. And for that to be honored in this work is truly incredible.”

![2 some like it hot-1200x600-NYTG](//images.ctfassets.net/6pezt69ih962/2Tw6BBa1k8OK21tSASJS5Z/940b9a1a33392e8a89336dc34aecc1f3/2_some_like_it_hot-1200x600-NYTG.jpg)

## Welcome back to Broadway

*Some Like It Hot* feels pertenint to this moment in history. Broadway reopened in September 2021, but it has taken some time for the world of live theatre to fully transition back to what it was before the pandemic. 

“This show has been everything that I think anybody needs coming out of the pandemic,” said Williams. “We have the opportunity to come together to laugh, to be with people in the space that says there's room for you here and you belong here. There’s no better place to be.”

“Broadway is back in such a bold, brassy way, and we're doing that at the [Shubert](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/shubert-theatre),” added Ghee. “It's wonderful to feel audiences every night receive that [message] and also be taken places they didn't expect in our journey. It's beautiful.”

Echoing his castmates, Del Aguila said it’s hard not to feel alive while performing. “You're surrounded by all these people tap dancing in this giant band just swinging these songs,” he said. “The joy, the vibrancy, the life has all come back in this incredibly big, glorious musical.”

Get [*Some Like It Hot* tickets](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets) now.

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*Photo credit: Some Like It Hot on Broadway. (Photos by Marc J. Franklin and Matthew Murphy)*


First-time Tony nominees in ‘Some Like It Hot’ celebrate the milestone

some like it hot-1200x600-NYTG 1

Recommended for 12 + Children under the age of 4 are not permitted in the theatre.

Some Like It Hot on Broadway - NYC

Some Like It Hot on Broadway

*Some Like It Hot* led to first-time nominations for cast members  J. Harrison Ghee, NaTasha Yvette Williams, and Kevin Del Aguila. 

This is good news, no doubt about it! Roundabout Theatre Company will present the first Broadway revival of [*Doubt: A Parable*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/30042-doubt-a-parable-tickets) in February 2024, starring Tony and Emmy Award winner Tyne Daly and Tony and SAG Award winner Liev Schreiber.

Daly is a Tony Award winner for *Gypsy* and a nominee for *Mothers and Sons* and *Rabbit Hole*. She makes her Roundabout debut with *Doubt*. Schreiber has performed in *Betrayal* and *Moonlight* with Roundabout, and he received a Tony for *Glengarry Glen Ross*.

In John Patrick Shanley's play, Daly and Schreiber play Sister Aloysius and Father Flynn, respectively. Aloysius is the fearsome principal of an all-boys' Catholic school who wrestles with her morals and doubt when she suspects unseemly relations between Flynn and one of her students.

Scott Ellis directs the production, *Doubt*'s first since 2005, at the [American Airlines Theatre](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/american-airlines-theatre). Additional casting, creative team, and exact performance dates have yet to be announced.

*Doubt: A Parable* completes [Roundabout's 2023-24 season](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/danny-devito-to-lead-i-need-that-on-broadway-2023-24-roundabout-season-announced), which also includes the previously announced *I Need That*, starring Danny DeVito, on Broadway and *The Refuge Plays*, *Covenant*, and *Jonah* off Broadway.

Tyne Daly, Liev Schreiber to star in first 'Doubt' Broadway revival

doubt-1200x600-NYTG

Doubt on Broadway - NYC

Doubt on Broadway

John Patrick Shanley's play completes Roundabout Theatre Company's 2023-24 season, and it will play at the American Airlines Theatre from February 2024.

Joshua Harmon's [*Prayer for the French Republic*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24257-prayer-for-the-french-republic-tickets) will premiere on Broadway this winter with Manhattan Theatre Club, two years after the company produced its Off-Broadway premiere. Performances begin at the [Samuel J. Friedman Theatre](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatres/samuel-j-friedman-theatre) on December 19 ahead of an opening night on January 9, 2024.

In *Prayer for the French Republic*, a Jewish couple in Paris awaits news of their missing relatives in 1944. Seventy years later, their descendants, also in Paris, wonder about their own safety in this epic connecting generations and shows the lasting effects of anti-Semitism through the years.

The show won the 2022 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play. A [four-star *Prayer for the French Republic* review](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/reviews/prayer-for-the-french-republic-review-manhattan-theatre-club) on New York Theatre Guide reads, "In a dramatic feat, the play does not collapse under its own weight. Instead, *Prayer for the French Republic* is a breathtaking work that skillfully balances the humanity of its characters with sprawling history."

