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Terry Teachout on the arts in New York City

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Archives for April 19, 2006

TT: Almanac

April 19, 2006 by Terry Teachout

“Of all possible debauches, travel is unsurpassed by any I know. It’s the one invented after all the others have ceased to excite.”


Gustave Flaubert, letter to Ernest Chevalier (April 9, 1851)

TT: Start your engines

April 19, 2006 by Terry Teachout

The spring rush has started. I saw three plays last week, and this week I have four more on my plate: The Importance of Being Earnest tonight, Lestat on Thursday, The History Boys on Friday, and The Wedding Singer on Saturday. In between I’ve been chipping away at the fifth chapter of Hotter Than That: A Life of Louis Armstrong (the rough draft is finished, but I’ve only edited about half of it so far) and reading the newly arrived second volume of Stephen Walsh’s Stravinsky biography, which will be published on April 25. Next week I have three pieces to write and two more shows to see.


None of this is especially surprising. May 10 is the cut-off date for Tony Award eligibility, meaning that Broadway producers are cramming in lots of big-ticket opening nights between now and then. Having been The Wall Street Journal‘s drama critic for the past three years, I’m used to it, or ought to be. It is, however, my first spring rush since my recent illness–or, to put it more precisely, since I recovered from my recent illness–and even though I’ve never felt better, I’m also more aware than usual of the potential dangers of running myself ragged, especially given the fact that I’m going to be doing more out-of-town reviewing this summer than ever before. (Look out, America, here I come!) To this end I’ve been husbanding my energies in between previews, deadlines, and visits to the gym: I’m staying home whenever possible and, as you’ve doubtless noticed, blogging less frequently.


Today is so beautiful, though, that I can’t very well ignore the blandishments of the weather, so I’m planning a picnic in Central Park with a friend, after which we might just stroll across the park to a museum and look at paintings. Or not: I’m in an improvisational mood. I don’t have any more deadlines until next Tuesday, and so long as I make it to Brooklyn by 7:15, it doesn’t matter what else I do. That’s a nice feeling.


Anyway, all this is simply a roundabout way of letting you know why you haven’t been hearing from me lately. I’m still here, I’m just fine, and I’ll be back.

Terry Teachout

Terry Teachout, who writes this blog, is the drama critic of The Wall Street Journal and the critic-at-large of Commentary. In addition to his Wall Street Journal drama column and his monthly essays … [Read More...]

About

About “About Last Night”

This is a blog about the arts in New York City and the rest of America, written by Terry Teachout. Terry is a critic, biographer, playwright, director, librettist, recovering musician, and inveterate blogger. In addition to theater, he writes here and elsewhere about all of the other arts--books, … [Read More...]

About My Plays and Opera Libretti

Billy and Me, my second play, received its world premiere on December 8, 2017, at Palm Beach Dramaworks in West Palm Beach, Fla. Satchmo at the Waldorf, my first play, closed off Broadway at the Westside Theatre on June 29, 2014, after 18 previews and 136 performances. That production was directed … [Read More...]

About My Podcast

Peter Marks, Elisabeth Vincentelli, and I are the panelists on “Three on the Aisle,” a bimonthly podcast from New York about theater in America. … [Read More...]

About My Books

My latest book is Duke: A Life of Duke Ellington, published in 2013 by Gotham Books in the U.S. and the Robson Press in England and now available in paperback. I have also written biographies of Louis Armstrong, George Balanchine, and H.L. Mencken, as well as a volume of my collected essays called A … [Read More...]

The Long Goodbye

To read all three installments of "The Long Goodbye," a multi-part posting about the experience of watching a parent die, go here. … [Read More...]

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