Dear Theater Fans, "Many shows leave souvenirs of themselves in the form of cast albums. And sometimes, shorn of annoying context, they're better than what was once seen onstage," Jesse Green wrote in his "highly subjective ranking" of some of the cast albums released last year. At the top of his list: "Sweeney Todd," featuring Josh Groban, who turns his performance of "Epiphany" into a murderous aria "as big as any in opera." There are so many gems, including the one at the top of my list: Jordan Donica's ravishing "If Ever I Would Leave You" (from "Camelot"). Talk about gems. Here's what Michael R. Jackson told Erik Piepenburg during an interview about the new Off Broadway musical, "Teeth": "While I'm not a teen evangelical with teeth in my vagina, spiritually I am." Let's unpack the story, which is a doozy: The show, which Jackson wrote with Anna K. Jacobs, is based on a "darkly comic and at times stomach-churningly gory" 2007 scary movie "about a high school student who discovers to her horror that she has vagina dentata." Laurel Graeber describes the work of the Paper Bag Players as "Saturday Night Live" for children. The troupe is celebrating its 65th anniversary this year, and on Sunday, it'll present "It's a Marvelous Paper Bag World!" at the Kaye Playhouse in Manhattan. If you can't make it to the live production, you can access their virtual show ("Out and About and Together Again"), and other activities on their website. Also read Alexis Soloski's interview with the writer Jacqueline Woodson, in which Woodson talked about the process of adapting two of her books for the stage. While "The Other Side" ran last weekend, "Show Way the Musical" will be presented at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on March 16 and 17. A few quick notes: ● Big Broadway news: Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal are returning to Broadway! On the same stage! Michael Paulson broke the news that the two will star in Kenny Leon's production of "Othello." The only issue: We have to wait a whole year! ● Digital stream: The Huntington in Boston is now streaming Kimberly Belflower's "John Proctor Is the Villain," which puts a contemporary spin on Arthur Miller's "The Crucible." (The play debuted in 2022 at the Studio Theater in D.C.) ● Talking Band at La MaMa: Anne Bogart and Talking Band have collaborated on the new work, "Existentialism," in which a couple grapple with, according to the La MaMa website, "how to create a meaningful life in a world where the only certainty is the inexorable passage of time." It's running through March 10, and you can read Laura Collins-Hughes's recent piece on Talking Band here. This is not from a cast album, but consider this video of Ingrid Michaelson's "Girls Chase Boys" a primer on the woman who wrote the music for the soon-to-open Broadway musical "The Notebook." Continue reading the main storyPlease reach out to me at theaterfeedback@nytimes.com with suggestions for stories or to offer your thoughts on what you've read. I'll make note of them in an upcoming newsletter. And urge your friends to subscribe to this newsletter by clicking here. Have a wonderful week, Nicole Herrington Theater Editor (@nikkih04) Continue reading the main storyLike this email?Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up here. Continue reading the main storyContinue reading the main story |
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