The play is by Joshua Harmon, the author of other acclaimed plays like *Bad Jews* and *Significant Other*. David Cromer, who staged the Off-Broadway production, returns to direct.

Casting and additional creative team have yet to be announced.

*Photo credit: Prayer for the French Republic off Broadway. (Photo by Matthew Murphy)*

'Prayer for the French Republic' to premiere on Broadway

Prayer for the French Republic

In 1944, a Jewish couple in Paris desperately awaits news of their missing family.

Prayer for the French Republic - NYC

Joshua Harmon's drama about a Jewish family premiered with Manhattan Theatre Club, which is producing the Broadway show, off Broadway in the winter of 2021.

Julie Benko will join the cast of [*Harmony*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24995-harmony-tickets) on Broadway, the new Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman musical coming to the Barrymore Theatre this fall. Performances begin October 18 ahead of a November 13 opening.

Benko is known for her breakout role as the alternate Fanny Brice in the current Broadway revival of *Funny Girl*, playing the role once a week in place of Lea Michele. Her performance earned her the 2023 Theatre World Dorothy Loudon Award for Excellence in the Theatre.

Benko will play Ruth in *Harmony*, joining a cast that also includes the [previously announced](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/initial-casting-set-for-harmony-on-broadway) Chip Zien as Rabbi, Sean Bell as Bobby, Danny Kornfeld as Young Rabbi, Zal Owen as Harry, Eric Peters as Erich, Blake Roman as Chopin, and Steven Telsey as Lesh. All but Benko reprise their roles from the musical's 2022 Off-Broadway premiere.

*Harmony* tells the true story of the Comedian Harmonists, a German Jewish choral group who reached their heyday in the 1920s and 30s, but were soon rocked by the rise of the Nazi regime. Manilow composed original songs for the musical, which also features a book and lyrics by Bruce Sussman and direction and choreography by Warren Carlyle.

New York Theatre Guide's [four-star review of *Harmony*](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/reviews/harmony-off-broadway-review) off Broadway reads, "*Harmony* hits all the right notes."

Check back for information on *Harmony* tickets on New York Theatre Guide.

*Photo credit: Julie Benko. (Photo courtesy of production)*

Julie Benko joins 'Harmony' Broadway cast

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Harmony: A New Musical on Broadway - NYC

Harmony: A New Musical on Broadway

The actress is known for her breakout role as the alternate Fanny Brice in the current Broadway revival of *Funny Girl*, receiving a Theatre World Award.

You didn't get the invite to the United Palace for the 2023 Tony Awards, but that doesn't mean you can't party like Broadway royalty. It's Tony season, so it's time to gather your bosom buddies and raise a glass of bubbly to the biggest night on Broadway. Cheer on your favorites as you watch the June 11 ceremony at 8 p.m. on CBS while enjoying themed snacks and drinks. And the award for Best Party Host goes to... you!

Learn more about the [2023 Tony nominees](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/2023-tony-award-nominees-announced) and [how to watch the 2023 Tony Awards](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/tony-awards-guide-how-to-watch-nominees-and-more).

<h2>Build a pre-show playlist.</h2>Jam to Tony-nominated scores as your guests arrive. We'd recommend a playlist of 11 o'clock numbers to kick off the night. Cue the <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/hadestown" target="_blank">Hadestown</a> swinging lamps!<h2>Put together a themed menu.</h2>Come up with a list of&nbsp;Tony nominee-inspired cocktails&nbsp;for your guests to sip on, like Tequila Mockingbirds or <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/actor-profile/adam-driver" target="_blank">Adam Screw-Drivers</a>. But make sure you don't drink on an empty stomach. We suggest putting together a cheese plate with the following cheeses: <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/what-the-constitution-means-to-me" target="_blank">What the Constitution Means to Brie</a>, <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/the-ferryman" target="_blank">Ferrymanchego</a>, <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/burn-this" target="_blank">Brandon Urano-Swiss</a>, and <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/tootsie" target="_blank">Santino Fontina</a>.<h2>Decorate.</h2>Theatre is one of the most delightfully over-the-top art forms, so don't be afraid to let your party camp it up. Put this season's playbills on prominent display on a cute clothesline and build your own step-and-repeat. Or even roll out a red carpet if you're feeling especially extra. Don't forget balloons and streamers. Think Beth Leavel and Brooks Ashmanskas <a href="https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/the-prom" target="_blank">building a prom</a> and going for the most over-the-top aesthetic possible.<h2>Prepare voting ballots.</h2>Some people like to do Fantasy Football drafts or March Madness brackets, but in our world, the only league we care about is the Broadway League. No Tony watch party is complete without some healthy competition, so make sure you have ballots for all your guests to fill out with their predictions. Make things a little interesting by pooling together some cash, which will go to the person with the most correct predictions at the end of the night.<h2>Play a drinking game (responsibly).</h2>We would say take a drink every time host James Corden makes a niche musical theatre joke, but you have a liver to preserve. Start with something simple, like a Hollywood actor introducing an award by talking about how much theatre means to them. Then again, that could get dangerous too... come up with your own rules, and play at your own risk.

