In ‘School Pictures’ and ‘Two Girls,’ the Tweens Are Not All Right
Culture, Yesterday
Milo Cramer’s excellent lo-fi song-cycle and Eliya Smith’s verbatim play about a notorious video both reveal how young minds are made.
‘King of the Yees’ Review: Buckle Up for a Daughter’s Fantastical Quest
Culture, Yesterday
The playwright Lauren Yee paints an amusing portrait of a Chinese American father-daughter relationship before taking audiences on a delightfully wild ride.
‘Other Desert Cities’ Review: Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s Smashing Debut
Culture, October 19
Jon Robin Baitz’s 2010 family bash-em-up gets an uneven Broadway revival, with a cast that also includes Allison Janney at her droll, insulting best.
Alan Mandell, Star of ‘Godot’ and Other Beckett Plays, Dies at 98
Obits, October 18
An actor, producer and director, he also managed several theater companies. But he was best known for his performances in works by Samuel Beckett.
Whispering Phantoms and Shadowy Scares in Two Inventive Plays
Culture, October 16
The Off Broadway shows “A Ghost in Your Ear” and “The 4th Witch” use aural and visual tricks to give you the seasonal spooks.
‘Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen’ Review: Duncan Sheik’s Tale of Eros
Culture, October 16
This new musical aims to tell a sexy story about perversions and pleasures but ends up blandly nodding at eroticism.
‘Rhinoceros’ Comes to Broadway as ‘The Full Monty’ Is Postponed
Culture, October 15
John Turturro, Tatiana Maslany and Tony Shalhoub will star in a spring production of the satirical Ionesco drama.
Tackling Beauty Standards, With Zingers and Pageant Gowns
Culture, October 15
Jocelyn Bioh’s “School Girls; or The African Mean Girls Play” has audiences laughing, but also wrestles with weighty topics like colorism.
‘Macbeth’ and More Theater to Stream This October
Culture, October 15
Verdi’s adaptation of the Shakespeare tragedy comes to movie screens around the world. And “Rent” holds a 30th anniversary concert.
‘Anon’ Review: Anne Washburn’s Satire Gets Lost in the Storm
Weekend, October 15
The playwright tries to strike a middle path in this comedy about QAnon far-right conspiracy theories, which stars the reliably zany Crystal Finn.
Onstage in London: A Knockout Josh O’Connor, Cate Blanchett and More
Culture, October 14
Tilda Swinton (in “Man to Man”) and Billy Crudup and Gillian Anderson (in “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”) are among the titans making a meal of London.
‘Slam Frank’ Review: Razzing the Wokerati
Culture, October 13
After a hot-ticket comedy club run last fall, Andrew Fox and Joel Sinensky’s satirical musical, spurred by a tweet about Anne Frank, resurfaces Off Broadway.
Uta Hagen and Herbert Berghof Played Here. Now the Curtain May Come Down.
Real Estate, October 13
HB Studio, founded in 1945, has serious financial woes and is in disrepair.
A Performance Artist in a Puppet World
Arts & Leisure, October 12
Joey Arias and Basil Twist have resurrected their trippy 2008 hit, “Arias With a Twist.” Just don’t call it drag.
Baron Cohen And Tarantino Join Forces
Culture, October 11
“The Popinjay Cavalier,” directed by Tarantino, is scheduled to open for previews in London’s West End in February.
Why Wallace Shawn Stepped in to Play ‘the Other Woman’
New York, April 3
When an actress in Shawn’s play “What We Did Before Our Moth Days” got Covid, he took on the role.
As Regional Theaters Struggle, Some Defy the Odds
Theater, December 15
Naples, Fla., and Milwaukee are quite different, but have one thing in common: They are home to regional theaters that are thriving.
For Some Audiences, A Slow Bounce Back
Culture, March 12
Broadway is almost back, and pop music tours and sports events are booming. But Hollywood, museums and other cultural sectors have yet to bounce back.
Off Broadway, Labor Tension Heats Up
Metro, February 13
Stagehands and other backstage workers have gone on strike against a prominent theater, and two productions have been canceled.
Stratford-Upon-Lake-Michigan
Culture, November 23
With less touring, it’s been a while since all the world has been its stage, but the troupe is working with the Chicago Shakespeare Theater — where it has family ties.
A ‘Roommate’ Is Out With Covid. Marsha Mason Steps In.
Culture, September 15
Mason, an associate director of “The Roommate,” which opened on Broadway last week, stepped in as Patti LuPone’s counterpart.
Broadway Hits Reap Millions In Tax Breaks
Metro, May 17
Broadway is still recovering from the pandemic. A state tax-credit program has helped, but watchdogs say it aids some shows that don’t need a boost.
Audiences Are Back, More or Less
Culture, March 12
Covid brought live performance to a halt. Now the audience for pop concerts and sporting events has roared back, while attendance on Broadway and at some major museums is still down.
Theaters Experiment With Earlier Start Times
Culture, February 14
In an effort to entice audiences back after the pandemic, Britain’s National Theater is testing a 6:30 p.m. curtain.
Off Broadway, Vital to Theater Scene, Struggles
Culture, December 5
The small theaters that help make the city a theater capital are cutting back as they struggle to recover from the pandemic.
