279 stories by "Elyse Trevers"
If you ever watched "The Office" (and is there anyone who hasn't?) you know Holly Flax, the HR person who becomes Michael's girlfriend. Played by Amy Ryan, she is always smiling, optimistic …
The latest musical by Jason Robert Brown about working and fact-checking is set at a famous New York magazine in the late 1990's before the term "fake news" became so popular. Those of us wh…
There's a scene in a dark version of Cinderella where the stepsisters, anxious to make the glass slipper fit, cut off their own toes. They will do anything they can to cram their feet in " w…
Who is Jonah? Is he the awkward, bumbling sweet young man infatuated with Ana (Gabby Beans) or is he symbolic of something more? During the first part of the Roundabout Theatre Company's pro…
Towards the end of "A Prayer for The French Republic," the latest play by Josh Harmon, Grandpa Pierre (played by Richard Masur) asks his family "Why do they hate us?" Then follows a lengthy …
Every family has its baggage but the Layayette family seems to have more than most. Secrets, resentment, and anger all surface with the death of the patriarch of the family as the three sibl…
It's the 1950's, and the Cuban revolution is heating up outside, but the music inside the Buena Vista Social Club is even hotter. While the social club is defunct, the Cuban music remains. T…
I saw three shows during my busman's holiday in London over Martin Luther King weekend. Of the three, the most 'English' was Operation Mincemeat, an uproarious musical satire based upon an a…
How does a musical that is quintessentially New York distinguish itself in London? Especially when it is a classic show that premiered in 1950. How can it be mounted to make it unique and ap…
On the recent three day MLK weekend, I took a busman's holiday, flew to London and attended several shows. The first one I saw was The Motive and the Cue, presented by the National Theatre. …
Should you talk to your plants? Science shows that the sound of a human voice helps them grow. It's also therapeutic for the gardener. In "The Gardens of Anuncia" at Lincoln Center Theater, …
Who was Johannes Gutenberg? We all know him as the inventor of the printing press which enabled more people to learn how to read.In the musical "Gutenberg," playwrights Doug (Andrew Rannells…
When we become part of an audience, we bring more than our physical selves to the theater. We bring our experiences, our attitudes and even our prejudices. When I attended the matinee of "Ho…
On the surface, Ali, the main character in the new show "Hell's Kitchen" at The Public Theater directed by Michael Greif, is a typical 17 year old girl with an easily relatable problem. She'…
At the "Mind Mangler: A Night of Tragic Illusion," I hoped to be amused as well as amazed. After all, the show at New World Stages is a Mischief Production, the group that produced "The Play…
Even before we found our seats at the St James Theater, it was easy to gauge the emotions of the audience. Its mood was downright giddy. With so much tension and anger in the world today, ev…
It 's hard to enjoy a musical when you can't root for the main character. Although he is attractive and good to his mother, Harry Bogen (well-played by Santino Fonana,) is an opportunist, a …
One man's trash is another man's treasure and that adage has never proven as true as in Theresa Rebeck's new play "I Need That" in Roundabout Theatre Company's production at American Airline…
Photo by Billy Bustamante, Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman When I first saw "Here Lies Love" in 2013 at the Public Theater, I was one of several people who stood on the theater floor and m…
photo by Liz Lauren The title of Rebeca Gilman's latest play, "Swing State," suggests that it deals with politics. Although it is set in Wisconsin, which is a swing state, the different ideo…
So much has been written about Shakespeare over the years that it's a challenge to find a novel approach to discuss his work. Yet actor Patrick Page ("Hadestown," "Spider-man Turn Off the Da…
photo by Matthew Murphy Getting married and becoming an American citizen are two events in Jaja's life. However, "Jaja's African Hair Braiding" by Jocelyn Bion is more universal than that. I…
It's been over 60 years since "Purlie Victorious" played on Broadway. Written by actor Ossie Davis and premiering in 1961, sadly the play feels as relevant as when it first opened. Deftly di…
The name Dracula always evokes iconic images of the fang-baring scary creature dressed in black. Think Bela Lugosi. Or the Count. Or even the incredibly sensual heartthrob portrayal by Frank…
The Off-Broadway show Pay The Writer at The Pershing Square Signature Center asks what it costs a writer to pursue his art. It focuses on Cyrus Holt (Ron Canada,) a celebrated author coming …