How to plan the perfect Tony Awards party

You didn't get the invite to Radio City Music Hall, but that doesn't mean you can't party like Broadway royalty. It's Tony season, so it's time to gather your bosom buddies and raise a glass of bubbly to the biggest night on Broadway.

How to plan the perfect Tony Awards party | NewYorkTheatreGuide.com

Read our tips for getting together the best decorations, food, music, and more to have the best, most fun bash on the biggest night of the Broadway season.

The Drama Desk has announced the winners of the 67th annual Drama Desk Awards, recognizing excellence in Broadway, off-Broadway, and off-offBroadway productions during the 2022-23 season. The Drama Desk Awards ceremony, co-hosted by Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody, will take place on June 6 at Sardi’s Restaurant in New York City. 

This year, all performance categories are gender-free and award two winners. A group of journalists, editors, and publishers covering theatre vote on the nominations put forth by a nominating committee. Top winners include *[Some Like It Hot](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets)* with eight wins and *[Life of Pi](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26712-life-of-pi-tickets)* with four. 

In addition to the competitive awards, the Drama Desk bestowed the Harold Prince Lifetime Achievement Award to Stephen McKinley Henderson, the Ensemble Award to the cast of Soho Rep’s Public Obscenities, and the Sam Norkin Off-Broadway Award to Ryan J. Haddad, for his writing and performing in *Dark Disabled Stories* and *american (tele)visions.*

Read the full list of 2023 Drama Desk Award winners and nominees below. The winners are denoted with an asterisk.

Get *[Some Like It Hot](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24262-some-like-it-hot-tickets)* tickets now.

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__Outstanding Play__
- *A Case for the Existence of God*, by Samuel D. Hunter
- *[Fat Ham](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27141-fat-ham-tickets)*, by James Ijames
- *[Leopoldstadt](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26003-leopoldstadt-tickets)* by Tom Stoppard *
- *Love* by Alexander Zeldin
- *[Prima Facie](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25983-prima-facie-tickets)* by Suzie Miller
- *Wish You Were Here* by Sanaz Toossi

__Outstanding Musical__
- *[& Juliet](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25598-and-juliet-tickets)*
- *Between the Lines*
- *F*ck7thGrade*
- *[Shucked](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26987-shucked-tickets)*
- *Some Like It Hot* *
- *White Girl in Danger*

__Outstanding Revival of a Play__
- *A Raisin in the Sun*
- *Death of a Salesman*
- *Endgame*
- *The Piano Lesson* *
- *Ohio State Murders*
- *Wedding Band*

__Outstanding Revival of a Musical__
- *A Man of No Importance*
- *Into the Woods*
- *Merrily We Roll Along*
- *[Parade](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26500-parade)*
- *[Sweeney Todd](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26216-sweeney-todd-on-broadway-tickets)*

__Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play__
- Hiran Abeysekera: *Life of Pi*
- Kyle Beltran: *A Case for the Existence of God*
- Will Brill: *A Case for the Existence of God*
- Brittany Bradford: *Wedding Band*
- Jessica Chastain: *[A Doll’s House](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26989-a-dolls-house-tickets)* *
- Sharon D. Clarke: *Death of a Salesman*
- Sean Hayes: *Good Night, Oscar* *
- Denise Manning: *Amani*
- Audra McDonald: *Ohio State Murders*
- Wendell Pierce: *Death of a Salesman*
- John Douglas Thompson: *Endgame*
- Kara Young: *Twelfth Night*

__Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical__
- Annaleigh Ashford: *Sweeney Todd* *
- Nicholas Barasch: *The Butcher Boy*
- Sara Bareilles: *Into the Woods*
- Andrew Burnap: *Camelot*
- Micaela Diamond: *Parade*
- Andrew Durand: *Shucked*
- Callum Francis: *Kinky Boots*
- J. Harrison Ghee: *Some Like It Hot* *
- Jonathan Groff: *Merrily We Roll Along*
- Somi Kakoma: *Dreaming Zenzile*
- Lindsay Mendez: *Merrily We Roll Along*
- Anna Uzele: *New York, New York*

__Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play__
- Emily Bergl: *Good Night, Oscar*
- Danielle Brooks: *The Piano Lesson*
- Amelda Brown: *Love* 
- Ray Fisher: *The Piano Lesson*
- K. Todd Freeman: *Downstate* 
- Francis Guinan: *Downstate* 
- Nick Holder: *Love* 
- Arian Moayed: *A Doll’s House*
- Brian Quijada: *Wolf Play* 
- Miriam Silverman: *The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window* *
- Brandon Uranowitz: *Leopoldstadt* *
- Kara Young: *Cost of Living*

__Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical__
- Kevin Cahoon: *Shucked*
- Kevin Del Aguila: *Some Like It Hot* *
- Robyn Hurder: *[A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/24254-a-beautiful-noise-tickets)*
- Mark Jacoby: *A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical*
- Tarra Conner Jones: *White Girl in Danger* 
- [Julia Lester](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/julia-lester-on-growing-up-with-into-the-woods): *Into the Woods*
- Alex Newell: *Shucked* *
- Daniel Radcliffe: *Merrily We Roll Along* 
- Phillipa Soo: *Into the Woods*
- Mare Winningham: *A Man of No Importance* 

__Outstanding Direction of a Play__
- Zi Alikhan: *On That Day in Amsterdam* 
- Shayok Misha Chowdhury: *Public Obscenities* 
- Miranda Cromwell: *Death of a Salesman*
- Adam Meggido: *[Peter Pan Goes Wrong](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/27336-peter-pan-goes-wrong-tickets)*
- Max Webster: *Life of Pi* *
- Alexander Zeldin: *Love* 

__Outstanding Direction of a Musical__
- Jeff Calhoun: *Between the Lines*
- John Doyle: *A Man of No Importance* 
- Maria Friedman: *Merrily We Roll Along* 
- Thomas Kail: *Sweeney Todd* *
- Jack O’Brien: *Shucked*

__Outstanding Choreography__
- Andy Blankenbuehler: *Only Gold* 
- Tislarm Bouie: *the bandaged place*
- Edgar Godineaux: *The Harder They Come* 
- Casey Nicholaw: *Some Like It Hot* *
- Susan Stroman: *[New York, New York](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/26043-new-york-new-york-tickets)*
- [Jennifer Weber](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/interviews/choreographer-jennifer-weber-proves-her-versatility-on-broadway): *KPOP*

__Outstanding Music__
- Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally: *Shucked* *
- Michael R. Jackson: *White Girl in Danger*
- Tom Kitt and AnnMarie Milazzo (vocal designer): *Almost Famous*
- Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson: *Between the Lines*
- The Kilbanes: *Weightless*

__Outstanding Lyrics__
- Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally: *Shucked*
- Jonathan Hogue: *Stranger Sings! The Parody Musical*
- Michael R. Jackson: *White Girl in Danger*
- Adam Schlesinger and Sarah Silverman: *The Bedwetter*
- Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman: *Some Like It Hot* *

__Outstanding Book of a Musical__
- Jonathan Hogue: *Stranger Sings! The Parody Musical*
- Robert Horn: *Shucked*
- Matthew López and Amber Ruffin: *Some Like It Hot* *
- Marla Mindelle, Constantine Rousouli, and Tye Blue: *Titanique*
- David West Read: *& Juliet*

__Outstanding Orchestrations__
- Bruce Coughlin: *A Man of No Importance* 
- Jason Howland: *Shucked*
- Charlie Rosen and Bryan Carter: *Some Like It Hot* *
- Kenny Seymour: *The Harder They Come*
- Daryl Waters and Sam Davis: *New York, New York*

__Outstanding Music in a Play__
- Ben Edelman, Zane Pais, and Sinan Refik Zafar: *Letters from Max, a ritual*
- Mauricio Escamilla: *the bandaged place*
- Suzan-Lori Parks: *Plays for the Plague Year* *
- Ian Ross: *Wuthering Heights* 
- Daniel Schlosberg: *Montag*

__Outstanding Scenic Design of a Play__
- Jason Ardizzone-West: *Wedding Band*
- Beowulf Boritt: *Ohio State Murders*
- dots: *Public Obscenities*
- Tim Hatley: *Life of Pi* *
- Natasha Jenkins: *Love*
- John McDermott: *Chains*

__Outstanding Scenic Design of a Musical__
- Beowulf Boritt: *New York, New York* *
- David Korins: *Only Gold*
- Scott Pask: *Shucked*
- Walt Spangler and Brendan McCann (production props): *Stranger Sings! The Parody Musical*
- Michael Yeargan: *[Camelot](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/show/25210-camelot-tickets)*