Luring Theater Audiences Back
Letters, September 10
Readers discuss the decline in theater subscribers after the pandemic. Also: Northern Ireland; food allergies; a Covid playmate; anti-China bias.
72 Regional Theaters, One Shared Crisis
Insider, July 28
Michael Paulson spoke with producers and artistic directors at nonprofit theaters across the country about the crisis their industry is facing.
Theater in America Is Facing a Crisis as Many Stages Go Dark
Culture, July 23
As they struggle to recover after the pandemic, regional theaters are staging fewer shows, giving fewer performances, laying off staff and, in some cases, closing.
A Soundtrack of Our Pandemic-Era Lives
Culture, April 19
Suzan-Lori Parks wrote one play a day for 13 months during the pandemic. Those stories come to life onstage in the form of monologues, dialogues and songs at Joe’s Pub.
An Accessible Window May Soon Be Closing
Culture, April 14
When shuttered venues embraced streaming during the pandemic, the arts became more accessible. With live performance back, and streams dwindling, many feel forgotten.
First Gloom, Zoom and Then a New Bloom
Culture, April 11
The veteran performance artist Karen Finley leads the audience through the troubles that plagued New York City at the peak of the pandemic.
Obie Awards Honor ‘English’ as Best Play
Culture, February 24
A ceremony for the awards, celebrating work Off and Off Off Broadway, will be held Monday, but organizers decided to announce the winners in advance.
Broadway Shines Brighter
Culture, January 4
Broadway shows grossed $51.9 million during the holiday week, the most since 2019, and “The Lion King” set a record for the most earned by any show in a single week.
Backstage, Challenged By Covid
Weekend, December 27
Stakeholders including Patti LuPone and Lynn Nottage share their real-time reactions to New York theater’s shutdown and reopening in Amy Rice’s documentary.
For Holiday Shows, a Spirit of Renewal
Culture, December 21
After one holiday season lost to the pandemic and another curtailed by Omicron, seasonal staples including “The Nutcracker,” “A Christmas Carol” and “Messiah” are back in force.
Why This Is America’s Most Popular Play
Culture, September 23
An annual survey, suspended during the pandemic, resumes and finds theaters nationally doing fewer shows and torn between escapism and ambition.
Did Fauci Lead America Astray on Covid?
Letters, September 16
Responses to an essay that criticized Anthony Fauci’s handling of the pandemic. Also: Migrants as props; abortion rights; David Milch; theater’s lessons.
Mask Policies: One Size Won’t Fit All
Culture, September 5
Some audience members are turned off by mask mandates. Others won’t attend indoor performances without them. Arts presenters are taking different approaches this season.
A Town Adapts As a Play Evolves
Culture, August 24
After a two-year pandemic delay, villagers in the German town of Oberammergau are once again re-enacting the story of Jesus’s life and death, with some changes.
One Broadway Show Keeps Masks. It’s Not ‘Phantom.’
Culture, June 24
“American Buffalo,” at Circle in the Square, is sticking with masking till it closes, July 10, citing the “proximity of the audience to the actors” and “the staging in the round.”
You Don’t Want to Wear a Mask? Do It for Hugh Jackman
New York, June 24
Beginning in July, Broadway will no longer require audiences to mask up. Actors and theater workers aren’t loving the idea.
You Don’t Want to Wear a Mask? Just Do It for Hugh.
Metropolitan, June 24
Beginning in July, Broadway will no longer require audiences to mask up. Actors and theater workers aren’t loving the idea.
Broadway Is Dropping Mask Rule
Culture, June 21
Most theaters stopped requiring proof of vaccination this spring. Now they are going “mask optional.”
Celebrating More Than Just the Winners
Culture, June 13
“The Lehman Trilogy” won best play, “Company” won best musical revival and “Take Me Out” won best revival of a play at the 75th Tony Awards.
Well, Folks, Looks Like It’s Time to Go
Culture, June 8
The musical, which opened in 2017, is the third to announce a closing in two days, as many shows struggle in a pandemic-softened marketplace.
Broadway Theaters Extend Mask Policy for Audiences
Culture, May 20
The decision comes at a time when New York City has declared a “high Covid alert.”
‘Can You Believe That We’re Here?’
Arts & Leisure, May 18
At times it felt like a game of survival. But during a Broadway season unlike any other, productions showed their resourcefulness while learning how to live with Covid.
‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ to Close on Broadway
Culture, May 13
The musical, which shuttered temporarily in January as the Omicron variant spread, has struggled with the slow return of tourists to the theater.
Most Broadway theaters have ended vaccination checks as coronavirus cases are rising.
Culture, May 9
Vaccine Check Goes Dark On Broadway
Culture, May 6
While for-profit theater owners and operators agreed to stop checking proof of vaccination this week, several nonprofit Broadway theaters continue to require it.
Manhattan Springs Back to Life
Travel, May 5
Broadway enthusiasts, art aficionados and food lovers will find new offerings in and around Times Square and in neighborhoods below 42nd Street, heralding the promise of a vibrant recovery.
‘For Colored Girls’ To Close on Broadway
Culture, May 3
The revival, directed by Camille A. Brown, received strong reviews but struggled to attract audiences and overcome challenges posed by Covid.