__Outstanding Costume Design of a Play__
- Kara Branch: *According to the Chorus*
- Enver Chakartash: *Public Obscenities*
- Qween Jean: *Wedding Band*
- Sarah Laux: *Wish You Were Here*
- Emilio Sosa: *Ain’t No Mo’* *
- Roberto Surace: *Peter Pan Goes Wrong*

__Outstanding Costume Design of a Musical__
- [Gregg Barnes](https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/theatre-news/news/costume-designer-gregg-barnes-on-fashioning-the-1930s-in-some-like-it-hot): *Some Like It Hot* *
- Tilly Grimes: *Shucked*
- Jennifer Moeller: *Camelot*
- Clint Ramos and Sophia Choi: *KPOP*
- Anita Yavich: *Only Gold*
- Donna Zakowska: *New York, New York*

__Outstanding Lighting Design of a Play__
- Isabella Byrd: *Epiphany*
- Jiyoun Chang: *The Far Country*
- Natasha Chivers and Willie Williams (video): *Prima Facie* *
- Allen Lee Hughes: *Ohio State Murders*
- Cha See: *On That Day in Amsterdam*
- Japhy Weideman: *The Piano Lesson*

__Outstanding Lighting Design of a Musical__
- Ken Billington: *New York, New York*
- Jeff Croiter: *Only Gold*
- Heather Gilbert: *Parade*
- David Grill: *Bob Fosse’s Dancin’*
- Natasha Katz: *Sweeney Todd* *

__Outstanding Projection and Video Design__
- Simon Baker: *Wuthering Heights*
- Andrzej Goulding: *Life of Pi* *
- Caite Hevner: *Between the Lines*
- Josh Higgason: *White Girl in Danger*
- Nicholas Hussong: *On That Day in Amsterdam*
- Johnny Moreno: *Public Obscenities*

__Outstanding Sound Design of a Play__
- Justin Ellington: *Ohio State Murders*
- Tom Gibbons: *Hamlet*
- Josh Anio Grigg: *Love*
- Lee Kinney and Daniel Kluger: *You Will Get Sick*
- Ben & Max Ringham: *A Doll’s House* *
- Mikaal Sulaiman: *Fat Ham* 

__Outstanding Sound Design of a Musical__
- Peter Hylenski: *Almost Famous*
- Scott Lehrer and Alex Neumann: *Into the Woods* *
- John Shiver: *Shucked* *
- Joanna Lynne Staub: *Weightless*
- Jon Weston: *Parade* 

__Outstanding Wig and Hair__
- Campbell Young Associates: *Almost Famous*
- Cookie Jordan: *The Piano Lesson*
- Mia M. Neal: *Ain’t No Mo’* *
- Earon Nealey: *Twelfth Night*
- Mitsuteru Okuyama: *Chushingura 47 Ronin*
- Luc Verschueren: *A Beautiful Noise, The Neil Diamond Musical*

__Outstanding Solo Performance__
- Jodie Comer: *Prima Facie* *
- David Greenspan: *Four Saints in Three Acts*
- Jessica Hendy: *Walking With Bubbles*
- Anthony Rapp: *Without You*
- Tracy Thorne: *Jack Was Kind*

__Unique Theatrical Experience__
- *Asi Wind’s Inner Circle*
- *Peter Pan Goes Wrong* *
- *Plays for the Plague Year*
- *Zephyr*

__Outstanding Fight Choreography__
- B.H. Barry: *Camelot* *
- Rocio Mendez: *Día Y Noche*
- Rocio Mendez: *How to Defend Yourself*
- Unkledave’s Fight-House: *soft*

__Outstanding Adaptation__
- *A Doll’s House* by Amy Herzog *
- *Arden of Faversham* by Jeffrey Hatcher and Kathryn Walat
- *black odyssey* by Marcus Gardley
- *Oresteia* by Robert Icke
- *Wuthering Heights* by Emma Rice

__Outstanding Puppetry__
- John Leader: *Wuthering Heights*
- James Ortiz (design), Kennedy Kanagawa (as Milky White): *Into the Woods*
- Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell: *Life of Pi* *
- Kirjan Waage: *The Immortal Jellyfish Girl*


2023 Drama Desk Award winners announced

Life of Pi - 1

LIFE OF PI - Hiran Abeysekera, Richard Parker (Fred Davis, Scarlet Wildeernik, Andrew Wilson) - by Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman for Murphy Made

*Some Like It Hot* and *Life of Pi* are the top winners of the 67th annual Drama Desk Awards.

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